Ghostbusters: Blood Heat

Part 2

Egon was becoming increasingly concerned about the vampire situation. Every day he would scan the newspapers for deaths and disappearances that might be vampire-related. He ended up with no definites but a big "maybe" pile, and asked Ray to take a look at them on an afternoon when he happened to be at the firehouse. But, in each case, Ray thought that vampires were a long shot.

"I think we got them all, Egon," he said optimistically. "Stop worrying."

"I'm definitely not going back to that school again in the middle of the night if that's what you're thinking," Peter cut in. "You wouldn't believe the grilling I got from Jessica after we were released."

As he was talking Janine wandered in with her six-year-old twins, Eden and John Spengler, as well as Ray's nine-year-old son Eric. As Eric's mother was away on business, as she so frequently was, Janine had kindly offered to do the school run for Ray.

"Hello, children," Egon smiled pleasantly. "Did you have a good day?"

"It was all right," Eden shrugged dismissively. "But it would be nice if they could teach us something we didn't already know. Were you talking about that vampire again? I have to agree with Father: it does seem strange that he locked you in the basement and got you arrested one night, and then you killed him with relative ease the next."

"He was probably having an off day," John chimed in helpfully. "Is it hard to tell if there are vampires living in your school? Maybe Charlene or Jess would have noticed something if he was still there."

"Well, actually, Jess doesn't seem to notice much these days," said Peter, suddenly serious. "I'm a bit worried about her actually."

"What's wrong with her?" asked Ray, concerned.

"Um, well, it's kinda hard to explain," Peter confessed. "She just seems to walk around in a daze the whole time. And her between-meal snacks are getting smaller."

"Hormones," John and Eden said together.

Janine looked at them sharply. "What do you know about hormones?"

"Well," Eden began, "a hormone is a biochemical regulatory substance produced in organisms - "

"Particularly pubescent human females," John put in helpfully.

" – produced in organisms and transported in tissue fluids to stimulate cells into action. They - "

"Great, honey, thanks," Janine interrupted hastily. "Well, Dr. Venkman, they might be right. It sounds to me like she's in love."

"Oh no!" exclaimed Peter. "That's all I need. Who's she in love with?"

"How should I know?"

"Well, I guess I could ask Charlene. Jess seems to tell her things these days."

It was only a few minutes later that Charlene marched into the room, followed by Winston, and threw herself onto the sofa next to Peter. Never one to beat about the bush, she got straight to the point: "So what's up with Jess?"

"I was hoping you could tell me," replied Peter. "You've noticed it too, then?"

"That girl has gone completely crazy," Charlene declared dramatically. "It's like she's on a different planet than the rest of us. And her Anthony friend is just totally out of control. He's sniffing around that Georgia like a poodle. There's no sign of this party he promised us, and Jess doesn't even seem to care!"

"That doesn't sound like Jess," remarked Ray.

"My point exactly," said Charlene.

"Janine thinks she's in love," offered Peter.

"In love?" echoed Charlene, suddenly thinking of Jessica's light-hearted banter with the stranger in the basement on their first day at school. "I guess that's possible. So you… um… definitely got rid of all those vampires?"

"Absolutely," Peter replied firmly, before Egon even had a chance to open his mouth.

"Only…" Charlene went on hesitantly.

"Only what?" Winston asked sharply.

"Well… Jess and I kind of… um… met one of them… we think… on our first day."

"What?" squeaked Winston. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because we knew you'd freak out," Charlene said defensively.

"Where was it?" Egon asked calmly.

"In the basement."

Peter shot Egon a significant look.

"What were you doing in the basement?" demanded Winston.

"We were lost. We were trying to go to the bathroom and we just sort of… wandered in. It's no big deal, Dad, ok? Stop overreacting. We didn't even know he was a vampire. I mean, hey, maybe he wasn't. He didn't even touch us."

"I wonder why not," mused Egon.

"Don't vampires only feed when they're hungry?" asked Peter. "Thank God this one wasn't. Man, that's a scary thought."

"I'll say," agreed Winston. He saw that Peter's face was entirely drained of colour, and he felt pretty shaken himself. "You should have told us."

Charlene remembered that her first instinct had been to tell her father and Jessica's about the chance encounter in the basement, but she saw now that Jessica had been wise to hold back.

"No I shouldn't," argued Charlene. "Look at you both – you're freaking out. I knew you would."

"So, Charlene," Ray cut in, realising that this argument could go on for hours. "What did this vampire look like?"

"Well," Charlene considered, "tall, thin, very pale, dark hair, brown eyes, black jeans and t-shirt, nice pecs, kinda cute…"

Winston frowned at her.

"What?" Charlene asked innocently. "He was."

"See?" Peter said complacently, looking at Egon. "We got him. There's nothing to worry about."

x x x

"You're still scared of me."

"Of course I'm scared of you," Jessica retorted, from her sitting position at the top of the steps. "You're a goddamn vampire!"

"Then why do you keep coming to see me?" Will asked coolly. He leaned casually against the wall in the far corner. They were separated by a small trickle of sunlight emanating from the small window above them, which illuminated thousands of floating specks of dust.

"I guess every girl likes at least one bad boy," Jessica sighed resignedly, wondering just why the hell she did keep coming to see him. "Hey, Will – don't you ever get caught down here, like by the janitor or anyone?"

"You know how good I can be at hiding, Jess."

She looked at him. She could see his rich brown eyes glowing through the darkness.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" demanded Jessica.

"You smell sensational," leered Will. "You're menstruating, aren't you?"

"Eww! You sick bastard!" exclaimed Jessica, outraged, quickly rising to her feet. "That's completely gross!"

"Ah, hey – don't go, baby," begged Will. "Come over here – let me touch you."

"You have got to be kidding me."

"All right then." Will stepped boldly towards her, ducking under the trickle of sunlight, and stood at the bottom of the stairs. "I'll come to you."

"And do what?" Jessica asked guardedly.

"Can I have some?" Will suddenly said pleadingly, his eyes widening like a child's.

"Some what? Some of my…? Eww!" Jessica exclaimed again. "No you damn well cannot!"

"I've done it before," he persisted. "And you'll love it – I promise."

"No," Jessica said firmly. "I'm not jumping to third base with you just like that."

Will cocked an eyebrow. "Third base?" he queried.

"Yeah. It's a baseball expression. And it's also a euphemism for… um… BWA."

Will was silent. He just gazed up at her, his expression questioning.

"Below Waist Activity," Jessica elaborated. "Ok, so like, first base is French kissing. Second base is breasts. Third base is BWA and fourth base is…"

"Penetrative sex?"

"Well, yes, but I don't feel comfortable discussing that with you."

"I understand, babe," Will smiled softly. "You and I haven't even made it to first base yet." He ascended one step, closing the gap between them by just a few inches. "I've wanted to, though."

"So have I, actually," Jessica confessed quietly.

"Well…?"

His gaze was hypnotic. She moved down one step. He moved up one. Jessica's heart was hammering. The voice of reason inside her head was screaming at her, very loudly, to stop this. She was about to experience her first kiss, at the extremely tender age of twelve, with a vampire. She closed her eyes. I've finally gone crazy…

Unsurprisingly his lips felt cold and lifeless, which indeed they were. They were still quite soft, though. It was like kissing snow. Not that she'd ever done that, but Oscar had smacked her in the mouth with snowballs before. It had been a few years ago, while they were vacationing in New York before they uprooted and moved there permanently. Jessica's stomach seemed to flip over when she thought of how Oscar would react if he could see this. Every single person she knew, if they had any idea what she was up to, would tell her what an insufferable idiot she was being. She was even telling it to herself! Why did this guy have to be so damn magnetic?

His arms were around her waist. He had pulled her body close to his. He was enjoying the feel of her pounding heart on his chest, while she felt only the hard contours of his icy corpse. This is too weird…

Will opened his mouth, and grabbed her tongue between his teeth. Jessica felt his fangs grow longer and harder, nudging insistently at the soft flesh of her tongue. For a moment she froze, terrified, as she felt the sharp points resting on her tender flesh. Then she came to her senses; she pushed him away and retreated back up the steps.

Will stared up at her, his eyes dark and insistent, and rasped in barely human tones, "Please, baby. Give me something."

