---- Here is a chapter. I'm going to make it the longest one yet…therefore, it will probably take me a couple of days to post! I haven't gotten my science test back, and I probably failed it! :-S Wouldn't it be so much easier to be a vampire and have it not matter whether or not you passed something such as science? ----

The fact that Max and Kennedy live on the same street taunts me all day long. What if she thinks I'm following her home? What if Melissa is going over? What if she talks to Max but not me?

"Ni, would you please stop?" Jayden intervenes at lunch. "Hmm?" I ask distractedly. "Look. If it were the other way around, Kennedy would be distracted because she's going to Max's house – not because she isn't going to yours. You can miss her – tomorrow. Today, you take revenge." Jayden huffs. "Revenge?" I'm clueless.

"Despite what she's said, Kennedy still l-o-v-e-s Max! Just go to his house and that will be the best revenge." JJ jumps in. "Yes, really, Niomi! It's obvious Max likes you, anyhow." Lillian joins the conversation. "Hell yeah!" Terra agrees.

"Maybe I don't care about getting revenge. Maybe I just want my best-friend back." I shrug. "What best-friend? Jayden is sitting on one side of you, JJ the other. We're your best-friends Ni – we wouldn't ditch you for Melissa the Malice, and definitely not over Max!" Lidia laughs.

"What are you saying? That Max isn't worth fighting over?" I question, a bit defensively. Cheryl gives a huge guffaw that characterizes her laughter – "Please Niomi," she chuckles, "Max is hot and smart and nice. But from day one, blind as Kennedy might have been – fuck, it was so obvious Max was yours."

I raise my eyebrow and look at each one of my friends. They just all shrug and nod and say, "Too true."

Then, as if on cue, Max comes over to our table and asks, "Hey, Niomi, what class do we have after lunch?"

I answer – math, I tell him woefully – and then turn back to JJ, Lillian, Lidia, Jayden, Cheryl, and Terra. "I don't want revenge…but you're right. Kennedy would."

And they all just smile, glad I've caught on.

***

"So, nearsighted or farsighted?" Max inquires, walking along beside me. He doesn't lead the way as I know the path – Kennedy and I have walked this way countless times.

I adjust the strap on my backpack, "I always get confused by those terms." I reply and then add, "I need my glasses for reading."

"Reading books or boards?" He chuckles, "Both!" I admit. "Your turn." Strangely enough, we've taken to that million question game Bella and Edward played. "Hmm. Ok. CSI Miami or New York?" I ask. "Neither!" he scoffs, "Fine, I'll ask a different question." I decide. "Not even! That one counts." "You didn't answer." "I did." "Alright." I sigh dramatically.

"Alright!" he grins. "What? Hey! Don't you know you're supposed to relent!?" I ask in mock-anger. "Too bad, guess I'm not much of a gentleman. Now, let's see…French or Spanish?"

"People say Spanish is easier, but I've decided to stick with French. I could have swapped this year but I figure I already have five years of French on my side." I reply. "Ok, make's sense." "My question for you is what languages do you speak?" I inquire.

"Well, English," I give him a look and he continues, "Hebrew…Romanian, that's where I'm from…and a tiny bit of German…plus French, from all the years I've learnt and re-learnt it in school…" He shrugs. I look at him for a second. How is a seventeen year-old passing for fourteen? Passing for a kid my age?

Usually you can just tell when kids are older. There's a difference between freshmen and seniors. But with Max, you can't tell. He passes for seventeen. I guess because he's short for a seventeen year-old – plus, being a vampire probably helps.

And just then, Ella and Kennedy give a boisterous giggle and flaunt themselves; showing off. Then, as if by some secret signal, they glare at me for about two seconds before wiggling their butts and walking just steps ahead of us.

I've turned bright red – a bad mix of embarrassment and anger – and then Max says, "Hey, Kennedy,"

A swift intake of air on my part, and a successful smile on hers. "Why, yes?" she bats her eyes.

"Could you stop being so obnoxious? I'm trying to talk to Niomi." He tells her. And the look on their faces?

Yup – priceless.

***

Max's house is similar to Kennedy's in shape and size – six bedrooms, four bathrooms, four stories, and a hell of a lot more rooms beside.

"Want to go to the library?" Max suggests as we just get in the door. I'm not in awe by his house because Kennedy's is – as I stated before – much the same. The paint's different, and the coat rack is a different make, but other than that…

"But we just got here!" I protest, thrown for a loop – all that walking just to turn back? Max grins, "Not the public library! Come on!" and he leads the way around numerouse corners and down many hallways before coming to a halt in front of double stain-glass doors. "Whoa those are nice," I'm looking at the colourful design in the glass, but Max just shrugs modestly - and throws the doors open.

His own fricken' private library!

"Oh my god Max!" I gasp. Max smiles, "Come inside," he ushers me in and this time I do look around in awe. I have a deperate desire to trail my fingers along the spines of each book, but remeber my manners and restrain myself. I do take time to glance at each title - most are about the holocaust.

