A/N: Hello again. I've brought you a gift. A present of an update. It's slightly longer than the ones that I've been doing lately. So please enjoy.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Scarlet stormed into a hotel room with Felicia on the phone behind her, grumbling and throwing things. Felicia winced and closed the door.

"Yes, Mum. I'm sure we'll figure out the flight situation in no time and be on our way home," Felicia said, speaking to her mother on the phone. "Yes, I love you too. And we'll be safe. Promise. Okay? Bye."

Scarlet spun around once the phone call ended and pointed at her best friend. "You know they did this, don't you? The fucking lot of them got our tickets declined and are going to get me in so much trouble. If I don't show up when my dad expects me to, I'm going to get the beating of a lifetime. Not to mention the food deprivation and the forcing to look for another horrid job while locked in my room."

Her blonde friend made a face. "Your parents are horrible."

"Worse than that," Scarlet muttered, shaking her head. She smashed her fist into her hand. "I'm going to pommel those bastards. Tell them to pay for new flights home."

Felicia nodded. "We can do that, after lunch."

Scarlet felt her stomach growl and rumble and sighed. "Fine, lunch first. Boy beating later."

"Yep."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Scarlet stood on the boardwalk, hair pulled up into a ponytail and clipped high. She stared out at the world beyond the water and couldn't see anything but endless black. Felicia was keeping watch for the Boys. Scarlet could care less if they showed up or not that night.

Did they do it because David wants me to decide to stay here? Because if he's doing that, that's not working. I have to go back. My parents will send police on the hunt for me if I don't go back soon. Who else is supposed to provide income besides Dad? Because I know Mom won't and my sisters could really give less fucks than they should. It always falls on me. Damn. This is when I could use something to chew on.

"They're here," Felicia announced as the sound of motorcycles approaching filled the night. "Are you going to talk to them?"

Scarlet shook her head and sighed. "If I talk to them, I'm going to shout at them. Make a scene. And I don't want to become the center of attention. So me no talky."

"Okay, my dearest." Felicia stood next to her friend and tapped her fingernails against the wood railing. "I can do a little talking."

The black haired Goth shrugged a shoulder and started chewing her bottom lip because there was nothing else to chew on.

"Hey pretty ladies!" Paul howled, racing over to them with Marko hot on his tail. "Fancy seeing you here."

Marko snickered and gathered Felicia in his arms.

"Boys, no," Felicia said, putting a hand on Marko's face to keep him from kissing her. "We're kind of mad at you."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Kind of" doesn't cut it.

Paul and Marko gasped, eyes going wide. "Mad at us?" Marko asked. "What could we have possibly done to make you mad at us?"

Scarlet felt eyes on her and pointedly stared out at the ocean. Felicia started explaining everything about why they were mad at the Boys to Marko and Paul, but all Scarlet heard was blah blah blah. She felt David's presence next to her, but refused to acknowledge him. Her head hurt as she chased colorful shapes on the ocean's surface.

Don't lose it while they're here…somehow they'll take advantage of you.

David put a hand to her chin and pulled her bottom lip free of her teeth. "I'm the one that's supposed to bite these lips. You'll just tear them up this way."

Scarlet pulled herself free of his grip and said nothing. She gave him a dirty look and then looked back out at the water.

"I do believe you girls didn't appreciate our little gift," David said softly. "398 dollars back in your account and more than that back in Felicia's account, all in exchange for a little longer vacation. What could be wrong with that?"

Scarlet looked down, saw his booted foot, and stomped on it as hard as she could. David hardly even reacted – just flinched a little. Scarlet huffed in semi victory and glanced over at her friend. Her eyes narrowed as she saw that Felicia was being tickled and hugged into forgiving the three Boys around her. She was resisting, but her resistance was failing.

Jackasses.

"Talk or I'm going in," David said, putting his hand on her lower back. "And you made me promise to stay out of your head for several reasons."

Scarlet stiffened and looked at him with daring eyes. David held her gaze for a moment and then smirked. His hand fell away from her back.

"Someone has a backbone now," he commented, putting a cigarette to his lips. "I wonder where she got so much confidence."

Scarlet saw the flash of fire and grabbed the cigarette from him, putting it between her own lips and took a drag. She coughed as expected, hated the flavor, but it gave her something to do rather than chew on her bottom lip which he wouldn't let her do.

"Eh, Paul?" Dwayne said, pausing mid-tickle to look over at David and Scarlet. "Am I seeing what I think I'm seeing?"