"Jeez," muttered Jessica, with one eye on the door handle. "It's like being pressured for sex… I would imagine."

Will cocked an eyebrow. "A beautiful woman like you has never been pressured for sex?" he asked disbelievingly.

"I'm not a woman," mumbled Jessica. "I'm just a kid. There's no way I should be doing this."

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Will smiled apologetically. "It's just that you're so beautiful – I can't help wanting you. Especially as I've had nothing but rats' blood for… years."

He checked his faux pas in time: he had been about to say "days". The hesitation was only slight, and barely noticeable, but Jessica caught it. She looked at him, narrowing her eyes, searching his face for any sign of insincerity. He looked back up at her, still smiling, his eyes almost alive with integrity.

"I have to go," said Jessica, firmly gripping the door handle. "I haven't had any lunch yet."

When she said these words, Jessica realised that she actually was quite hungry. She left the basement and headed for the cafeteria, but Charlene accosted her on the way.

"Are you ok?" she asked anxiously, peering searchingly into Jessica's face. "You seem…"

"What?"

"Flushed."

"I'm fine," Jessica told her nervously.

"Well, good." Charlene's expression became suddenly grim. "Because the Ant situation is getting out of hand. We really need your help on this, Jess."

"Don't you think I've tried talking to him?" Jessica returned irritably. "What else do you expect me to do?"

"I don't know," Charlene said soberly. "But at least come and have a look at what he's doing."

As she couldn't be bothered to argue, Jessica followed Charlene out of the building and onto the quad. She was led over to a fairly small gathering, in the midst of which stood Ant, Georgia and Debbie, all handing out leaf sandwiches. Jessica rolled her eyes despairingly. She had to get vampires off the brain and deal with this. She should, she now realised, have dealt with it days ago. She grabbed Ant's arm, and he dropped his sandwich in surprise as he was dragged forcibly out of the small throng.

"What the hell was in that sandwich?" demanded Jessica.

"Cress," Ant answered meekly.

"Cress?" She looked absolutely horrified. "Cress? Are you crazy? How come no teachers have stopped you from selling food on school premises?"

"We're… um… not selling it. We're handing it out for free as… you know… an alternative to the cafeteria."

Jessica scowled at him, watching him shrink under her gaze as she tried to control her anger and organise her thoughts. Then she asked, slowly and deliberately, "Have you been spending our class budget on health food?"

"Some of it," And mumbled awkwardly.

"What about our party?"

"There's… um… not enough money in the budget to fund a party, I'm afraid."

"Not enough?" squeaked Jessica. "Not enough? You lied to us, Anthony! You swore blind that you would spend our money on a party! And now you've let some eighth grade bitch talk you into this! Don't you understand? NO ONE WANTS IT!"

"Yeah, well, I think this is a worthy cause," retorted Ant, speaking with a little more confidence now. "This is an important issue. I don't want to fritter away our money on some party when - "

"When Georgia's jiggling her boobs at you? My God – you are such a sheep! I'm ashamed of you! Don't you have a mind of your own, for Chrissake? I'm actually sorry I voted for you! And the alternative was Amber!"

"Yeah, well, you didn't have to nominate me, Hollywood."

Jessica's scowl deepened, and she balled her fists. "You're saying this is my fault?"

"I never even wanted to be stupid class president!"

"You said you'd listen to me!" yelled Jessica.

"I don't want to listen to you!" Ant shouted back. "You'd be worse at this than I am! You don't think anybody's opinion matters except yours!"

"Ant! No one wants this!"

"You're wrong! I do! And I'm class president so I can do whatever the hell I like!"

"You bastard!" exclaimed Jessica, suddenly losing it completely. Without even thinking, she drew back a fist and punched Ant squarely in the mouth.

"VENKMAN!" a voice exclaimed, and Jessica cursed under her breath. She wasn't sorry that she had punched Ant. However she was sorry that the principal had seen her do it.

x x x

"I can't believe this!" fumed Dana, as she shepherded her daughter forcibly through the front door. "You've only been there a week! I just don't know what to do with you! You're getting out of control!"

"I am not getting out of control!" yelled Jessica. "I just got mad, that's all! Don't you even want to know why I hit him?"

"There's no excuse," retorted Dana. "And why in God's name didn't you apologise to Anthony when the principal told you to?"

"Because I'm not sorry!" shouted Jessica. "Neither of you even listened to me! You never listen to me!"

Dana was actually quite stung by this remark, but she didn't let it show. She simply raised her voice a little higher to disguise her hurt feelings, and demanded, "How can you say I never listen to you?"

"YOU DON'T LISTEN TO ME! Do you know what your problem is, Dana? You're turning into your mother!"

Dana's mouth dropped open. She was horrified! How could her own daughter say something so hurtful? Oh God… it wasn't true, was it?

"Go to your room," Dana said coldly.

Jessica wanted to argue, as she didn't like being told what to do, but she caught the foreboding look on her mother's face and decided that it would be much easier just to give in this time. She traipsed upstairs and collapsed onto her bed, thinking about all of the things in life that were conspiring to confuse her emotions. She felt thoroughly betrayed by Ant, and she was angrier with Dana than she had been for a long time.

Jessica realised that she and her mother had been arguing quite a lot lately – certainly more than they used to. Thinking about it, she saw that most of the arguments that took place in her family were between them. Peter had once told her that, statistically, mothers and teenage daughters argued more than any other pairing. Jessica wasn't even a teenager yet, though, and wouldn't be until the following April.

It felt strange to be home in the middle of the day during the week. When Dana and Jessica were home alone together, it was usually in the evening when Peter was working – either at the firehouse, or he was on one of his visits to LA – and Oscar was out with friends. Normally on those evenings, Dana and Jessica would order a pizza and rent a movie or something. Jessica sighed, thinking that maybe she should go and try to patch things up with her mother. She sat up, having made the decision to apologise, and felt warm liquid oozing down her thighs. To her distress, she found that this made her think of Will.

All thoughts of apologies forgotten, Jessica went to the bathroom, tore off her clothes and jumped into the shower. The flow of blood was extraordinarily heavy this time, and she was now suffering from severe cramps as well. She moved her palm over her abdomen in a soothing motion, and watched as her blood drained away with the water. Normally when she did that, she thought of Janet Leigh's famous performance in Psycho. This time, however, she thought of Will, living on the blood of rats, and felt guilty for putting her own menstrual blood to waste.

Stop thinking about Will, she told herself firmly. But she just couldn't stop visualising his face, and the gleam in his eyes when he looked at her, making her feel like the most beautiful girl in the world. She looked down at her body, which often surprised her – she wasn't used to looking like a woman. Will thought she was fourteen. Actually, Jessica realised, she did look a little bit older than twelve.

She was lying on her bed, breathing coolly through the period cramps and thinking of Will, when Oscar arrived home from school. She heard him exchange a few words with Dana, and then he came upstairs.

"Hey," Jessica greeted him, not bothering to open her eyes.

"Hey," replied Oscar. "Have you been suspended from school?"

"Only until next week."

"What did you do?"

"I punched Ant in the face."

She was surprised when he came into the room and sat down on the bed. She opened one eye and looked at him, searching his face for any sign of how he was feeling. Jessica loved her brother more than she would ever admit, and she didn't like the thought that he might be angry with her, or disappointed. He didn't look angry or disappointed, though. Just concerned.

"I thought Ant was your friend," ventured Oscar.

"He was."

"What did he do to deserve a punch in the face?"

Jessica felt strangely grateful to have been asked this question. Now with both eyes open, she sat up and said, "Mom wasn't interested in why I hit him. She just kept saying I shouldn't have done it."

"Yeah, well, you kinda shouldn't," Oscar pointed out. "I think you need to learn to control your temper. So…?"

Jessica explained the Georgia situation to him, and Oscar listened without interrupting. When she had finished he said, "Well, he is about to turn thirteen, Jess, and he's a guy."

"So what's your point?"

"Hormones."

"But she's so obvious," argued Jessica. "Why can't he see what she's really like?"

