I made my way to English with a huge smile on my face. It was the cockiest I'd been in a while and I didn't even care that class had already started.

"Thank you for joining us, Mr. Strada," Mrs. Mason said in a disparaging tone.

"No problem Dolores, any time." I shot back at her, amazing myself and starting a round of laughter throughout the class. I slid into my seat with ease, before feeling my smile fade when I realized Michelle wasn't sitting in her usual seat next to me. I felt a twinge of guilt. But she and Erica both met me at the door as usual, so I figured I there weren't too many hard feelings. Michelle seemed to become more herself as we walked, gaining enthusiasm and the usual bounce in her step. A smile found its way back to my face. She talked about the weather this weekend, reminding us of the beach trip to Santa Monica. The smog was supposed to take a minor break, making her beach trip a lot more pleasant. My good attitude made it easy to sound eager; I decided I had to go to make up for disappointing her yesterday. It would be smoldering no matter what and I was guaranteed to get roasted whatever we did.

The rest of the morning passed in a happy blur. Despite my good mood it was difficult to believe that I hadn't just imagined what Layla had said, and the way her eyes had looked. Maybe I just couldn't comprehend after all my awkward years in Forks that someone could be intrigued by me, especially someone like Layla. It seemed incredibly improbable but I was sick of practicality. It was time I started believing in my own appeal.

So I was impatient and anxious as Jesse and I entered the cafeteria. I wanted to see her face, to see if she had gone back to the cold, hard person I'd done prior to this morning. Or if I hadn't imagined it and she really was interested in me. Jesse talked happily about his dance plans with Michelle; they were going as a group with the people we sat with at lunch. Not that I was paying attention at all.

Disappointment flooded through me as my eyes unerringly focused on her table. The other six were there, but she was absent. Had she gone home? I followed the still-rambling Jesse through the lunch line, crushed. I'd lost my lovely mood along with my appetite- I bought nothing but a bottle of sweet tea. I just wanted to go sit down and sulk. All of that positive thinking for nothing. I was truly never going to escape disappointment.

"Dude Layla Kelby is staring at you again," Jesse said, finally breaking through my haze with her name. "I wonder why she's sitting alone today."

My head snapped up so fast I felt my ringlets bounce lightly. I followed his gaze to see Layla, smiling angelically, staring at me from an empty table across the massive cafeteria from where she usually sat. Once she'd caught my eye, she raised one hand and motioned with a delicate white index finger for me to join her. As I stared, my spirit soaring once again, she winked. I felt a huge grin return.

"Whoah, does she mean you?" Jesse asked with astonishment in his voice.

"Looks like it, doesn't it? Better go see what she wants!" I didn't feel bad about rubbing it in, he had Michelle. I laughed in his face then turned and smoothly walked to the table where Layla was. I paused when I got there, still a bit unsure of her.

"Why don't you sit with me today?" she asked, still smiling. I sat down quickly, watching her with curiosity and caution. She was still smiling. It was hard to believe that someone as beautiful as she was could even be real. She was so extreme in every way, I expected her to disappear in a sudden puff of smoke any moment.

She seemed to be waiting for me to say something.

"This is… interesting," I said, rather lamely.

"Well…" she paused, and then the rest of the words followed in a rush. "I decided as long as I was going to hell, I might as well do it thoroughly."

I waited for her to say something that made sense. The seconds ticked by.

"You realize I have no idea what you mean," I pointed out a couple minutes later.

"I know," she smiled again, and then changed the subject. "I think your friends are angry with me for stealing you."

I chuckled. "They'll survive." I could feel their eyes on my back.

"I may not give you back, though," she said with a wicked glint in her eyes and equally wicked grin on her mouth.

I grinned back. "You promise?" I couldn't help myself. She laughed, her eyes full of secrets.

"But out of curiosity, what brought all this on?"

"I told you- I got tired of trying to stay away from you. So I'm giving up." She was still smiling, but her azure eyes were serious.

"Giving up?" I repeated, confused.