"Do you see our strict little Scarlet puffing away on a cigarette?" Paul asked, glancing over too. "Because we must be crazy if we are."

"No, she's actually doing it," Marko said, sounding impressed.

"Woo! Rebellion!" the Boys howled, jumping around Felicia.

"My dearest, are you – are you okay?" Felicia asked, peeking between the Boys' bodies. "You swore you would never smoke before…"

Scarlet shrugged a shoulder and looked out at the ocean. David's hand found the back of her neck and he pulled her back by it, so that she was leaning back in a very awkward for her position. She hissed as she looked up at him and put the cigarette back between her lips.

"Why are you so mad?" David demanded. "We've messed with you before and you didn't act this way. I gave you some more time away from the bastards that abuse you, so you should be grateful."

"Grateful?" Scarlet asked, pulling the cigarette from between her lips. "Grateful?! You're going to bring the cops into this or worse, they're going to come here and search the entire city of Santa Carla for me, all so they can bring me back to that stupid in the middle of nowhere town where the real punishment begins. And I'll never be allowed to travel again, so I won't be able to see Felicia ever again because I would rather rot in Hell than have her come to that house for any period of time. And God damnit David! Did you think about my medications or my sanity?" Scarlet reached into her purse and held up empty medication bottles. "I only had enough to last till today. I was supposed to pick up the new refills when I went home. Now I've got to worry about everything in my head acting up and whether or not I'm going to be sleepy all the time or if I'll be able to sleep without nightmares or sleep at all. God damn you!"

David glanced at the pill bottles in her hand. "Stow them away and give me the purse."

"Fuck you."

Scarlet's mind went blank for a moment, but it was a soothing blank. When she came back around, Paul was gone and so was her purse. David was supporting her so she wouldn't fall onto the ground.

"What happened?" Scarlet asked, blinking.

"You just stopped talking, got a spacey look on your face, and almost fell over, Scarlet," Felicia said, standing in the arms of Dwayne now. "I don't know what made you do that. Are you feeling all right? Should we go to the hospital?"

Scarlet shook her head and looked back at David. "You did something."

"A distraction," David said, tracing his fingers over her cheek. "I'm very good at them." He brought his lips to her ear. "I could distract you in a better way if you want? Let you take all your frustrations and just expel them from your body."

Scarlet groaned. Half of her wanted to agree. The other half wanted to slap him.

She slapped him.

"No. I'm mad at you." Scarlet threw the cigarette out into the ocean, surprised that she'd managed to hold onto it and crossed her arms. "Feed us."

David chuckled. "Boys, let's find someplace to entertain these bossy little girls."

"What about Paul?" Felicia asked. "He –"

"Worry about Paul later, Blondie," David ordered, hardly glancing over at her.

Felicia huffed. "Blondie? Speak for yourself, David."

The Boys laughed and Scarlet shared a look of "oh God, what did we get ourselves into" with her best friend.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Touching is bad," Scarlet commented, squirming in her seat next to David. "So stop doing it."

"No," David said, tracing little circles on her hip under the table as he wrapped his arm around her. "I don't think I will."

Scarlet grabbed him by the front of her shirt and pulled him to her level. "Have you heard of consent, David?"

David smirked. "You gave it last night."

Colored flared up in Scarlet's ivory cheeks. "That doesn't cover future touches and such and you fucking know it, Lost Boy." She snapped her teeth at him and he growled at her. "Oh, go bite an electric fence."

Felicia giggled and tried not to spew her drink out of her nose as she drank from her soda, but Dwayne and Marko were making it hard by whispering things into her ears. Scarlet kicked the nearest one to her: Dwayne.

"Knock it off," she ordered.

Dwayne rolled his eyes. "Yeah, you're so scary," he muttered before returning to teasing Felicia.

"Don't worry about them," David whispered in Scarlet's ear. "You should worry about me."

Scarlet tried her best to ignore the way he bit her ear where her earring was and tugged. "I'm actually trying to keep myself from killing you, so worry about yourself. And…" She closed her eyes. "I've been trying to get everything in my head to calm the fuck down."

David sighed and pressed a kiss to her temple. "You know I would get rid of them in a heartbeat if I could."

"But you can't. Nobody can." Scarlet stirred her drink around with a straw. "I'm stuck with them forever because of genetics gone wrong."

"You turned out exactly how you were intended to be," David told her quietly. "And exactly how I needed someone to walk into my life as."