"I repeat," Oscar deadpanned: "he's a guy. We're all the same: we're disgusting and we think with our dicks, especially at that age. I think you need to try and be a little bit more understanding. To be honest with you, Jess, if one girl batted her eyes at me and another one punched me in the face, I know which one I'd listen to."

x x x

Over the next couple of days, Jessica was the subject of quite a few heated arguments between her parents. Peter had reacted with surprise and disappointment to the news that his daughter had been suspended from school, but after chatting calmly to her about it he'd simply accepted her punishment with good grace. When he subsequently treated Jessica no differently from usual, Dana didn't like it. She thought he was being far too soft on their potentially delinquent child.

"Are they at it again?" asked Oscar, when he emerged from the bathroom and found Jessica sitting at the top of the stairs, listening to her parents' raised voices.

"I am a juvenile delinquent and I'm driving a wedge between my mother and father," Jessica sighed sadly.

"Well, maybe you should apologise to Ant and beg Mom's forgiveness."

"I suppose I could. I damn well want an apology from him in return, though." She looked up at him. "Are you going out?"

"Sure am."

"Great. At least one of us will have a good time tonight."

"You just need to swallow your pride, sis," Oscar smiled encouragingly, giving her a consoling pat on the shoulder before he disappeared into his room.

Jessica got to her feet, stood listening to the row downstairs for a few more moments and then retreated to her bedroom. She shut the door firmly behind her, massaged her temples for a couple of moments and then looked up. She practically jumped out of her skin when she saw a pale face peering intently through the darkness outside the window. She even screamed like a girl again.

Then she recognised him. Sighing impatiently, she shot him a scowl as she crossed the room to open the window.

"Jess?" Oscar's voice came suddenly from outside the door. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine!" Jessica called back hastily. "It's just a moth."

"A moth?" Oscar sounded amused. "Since when are you scared of moths?"

"I'm not. It just surprised me."

"Oh, you are such a girl!"

"Just get outta here, will you?" retorted Jessica.

"Ok, I'm leaving," said Oscar. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey there, beautiful," said Will. His left hip rested lightly against the outer window ledge, and he was holding onto the ivy on the wall with one hand. "Who was that?"

"My brother," replied Jessica. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I missed you, gorgeous. You've been avoiding me."

"Not by choice. I've been suspended from school for the rest of this week."

"I thought you'd left me," Will told her, sounding relieved rather than surprised. "You are pleased to see me, then?"

"Yes." Jessica returned his smile. "I am, actually."

He peered past her into the room. It was untidy, with Oscar's old clothes strewn all over the floor and books and paper arranged haphazardly on the desk. The bed was unmade, and the walls lined with shelves that were loaded with DVDs.

"You aren't like the women of two centuries ago," remarked Will.

"I should hope I'm not," asserted Jessica.

"Hey, they weren't that bad," shrugged Will. "I'd love to come in."

"I'd rather you didn't."

"Ah, well then, I can't. No problem – I'll stay out here. It's a nice night. I've missed you so much, baby. Why don't you lean out a little way so that I can kiss you?"

Jessica sat down on the windowsill and swivelled her body to face him. She didn't lean out just yet, but asked, "Can't you lean in?"

"No. I can't come in unless you invite me. Please let me touch you, babe. I can't tell you how much I've been wanting to." He looked at her pleadingly, like a puppy, and rested his shoulder against an invisible force field spanning the open window.

Jessica laughed freely. "That is so cool."

Surely leaning out of a reasonably high window with only a vampire to save you if you lost your balance was pure madness. Jessica knew this, but she did it anyway. It was a cool night, and a gentle breeze rippled through her hair and soothed her skin. Will smiled that disarming smile of his, and leaned in to kiss her. His lips still felt cold, though not dead, and Jessica found that she enjoyed it more this time.

"Amazing," murmured Will, as he ended the kiss, though their lips were still touching. "You're really something else, baby. God, what are you doing to me?"

"How did you find me?" Jessica asked suddenly.

"I hunted you down, babe. I'd recognise your scent anywhere."

"I had to ask."

"Are you ok?" asked Will, sounding suddenly concerned, and he moved back to look searchingly into her face. "You seem upset. Is it because you're being punished for something you did at school?"

"It's not like I've never been punished before," shrugged Jessica. She looked straight back into his eyes, and suddenly felt like she could tell him anything. "It's my mom and dad. Well… my mom, mostly. She and I aren't getting on as well as we have been. And I'm causing problems between her and Dad."

"I'm sorry, baby," Will sympathised. "You know I'd be happy to take you away from all this, don't you? This house, your mother…"

"Look – I love my mother, ok?"

"I'm sure you do, sweetheart. But you have to grow up eventually."

Jessica shook her head. "Not yet I don't. I'm still just a kid. I'm cool here for a few more years at least."

"Are you, baby?" He kissed her again. "Well, you must come to me if you're ever unhappy. I can give you a whole new life. We'd be so good together, babe."

He moved his kiss down to her jaw, and then her neck, taking her hand in his as it slid through the divide between her room and the outside world. She felt an icy sensation as he moved his thumb over the back of her hand, but she found that she liked it. She also liked the way his lips felt on her neck. She did feel slightly uncomfortable about this – technically she was still just a child, after all – but she couldn't help liking the way that he made her feel special… like a woman.

In fact Jessica became so caught up in the moment that she didn't even make the connection between vampires and necks until she felt his lips part, and the cold ivory of his teeth gently nuzzling her skin. She caught her breath as she felt the vampire's fangs grow bigger and harder, and far more powerful than they had felt when he kissed her in the school basement. The sharp points of the fangs nudged insistently at her soft, tender flesh, but he didn't penetrate her just yet. Jessica, though glad of this, couldn't help wondering why not. Was he waiting for her consent or something? If he was, he must be crazy. She drew sharply away from him and retreated hastily back into the room.

"I don't think so," she said firmly.

Will, at that moment, looked more animal than human. He was panting hungrily, his sharp white fangs protruding insistently from between his swollen lips, his eyes dark and heavy with desire.

"Oh baby, why not?" he asked desperately.

"Duh. Because I don't want to die!"

"You don't have to. I won't take it all."

"Why should I believe that?" asked Jessica. "Look at you – you're desperate – you could easily suck me dry by accident… if I was stupid enough to let you bite me."

"Do you know what it's like?" Will demanded sharply. "Rats bite and scratch, they smell like shit, they're covered in it. So you bite through it to get the blood you need to live, and it tastes like dust in your mouth. I want you. I see the blood in your face. I excite you and terrify you both at the same time, don't I, Jess? It sends adrenaline pulsing through your veins. I can only imagine how sweet your blood must taste."

"Yeah, you can," retorted Jessica. "And you're not sniffing around inside my pants either, if that's what you're thinking."

"Do you know what two hundred and seven years is?" Will hissed ferally. "Can you even begin to imagine it? Not to feed for too long is to be in agony, and it wouldn't even kill me for months, at least. Human blood is the only pleasure I get."

"So that's all you ever wanted from me?" asked Jessica, her voice shaking with the emotion of betrayal. "I thought I meant more to you than that."

Will gazed into her eyes, and suddenly his expression softened. He looked overcome with remorse. He tried to reach out to her, but he could only rest his palm on the invisible force field that divided them.

"I'm sorry, baby," he said. "You do mean more to me than that. You make me happy, hon. I didn't mean it. Human blood isn't the only pleasure I get. Mine isn't a happy existence, Jess. When I can get hold of human blood, that used to be all the relief I got. But now… you don't know how much difference you make to me, baby. I understand if you're not ready. I'd wait forever for you."

"You might have to," Jessica said quietly. "I'm really not comfortable with any of this, Will."

"You like me, though, don't you?" Will asked, with a small smile.

"Yeah." She smiled back, noticing that his fangs were gradually disappearing back inside his mouth. "I like you."

"I should go now, gorgeous. Your parents seem to have stopped fighting. They'll want to kiss you goodnight. Now, that sounds good."

"You already did."

"That's right. I did. I really am sorry I scared you, babe. I should learn some self-control, shouldn't I? I hope to see you again very soon, honey. Goodnight."

He blew her one last kiss, and then disappeared into the night.

x x x

Ant went to see Jessica after school the next day. Oscar answered the door to him, and immediately noticed the small cut on his bottom lip.

"How does it feel?" he asked sympathetically.

"Well, it doesn't hurt anymore," replied Ant. "She packs quite a punch, doesn't she?"

"She sure does," Oscar agreed with feeling. "Come on in."