"Yes- giving up trying to be good. I'm just going to do what I want now, and let the chips fall where they may." Her smile faded as she explained, and a hard edge crept into her voice.

"You lost me again."

The breathtaking angel smile reappeared.

"I always say too much when I'm talking to you- that's one of the problems."

"It's okay, I don't understand any of it," I said honestly.

"I'm relying on that."

"So, in plain English, are we… friends? Now?"

"Friends…," she mused, hesitant.

"Or maybe not," I said quietly.

She grinned. "Well, we can try, I suppose. But I'm warning you now that I'm not a good friend for you." Behind her smile, the warning was real.

"You know you say that a lot," I pointed out; trying to show her that her warning didn't frighten me.

"Yes, because you're not listening to me. I'm still waiting for you to believe it. If you're smart, you'll avoid me."

"I suppose I'm stupid then, because I don't see that happening." Might as well be honest with her.

She smiled, a little sadly.

"So, as long as I'm being stupid, we'll try to be friends?" I tried to summarize our agreement.

"That sounds about right."

I looked down at my hands wrapped around the sweet tea bottle, not sure where to take the conversation from here.

"How are you feeling?" she asked curiously.

I looked up into her deep blue eyes and, without thinking, blurted out the truth.

"Confused. About what you are."

Her sharp jaw tightened, but she kept her smile in place with some effort.

"Are you having any luck with that?" she asked in an odd voice.

"Not really," I admitted.

She laughed quietly. "What are your theories?"

I looked down again. I had been pondering back and forth between Alice Cullen and Super Woman. There was no way I was going to ruin my chances by confessing to that.

"Won't you tell me?" she asked innocently, tilting her head to one side with a shockingly tempting smile.

I shook my head. "Too embarrassing. You'll laugh at me."

"That's really frustrating, you know," she whined sweetly.

"No," I disagreed, feeling some of my own anxiety coming out, "I don't see how it's frustrating when someone refuses to tell you what they're thinking, all the while you make cryptic little remarks specifically designed to keep the other person completely in the dark about everything, while mercilessly flirting with him. No, that's not frustrating at all."

She pouted.

"Or maybe, say you also did a wide range of bizarre things- from saving the person's life under impossible circumstances one day to treating like the person like a leper the next, and you never explained any of that either, even after promising to do so. Would you consider that frustrating?"

"Have I really upset you that much?"

"I don't like double standards."

We stared at each other, suddenly serious. She glanced over my shoulder, and then, unexpectedly, snickered.

"Your girlfriend seems to thing I'm being rude to you. She's debating whether or not to come and take you away." She snickered again.

"That's impossible seeing as I don't have a girlfriend. I'm sure you're wrong anyway."

"People are pretty easy to read."

"Except me, right?"

"Yes, except for you." Her eyes turned sulky suddenly, her mood shifting as it did so often. "Why is that?"

This time I was smart enough to turn away from the intensity of her eyes. I stared down at my tea bottle, slowly unscrewing the cap and taking a quick swig.

"Aren't you hungry?" she said, sounding far off.

"No." Even with a teenage boy's stomach I couldn't concentrate on food around her. "You?" The table was empty in between us.

"No, I'm not hungry." She silently laughed to herself at a joke I had apparently missed.

"Can you do me a favor?" I asked after a second of hesitation.

She was suddenly wary. "That depends on what you want."

"It's not much," I assured her.

She waited, curious.

"Could you warn me shortly before the next time you decide to ignore me for my own good? Just so I'm prepared." I dared looking up at her. Her expression was in between amused and cautious.

"I think that sounds fair." She said, trying not to laugh.

"Thanks."

"Then can I have one answer in return?" she leaned in temptingly close. I couldn't refuse.

"One."

"Tell me one of your theories about me."

Uh-oh. "Not that one."

"You didn't specify, you just promised one answer," she reminded me.

"Then again you've broken promises yourself, haven't you?" I shot back, leaning in a bit myself.

"Just one theory, please? I won't laugh."

