Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own Moonlight, anything that occurs in this fanfic from the show, or any of its characters. I do, however, own this plot and any characters I decide to throw in. Yayz!

"H-hey." Seth replied, an awkward smile forming on his lips.

"Can I come in?"

"What?" Seth took a moment to register what she'd just said. "Oh yeah, right. Of course." He said, stepping aside to allow her entry. She stepped in and made her way to the couch. "Sorry about the mess." Seth said, looking around his filthy apartment and silently cursing himself. "I wasn't expecting company."

"It's fine." Assured Rory with a smile. "You should see my place when I'm not expecting people."

They both laughed. Yet their laughs were different. Seth's betrayed nervous confusion. Rory's showed true joy and contentment.

Seth took in the sight of Rory as she stood in front of him. She was dressed in tight-fitting blue jeans and a feminine looking black leather jacket that came to just past her hips. Her black hair framed her face stunningly; coming to just below her shoulders, and on top of her head sat a stylish black Fedora hat. She wore little makeup, save for some eyeliner, which accentuated her blue-green eyes. She looked even more beautiful than she had when he had seen her earlier that same day.

Rory glanced at the movie that was paused on the screen. "Nacho Libre, huh? I didn't think it quite lived up to all the hype."

Seth shrugged. "It's okay, I guess. I mean, it is kinda dull, but…" He shrugged again. "I paid to rent it, so I might as well watch it." He allowed his confusion to fill his face as he asked, "So, not that I'm complaining or anything, but…what are you doing here?"

Rory looked at him and shrugged. Chuckling quietly to herself, she smiled and said, "I honestly don't know. I guess…I guess I just felt like I had to see you. To apologise for what happened earlier."

"I-I thought I wasn't going to see you again." Seth said, taking a step closer to her. "I mean…I kind of got the impression that your friend didn't want me to come back." He brought a hand up and brushed it nervously through his hair.

"Don't mind Mick," she said with a small smile. "He's just the type of guy that's…how should I put it…really overprotective."

"Oh," Seth said. A thought crossed his mind and his face fell. "Oh, so he's your… your boyfriend?" He'd had trouble getting that last word out.

"What?" Rory asked, drawn from her silent thoughts by what he'd said. "Oh…oh, no. No. He's definitely not my boyfriend. He's just a good friend." She said quickly. "He's actually just letting me stay with him until tomorrow. I'm having some renovations done to my apartment."

An obvious sense of relief spread quickly over Seth's face. He suddenly looked slightly happier. Rory smiled nervously.

"So…uh, do you want something to drink? I've got coffee, tea, beer…" Seth asked quickly, breaking the silence.

"Oh, no thanks." Rory said with a polite smile. "I'm not really thirsty anyway." After a moment's silence, Rory continued. "I was wondering if maybe…you wanted to go out somewhere. Maybe…I dunno…go see a movie or something?"

Rory looked at Seth for a moment. She smiled sweetly at him, looking at him intently, waiting for his answer. Seth just stared at her, shocked. He'd never met a girl that was so forward. He was also surprised that she was showing any interest in him. He couldn't help but think that she was way out of his league. She was easily the most beautiful girl he'd ever met. He couldn't believe his luck.

"What did you have in mind?" Seth asked, a smile spreading across his face. Rory's smile widened.

"Well, Stephen King's 'The Mist' is playing…"

"Really? You'd want to go see that movie?"

"Sure…why not?" Rory asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Well, it's just…" Seth began, a sheepish smile on his face. "Most girls would insist on seeing some sort of romantic comedy or something. I didn't any girl would want to see a horror flick."

"Well, I'm not like most girls." Rory said with a smile, closing the distance between her and Seth. She leaned in, preparing to kiss him. Seth quickly backed up.

"Whoa, hang on. Are you sure that your friend Mick would be okay with this. I mean, I couldn't help but notice the guy didn't seem to like me too much."

Rory's face fell slightly. "Honestly, I don't really care what he thinks. I'm a big girl. I can make my own decisions." She said this with a slight bitterness to her tone.

"I see." Seth said. Not wanting her to think he wasn't interested in her, he smiled and grabbed his coat. "Shall we go then?"