Jessica was already at the bottom of the stairs, having come down from her room on hearing Ant's voice. She didn't say anything, but just looked at him expectantly. Oscar tactfully retreated to the living room, crossing his fingers for an apology so that Dana and Jessica could finally make up.

"I'm stepping down as class president," announced Ant.

"Oh," Jessica reacted, surprised. "Well, good. You were a lousy class president."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Well… I'm sorry I hit you."

"Don't sweat it," said Ant, and the atmosphere finally relaxed as they exchanged a smile. "Amber's class president now. There's not much left in our budget, but she called a student council meeting today and she's persuaded almost all of the other classes to put some money towards a school dance."

"Great," Jessica approved. "She's already throwing her weight around, then. Not that there's much to throw. It's weird that she's throwing a party for us. I would have thought she'd have her own agenda."

"Like Georgia," Ant said sheepishly. "I'm sorry about her too. It's just… you know… pubescent boy, pretty girl… I feel a bit stupid about that now, to be honest with you."

"It's ok," Jessica assured him, thinking of how easily she allowed herself to be manipulated by Will. "So what's the news on the cafeteria thing?"

"Georgia's dropped it. She's gotten some perspective on life since her friend Debbie went missing last night."

Jessica's eyes widened with surprise. "Debbie's disappeared?"

"Yeah. Didn't anyone tell you?"

"No," Jessica returned petulantly. "I haven't heard from any of you guys in days."

"Sorry," Ant said again. "We saw how mad your mom was when she marched you out of school. We just assumed she'd taken away your phone privileges."

"Forget it," Jessica shrugged dismissively. "So Debbie's disappeared. That's awful!"

"Yes, I know."

"I hope she's not dead."

They were both silent for a few moments. There didn't seem much left to say about Debbie, but her disappearance was a bit of a conversation stumper.

"So do you want a soda or something?" Jessica finally asked.

"Sure," Ant smiled gratefully. "You've forgiven me, then?"

"Yeah, well," Jessica muttered quietly, as she led the way through to the kitchen. "I guess I'll have to. You're just a man, after all."

x x x

On Friday morning, Ant was handing out fliers at the school gates. They were cheaply produced, but did their job of letting people know that there was to be a school dance at the end of the following week.

"Amber's got you well trained," remarked Charlene, as she skimmed through the leaflet she had been handed.

"I'm just trying to salvage what's left of my reputation," Ant replied soberly. "Amber says that because I spent most of the class budget on lettuce we don't have enough money for a really good party, so I got my dad to print these fliers at work and now I have to find cheap alternatives to whatever I can. She gave me a list," he added, whipping a small sheet of paper out of his jeans pocket and handing it to Charlene.

"How much do a DJ and a few cocktail wieners cost?" she asked, as she ran her eye down the list. "Wow – Amber sure has expensive tastes. Surely it's possible to throw a party without dry ice."

"Amber says she's never thrown a party without dry ice, and she doesn't intend to start now. I mean, where the hell am I supposed to get a cheap dry ice machine?"

Charlene considered for a moment, and then said thoughtfully, "Actually, now that I think about it, Oscar once made a comment about there always being dry ice at the parties in this place. Maybe there's a dry ice machine around here somewhere."

Delighted with this news, Ant went and told Amber immediately. However she insisted that she, as chief executive in charge of a dance being organised by the student council, would have been informed if they had access to a dry ice machine. Ant was a bit stumped by this argument, but Charlene came up with the sensible suggestion of enquiring in the teachers' lounge.

"It's completely dilapidated," their teacher, Miss Sandy, told them. "The last time we got anything out of it, it had everybody running out of the gym coughing."

"Suppose I knew someone who'd fix it for free," said Charlene, thinking first of John and Eden rather than their father. They'd love to tinker with a dead dry ice machine.

"Well, that'd be great," Miss Sandy replied dubiously. "I think we still have it lying around in the stock cupboard. Go and see if you can dig it out at lunchtime."

Neither Ant nor Charlene much fancied rifling through the contents of a cobweb-infested stock cupboard the size of a small room, but Amber insisted that the party would be a complete failure without a dry ice machine. So it was that Ant and Charlene found themselves rooting around in piles of old hockey sticks, gym shoes and computer monitors while Amber pointed out areas that they hadn't yet searched.

"You know, Amber, it wouldn't hurt you to give us a hand," Charlene snapped impatiently. "Especially since you're the only person here who actually wants to find the stupid dry ice machine."

"Don't ask Amber to get her hands dirty, Charlene," Ant said dryly. "She might break a nail."

Amber scowled at him. "You're on very thin ice, Anthony. Remember?"

"It's ok, Amber," retorted Ant. "I know how much your nails mean to you. Finding dry ice machines is men's work anyway, if you ask me."

Charlene looked at Amber. "You're not gonna let him get away with that, are you?" she deadpanned.

"Fine," Amber sighed heavily, venturing into the cupboard. She made her way towards an old door that was propped against the wall in the far corner. It was a faded blue in colour and, for some reason, bore the number 42. It had chipped paint, a small scratched window near the top and no handle. Amber got a grip on the door, moved it to one side and then screamed shrilly as something collapsed into her arms.

Ant and Charlene both abandoned their search and hurried to Amber's side. They all just stood there for a few moments, in total shock, until Amber finally came to her senses and dropped the human corpse she was hugging to her chest. She then leapt away from it and ducked behind Ant, where she stood shaking and peering at her remarkable find through her splayed fingers.

"Oh my God!" exclaimed Ant. "It's Debbie!"

Charlene didn't respond straightaway. She was too busy staring at the body. Debbie had fallen on her back, her head tilted slightly to the right with her blond hair falling over her neck and shoulder. Charlene, though not certain, thought that she could see a small red mark through the strands of hair covering the neck.

"What are you doing?" squeaked Amber, horrified, as Charlene ventured cautiously forward and brushed away a few strands of Debbie's fair hair.

"I don't believe it," muttered Charlene. She then plunged her hands into her pockets and began rooting around inside. "Damn it! Does either of you have a quarter? I need to call my dad."

"Your dad?" queried Ant. "Maybe it'd be better to call the police, or go and tell a teacher or someone."

"We will," Charlene assured him. "But we definitely need to get the Ghostbusters involved as well. See those marks on her neck? Debbie was killed by a vampire."

x x x

"What's going on?"

"Some kids found a body in a cupboard."

"I think it was somebody from the eighth grade."

"It was Debbie Lancer – that girl who disappeared."

Ray, Egon, Winston and Peter heard all of these comments, and several others, whispered by the students filing out of the school gates. The school had been closed as soon as Charlene told the principal that she and two other students had stumbled across Debbie's body in the stock cupboard. That had been less than half an hour ago, but the place was already swarming with police.

"We should check out this cupboard first, obviously," asserted Ray. "If the police challenge us we can say the school called us in."

"And vice-versa," added Egon.

"I'm going with Winston to the principal's office," announced Peter. "Jess will want to know whether Ant's ok."

Ray and Egon went over to a side entrance and ducked underneath the police tape, while Winston and Peter went to the main entrance and told the officer there that they were the parents of children involved in the incident. In Peter's case this wasn't entirely true, of course, but the police didn't question him on such a sensitive subject.

Peter and Winston both felt so sorry for Debbie's parents. They saw a couple being led into a small room by a female police officer, and thought that they were probably Mr. and Mrs. Lancer. They gave off an air of shock and sadness, although Peter and Winston only caught their back views. They exchanged a glance, silently thankful that their own children hadn't suffered the same fate as poor Debbie. Winston was particularly grateful, as his child had been at school that week while Peter's hadn't. He felt guilty for it, but as he saw Debbie's distraught parents led away, all Winston could think was: Thank God it wasn't Charlene.

Charlene was in the principal's office with Amber, Ant, the principal himself and a couple of police officers. She had so far managed to keep her head, answering questions as best she could whilst keeping a comforting arm around Amber. But the moment Winston walked into the room, the sense of responsibility left Charlene and she no longer felt that she had to cope, because here was someone else to do it for her. She let go of Amber and started to shake, collapsing into her father's open arms.

"Are you ok?" Winston asked anxiously.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," Charlene replied shakily. "I'm still alive, so I shouldn't really complain."