"Uh, yeah you will."

She looked down, and I thought she was going to give up, but just then she glanced up at me through her long dark lashes, her azure eyes blazing at me.

She leaned in even closer, her voice breathy. "Please?"

I wasn't exactly in a trance, but I was close. How did she do that?

Still staring into her eyes, almost in a monotone, I heard myself say "You don't happen to have fangs do you?" Her eyes still burned at me.

"Vampire? That's not very creative," she sounded disappointed.

"Sorry, that's all I've got." I said, mad at myself for saying that much.

"You're not even close," she teased.

"No golden lassos?"

"Nope. I'm flattered though." She giggled.

"You're not supposed to laugh, remember?" but I chuckled myself. "Oh well, I'll figure it out eventually." I said confidently.

"I wish you wouldn't try." She was serious again.

"Because…?"

"What if I'm not a superhero? What if I'm the villain?" She smiled playfully, but her eyes were cold.

"Ah," I said, as several things she'd hinted fell suddenly into place. "I see."

"Do you?" Her face was abruptly harsh, as if she were afraid she'd accidentally said too much.

"You're dangerous?" I ventured, my pulse quickening as I realized the truth of my own words. She was dangerous. Extremely dangerous. Just like she had been trying to tell me all along. She just looked at me, eyes full of some emotion I couldn't comprehend.

"You're bad, very bad. But I'm not going to stay away." There was no way I could just forget her at this point.

"You're stupid." Her voice was almost inaudible. She looked down, stealing my bottle lid then spinning it on its side between her fingers. I stared at her, wondering why I didn't feel afraid. She meant what she was saying, but the only thing I felt was intense fascination and the usual need to touch her. Right about then I realized the cafeteria was quickly emptying.

I slowly got to my feet and stretched. "We're going to be late."

"I'm not going to class today," she said, twirling the lid so fast it was a blur.

"Why not?"

"It's healthy to ditch class now and then." She smiled up at me, but her yes were still troubled.

"Okay, well, I'm going," I told her. I didn't feel like scratching my so far perfect record.

She turned her attention back to my tea cap. "I'll see you later, then."

I hesitated, hating to see her alone when I could be with her, but then the first bell sent me out the door- with a last glance confirming that she hadn't moved a centimeter.

As I half-ran to class, my head was spinning faster than the bottle cap. So few questions had been answered as opposed to the unbelievable amount that had been raised. I may not know exactly what she was or what she was capable of, but I did know for certain that she was interested in me.

I was lucky; Mr. Banner wasn't in the room yet when I arrived. In Layla's sudden decision to be my friend, I had totally forgotten that Biology today, due to surprisingly good test results, would consist of a nature hike to a nearby lake today. Everyone was gathered in groups, my lunch table next to a window in the back. Michelle and another boy from the group, Andrew, looked at me as I walked through the door. Michelle looked pissed off. Andrew looked… impressed.

Armed with my new cocky grin, I quickly walked over to my group and inserted myself into the circle. Just then Mr. Banner walked in with a stack of worksheets, our assignment for the day, and asked a short blonde boy to hand them out.

"So all you have to do is fill out the chart identifying the plants you see as monocots, dicots, mosses, ferns, and so forth. It may not even count as a grade, but I'm fairly sure you can all handle it." Mr. Banner sounded regretful about agreeing to this, but picked up his water bottle and cell phone and headed out the door, expecting us to follow.

Typically I would hate being outside for over an hour in Los Angeles sun, but today, after my encounter with Layla, I felt confident I would be fine outside.

We followed a long, mostly clear path behind the school, through sparse scraggly trees and shrubbery, which opened on a tiny green lake. I was shocked that an unpolluted body of water, no matter how small, was anywhere close to the city. Michelle forgot her anger and we all had a great time. Our time was almost up when, while chasing Andrew around the water and ending up pushing him in, I reverted to my usual clumsiness and tripped over a huge tree root; banging, scraping, and tearing my shin, then toppling into the water after Andrew.

