*ONE MONTH LATER*

"Ashley, hurry up with the blood!" Anna yelled at me from the couch. "I'm fucking starving over here!"

"Yeah!" Nadia agreed, her head bobbing up and down in agreement. "I thought you said you had some."

"I do-vampire blood. For me," I argued, as I came back into the living room of my apartment with a big popcorn bowl filled with red, sticky human blood. "I had to run and steal summa this from the hospital."

"Finally!" Sara moaned and she and Cherie shoved their hands into the bowl, dripping blood all over the couch.

"Aww, come on, you guys!" I moaned. "I just had that cleaned yesterday!"

"Don't be such a sourpuss, Ash," Cherie said as she turned on the movie.

"Really. Loosen up!" Nadia agreed as we settled down to watch it.

These were the vampire friends that I had made since I got here, and I loved every one of them like a sister.

They made it easier to accept it: this is my new life. And because of them, I wasn't totally bummed about it.

Just as we were getting into the movie, there came a knock on the front door, andI twisted my head around to look at it.

"Who could that be?"

"Leave it," Anna advised, not moving her eyes from the TV screen. I ignored her and got up to go answer the door.

"Nobody listens to me!" Anna moaned, and Sara snickered.

"And they shouldn't!"

"Shut up, fucker!"

I grinned and did my best to ignore my friends as I opened the door.

My tongue dried up in my mouth, my stomach was in knots, and my feet turned to lead.

"D-Damon? What the fuck are you doing here?"

"I've been looking for you everywhere," he admitted.

"Why? Where's Katherine?"

"Back in the tomb," he replied and I blinked in surprise.

"When did that happen?"

"You were right about her, Ash. She hasn't changed at all and I'm really sorry." I glared at him. Damn! Just as I was getting over this mother fucker!

"About what?"

"You know what," he argued. "I still love you and..."

"Why should I believe you?" I cut him off.

"Tap into my emotions. Read my mind. Then you'll sure as hell know that I'm not lying." I frowned, but then tapped into his emotions without even trying.

Holy fuck. He wasn't lying. He did love me.