"I'm sorry, honey." His voice was shaking almost as much as hers. "We should have made sure that vampire was gone once and for all before I let you come back here."

These words had an effect on Peter, and he instantly felt guilty. Of all of them, he had been the most insistent that the vampire hunt was over, even when Egon had doubts. He thought of Jessica. She hadn't been near the place for days, thank God.

Peter then looked over at Ant, and saw that he had taken over from Charlene in comforting Amber.

"Hi, Dr. Venkman," Ant greeted him, as he wandered over.

"I keep telling you to call me Peter. So… are you ok?"

"I'm ok," replied Ant. "Amber's a little… shaken."

"A little?" sobbed Amber. "You'd be shaken too if a dead body fell on top of you!"

Ant was beginning to look very out of his depth, so Peter slipped an arm around Amber's shoulders and said, "Of course you're upset, honey. It's ok. Is one of your parents on the way?"

"My mom's coming," snivelled Amber.

"Good." He'd had visions of having to take her home with him.

"So what about the vampire?" asked Ant.

"Ah, well," Peter said slowly. "We're – um – taking care of that. Don't worry – we'll make sure you're safe."

x x x

"There hasn't been a vampire in this school for a couple of days."

"A couple of days?" echoed Ray. "Really?"

Egon nodded solemnly and said, "I should say he left shortly after he killed that girl, and hasn't been back since. I caught a glimpse of the body. She hasn't been dead forty-eight hours."

"So what do we do?" asked Ray.

"I think it's too late to track him down, but we should try tonight. In the meantime, we need to take Charlene home."

x x x

When all four Ghostbusters were back together and leading Charlene, who was still shaken, towards the Ecto-1, Peter saw Oscar waving frantically at him from across the street. He was on the quad outside his own school, trapped there by the perimeter fence and padlocked gates. There was no one else out on the quad, so presumably Oscar had seen the Ghostbusters and obtained permission to leave class. Peter excused himself and hurried over the road.

"What the hell is going on?" Oscar asked anxiously.

"Vampire victim in the stock cupboard."

"Oh my God!" He glanced over at Charlene as she climbed into the Ecto-1. "Is Charlene ok?"

"Yeah, she's fine – just shaken," replied Peter. "She found the body. Well… Amber found the body. Charlene was there. So was Ant."

"Amber found it? Imagine that. Dad, I thought you guys got rid of the vampire."

"So did we."

Oscar looked him in the eye. Peter looked straight back, his expression full of guilt, and said quietly, "Go on – say it."

"Say what? That you need to be more thorough next time? Like you don't already know that."

"Oscar, we were careless, and a girl died because of that."

"Dad, it's not your fault," Oscar said soothingly. "It was a horrible tragedy, and nothing else. You did everything you could. How could you know?"

"It's good to hear that from you," Peter smiled weakly. "But Oscar, it could have been…" – he couldn't bear to say it out loud.

"Yeah, I know. I thought of that. But it wasn't. Just… don't."

"Ok, well… I'd better go. Have a good afternoon. And stay out of dark corners."

"I will," Oscar assured him.

Peter made to leave, but then suddenly he turned back to face Oscar and asked, "You weren't planning on going out tonight, were you?"

"Well," said Oscar, "I thought I might, but if it'll make you feel better I'll stay home."

"Good boy."

Peter went back across the street and climbed into the back of the Ecto-1, next to Charlene. She looked a lot better now. In fact, she looked as though she was quite deep in thought.

"I'll take you home first, Charlene," said Ray, as he started up the car.

"Actually," returned Charlene, "let's go to Peter's first. I'd like to talk to Jess."

x x x

Jessica was home alone. She was upstairs doing some homework that had been sent on, when her father arrived with the other three Ghostbusters and Charlene. Peter was actually quite glad that Dana wasn't there. Things were still fairly tense between them, and he didn't want his friends asking concerned questions about his marriage.

"Jess!" he called up the stairs. "Can you come down here for a minute, please?"

Dana had insisted that Jessica remain housebound for the period of her suspension, so she hadn't bothered to change out of the trackies and t-shirt she'd slept in. When she wandered downstairs, the small crowd in the hallway made her instantly suspicious.

"What's going on?" asked Jessica.

"There was a vampire attack at school," Peter told his daughter soberly, going to put his arms around her.

"What?" Jessica whispered hoarsely, feeling suddenly numb with shock. She was aware of Charlene's eyes on her, watching her reaction. What the hell was this all about?

"I'm sorry, honey," Peter went on.

"It's not your fault, Peter," Charlene said sharply, beginning to ascend the stairs. "Jess, come on."

In a strange kind of daze, Jessica pulled away from Peter and followed Charlene upstairs. There had been a vampire attack? How? It wasn't possible, surely. Not unless Will…

"Do you know anything about this?" asked Charlene, shepherding Jessica into her bedroom and then kicking the door firmly shut behind them.

"How would I know anything?" Jessica asked guardedly. "I haven't even been in school since Monday lunchtime. When did it happen?"

"Well, presumably when Debbie disappeared, a couple of days ago."

"It was Debbie?"

"Sorry – didn't I say?"

Jessica shook her head, still in her zombified state.

"I just keep thinking about how that vampire took to you in the basement a couple of weeks ago," Charlene went on. "What was his name – Will?"

"I thought…" Jessica faltered.

"You thought what?"

"I thought they got the one that killed Jennifer."

"Well," said Charlene, "they got a vampire, but I guess maybe it was the wrong one. Egon said it hadn't been dead – undead, that is – for very long. He still could have sired that Jennifer, though, and a different one got Debbie. I mean, hey, who knows?"

"The one they killed," Jessica said slowly. "Was it…?"

"What?" Charlene asked guardedly. "Will? When I described him to your dad the other day, he said it sounded like the one they killed."

Jessica was silent. Charlene squinted at her face, as though searching for something, and saw that she had gone extremely pale.

"What is it?" demanded Charlene.

"They killed a vampire that looked like Will," Jessica said robotically.

"Yes."

"And now Debbie's been killed by a vampire."

"Yes. Why – does that mean something to you?"

Jessica shook her head and murmured, "I don't know…"

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Oh, forget it," sighed Jessica. "I guess… they got the wrong guy."

"Are you sure you don't know anything?" Charlene asked suspiciously. "You can tell me, Jess. It's ok."

Jessica looked up sharply, and saw the anxiety in her friend's eyes. She knew what a fool she'd been, but she couldn't admit it. Well, there was no point. Charlene couldn't do anything about it, and Jessica didn't even know where Will was, so she couldn't exactly help the Ghostbusters to track him down. And besides, she just couldn't admit her stupidity to anyone. It gave her a horrible sinking feeling to admit it even to herself.

Jessica surprised herself with the accusatory tone spilling from her lips when she asked sharply, "What are you accusing me of?"

"Nothing," Charlene said defensively, holding up both hands. "I didn't mean… I'm sorry. Of course you don't know anything. Forget I asked."

"It's ok," Jessica mumbled sheepishly. So now she was a liar as well as a stupid little girl. Perfect. "So I guess now they'll hunt down this other vampire and kill it."

"I guess."

Jessica felt tears pricking the backs of her eyes, and hurriedly blinked them away.

"Are you ok?" asked Charlene.

"Sure." Jessica walked past her, and pulled open the door. "Come on."

She led Charlene downstairs, where Winston was waiting. Smiling, he held out a hand and said, "Come on, Char – let's go home. Are you ok, Jess?"

Jessica nodded mutely. Charlene shot her one last questioning look of bafflement, as it was so obvious that something was wrong, but Jessica simply shook her head firmly. It was clear to Charlene that she had no choice but to give up, so she opened the front door and led the way out to the Ecto-1, followed by Winston, Egon and Ray.

Jessica continued to stand silently at the bottom of the stairs, trying to think this through but not getting anywhere. All she could think was that Will must have killed Debbie. Her eyes welled with tears. He had lied to her! She felt so betrayed!

"Jess? What's wrong?"

Damn it! She'd forgotten he was there.

"Nothing," she said hoarsely, blinking back the tears. "I'm fine."

"I'm sorry," sighed Peter, moving towards her and taking her in his arms. He pulled her close to him and stroked her hair as he went on, in soothing tones, "I really am sorry, baby. I let you down."