"Tell me, Max - why didn't you and Lilli go back to Romania? Why did you come to Canada?" "We didn't come here immediatley." he replies. I wait for him to elaborate but he doesn't. And when he doesn't, I don't press.

"Max?" a quiet, distant voice calls out, "Are you there?" The voice must be Lilli's.

"Yeah," Max answers and motions for me to follow as he swivels through racks of books and eventually comes across Lilli at a computer. "You're home early." he comments, "I wanted to meet her!" Lilli replies with a smile.

Lilli looks way more vampire than Max. She has super-pale skin and dark rings around her eyes. She's thin and beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Lilli's hair is curly, falling into fat brown ringlets. Her eyes aren't the deep brown that Max's are - they're more hazel. Her whole frame is petite, and she doesn't look like a woman in her thirties - more like twenty-two. When she speaks, her voice is weary, almost - and timid, as if she doesn't speak often.

"Niomi, yes?" she has an accent on her English – Max doesn't, not at all. "Yeah." I nod. "You are friends with the girl who lives down the street?" She continues. I shake my head, "Nah. Um…?" I look at Max questioningly.

But instead of answering my obvious stare, he just says, "Why don't you wait here? I left the bristol board in the kitchen."

When Max leaves, I half-expect Lilli to turn back to whatever she's doing on the computer. But she just smiles at me and says, "When you grow up – what do you want to do?"

I bite my lip and shrug. I'm not sure why, but I just don't feel like telling Lilli my less than realistic dream of sorts.

"What are you doing on the computer?" I inquire. Lilli gives a light laugh, "Just playing solitaire," she explains and then adds, "Well – I'm actually writing. But don't tell Max?" I nod, her promise safe with me. "Why, though?" I'm curious.

Lilli closes her game and shows me all the words she's written. At the very bottom corner of the screen it reads Page 405. "Wow – what's your novel about?" I want to know. Lilli laughs. "Novel, no no – I would never get it published!" she smiles, "You are very nice, Niomi."

I'm flattered, but I can't help but think she hardly knows me. "That girl down the street," Lilli shakes her head, "You are much better."

I'm seriously confused. How come she can figure out all this? It's so odd. "Do you have a headache?" she asks. "No…"

Lilli beams at my answer, "This is fabulous, Niomi!" and just then, Max returns. He's caught the end of our conversation and glares at Lilli, "Linişte, Lilli! Nu m-am spune Niomi tot!" he hisses. I raise my eyebrows. Lilli mutters something and then Max switches back to English, "Come, Ni."

I come obediently, feeling like a stupid little dog but having no other option. "What language was that?" I whisper. "Romanian. And don't bother whispering – she can hear, remember?" he replies.

"Right. Sorry. So what'd you say?" I tilt my head to the side questioningly. "Ha, like I'm telling you!" he smirks. (A/N for any people who happen to speak Romanian, what he was supposed to say was, 'Quiet Lilli! I did not tell Niomi everything!' however, I only used Google translate so I probably got it wrong.)

I roll my eyes, "Fine. Lets just get to work." I decide. We work for a while and then while I'm gluing a picture down Max points out, "It's crooked." I look down at it. "No." I disagree.

"Look at it. It definitely is!" he takes the project from under my hands and holds it up. I frown. Now, about everything I've glued down looks more than a little crooked. Max is having a laughing fit. "Way to go, Niomi. Bravo!"

I straighten my glasses, checking to see there wasn't some malfunction with my eyes. "How is that possible? The papers were straight before!" I protest. Max lays the bristol board against the wall. "How about we take a break from this?"

I look at the clock hanging on the wall, "Actually, I should probably be heading home now." I say. I look out the window and notice how much darker outside it's gotten. My Mom wouldn't be home to drive me – I'll have to walk. One too many horror films and Criminal Minds episodes flash through my head.

"I'll walk you home," Max offers. "Oh, no," I blush, "That's alright. I don't want to bother you…" "Please Niomi. I don't sleep and I can run home quickly." "I'm not afraid." I add.

"Of walking home along or of me being a vampire?" he inquires. "Oh please," I roll my eyes, "Do you think I'm Kristen Stewart?" I snap, remembering the trailer for the Twilight movie, "Or Bella?" I add – recalling pretty much the whole essence of the book.

"So you were talking about walking home, then? Well, too bad – I'm coming." Max is determined, so after biding goodbye to Lilli we start out on the fifteen minute walk to my house.

"I just have one thing to warn you about," I tell Max. "What's that?" "Don't try kissing me goodnight. Kendra will have the news spread everywhere." I smirk, having caught him off guard. Max rolls his eyes, "Ha ha." He says dryly.

I grin, "Yep."

---- So that took me about four or five days! People kept interrupting me…I'm sorry it's still not even all that long of a chapter! Well, that's it! ----