Thanks for reading and reviewing! We love to hear your thoughts!

Chapter 3

The screen continued to flash and the contact photo of Aubrey smiled up at me. She would be out of her mind by this point and I shook my head not wanting to answer it but knowing that I had to. What could I say? Hey, Aubrey, sorry I haven't been home but I got turned into a vampire. No, that wasn't going to work.

"She's been calling every hour today."

I looked away from the phone and worried my lip. "What should I say?"

He just shrugged and sat there being no help at all. I was going to have to talk to her sooner or later or she would definitely call out the National Guard to look for me. For real. Her Dad was the commander.

I sighed and swiped right, putting the phone to my ear. "Hey, Aubrey." My voice came out cheerful and normal. One of my many talents has always been faking happy under pressure. I was the perfect cheerleader. Always.

"Chloe, where the hell are you?"

She was beyond angry. Her voice was colder than an Icelandic glacier. Not that I actually knew how cold that was but I could imagine. "Hey, yeah… sorry about that." I twirled my hair and turned on one foot, walking towards the other side of the room. "I kind of got drunk and fell asleep."

"Where are you?"

A better explanation better come to me quick because I really couldn't even fathom how I was going to get out of this. I turned around and covered the mic of the phone with my other hand. "She wants to know where I am." My eyes bore into Jesse. What the hell did Beca see in him again? He shrugged and motioned with his hand for me to keep talking.

"Uh, I'm at Danny's apartment off campus." That was going to get me in trouble but it was better than the truth.

"YOU'RE WHERE?" I could hear her keys jingle when she picked them up. "I'm coming to get you. Give me the address."

"No, Aubrey. It's fine. Seriously. I ran into him and he was really nice and he apologized and everything. Nothing happened." I felt horrible lying. I never lied to Aubrey. It was her biggest pet peeve.

"Fine? Chloe, he tried to trick you into having a threesome with some random girl he picked up while on a date with you." I could imagine her sweeping her hair back in that sassy way she had when she was defending my honor. "That's not fine. Now, tell me where you are and I'll come pick you up."

It didn't sound so bad. Aubrey might actually believe me and she always knew what to do. No, it was dumb. I definitely needed to figure out what was going on before I told her anything. If I told her anything. This was way too much for me to handle and I wasn't half as practical and logic based as Aubrey was. Her head might explode if I told her I was a vampire and then actually convinced her of it. Hell, I wasn't even really convinced of it yet.

"No, just stay home. I'll be there. I promise it's okay." It hurt to say the words because all I really wanted right now was to be wrapped up in her arms. She was my safe space.

"Fine," she said coldly. "But hurry your ass up." A small part of me loved when she was mad but not mad mad. But, don't get me wrong, it was just a small part. The other 75% of me burned with disappointment and self-doubt. Sometimes I wondered why anyone liked me at all, especially someone as talented and beautiful as Aubrey Posen. It didn't matter how long we'd known each other, or what we'd already been through as a team, every extra day that she loved me was a day I was most proud and baffled by and today was no different. I didn't deserve her. She was much too good to me, always. The best friend a girl could ever have… And then more.

"Okay," I said, and I heard as she cleared a pained tickle from her throat and ended the call. "Thanks for nothing," I said. Jesse had been watching from afar and he looked guilty now after those words that were said just for him.

"Sorry," he grumbled.

"Not your fault," I said, realizing I let my anger get the best of me. "I'm sorry too." There was no point in both of us feeling like shit. "Now," I said. "About that whole… Walking in sunlight thing."

If I wanted to get home to Aubrey I would have to learn what Jesse already knew.

"Shit," he said. And I remembered. I needed to be fed.