"Oh Dad," said Jessica, really struggling now not to cry. "No you didn't."

"Sure I did. I thought we killed them all. Egon doubted it, but I was too stupid and arrogant to listen. I put you in danger. I'm responsible for Debbie being - "

"Dad, please. It's not your fault, ok? It is definitely not your fault."

"We'll get him this time, Jessie. I promise you."

Jessica sighed deeply, squeezing his waist affectionately, and said quietly, "Great."

x x x

"That was quick," Dana murmured sleepily, when Peter wandered in shortly after one o'clock in the morning.

Peter was surprised. He had thought she was asleep. He started to peel off his clothes as he told his wife regretfully, "We couldn't find him. He hasn't been back to the school for about two days. Egon thinks that probably means he's moved on, which is obviously good because the kids are no longer in danger, but he's still out there somewhere. He doesn't seem to have attacked anyone lately, and it'll be near impossible for us to track him down until he does. Somebody's going to have to die before we can catch him, Dana."

Dana didn't know what to say. She just watched his movements through the darkness, and then took his hand in a comforting grip when he climbed into bed beside her.

"Are you still mad at me?" Peter asked suddenly. "I'm sorry you don't like how I deal with Jessica's problems, but I feel bad enough about this vampire business without you being upset with me."

"It's ok," replied Dana. "Maybe you're right about Jess. And maybe she's right about me. I was thinking about it when you came in. You don't think I'm turning into my mother, do you?"

Peter squeezed her hand and said, "If you were anything like your mother, I would have taken the kids and gone by now."

"You're not taking the kids."

"Come on, Dana. If you turn into your mother, wouldn't it be best for them to come with me?"

It was harsh, but Dana couldn't help laughing.

Peter went on, "If you ever do turn into Val, God help whoever ends up married to Jess."

"Oh, she's not getting married," Dana told him.

"No?"

"No. She's never getting married, she's definitely never having a baby and she's not even going to fall in love. She told me."

"I didn't think I'd ever fall in love," Peter smiled suavely. "And now look at me."

"I haven't quite become my mother yet, then," Dana japed, as he started to kiss her.

"Oh, please," said Peter, pulling a face. "Don't."

Evidently, however, it didn't quite kill the mood. They made love while, just a few yards away, their daughter lay in a fitful sleep. She was dreaming of Will. Her skin prickled and she twitched agitatedly, apparently trying to fight the paralysis that comes with the most latter stage of sleep. She was remembering the way he touched her, and she imagined her warm, wet blood oozing out of her soft skin and seeping over his long, hard fangs. She was vaguely aware of the pain of penetration, just for a moment, but then it felt good – better than she would have imagined.

She still feared him, though, and Jessica felt a chill run through her as she heard his voice whispering her name. When she woke up the next morning, restless and bathed in sweat, it occurred to her that the voice in all likelihood had been more than just a product of her dream. She looked over towards the window, and saw that it was open. It seemed entirely likely that Will had been out there last night, calling to her. She sighed, unsure whether to be sorry that she missed him. Had she known he was there, she could have directed her father towards him. Will would be dead now, and her conscience would be clear. Well, that was what she should have done. But she couldn't help wondering whether she would have had the courage.

It was before nine o'clock, and it was a Saturday, so Jessica turned over to go back to sleep. She wondered whether Will was any deader than he had been the last time she saw him, and then she realised that she didn't want to know. If Peter didn't bring it up, she wasn't going to ask. She was afraid of what she might hear. If Will was still out there, she couldn't stand the guilt. But on the other hand, if he was nothing more than a rotting two-centuries-old corpse, she couldn't stand the grief.

x x x

Amber Lightfoot's dramatic junior high social scene debut took place almost a week later. Jessica, in that time, didn't hear from Will, except in the recurring dreams. No one at home mentioned vampires. Everything seemed to be back to normal, though secretly Jessica was being torn apart inside by the pain of trying to forget.

Oscar drove her to the school dance on Friday night.

"Are you ok?" he asked, getting out of the car with her. "You've been acting weird all week. I kinda hoped this thing would cheer you up."

Jessica was silent. She was wearing a black hoodie and combat trousers, which she had hoped would keep out the cold evening air, but as soon as she stepped out of the car she was aware of a chill running down her spine. It wasn't just the evening breeze either. She recognised that feeling, and she could feel someone's eyes on her.

"Oh, look – here's Charlene," announced Oscar, as Winston's car pulled up behind them. "Maybe she can cheer you up."

"I don't need cheering up," Jessica said sadly.

"Well, I'd hate to see what you're like when you do need cheering up. Hi, guys," as Charlene and Winston climbed out of their car.

"Hi," Charlene smiled winningly, as she approached Jessica. "Looking good, Jess."

"Come on," Jessica asserted suddenly, grabbing Charlene's wrist and dragging her towards the school gym. "Let's go. Thanks for the lift, Oscar. I'll see you later."

Charlene's "Bye, Dad!" was but a distant hum on the horizon.

"They're growing up, aren't they?" Oscar smiled sadly.

"Sure are," Winston agreed. "It seems like only yesterday Charlene was - "

Quite suddenly, however, he cut himself off with a gasp of alarm, his eyes becoming fixed on something in the distance. Winston was evidently in some kind of shock, but he recovered quickly and ducked behind Peter's car, dragging Oscar down with him.

"Um… this may sound like a stupid question…" Oscar began.

"Ssh!" Winston hissed urgently. "I've just seen him!"

"Who?"

"The vampire we didn't kill!"

"Oh shit!" panicked Oscar. "What are we gonna do now?"

"It was following them," Winston said gravely, beginning to rise to his full height. "I'll have to go in and warn them."

"Whoa, wait," hissed Oscar, grabbing Winston's arm and pulling him back down. "That's a junior high dance. You can't go in there."

"There's a vampire in there, Oscar – not to mention your sister and my daughter!" exclaimed Winston. "Why the hell can't I go in?"

"Because you'll embarrass Charlene," Oscar explained patiently.

"You're crazy. There is a vampire following them!"

"Winston, your daughter is nearly thirteen. Trust me – you can't go in there. I'll go. I'm dressed for it," he added, indicating his baggy blue jeans. "You call for reinforcements. Don't worry – I'll look after them. What's one vampire in a gym full of teenagers?"

x x x

"Don't you think there should be some kind of prison or something for girls like that?" Charlene murmured in Jessica's ear. "They make the rest of us look bad."

Amber was approaching them, tottering precariously on three-inch narrow stilettos. She was wearing a tailored black satin dress, split to the thigh, and her hair was bouncing around like an energetic puppy. She did look pretty sensational, if a little overdressed for a run-of-the-mill school dance.

"Hi, Amber," Charlene greeted her pleasantly. "I see the dry ice idea didn't come through."

"Don't." Amber rolled her big blue eyes in an extravagant gesture. "I never even want to look at another dry ice machine."

Jessica, unsurprisingly, didn't much care how Amber's feelings towards dry ice machines had changed since the previous week. She was distracted by the sly, almost invisible movements of something that flitted between the dark corners of the room. It was Will. She was astonished to learn that she recognised his technique. It wouldn't be his style to attack a crowd of teenagers in the middle of a party, so what was he doing there? Did he want to see her? Jessica's throat went dry, and she found it hard to breathe. If Will was there to see her, did he want to kiss her or kill her?

She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard a familiar voice by her ear: "Hey."

"Jesus!" exclaimed Jessica.

"Not quite," grinned Oscar.

"What are you doing here?"

"Winston thought he saw a… um" – he glanced at Amber – "a creature of the night."

However he probably would have got away with calling a spade a spade, or rather calling a vampire a vampire. Amber wasn't listening. She was checking her complexion in a compact mirror that she had produced from somewhere. When she was satisfied that she looked as close to perfect as she could, she fixed Oscar with a dazzling smile and said coolly, "Hi, Oscar."

"Hello, Amber," Oscar smiled pleasantly. "Nice party."

She blushed furiously. "Thanks."

"It'll certainly make you a more popular class president than Ant. Is he here tonight?"

"Ant? Sure," shrugged Amber. "He's around here somewhere."

After a quick look round, Oscar spotted him. Ant was standing by the buffet, sipping from a can of Coke and cutting furtive glances in their direction.