Scarlet glanced at him. "You're kinda dead though."

"Yeah, but you don't have a problem with the kinda dead part," David pointed out with a grin. "Miss Vampire Lover."

Scarlet hushed him and glanced around. "You're awfully bold when commenting about the undead and how you're connected to it. What would your Master say?"

"Fuck him." David's eyes flashed. "He's said a lot of things lately and I say fuck him."

Marko banged his fist on the table twice and pointed at David in agreement. David threw back his drink and helped himself to another bit of soggy nacho before looking at Scarlet.

"Forget about him."

"That's easy. I don't know him."

"Good. Keep it that way, both of you," Dwayne ordered, giving a blushing Felicia a stern look.

"Yes sir," Felicia giggled, looking tipsy.

"Great, great, great," Scarlet muttered, shaking her head. "I see your plan. You fill our cups over and over again during dinner, just waiting for us to forgive you lot."

Felicia gasped. "No! No, no, no. We're – we're ma- in love with you Boys!"

"Aw, she's still so cute when she's drunk," Marko commented, patting Felicia on the head.

"I'm not drunk," Felicia mumbled, glaring at him. "You're drunk."

"Can you guys please take her back to the hotel?" Scarlet asked, sagging down in the booth seat next to David. "I think she's done for the night and my dearest, you have my permission to play with them if you sober up some."

Felicia's eyes widened and brightened. "Really?!"

Scarlet waved her hand. "Go and do your worst."

Felicia giggled excitedly and bounced out of the booth with Marko and Dwayne. She leaned across David and gave her best friend a hug. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!"

David let out a little annoyed sound and pushed her back. "Get out of here."

"Rude."

"Rude," David mocked as Dwayne and Marko helped Felicia out of the restaurant. "Rude…I'm not rude."

"You really are," Scarlet commented, taking a sip of her drink. "Rude, arrogant, think you're God. Shall I continue?"

David glowered at her and then got a smirk on his face. "C'mon." He slapped a hundred on the table and pulled her from the booth. "Let's see how rude I am."

He pulled her from the restaurant and Scarlet pulled him to a stop, looking up at the moon as it sat in the sky, almost gone for the month. Her eyes grew wet and the breeze brushed against her. David glanced at her and then the moon and back again.

"You feel a connection to the moon?" he asked.

"Moons, thunderstorms, trees, the wind, elephants," Scarlet whispered, staring up at the moon. She blinked. "Why does that matter?"

David shook his head. "Sweetheart, I don't think you belong with the church goers. But that's a discussion for later." He pulled her again. "Come on."

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

Scarlet looked at the markings on her wrist and hands and felt a prickle on her neck. David had bought tattoos for her and more piercings for her ears, her nose, and one on her lip that she could eventually play with. She could only imagine the looks she'd get if she went home and how her parents were going to react.

"I like them," she whispered, staring at the moon in phases on her fingers. She glanced at David. "But you know this means I can't go in the ocean anymore, right? Because ouch."

David smirked as he puffed on his cigarette. "You told me about your dreams for piercings and tattoos and now you have a few of them." He glanced back in the direction that they came. "Damn bastard had to close down for the night, so no big tattoos for you."

Scarlet nudged him. "You're grumpy because he wouldn't take your bribe to stay open a few more hours. He turned you down flat."

David growled and poked her ear where one of her new piercings was, causing her to wince. "Shut up."

Scarlet laughed and threw her arms up in the air, spinning around in a circle. "Woohoo! People can tell David 'no'!" She danced out of his reach when he tried to snag her. "Not everyone falls for your charms, honey."

David held her gaze, not moving a muscle. Scarlet held her breath and blinked, but turned around with a hand raised, blocking his hand from grabbing her neck.

"No vampire shit on me," Scarlet whispered, staring up into his eyes.

"Says the girl that likes to be bitten," David commented, searching her eyes as he smirked.

Scarlet flipped him the bird and stepped back, only to be spun back in by David. He nuzzled her neck and Scarlet smiled, looking up at the night sky, at the moon.

"What does the moon say tonight," David whispered, pressing his cheek against hers and holding her in his arms.

The Goth sighed. "Change is coming. Soon the darkness comes, but light will follow in its wake."

David looked up at the sky with her for a moment before deciding it was time to for her to get back to the hotel.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

David led Scarlet down the hall to her room and smirked as he plucked the Do Not Disturb sign off the door. "Look at that. Someone got lucky tonight."

