Since it's been so long since I've mentioned Veronica's Mom's name, it's Cameron.


"So I take it you're moving back in with your mom?" Sam questioned.

"Yup!" She gave him a genuine smile, which he hadn't seen in a long while. "I'm going to go give Michael a piece of cake. Want to come with me?"

"No, I'm good. I'll watch your slice so the fat asses don't eat it. By the way, what did you do to David? He's gone."

"I don't know. He climbed out my window when my mom showed up."

"He's a freak."

Veronica snorted and went down to the basement. "Hey Michael! You don't have to deal with me anymore because my mom kicked out Kirby so I can move back in! Michael? I brought you some…cake. Michael?" She stopped halfway across the basement. The normal ball of depression wasn't curled up on the bed. A flush of fear went through her and she slowly scanned the whole basement for him.

"Michael, this isn't funny. Where are you? Michael?" There was no sight of him. She ran back upstairs, dropping the cake in the basement.

"Max! Max!"

He turned away from Lucy and Cameron. "What is it?" He asked in a worried tone.

"It's Michael! He's gone!"

()()()()()

"Dwayne told me you've completely lost it." Michael, who looked more sickly than usual, approached Star. She had been standing ankle deep in the ocean just staring at the moon with her arms clutching a silky shawl around herself. "I don't know how long I'll be able to talk to you, I smell all these people and I'm about to lose it, too. I haven't fed in a long time."

"You smell like rotten food."

"I've...gone on an eating binge. But you smell like you haven't showered in a really long time." This time there was no joking between the two.

"I miss you Michael."

"I miss you too Star."

"I want to come back."

"You know you can't. Why don't you take Dwayne's advice and start over?"

"Because I'll go crazy. Hell Michael, I already am!"

"You're not crazy, you're just hurt." He slowly came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry for what I said. I was hurt a lot more than you were, though. I saved you from David and you just go back to him like you never really wanted to leave." He took a breath. "Did you want to leave David?"

"Yes. He's bad for me, but I love him. I'm always going to love him Michael. He was my first true love."

"Star…"

"I'm sorry Michael, but it has to be said. We can't move on until I tell you."

"Alright, I'm listening." He leaned his forehead against the back of her head and fought back the tears of pain.

"I never had a boyfriend in high school. Everyone picked on me because I was pretty but I didn't have any confidence. They were jealous so they beat me up and I…I let them. I grew up always thinking I was a worthless piece of junk. My parents weren't of any help because they were dead and I was living with a careless foster mom. At sixteen I dropped out of high school and ran away from home. I came here to Santa Carla. That's when I met Frankie."

Michael snapped his head up, unprepared for that. "Who?"

"A pimp who wanted me to work for him. I didn't know at the time what exactly he wanted me to do. He just offered me money to go to dinner with a man. So I did it. I got paid for a free meal, what could be better than that, huh?" She gave a dry, shaky laugh.

"Then, the next night after that, Frankie asked me if I was a virgin. It was so random that I thought he was joking so I told him the truth; yes, I was. He nodded and never brought it up again. Around an hour later he drove me to this hotel and gave me the key to room 206. I still remember the smell of that room. It smelled like cheap rose perfume and…sex. I didn't know what sex smelt like back then, but now I can make that connection. Stupid me, I went in with a smile. It was the guy from the other night at dinner. Only…he was just wearing a red velvet robe." Star shivered. Michael wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her closer to him.

"I was confused and just stood there like a stupid idiot as he went behind me and locked the door. I remember his breath smelled like coffee when he leaned into my ear and whispered that he…he couldn't w-wait to…to break me." Star bit back the tears.

"Star, you don't have to tell me."

"No Michael, I do." She took a deep breath and continued, "He tried to take my clothes off, but I kept pushing him away. He kept saying how he spent so much money on me and how I should be easier to fuck. He pinned me against the wall, but I clawed him off. I ran to the door and struggled with the lock. The next thing I knew, he was completely naked and brushing up against me. I shoved him off me and ran out of there with my blouse half off and my skirt tangled and twisted. I'm surprised I didn't fall flat on my face.

"Outside I kept running until I reached the cave where the Boys live. I sat down at the edge and debated about jumping off. I felt so gross and ruined. Actually, I almost did jump. But that's when a man knelt down next to me. He asked me what the matter was and I told him everything. I hadn't even seen his face yet, but I told him everything. He let me collapse into his arms and cry. I don't know why he didn't kill me then...he just let me cry and cry to my hearts content. When I was done I sat up and finally looked at him. It was David. He…he was the most beautiful man I had ever seen. I don't know if it was because he was the first person to be nice to me or because I was so suicidal anything gentle looked beautiful, but I loved him.

"He led me down to the cave and said I could stay there for the night; that he would protect me. I think the fact that he used the word 'protect' made me fall in love with him. I stayed there for a year, met the others, met Max, and got along with everyone really well. A year after David found me on his doorstep," she took a breath, "I went to bed with him."

Michael's grip tightened around her waist and she paused. "No, go on. You're right, I have to hear this."

"I woke up the next night and felt different. I wasn't a vampire yet, but I felt like I finally belonged somewhere. I belonged to David. I loved it. A few nights later he told me what he was and that he wanted to change me, too. I held off for another year until my eighteenth birthday; that's when I drank from the infamous bottle. I willingly became what I was so I could be his forever. Then I saw David in his true self. The horror of killing humans overwhelmed me. He led me to the man who almost raped me, but I couldn't even kill him. I wasn't meant to be a vampire and David grew frustrated with me. Then you came along and...and I fell in love with you."

They listened to the sound of the waves for a while as everything set in. Michael sighed and brushed Star's hair off the left side of her shoulder so he could look at her. Tears left a wet trail down her face and more continued to fall.

"Where do we go from here?" She whispered.

"I don't know. I honestly don't know." Michael's face changed and he slowly bit into her neck. She whimpered and clung onto his arms.


Thanks for reviewing (and sorry for the late update, hope you guys didn't forget about me!):

Jenni-Marie-HP; EvilFalconofDoom; N3ko8; SkittleMachine; animalbx; mickishai2000; tomieharley (I apologize about another Star chapter); Kagome Narome and my guest: CFS