Rory perked up immediately. "Yeah." She said simply. She smiled, grabbed Seth's hand, and led him out the door.

It was about 11:30 p.m. when Seth and Rory arrived at the movie theater. On the way there, Rory and Seth had had an animated discussion on the best movies. They were surprised to find out that their taste in movies overall was fairly close. Their favourite genres were the same: Action Thrillers and Horror flicks. They both absolutely loved the Blade Trilogy, and they agreed that The Grudge was good for a laugh, if nothing else. When it came to the Chucky movies, however, their opinions differed greatly. Rory insisted that they were the scariest movies she'd ever seen; she couldn't sleep for weeks afterward, and that she could never look at a doll in quite the same way again. Seth thought they were hilarious, and said that they couldn't scare a three-year-old.

When they'd arrived at the theater, Seth paid for the tickets and sent Rory to grab some seats while he bought snacks. He'd thought it a bit strange that Rory didn't want anything, but had simply shrugged it off and bought some stuff for himself. He made his way into the dark cinema just as the previews were finishing, and found Rory had saved them excellent seats in one of the middle rows.

"You sure you don't want any?" He asked Rory quietly about ten minutes into the movie, indicating the popcorn bucket in his lap.

"Yeah. I'm fine, thanks." She whispered back, settling back comfortably into her seat.

Rory was perfectly alright and thoroughly enjoying the movie until the first bloodshed. Then, something she hadn't expected happened. As she watched the blood dripping onscreen, she became painfully aware that she hadn't fed in a few hours. She realized that she was beginning to vamp out, and, horrified, she grabbed her bag and ran out of the theater and into the ladies' washroom. She caught a glimpse of her own startled face in the mirror, of her milky white eyes and long, piercing fangs before barricading herself in one of the cubicles. She practically ripped open her bag; luckily, she'd had the foresight to bring a few bags of blood with her, as she wasn't sure how long she'd be out. She quickly bit open one of the bags and began drinking ravenously. Upon finishing the bag, she bit into another one, downing its contents within seconds. After she'd drained it, she felt herself change back to her normal state. She stepped out of the stall, listening to make sure no one else was in the bathroom with her. She went over to the mirror and quickly washed off the blood that she'd gotten on her face. Thankfully, she managed not to get any on her shirt in her frenzied feeding. Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Rory? Rory, are you in there?" Seth called in. He'd seen her run out of the theater, and when she hadn't returned after five minutes, he got worried and went looking for her.

Rory jumped at the sound of his voice. After a moment, she called back. "Yeah, I'm fine." After one last quick look in the mirror, she ran to the door and ran into Seth on her way through it. She fell to the ground. With surprising strength, Seth took Rory by the arms and gently lifted her up. She looked up into his face, and he looked down into hers. Rory could see the worry in Seth's eyes. "I just felt a little sick, that's all."

"Are you sure you don't want to leave then?" Seth asked, concern etched in his every feature. Even his voice sounded concerned.

"No, I'm fine…I guess dinner just didn't agree with me, that's all. And besides, I didn't drag you all the way here just to run out partway through the movie. And I will not allow myself to be known as a wimp!" With that, Rory grabbed Seth by the hand and dragged him back into the theater, Seth smiling an amused smile the whole way.

Two and a half hours later, Seth and Rory found themselves walking back toward Mick's apartment. After Rory had fed, she'd had no further problems regarding the sight of blood in the movie. Tonight had taught her a valuable lesson, though; she needed to make sure she'd fed sufficiently before watching such movies, particularly when in a public setting. Otherwise, the sight of blood, even onscreen, would trigger her thirst and she could potentially become a threat.

"You know," Rory said to Seth as they walked. "I could have walked back myself. You didn't have to go out of your way like this."

Seth looked over at her, seriousness in his eyes. "Yeah, I did. After what happened…" he paused. She knew he was referring to the night she was attacked. "I want to make sure you get there safe."

Rory smiled to herself. Seth was such a gentleman. She closed the space between them on the sidewalk and grabbed his hand, interlacing her fingers with his. Seth looked down in surprise at their interlaced fingers and then back up at Rory, a wide smile on his face. They continued walking in silence like that for a while.