"Yeah and it wasn't you," Scarlet shot at him. She crossed her arms and stared at the door. "So what do I do? Do I go away? Do I go in? Surely whatever's happened, happened."

David smirked. "You've never had to deal with this, have you?"

Scarlet was over reacting to things she hadn't done or experienced. "No. Why should I have been? I don't have a family that thinks sex is okay and I didn't stay in the dorms at college. I'm a newbie to this, okay?"

The platinum blond sex god shrugged a shoulder. "At least you admit it."

He turned and opened the door, pulling Scarlet in with him. He was amused when she immediately covered her eyes and then peeked through them.

"You two are clothed," she whispered, addressing Marko and Dwayne. "What about Felicia?"

Marko smiled behind his thumb. "She's got some clothes on."

"Just not all her clothes," Dwayne said with a shiteaters grin.

David caught hold of Scarlet before she could leap at his brothers. She growled and tried to twist out of his grasp, but he wasn't going to let her until she calmed down. He brought his lips to her ear.

"You're the one that told them to have fun," he reminded her in a smooth voice. "So they had fun."

Scarlet breathed harshly for a moment before letting out a sigh. She stopped resisting him and went over to her bed, sitting down on the edge of it.

"Great. I let it happen. Her mum is going to kill me." She looked at Dwayne and Marko with wide eyes. "Please say that she's not going to end up pregnant after all this?"

"Nah, but you are though." Marko snickered, slapping his hand against his leg.

"You can't have children with vampires," Dwayne told her. "You're both safe."

Scarlet nodded. "Okay."

David glanced to his left when someone came off the balcony. Paul hurried in with a look of wild excitement on his face. In his hands was Scarlet's purse. He laughed loudly and pointed at the people on Felicia's bed.

"Good for you. Love what you did for her. You're beautiful babes." He turned to Scarlet. "Love the whole new look, Scarlet princess. Your looks are to kill for." He glanced at David and sobered, tossing the purse at him. "Here's her bag full of treats. It's cuddle time."

David rolled his eyes as Paul attempted to pounce on Scarlet, only to be splayed out on the bed with Scarlet untouched. He moved over to Scarlet and held out the purse. He coached her with his eyes to look inside it and the girl did to his surprise. A look of confusion hit her face as she pulled out a full bottle and read the label.

"This is…a full bottle of my medication," Scarlet whispered before looking further through the bag. "These are all my prescriptions. Full bottles of them." She looked at David and Paul. "How?"

"Best not to ask questions, love," Paul said, poking her on the nose. "Boop."

"You needed them, you got them," David told her, stroking her hair. "Now take them like a good girl, say goodnight, and get some sleep."

Scarlet collected the right pills for the night and glanced at him as she grabbed a water bottle. "I'm doing this because I want to, not because you told me to."

David rolled his eyes.

He watched her make a face at the taste of the pills. Of course they had to be disgusting. When were pills not disgusting? Couldn't they have been less disgusting for someone he cared for. At least it was over quickly. One swallow, followed by a chaser of water, goodbye taste, hello health benefits.

You know what else could help her, Paul's voice entered his head.

David sent him a look. Don't go there right now.

Dwayne put his hands up in surrender and looked away. Scarlet stared at the floor and David kept petting her hair. He worked out the clip and the ponytail and pocketed them, hoping she wouldn't try that tactic again. Scarlet hummed and laid down on her bed, looking over at her best friend sleeping the night away.

"She's going to freak out, you know?" she whispered sleepily.

"Nah, she'll be cool," Marko stated, looking confident. "She's just going to go 'oh my God, my clothes! I'm sorry, Scarlet dearest.'."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "You're not supposed to call me that. 'Scarlet Dearest' is a me and her thing. So fuck off. Have a good night. Drown in the ocean. And see you tomorrow or whatever the fuck happens. Bye."

David gripped her by the shoulder before she could roll all the way over and looked down into her eyes. "We play nice here, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sleepy time now." She leaned up and gave him a kiss before rolling over onto her back. "Go eat a bunch of surfers or whatever sounds tasty to you."

You sound tasty to me, David thought, but he kept silent.

He smoothed his hand along her body as he walked away, his Boys following him. They made it to the balcony and jumped off the railing, disappearing into the night.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A/N: I have no clue why I wrote my best friend as a tipsy drunken lady, but that's what my brain spewed out. (You'll have to forgive me, my dearest.) Please let me know what you think in the review box. Thank you and have a wonderful night. -Scarlet