"Excuse me, ladies," Oscar said smoothly, and he made his way over to where Ant was standing. "Hey, Anthill."

"Oh," Ant reacted. "Hi, Oscar."

"What were you looking at?"

"No one. Um… nothing."

"It wasn't my sister, was it?" Oscar enquired casually.

"Oh, no," Ant assured him. "I wasn't looking at Jess."

"I thought not," Oscar returned sagely. "Come on – have some balls. Go over there and ask her to dance."

Ant looked horrified. "I can't!" he exclaimed. "What if she says no?"

"Ant, you lied your way to becoming class president and then pursued a campaign that everybody else hated. If she says no, you've lost nothing."

Oscar smiled with satisfaction as Ant crossed the room, tentatively approaching Amber. She smacked him in the face with her hair when she turned round, but that didn't put him off. Ant blushed awkwardly for a few moments, and then Amber shrugged and grabbed his hand, dragging him out onto the dance floor.

"Amber and Ant? Seriously?"

Oscar turned his head, and saw that Charlene was standing beside him.

"He's had a thing for her since they were like nine," he told her knowingly. "Some guys just like to be dominated, I guess, and Amber sure likes to dominate."

Jessica would love to see this. Oscar looked around for her, and quickly realised that she was missing.

"Oh shit!" he exclaimed, in panicked tones. "Charlene, where's Jess?"

"Jess?" echoed Charlene, looking vaguely around. "Oh fudge. Um, well, she was with me and Amber. I guess maybe she just went to the bathroom."

"The bathroom?" squeaked Oscar. "How dumb is she?"

"People still have to pee, Oscar."

"Not when there's a vampire around they don't! What the hell are we supposed to do?"

"Well, for starters, let's not panic," Charlene said soothingly. "I'll go the bathroom and fetch her. If there is a vampire around, I'll scream like my life depends on it."

"Your life will depend on it," Oscar pointed out dryly.

"There you go, then – my plan is flawless. Don't worry, ok? It wouldn't be the first time Jess had to kick a guy in the nuts. I'm sure she's fine."

x x x

Jessica did and didn't want to see Will with equal magnitude. She remembered Dana describing similar feelings when she talked about how she had broken up with Peter, before marrying Oscar's father. Jessica was always so condemning of that decision, but now she suddenly knew what it was not to be totally sure of her own mind.

"Someday you're going to make a mistake." Dana had said that to her infinitely self-assured daughter several times over the years. Well, thought Jessica, as she tugged on the toilet chain and watched the water disappear down the u-bend. I've sure made one almighty cock-up now, Mom.

She knew she shouldn't be on her own in that place. She had decided once and for all that she wouldn't go looking for Will. But then, after peeling off her hoodie to try and cool down, she had suddenly been gripped with an overwhelming sense of nausea. Jessica had barely made it into the toilet cubicle before she started vomiting violently. She could think of no explanation for this. Her period had finished days ago, so she couldn't even blame it on hormones.

"I don't blame your mom for dumping me, Jess. But after she did, I felt sick."

Heartbreak. Jessica shook her head incredulously. She was twelve and she'd had her heart broken. She was too young! And now she was going to have to leave that stall. If she stepped through the door and Will was out there, the pain was going to get a hell of a lot worse. She felt queasy, guilty, betrayed and stupid. It was like someone was holding her heart in a tight fist, and squeezing it as hard as they could. She silently renewed her vow never to fall in love. If she could feel like this before she was even in her teens, imagine how bad it would be when it was the real thing.

Predictably, Will was out there. She dared not look him in the eye, knowing the effect he had on her. Instead she concentrated her gaze on the cold, dead, pale, knuckly hands that gripped the edge of the basin against which he was leaning.

"I missed you, babe."

"Shut up."

"Did you come here to see me?"

"No. I came here to throw up."

"Goodness. I haven't done that in about two hundred and twelve years."

Jessica didn't respond. Will took a step towards her and she gasped, afraid, pressing herself against the narrow wall between the stalls. Typically he stood between her and the door. Her heart was pounding, and she could feel his eyes on the small pulse that she knew was visible in her neck, just above her collarbone. He had kissed her there once. A shiver ran through her body as she remembered it.

"Why have you been avoiding me?" Will asked quietly.

"Please let me go," begged Jessica.

"Jess, sweetheart…"

He took another step towards her, his arms outstretched and his palms open, ready to touch the bare skin of her arms. She caught her breath and pressed herself further back against the wall. "Don't touch me!" she snapped.

Astonishingly, Will obeyed. He dropped his arms and asked, as he looked searchingly into her downcast face, "Why not?"

"You killed Debbie."

"Ah." His tone of voice conveyed absolute understanding, cruelly snapping any straws of hope that Jessica may have been clutching to. "I explained it to you, baby. If a vampire doesn't drink, he or she dies a slow, horrible death. It's basic instinct. I'm not trying to excuse what I did – just to explain it. I couldn't help myself. Haven't you ever been tempted?"

Only by you. She bit her lip to stop herself from saying it out loud. The fist on her heart was squeezing even harder, crushing it. She blinked back tears. She felt so ashamed of herself. She never cried. Until Will came into her life, she hadn't cried for about a year.

"Jess," Will went on imploringly. "I thought we had something good."

"We could never have something good," Jessica replied shakily. "You're a vampire. I'm a kid. I'm not ready to die."

"You're a woman, Jess."

"I've felt like one a couple of times lately, but I'm really not. Anyway, what difference does it make? I never should have trusted you in the first place, but I didn't realise it until recently, after I found out what you're capable of." Suddenly she looked up, gazing into his eyes, which looked moist with tears. So vampires could cry, could they? "Aren't you going to kill me?"

"Do you want me to?"

"What?"

"Do you want me to kill you? I'll bite you, right here, right now, if that's what you want."

"You're crazy," croaked Jessica, terrified.

"Oh Jessica, darling, don't you get it?" sighed Will. "I don't just want to kill you. If all I wanted was to drink from you, I would have done it days ago. You mean more to me than that. Much more." He came another step closer, so that their bodies were almost touching. "What I want… is for us to be together. Forever. Literally. If you keep on living, Jess, you'll hear that from a lot of men. But you and me… we really can be together for eternity."

Jessica just stared at him. It was obvious what he had wanted, now that he said it, but it just hadn't crossed her mind before.

"Nobody's all bad," Will went on softly, "and especially not people like me. When we're dead, we all just want the same thing that we wanted when we were alive: to be happy. When I was with you, I was happier than I've been for a long time. I haven't been anywhere near happy since the woman who sired me got caught out at dawn just over a century ago. I won't change you if you're not ready. I wouldn't do it unless you wanted it. That's why your heart is still beating. I just wish you could see how we could be together. I love you, Jess."

"Oh, you're kidding," Jessica responded, incredulous. She almost burst out laughing. "You can't love me, Will. I'm just a kid."

"I do love you," Will persisted, suddenly taking each of her arms in a cold, bony hand. "I've waited a hundred and six years for someone I could love like she loved me. I turned countless women, but none of them did for me what you can. I think, Jess, if you could learn to love me…"

"What?" demanded Jessica. "That I'd want you to kill me? I know you're unhappy, Will, and I'm sorry. God, look at you." She tried to stop herself, but her instinct to touch him was too strong, and she placed her palm on his pale, withered cheek. "You don't really think I'd willingly let you make me like this, do you?"

"But if we were together - "

"I'm happy, Will. I have a life, and a family, and I love them. I don't love you."

He looked so sad, she almost felt sorry for him. She kept thinking of Debbie, and Jennifer, and the terrible things he had done. But he just looked so heartbroken, and she knew how that felt.

"You could learn," whispered Will.

Jessica shook her head. "Please let me go."

"I can't let you go. I love you too much. Don't you remember how good it was?"

"No… please…"

Jessica looked desperately around her for a means of escape, but Will had her pinned against the wall. Her chin was in his hand, and he was moving his head towards hers. She remembered his kiss from the last time, when it was good, but now it just felt wrong. He had said that he loved her, but she was still convinced that he was going to kill her. Maybe he would change her anyway, without her consent, if he really wanted her that much. She shuddered to think of it. An eternity of living like that…

Will pulled back suddenly as a frantic hammering on the door distracted him. Jessica breathed in sharply, filled with a new hope when she heard a familiar voice – Charlene's – calling through the door: "Jess? Get outta there!"