The sky opened up in a torrential downpour as Seth and Rory reached a point about seven blocks up from Mick's apartment. Seth looked up at the sky and then back down at Rory.

"Well this is just wonderful." Seth said, bitter sarcasm evident in his voice.

"It really is." Rory said with a smile. She let go of Seth's hand and ran ahead to a big puddle. She jumped into it, soaking herself even more than she had been from the rain alone. Seth just looked at her, surprised.

"The rain doesn't bother you?" He asked incredulously as he watched her twirl around and jump in random puddles. He actually loved the rain, personally. But Hanna had always hated it, so whenever it had rained he would have to give her his jacket and listen to her complain for the next three days about how it had ruined their evening.

"No. I love the rain. I always have." She said, grinning at him.

Seth just smiled and ran to the nearest puddle, jumping in it. He hadn't done that in a long time, ad he hadn't realized how much he'd missed it. The last time he'd played in the rain like this had been on his first date with Hanna. Hanna had insisted that splashing around in puddles was juvenile, so he'd stopped doing it. He and Rory laughed and ran and splashed through puddles all the way to the front entrance of Mick's apartment building. Both were thoroughly soaked by the time they reached the entrance. Breathing heavily, they laughed at themselves.

"Well," Seth said, looking over at the tall apartment building. "I guess this is where we say goodbye." He tried his best to keep a look of disappointment out of his eyes.

Rory's face fell slightly. "Yeah, I guess so." She looked into his eyes. He looked into hers.

"Some night, huh?" he said with a small chuckle. The night had had some pretty lousy points.

"Yeah." Agreed Rory, not taking her eyes off Seth's.

"Well, I'll see you around." Seth said with a smile, turning around to go.

Rory just looked after him. Then, a feeling of spontaneity swept over her. She ran after him.

Seth had gotten only partway up the street when someone grabbed his shoulder, turning him around. Seth barely had time to look at Rory before she grabbed him by the back of his head and pulled him into a passionate, forceful kiss. Seth was stunned for just a moment before picking Rory up and holding her close to him. He smiled to himself as Rory opened her lips and started flicking he tip of her tongue against his lips. He opened them, allowing her tongue to collide with his. She ran her hands in a frenzied manner through his long, curly hair, as though she thought that by doing so, she could bring him even closer to her. Seth broke the kiss, biting very gently on her bottom lip. This sent shivers up Rory's spine, threatening to send her over the edge. She had to struggle to keep the vampire within at bay. She took his mouth once more in a forceful kiss, a kiss that seemed to last forever, a steady motion of tongues colliding. They even forgot about the rain, which was now relentlessly pounding them, even worse than it had been moments before.

After about five minutes of frenzied, passionate kissing they broke apart. Each had a slightly dazed smile on their face.

"We should really do this again sometime." Rory said to Seth, a playful grin crossing her face.

"Definitely." Seth replied, hardly containing his own grin. "I'll see you sometime soon then?"

"Definitely." Rory replied with a smile. She leaned in and gave him a last kiss on the lips, soft this time, and said, "I really should be going back now."

"Right…Goodbye." He said, flashing her one of his smiles that made her feel weak in the knees. Then he turned to walk down the street. Rory turned and walked in the opposite direction.

After a few moments, Seth stopped and turned around, watching Rory walk away. Smiling to himself, he turned back around and continued walking.

Just as Rory reached the apartment building, she turned to watch Seth's back as she walked away. She allowed a contented sigh to escape her before heading inside, allowing herself a grin.

Exiting the elevator, Rory walked up to the door of Mick's apartment as if in a daze. She stopped outside of the door and reached into her pocket to retrieve the remote to unlock the door. She was startled when the door opened by itself.

"Welcome back." Mick said, clearly angry.

AN: Yup…it's official. My muse is back. I've got fresh ideas lined up for the next few chapters, and I'm hoping to be able to get the next one up and posted in a day or so. I'm actually really happy with the way this chapter turned out, and I hope you'll enjoy reading it just as much as I've enjoyed writing it. Well, happy new year all! 2008! Woot woot! Luvz, Cat.