"So, tell me your latest theory. I am dying to know."

"Fine. I'll tell you how I got my theory.

"It was Monday evening, and my old friend from Phoenix called me, telling me all about this new book about vampires." She froze, but kept driving. "So I started thinking. Most of the signs matched up. The ones that didn't I just assumed were what fiction got wrong. Super-speed. Super-strength. Inhuman beauty. Invulnerability. Skipping school on sunny days and skipping class the day we bloodtyped. Shall I go on?"

"You think I'm a Vampire?"

"Yes."

She sighed. "You're right."

"You are a Vampire?" I asked, a bit shocked that I was right.

"But don't worry. My family drinks animal blood, not human. I have literally never tasted human blood. Neither has Carlisle or Rosalie."

"Could I ask you a few questions about your species?"

"Go ahead."

"Burned by the sun?"

"Myth."

"Garlic, wooden stakes into hearts, holy water?"

"Nope. Don't harm me."

"Reflection in the mirror?"

"Yes."

"Turning into a bat?"

"No."

"Permission to enter a house?"

"Nope."

"Sleeping in coffins?"

"No. My family and pretty much every other Vampire I've met can't sleep….but I can. I don't know why. Maybe it has to deal with my shield."

"Shield?" I asked.

"I can block out physical attacks. That gun would have done nothing. The bullet would have just bounced off."

"When you saved me from the van…."

"I expanded my shield to move the van out of the way. Yes."

"So everything I thought I saw—that day with the van. That all happened for real. You stopped the van."

She shrugged. "Yes."

"How strong are you?"

She glanced at me from the side of her eye. "Strong enough."

"Like, could you lift five thousand pounds?"

She looked a little thrown by my enthusiasm. "If I needed to. But I'm not much into feats of strength. They just make Emmett competitive, and I'll never be that strong."

"How strong?"

"Honestly, if she wanted to, I think he could lift a mountain over his head. But I would never say that around him, because then he would have to try." She laughed, and it was a relaxed sound. Affectionate.

"Were you hunting this weekend, with, uh, Emmett?" I asked when it was quiet again.

"Yes." She paused for a second, as if deciding whether or not to say something. "I didn't want to leave, but it was necessary. It's a bit easier to be around you when I'm not thirsty."

"Why didn't you want to leave?"

"It makes me… anxious… to be away from you." Her eyes were gentle, but intense, and they made it hard to breathe in and out like normal.

"Can you tell me why you hunt animals instead of humans?"

"As great as being a Vampire is, the idea of killing a human for blood just sounds wrong. I can't be sure, but I'd compare it to living on tofu and soy milk; we call ourselves vegetarians, our little inside joke. It doesn't completely satiate the hunger—or rather thirst. But it keeps us strong enough to resist. Most of the time." Her tone darkened. "Sometimes it's more difficult than others."

"Is it very difficult for you now?" I asked.

She sighed. "Yes."

"But you're not hungry now," I said—stating, not asking.

"Why do you think that?"

"Your eyes. I have a theory about that. Seems like the color is linked to your mood—and people are generally crabbier when they're hungry, right?"

She laughed. "You're more observant than I gave you credit for."

The darkness slipped by us in silence. I realized the car was slowing, and even in the dark I recognized the landmarks. We were passing into the boundaries of Forks. It had taken less than twenty minutes.

"Will I see you tomorrow?"

"Do you want to?" she whispered.

"More than anything else I've ever wanted." It was pathetic how obviously true the words were. So much for playing hard to get.

She closed her eyes. The car didn't deviate so much as half an inch from the center of the lane.

"Then I'll be there," she finally said. "I do have a paper to turn in."

She looked at me then, and her face was calmer, but her eyes were troubled.

We were suddenly in front of my parents' house. The lights were on, my car in its place, everything totally normal. It was like waking up from a dream—the kind you didn't want to lose, the kind you kept your eyes closed tight for, rolled over and covered your head with a pillow for, trying to find a way back in. She shut off the engine, but I didn't move.

"Save me a seat at lunch?" I asked hesitantly.

I was rewarded with a wide smile. "That's easy enough."

"You promise?" I couldn't keep the tone light enough.

"I promise."

I stared into her eyes and it was like she was a magnet again, like she was pulling me toward her and I had no power to resist. I didn't want to try.

The word vampire was still there between us, but it was easier to ignore than I would have thought possible. Her face was so unbearably perfect, it hurt in a strange way to look at it. At the same time, I never wanted to look away.

Suddenly her left hand was there, palm forward, an inch from my face, warning me back, and she was cringing against the car door, her eyes wide and frightened and her teeth clenched together.

I jerked away from her.

"Sorry!"

She stared at me for a long moment, and I would swear she wasn't breathing. After a long moment, she relaxed a little.

"You have to be more careful than that, Edward," she said finally in a dull voice.

Cautiously—like I was made of glass or something—her left hand lifted mine off her right and then let it go. I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Maybe—" she began.

"I can do better than that," I interrupted quickly. "Just tell me the rules, and I'll follow them. Whatever you want from me."

She sighed.

"Seriously. Tell me to do something, and I'll do it."

I regretted the words the second they were out of my mouth. What if she asked me to forget about her? There were some things that weren't in my power to do.

But she smiled. "All right, I've got one."

"Yeah?" I asked, wary.

"Don't go in the woods alone again."

I could feel the surprise on my face. "How did you know that?"

She touched the tip of her nose.

"Really? You must have an incredible sense—"

"Are you going to agree to what I ask or not?" she interrupted.

"Sure, that one's easy. Can I ask why?"

She frowned, her eyes tight again as she stared out the window past me. "I'm not always the most dangerous thing out there. Let's leave it at that."

The sudden bleakness in her voice made me shiver, but I was relieved, too. She could have asked for something much harder.

"Whatever you say."

She sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow, Edward."

I knew she wanted me to leave now. I opened the door unwillingly.

"Tomorrow," I emphasized. I started to climb out.

"Edward?"

I turned and ducked back awkwardly, and she was leaning toward me, her pale goddess face just inches from mine. My heart stopped beating.

"Sleep well," she said. Her breath blew into my face—it was the same compelling scent that haunted her car, but in a more concentrated form. I blinked, totally stunned. She leaned away.

It took me a few seconds till my brain unscrambled and I was able to move again. I backed out of the car, having to use the frame for balance. I thought she might have laughed, but the sound was too quiet for me to be sure.

She waited till I'd stumbled to the front door, and then her engine quietly revved. I turned to watch the red car disappear around the corner. It was suddenly really cold.

I reached for the key automatically and unlocked the front door.

Mom and dad were watching "Titanic" on the couch.

"Hey, son." Dad said.

"Hey. Do you mind if I hit the hay? I'm tired."

Mom smiled at me. "Sure, go ahead."

I headed to my room and threw myself onto the bed.

There were a few things I knew for sure. For one, Bella was an actual vampire. For another, there was a part of her that saw me as food. But in the end, none of that mattered. All that mattered was that I loved her, more than I'd ever imagined it was possible to love anything. She was everything I wanted, the only thing I would ever want.