"I can't!" Jessica called back.

She heard Charlene curse quietly, and then saw the door handle move. To barge in there would be pure folly, but Charlene knew she had to do something. But then the sound of running footsteps met Jessica's ears, and Will's. Charlene moved away from the door, shouting, "It's about time, guys! It's in there!"

Jessica barely had time to wonder why her name wasn't mentioned before the door was wrenched open and Egon, Ray, Winston and Peter all battled to get through it. The struggle didn't last long, as Peter quickly saw that his only daughter was in peril and did everything he could to be the first at her side. Will growled ferally as he felt a hand on the back of his neck, which wrenched him forcibly away from Jessica.

"You'll be sorry you touched my daughter once I'm through with you," snarled Peter, throwing the vampire against the nearest wall.

"Your daughter?" queried Will. He pushed Peter's body away from him with relative ease, and grabbed his throat in a tight grip. "May I compliment you on your DNA. She smells delicious. You three," he barked, and Winston, Ray and Egon stopped in their tracks. "Come one step closer and your friend dies."

"Don't!" wailed Jessica, and Will looked at her sharply. "What are you gonna do – snap his neck? I thought you only killed when you were hungry."

"Who told you that?" Egon asked her. "Vampires are vicious, remorseless creatures, Jessica."

Jessica ignored him. "Let him go," she said quietly.

To everyone's astonishment, except perhaps Charlene's, Will relaxed his grip on Peter and finally threw him back towards his friends. Peter skidded straight into Ray's arms, which had a domino effect that ended with Winston crashing into the open door. Jessica then saw that Oscar was outside. He looked terrified yet determined as he ran into the room and dragged his sister out by her arm.

"Are you ok?" he asked anxiously.

"God, that was scary," Jessica replied shakily.

"It's all right," Oscar said soothingly, putting his arms around her. "You're safe."

Jessica just let him hold her for a few moments while she tried to get her breath back. She then became aware of Charlene's gaze on her, questioning, almost accusing.

"How long were you out here?" Jessica asked her quietly.

"Long enough," Charlene replied evenly.

"Oh God…"

She couldn't bear to look at what was happening inside the restroom, and Charlene was busy maintaining her staring campaign. However Oscar watched intently as Will tried to fight off the assault of all four Ghostbusters. Actually, the vampire was doing a pretty good job of holding his own. He had Winston in a headlock and Ray on the floor, but the former quickly whipped out a small silver crucifix and pressed it firmly onto the back of the vampire's cold, dead hand. The ashen skin started to smoke and sizzle. Will hissed like an animal and grimaced, trying to bear it, until the pain forced him to release his grip on Winston's neck.

"Enough," Egon finally decided, whipping a wooden stake out of his pocket when he saw that the vampire was as weak as it was going to get.

Jessica's face was buried in Oscar's shoulder. Will didn't make a sound, but she heard the impact of the stake as it penetrated his chest. She felt a slight stab of pain flutter through her own heart in that moment, and then finally she couldn't hold back any longer and the tears flowed freely.

Baffled by this sudden surge of emotion, Oscar tried to comfort her, but Jessica pushed him away. Peter was already out in the corridor. He moved towards her, arms outstretched, saying anxiously, "Jess?"

Jessica moved away from him, desperately trying to blink back the tears, until finally she regained the power of speech. She looked up at her father and said simply, "I'm sorry, Dad." Then she turned and disappeared down the corridor.

Predictably Peter made to follow her, and so did Oscar. However Charlene stopped them both with a sweeping gesture of both hands and said firmly, "I'll take care of it, guys."

In truth, Charlene was ready to yell at Jessica with so much force and volume that she couldn't possibly fail to grasp how stupid she had been. However when she found her friend sobbing piteously out on one of the tennis courts, Charlene's anger instantly evaporated and was replaced by sheer undiluted pity.

"You're not mourning him, are you?" Charlene asked quietly, as she too sat down on the ground.

Jessica looked at her, wiped away the tears and then said simply, "Well, he is dead."

"Jess, he's been dead for years."

"About two centuries actually. God, I'm an idiot."

"Tell me something I don't know," Charlene said gravely. "You should have told me, Jess. You should have told someone."

"I know I should," Jessica replied shakily, "because you would have stopped it. But that's exactly why I didn't tell anyone. I didn't want it to stop. It was just so exciting. He wanted me, and that made me feel good. And…"

"And…?"

"And I liked him, ok? He seduced me, and I fell for it. I feel so stupid!"

Charlene breathed out heavily. Here was a twelve-year-old girl who had been taken in by a handsome face and a silver tongue. It happened every day.

"Oh Jessica, honey, you are stupid," Charlene said quietly, putting an arm around her friend's shaking shoulders. "But you're not all that much stupider than the other trillions of people who have been and will be seduced."

"I should have just - "

"Don't. 'Should have' is a completely pointless phrase – it doesn't help anyone. Come on." Charlene stood up suddenly, and pulled Jessica onto her feet. "You have to go and face them eventually. Head up, shoulders back, dry your eyes… this isn't the Jessica Venkman I know."

"Charlene…" Jessica sniffed pathetically.

"What?"

"Could we maybe not tell anyone quite how big an idiot I've been?"

"Keep this a secret, you mean?" Charlene asked carefully. "Well, that's up to you. But you know they'd all forgive you if you did tell them."

"I don't want my dad and Oscar to know about this, and I definitely don't want my mom to know how weak I was. I just… he made me trust him. I really thought that he was special."

"Yeah well," Charlene smiled sympathetically. "I guess he was special, in a way. But the world is full of heartbreakers, Jess. You just have to pull yourself together and move on to the next one."

"Oh no." Jessica shook her head firmly as she began making her way back towards the school building. "Never again. I'm through with men for the rest of my life. I never want to feel like this again."

However, heartbreak soon gave way to overwhelming guilt, which was almost as bad. No sooner was Jessica through the front door than in her father's arms.

"I'm so sorry, Jess," he said, almost in tears. "You almost… and all because of me!"

"What?" exclaimed Jessica. "Dad, no! This was definitely not your fault!"

"There's no point in assigning blame," Egon cut in. "I should have trusted my instincts and persisted with the hunt in the first place. I'm sure we all could have done something differently."

"No!" wailed Jessica. "Egon, it's not your fault either! It was my fault, ok? I'm an idiot, end of story."

"Idiot?" queried Ray. "Jess, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. That happens to everyone."

"Thank God you're alive," Peter whispered hoarsely, still holding onto her.

"Dad, please, don't blame yourself," begged Jessica. She felt Charlene's accusing gaze on her again, and the guilt seemed to swallow her. "It was all just a huge mistake."

"Come on," Oscar gently intervened, putting a hand on his sister's shoulder. "Let's just go home. The vampire's dead now, Dad. We can forget about it."

"Take the kids home," ordered Egon. "Ray, you and I had better see to that two hundred-year-old corpse in there."

"Two hundred and seven," Jessica muttered under her breath, as she was led out to the street where her father's car was parked, Peter clutching her hand protectively.

"Hey," hissed Charlene, drawing up beside Jessica as they walked. "Can't you see how bad he feels?"

"I can't tell him, Char," Jessica murmured back. "I'm sorry – I just can't."

"So this is just going to be our dirty little secret?"

"Yes… please. I don't care if eats away at me from the inside for the rest of my life. I never want them to know."

"Hey, Jess…" Peter suddenly ventured timidly. "Do you think… maybe… we could not mention this to your mom?"

"Actually, Dad," said Jessica, smiling for the first time in days as she squeezed his hand, "I was just about to say the same thing."

She was feeling better already, but guilt still consumed her, and would continue to do so for days… probably a lot longer. So she had a secret now. That was new. Even if she didn't want Oscar or Dana to know something, Jessica had always told her father everything. She imagined this awful secret festering inside her, driving her mad. She just knew that Peter, whose approval she wanted before anyone else's, would be so disappointed if he knew. And besides, even if she did confess to him, she could never tell him what it had really meant. So many nights afterwards she would think of Will, and his touch, and the way he had made her feel; and she would wonder relentlessly, obsessively, what their lives together could be have been if she had submitted to the kiss of death.

THE END