He was laughing hysterically, so were the other people who had decided to hop in the water earlier. I however, was not laughing. My shin stung like it was on fire and my favorite Converse would be ruined after this. I wiped the water out of my face, pushed my dripping hair back, and climbed up the bank onto land. Upon looking at my shin, I cussed so loud Mr. Banner, sitting down across the lake, called my name out. I ignored him stared at the torn skin hanging off my leg, my leg dripping red from my knee down into my shoes. I was right when I decided the shoes would be ruined.

"Mr. Banner, I probably need to get this checked out, right?" I called out across the water. He looked at me, did a double take, and gagged. I took that as a yes.

I pulled myself up and started walking towards the path, noticing the visible tendons moving in my leg as I went. I had never had a problem with queasiness; there was no way I could be grossed out with the number of injuries I got so often. Limping along the pathway, looking at my pulsing muscles, I didn't see Michelle pop up in front of me. It was obvious she was trying not to look down, but she looked determined.

"I'm taking you to the nurse!" and before I could protest she put my arm around her shoulder and her arm around my thin waist and tried to hoist me up. I laughed to myself. At least I was heavy enough that she couldn't lift me. She sighed and tried to pull as much of me onto her shoulders as possible, then began briskly walking back along the path. I couldn't imagine why she wanted a tall wet bleeding boy on her shoulders but she wasn't giving up.

We had walked all the way up the path and were approaching the nurse's office when I paused, needing a break, and took my weight off Michelle. It was then that heard the last voice I wanted to hear.

"Dan?" it called from the distance. I would have given anything to be imagining that horrible familiar voice.

"What's wrong? Is he hurt?" Her voice was closer now, and she sounded upset. I wasn't imagining it. I sighed as deeply as I could, anticipating the teasing I would take for this.

Michelle seemed pissed again. "He fell. And scraped his leg. I got this."

Layla basically ignored her. "Dan, are you feeling lightheaded? That looks like a lot of blood loss."

"I'm fine," I groaned. "Go away."

She laughed musically.

"I was taking him to the nurse; we were just breaking for a second."

"I'll take him," Layla said. I could hear the smile still in her voice. "You can go back to class."

"No," Michelle protested. "I'm doing it."

I had been leaning over with my hands on my knees, but suddenly the sidewalk disappeared from beneath me. My eyes flew open in shock. It took a solid minute to realize Layla's seemingly delicate hands were under my shoulders, holding my body hovering barely inches off the ground. As soon as I came to my senses I pulled her off of me and pushed myself to an upright position. Layla shot her arms under my armpits and dragged me up, scooting a bewildered me along quickly in the direction of the nurse's office. I looked back at Michelle, standing alone on the sidewalk looking like she wanted to yell at me.

"You look awful," she told me, grinning.

"I haven't had so many girls touch me in my life as I have today," I mumbled to myself. I noticed her eyes glued to my shin, unable to tear her gaze away.

"Do you have a thing with blood?" I asked, getting a bit creeped.

She broke away quickly. "Not specifically, but I suppose you could say that," she said more quietly than usual.

Layla stepped in front of me to open the door, which was good because the stinging had really set in.

"Oh my," I heard a female voice gasp, presumably the nurse at the sight of my leg. I limped through the door, dropping onto one of the generic cots and tipping my torso over with closed eyes. I sighed as the AC hit my skin.

"He fell down the bank of the lake over a tree trunk. His shin is wide open and he hasn't stopped bleeding yet." Layla said this in a matter-of-fact voice, as if she was reporting the injuries of a child she was babysitting to his parents. But I didn't interfere. Layla glided over to another dot and delicately sat on it, crossing her sleek pale legs.

I stuck my heel out for the nurse to start cleaning up the mess, refusing to sit upright. I heard Layla giggle.

"Oh dear, I'm afraid you're going to need stitches. And a lot of them." The nurse said sadly.

I grunted. "Can't you just wrap it really tight? Tape it? Anything?" The last thing I wanted was to be stuck at the hospital for hours.

