Chapter Three

"Juliet?" Justin stares at her in disbelief.

"Justin?" Juliet's face looking back at him is an almost mirror image of his own, framed with shock and disbelief. Three years haven't changed her at all (of course; she's a vampire) – she looks just as breathtakingly beautiful as the day he lost her. Same dark blond hair, now pulled into two loose messy braids; same angular, heart-shaped face; same petite, curvy figure; same magnetic chocolate eyes.

"What happened to you? I mean, how did you escape?"

Juliet looks left and right, taking in the crowded, bustling hallway – evidently, Justin wasn't the only Columbia student who came back early to get some studying in. "Is there a place we can talk? In private, I mean?"

"My room," Justin says without thinking. "Follow me."

Justin's roommate is still there when they get back, but it doesn't take much to convince him to leave. "So this is the infamous Juliet," Scott remarks, staring at her. Pulling Justin aside, Scott whispers in his ear, "How on Earth did you score such a babe?"

Justin stiffens, and thankfully Scott doesn't press the issue anymore. "See you later, man," Scott says as he walks out the door, winking as he does.

" 'So this is the infamous Juliet'? Just what have you been saying about me, Justin?" Juliet asks from her cat-like perch on his bed. Already she looks perfectly at home, and Justin imagines her in that same position, glowing in the early-morning light, his sheets wrapped loosely around her body…

"Hello? Justin? Earth to Justin?" Juliet snaps her fingers in front of his face, and he is startled from his daydream, embarrassed at having been fantasizing about her. "Am I going to get an answer?"

"Freshman year, during orientation, we all got drunk and played I Never. Someone said 'I never fell in love' and… well, the whole story came out. Not about you being a vampire, of course."

"Of course," Juliet agrees, and he can't decide if she's mocking him or not.

Justin sits down at his desk, since Juliet seems to have claimed his bed and he's not sure if it would be too awkward to sit next to her. "So… how did you escape the mummy?"

"A monster hunter caught him a couple months ago. When he was put in Monster Jail, the spell on his minions was broken. All the minions were rounded up to have their memories erased – since most of them were mortals – but I ran away. If they'd found me, they would've put me in Monster Jail as well. I found my parents living in Europe, and I've been staying with them for a while."

"Are your parents okay?" Justin thinks back to having to tell the van Heusens that their daughter was now an eternal mind-slave to a mummy. It was… not a pleasant experience, to say the least.

"Dad was… well, Dad, about the whole thing. I just ignored him. And Mom just seemed happy I wasn't still a mind-slave."

"So… if you found your parents again, why did you come back to New York? And what are you doing in Columbia?"

"I… wanted to see you. You always talked about applying to Columbia for college, so I assumed you'd be here. So… I applied too."

The fact of her last statement hits him hard. "You mean… you're going to Columbia?"

"Well… y-yeah. I was kinda hoping we could… that we would…" Seeing his confused face, Juliet stands up and heads for the door, blinking back what look like tears. "But if you don't want to… I mean–"

Before she has the chance to get out another word, Justin has crossed the length of his room to stand next to her and wraps his arms around her in a tight embrace, crushing her against his body. She rests her head in the crook of his shoulder as he buries his head in her hair, breathing in her sweet vanilla perfume. It's like he's come home.

Finally he releases her, still keeping his hands on her upper arms as to not let her go completely. "You still love me?" she asks tentatively, as if she's scared to know his answer.

"I never, ever stopped," Justin promises, pulling her back into his arms again. She leans her head against his chest, listening to the steady beating of his heart.

"Those years with the mummy… they were the scariest time of my life. And I've lived for over 2,000 years," Juliet confides. "I haven't felt emotions that strong since I was human. Even being a vampire with a soul isn't like being human – you can still feel emotions, but only a fraction of what you feel when you're human. But when I couldn't be with you… my heart physically hurt."

"I never stopped thinking about you," Justin replies, squeezing her even tighter against his chest. "I tried hunting down the mummy in high school, but I just kept hitting dead ends. And then when I got accepted into Columbia, my parents said they thought I should give the whole finding-the-mummy thing a rest and concentrate on my studies. But I never, ever, ever stopped missing you, or loving you."

"My Justin," she whispers, resting her head on his shoulder.

"My Juliet," he responds, tracing little circles on the smooth skin of her neck.

Justin tilts her chin up, so her warm brown eyes meet his clear gray ones. "I love you," he whispers, staring deep into her eyes, before he brings his lips down to meet her own.

It's like their first kiss all over again. Juliet's lips are soft and sweet, and she responds to his kiss with startling passion, sliding her arms around his neck to bring him closer to her. When he nibbles slightly on her bottom lip, asking for entrance, a low moan escapes her mouth as it parts to let him in, their tongues playfully wrestling for dominance.

Wrapping his arms around her waist, Justin pulls Juliet over towards his bed. Their lips still fiercely connected, he reaches for the bottom of her shirt, tugging it upwards.

Instantly, Juliet backs out of his arms. "Justin, what are you doing?"

"Don't tell me you don't want this."

"Of course I want this – it's all I could think about ever since the mummy's spell was broken. But Justin… I could hurt you."

"Juliet, I know this could be tricky because you're a vampire," he says, reaching for her hand. "But I don't want you any less. And I know you won't hurt me."

"Justin, I don't think you completely understand. If anything happened… if I lost control for even a second… I could kill you, Justin."

"No, you won't, Juliet," he insists.

"How can you be so certain?" she asks. "I don't think you really understand just what's at stake. This is your life we're talking about here."

"I know you," he continues, disregarding her last statement. "You couldn't hurt a fly. There's no way you'd kill me."

"But that's what I'm saying – if I lost control, it wouldn't be me anymore, Justin. I'd be… something else."

"I trust you," he says, stroking his thumb over her palm gently. "Please, Juliet? You're all I can think about, all I dream about. I've waited for this for so long." His eyes are pleading, and she can feel her resolve wavering.

"Justin…"

"I thought I had lost my chance three years ago, when I let you leave with the mummy. Now… I found you again." His fingers trail up and down her exposed arm, causing her to shiver at his gentle touch. "I need you, Juliet."

"If I… if I hurt you in any way, you have to tell me," she starts, reaching for his hand and interlocking her fingers with his own.

"I promise."

He cups his hands around her face, bringing his lips down to hers again, and slowly, gently, pushes her down onto his bed.