"Olli?"

"James…"

She froze on the spot, clearly not expecting to see him there.

"I… I'm sorry. I had planned to be gone before you got back. I was just… gathering everything up. I left the key on the table in the sitting room so… it's there. I think I still have some things in the guest bedroom, but I can come back for those another time…" she looked at his face but couldn't quite pin down his expression. Suddenly, she wasn't so sure coming in person was a good idea.

She looked away, shifting her gaze to the box in her hands.

"I'm sorry. I'm… I'm just going."

"No. Wait!" His voice was louder than he intended, but she did stop. He sighed. "Can we talk? Please?"

She responded with a simple nod of her head and put the box down on the kitchen table.

"I'm sorry."

Her head snapped up. "What?"

"I'm sorry." He repeated. "I didn't mean-"

"Why are you apologizing? You've nothing to be sorry for. This was my fault. I should have told you the truth from the start." She looked down at her hands. "I planned on telling you so many times… but things were going so well and I couldn't bring myself to ruin it all. But I wouldn't have kept it from you forever. There's no way I could have, even if I wanted to. I had hoped that once we trusted each other enough, that I would tell you and that… that once you got past the shock and you remembered everything else we had together… the good things… maybe it wouldn't matter so much. I honestly didn't want to lie. I just… I didn't see another way."

"I understand. I mean, no one's ever really glad to find out they've been lied to in such a way but... I understand why you did."

She looked up sharply. "You do?"

He sighed. "It's just not exactly something you run across every day, is it? You can't have expected me to be nonchalant about it. But… I overreacted. Having some time to myself to really think things over… I get it now. I think… under the circumstances, I probably would have done the same."

He walked around the table to stand in front of her.

"I know I behaved horribly and I hate that I hurt you the way I did. But I really don't want you to go."

She looked up at his face. "You don't?"

He took her hands in his, not realizing just how much he'd missed the way they slipped perfectly into his.

"I need you. I'm not saying the whole thing won't take some getting used to… but I'd like us to try again. That is, if you still trust me."

He held her eyes and saw them brimming with unshed tears.

He couldn't take it anymore.

He reached out and pulled her into his embrace.

And this time, she didn't pull away from him.

She melted into his arms and he held her as tightly as he could without crushing her. She couldn't hold back her tears any longer and found herself crying into his shirt.

He kissed the top of her head and soothed her.

"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. I need you here with me. I need you."

She sniffled. "Are you sure? You don't have to do this… if it's too much…"

He pulled away just slightly, and when she her to raised her head to look at him he bent down and captured her lips in a kiss, trying to convey all the emotions he couldn't express through words alone. His heart fluttered when she responded, cupping his cheek the way she used to.

She pulled away and he gently wiped her tears away with the pad of his thumb.

"Will you give me… us… another chance?"

She nodded and kissed him again. "Yes," she whispered against his lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," he caressed her cheek. "So much. I'm sorry I didn't show it better."

"Ssshhhh… we're here now. Let's be together now."

He gently guided her over to the couch and they stretched out together, much in the same position as they'd been in that tumultuous night, except this time, she turned her body to face him. They closed their eyes and just enjoyed the comfortable silence, their arms wrapped tightly around each other, neither wanting to let go ever again.

The next couple of days were spent with Olivia telling James more about herself, her past. She told him about the old days, when hunters were all around you and you couldn't really trust anyone with your identity because you didn't know who was who.

"Even the ones who didn't hunt us themselves generally tipped off the ones who did. You had to be very careful of the people you trusted. And you had to be very wary of how you behaved in front of everyone in case they got suspicious."

She told him about how she had to flee from town to town with her parents when she was younger. Her father was a quiet man, a straightforward type of person, and he didn't much like having to go out in sunlight, although he dealt with it better than either her or her mother. He was eventually captured by hunters when one of his so-called friends tipped them off. Apparently he'd seen her father stalking around at night once too often. Her mother didn't tell her right away, but she eventually figured it out on her own. She couldn't remember very much about him as she spent most of her time with her mother while he worked and went about finding them new places to live, but she did know that he wouldn't have let them worry if everything was alright. He would have phoned or sent a message by one of the others. It wasn't like him to stay away for so long without saying anything at all. When she finally brought it up to her mother, she gave in and told her the truth. Her mother wouldn't say exactly what happened, but then, she preferred not knowing. It wasn't an image she would have liked to think about.

She could remember that her mother was always very kind and a very creative type. She remembered that her mother painted a lot and used to teach her how, and that helped a lot in the time after her father died. It soothed her somehow. She also revealed that her mother was half witch, so her power wasn't exactly like any other vampires she knew. She said her mother would sometimes take her outside, behind the house, into the trees where no one could see, and help her practice developing her powers. She said she didn't inherit very much of that as, with her father being a pureblood vampire, most of her powers were, by default, vampiric, but her mother always insisted she know how to harness her power from both sides. She dreaded Olivia being caught and needing magic to get away but not knowing how to bring it out of herself.