"I'm sorry son, if there were another option I would but all I can do is clean this and prepare it for stitches. It won't heal up without them." I was getting on her nerves.

"I can take him," Layla inserted, surprising the nurse and I alike. "I'm done today anyway."

"You really don't have to- " I started, but she put her hand up to cut me off. I closed my eyes again in defeat.

So as soon as the nurse had cleaned up what she could, she covered me in band-aids and sent us on our way.

"Why are you doing this?" I tried to keep my voice grateful, but I don't think I pulled it off. I was curled up in Layla's passenger seat with my head against the window and the AC vent angled up at my face. She was humming along in perfect harmony with a familiar song. She didn't look at me when she responded.

"I was fairly certain Michelle was going to drag your body into the woods and have her way with you, and I was relatively certain you didn't want that." I could hear the smile in her voice but I wasn't sure how much of that answer was sarcasm.

"Okay… but really. I thought you were skipping. As in off school grounds…?" I went on.

"I never said that. And does it really matter? I told you I was going to be your… friend, now, so here I am. Would you rather try to drive to the hospital yourself?" she was avoiding answering. I didn't care enough to push it. I stayed quiet and turned up her CD player. I quickly recognized the song.

"I Know the Reason?" I looked over at her skeptically. "You're a Carbon Leaf fan?" I couldn't believe it.

"So what if I am?" she smiled slyly at me.

"I just… didn't know anyone here knew them. Wow." She was incredible.

The entire ride was spent humming along to Carbon Leaf with no conversation. I didn't know what to say.

When we got to the hospital the bleeding had stopped for the most part and the wheelchair Layla found for me was mostly a joke.

We pushed our way in and out of that hospital faster than humanly possible. Every medical personnel was easily convinced by Layla that we had to be the first to get attention. The stitches were done in fifteen minutes and the bill was talked out of in five. Before school was over we were back in Layla's car alone again. Hanging out with her definitely had its pluses.

"I suppose you probably don't want to go back… where is your house?" I gave her the directions without thinking, excited that she'd come to my house. Not that anything would happen.

"What is your father like?" she asked me suddenly. I glanced over to see her blue eyes running over my face curiously.

"He looks a lot like me, but he's more attractive. Less skinny. I have too much Betsy in me. My dad's more outgoing than I am, braver. He's old and grumpy and poor for the most part. He's… maybe my best friend." I wasn't supposed to be open like this, not with Layla. I wasn't supposed to scare her off like this.

"How old are you, Dan?" Her voice sounded frustrated for a reason I didn't even bother to try and fathom. She stopped the car and I realized we were at my mansion.

"I'm seventeen," I responded, waiting for her explanation.

"You don't seem seventeen." She sounded like my babysitter again, but this time I laughed. And before I thought about what I was saying, it popped out of my mouth.

"Do you want to come in?"

I immediately regretted it. The question sat there in between us, floating in mid air staring at both of us, waiting for a reaction. I couldn't meet her eyes, but I knew she was staring at me, maybe with as much disbelief as I felt in myself. What was I thinking?

Before I could berate myself further, she cleared her throat.

"Yes, I'd love to."

I jerked my head up at her, my eyes questioning her severely. She only smiled, turned the volume down, pulled the key out of the ignition, and got out. I sat there, flabbergasted, surely grinning like an idiot. She knocked on my window, smiling, when I remembered to get out.

I followed her up my walkway to my porch, acting like a stranger to my own home. I shook myself and stepped ahead of her, opening the door. She stepped in and looked around, looking surprised at the size.

"Yeah, it's huge. I'm not so crazy about it though." I led her to the kitchen and offered her a chair, where she sat politely.

"You want a drink? We've got Coke, Sprite, milk, orange juice, water…?"

"No, I'm fine. Thanks, though. Why don't you like this house? It's amazing. Huge. A normal kid would die for a place like this. I bet it's great for parties." She spoke naturally and quickly.