"She used to say how much she wished things were different. How she wished I'd been born human so I wouldn't have to endure all of it. She often apologized that she couldn't give me a normal life." She tiled her head as if she was thinking about something. "I used to wonder why she'd never let me have very many friends or get close to anyone. I'd get so angry about that when I was younger. But I realize now… she was only trying to prepare me for what I'd have to face later on. She knew I'd have lengthy years spent alone. All of the friendships and connections I made never lasted. They all got older. They died. I did consider turning a few of them but… I couldn't forget what it was like in the old days. I was afraid they'd find out what I was and turn me in. So I just kept "retiring"… went off to live with children that didn't exist. I couldn't stay around for obvious reasons. Eventually people would have wondered why I was still alive. They would have started to ask questions."

He sipped his coffee. "I think we both know how dangerous that can be." He looked at her. "So… that's why you're so good at all this. The aliases, the illusion… the big game. Sounds like you've been playing at it a lot longer than I have."

She smiled. "Indeed."

They strolled around the park for a few minutes more... the moon glowing gently in the sky above them. They'd had a full day of shopping and James showed her around town.

He'd taken her to an expensive restaurant, which she insisted was too posh for the likes of her, especially given that it wasn't even a special occasion.

She laughed at the expression on his face when she reached over and took a bite of his garlic bread.

"No… I won't die, if that's what you're thinking," she chuckled.

He shook himself out of it. "Sorry… I just… how?"

"Honestly, you shouldn't believe everything they tell you. It's just not a very pleasant smell, that's all. We're more sensitive to it. I suppose how some people don't like the smell of cigars or… other people don't care for the smell of the ocean. It doesn't really do anything other than make everything stink." She took another bite of her pasta. "I suppose they told you we all sleep in coffins as well?" She rolled her eyes.

He chuckled. "Well I'm definitely learning new things today. Anything else they've lied to us about?"

"Probably plenty," she laughed.

Once they'd paid and left the restaurant, they headed for their usual stroll through the park, where she spent the next couple of hours debunking all the myths and helping him sort through the bits of truth in some of the more exaggerated claims.

He gawked at her as she walked beside him, still not believing some of the things he heard.

"So essentially everything they've ever told us is a lie?"

"Well not everything, but a lot of it. Most of it was made up in the old days so people would be more afraid of us and make them more likely to turn us in. Things like us being cold all the time and… not having a pulse… the general idea of us being undead creatures. Clearly not true. I mean… you've held me in your arms enough times. You know that already. " She paused. "The more practical things are true. For instance, the things about speed and strength are true."

"Things that would have come in handy for me," he smirked.

"Yes. Perhaps," she smiled. "Although age does tend to take a toll on that, just as it does with humans. Let's see then…" she thought for a second. "The bit about flight is true, but we don't turn into bats like everybody thinks. I'm not sure exactly who started that one, but it's just ridiculous." She shook her head. "Anyway most of us just prefer getting around like everyone else."

"Why?" he asked. "If I could fly, I'd never bother with anything else."

She chuckled. "Well it takes a lot of energy. It's draining. Like going out in sunlight. It doesn't kill us, it just takes it out of us. A five minute walk can feel like a mile some days. Though it isn't too terrible if it's a bit overcast."

He laughed. "So essentially you're just superhumans with distaste for sun and garlic."

"More or less, yes," she smiled. "I told you, we're not the monsters everyone makes us out to be. We don't go around killing random people just for the sheer hell of it. Granted, we do have to feed on live subjects from time to time… for nutritional purposes… but most of us try not to feed on humans too much if we can get away with it."

"So then what do you do?"

She chuckled. "It's a bit cliché, but… blood banks. A bag or two generally lasts a while. For me, at least. Though it might have something to do with the fact that I'm not a pureblood. I don't hunger the way the others do. There's never the urge. Really the only way I can tell is if I feel myself getting a bit sluggish." She shrugged. "I should probably keep track of it a bit better than I do, but it doesn't normally bother me. Let's see… There are always animals. Generally cows or something easy. We can't really be bothered to run after anything." She chuckled. "Plus animals usually don't react as badly to the bites as humans do. They sleep it off for a few hours and they're fine."

"So what happens to humans?"

"Most of them get sick for a few days. They might feel a bit feverish. Similar symptoms to the flu, so they usually don't think much of it. A few do react badly… generally older people in that regard. Young people are better at bouncing back from that sort of thing… stronger immune systems and all that. But as with anything, it depends on the person."

"Doesn't sound too horrible."

"But it normally doesn't kill them. You'd have to drain a good amount to kill. Most of us know when to stop. We can control it. But there are of course those who aren't so considerate and let their hunger override them, not caring who they kill. Few and far between these days now that the hysteria's gone and humans aren't hunting us down left and right, but they're out there."

He hummed. "There's always a few…"

"Quite." She pulled her coat tighter around her. "Should we get back? Or are you going in at all tomorrow?"

"Hadn't planned on it. We should probably head back, though. It's getting chilly out here. Wouldn't want either of us to get sick."

He put his arm around her and led her back to the car. They drove back to her place that night as she still had a few stories to tell and James wasn't quite through all of his questions.