"Well if you haven't caught on yet, I'm not exactly the party type. And I don't like the size. It's not very warm. And my mom's never here, making it even more empty." It came so naturally, I didn't watch what I was saying. With Layla, I didn't feel like I needed to.

"Huh. Well that's understandable. Sorry. About your mom, I mean. My family is great; I can't imagine being as alone as it seems you are. But you can get along… you seem much older than you are." She was looking into my eyes, trying to figure me out.

"Yeah, my dad says I've never been a kid. But… you don't seem much like a junior in high school either," I observed.

She made a face and changed the subject.

"What do you think of Susan?"

I honestly didn't remember talking to her about Susan. "Um, I like her. A lot. She's been more of a mom to me than Betsy. And she takes care of him like he deserves. He's pretty much crazy about her."

"Do you approve?" she asked.

"Absolutely, not that it matters anyway. As long as he's happy, and she definitely makes him happy."

"That's very… generous… I wonder," she mused.

"What?"

"Would he extend the same courtesy to you, do you think? No matter who your choice was?" She was suddenly intent, her eyes searching mine.

"I think so… but he's the parent after all. It's different."

"No one too… scary then," she said, leaving me unsure how much was teasing.

I smiled anyway. "What do you mean by scary? Multiple facial piercings and extensive tattoos?"

"That's one definition, I suppose."

"What's your definition of scary?"

She ignored my question and asked me another. "Do you think that I could be scary?" She raised one arched eyebrow, and the faint trace of a smile lightened her beautiful face.

"If you wanted to, maybe. Not to me though." I answered honestly.

"Are you frightened of me now?" the smile vanished, and her angelic face was suddenly serious.

"Never." She could tell I was being honest. The smile didn't return.

"So the Kelbys adopted you?" I verified.

She was instantly cautious. "Yes."

"What happened to your parents?" I should have thought before I said it.

"They died many years ago." Her tone was matter-of-fact.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"I don't really remember them that clearly. Christopher and Amelia have been my parents for a long time now." It was obvious from the way she spoke that she loved them very much. "I can't imagine two better people."

"You're very lucky." It was the only thing I could think to say. She nodded happily.

"And come to think of it my siblings, and the Hurleys, aren't going to like sitting and waiting for me."

"Oh, sorry, I guess you have to go." I didn't want to say goodbye to her.

"And you probably want your pretty sports car back." She said wisely. I smiled, showing more teeth than usual.

"Have fun at school," she got to her feet slowly, seeming to hesitate.

"Won't I see you tomorrow?"

"No. Erin and I are starting the weekend early."
"What are you going to do?" I didn't know where any of our borders stood so I asked the question without shame. Hopefully I didn't sound too disappointed though.

"We're going to go out on Christopher's yacht for some fishing, sunbathing, et cetera." I remembered Nadia talking about cruises frequently.

I stood up as I said halfheartedly "Oh, well, have fun." She could definitely see the dejection in my eyes.

"I will. I'll see you soon enough." It sounded like a promise. She should have been walking out the door at this point, climbing into her Corvette and speeding down to the school to pick up her siblings and friends and go home. She should have left without a look back, quickly. But she just stood there, looking into my eyes, face a mask. I couldn't tell if she was waiting for something, expecting something, needing something. As I stood staring back into her eyes, inhaling her scent much too closely, I realized there was something I needed. Very badly.

I took a deep breath and reached out, holding her chin in my palm. She looked shocked, but I didn't falter. Her skin wasn't as cold as it was the other day, more normal now. Before I could change my mind I pulled her chin to me and lay my lips on hers. Her lips were unbelievably soft and smooth, the perfect size to fit with my own. But as we kept contact her lips, chin, every part of skin near me drastically changed in temperature from a normal cool to fiercely hot, almost hurting me. She suddenly ripped her head away from me and pushed my chest with both hands, making me stumble backwards with more force than I knew she could exert.

"I have to go. Now." She didn't look at me. She ran to the door and slammed it on her way out. I braced myself against the countertop with no idea what had just happened.

But without an ounce of regret.