Chapter 4: Good Times Gonna Come

Over the next week or so, Shelby quickly became part of the group. Even though she was a newbie – and even though David still didn't like her much – she felt comfortable among the boys. Dwayne had begun to feel like a protective older brother – watching out for her and having her back. And Marko felt very much the same way, but was more obnoxious and energetic. He treated Shelby like she was his little sister, in the way that he joked around and teased her. David was still cold towards her, but he'd gotten better about controlling himself. He knew there was nothing he could to make Paul ditch her, but wasn't exactly best friends with her yet.

Paul was, as he had been from the start, as amazing as guys get. He was sweet and good to her – despite the incessant jokes the boys cracked about him. He was a badass vampire, duh, but he definitely had a soft die – and she seemed to bring it out of him better than anyone. When they went hunting, though, he didn't have to take care of her. She was the fastest learner when it came to killing, and got better at it with each hunt. He marveled at how stealthy and quick she was. Even David had to hand it to her; she was pretty impressive.

The days went by slowly – they slept until sundown, then went out to party. And damn, did they party. They were fucking rock stars, and the people of Santa Carla knew better than to fuck with them. When they walked down the Boardwalk, people stared – in both fear and awe. They all loved it.

Sex, murder, blood, and cigarettes; the vampire lifestyle kicked all kinds of ass.

Shelby and Paul weren't exactly what you'd call 'chaste'. They fucked pretty often, much to the boys' discomfort. Some nights, it was repulsive just being around the couple, but, for the most part, their (healthy) sex life didn't conflict with anything the guys did. Though, Marko did walk in on them once – on accident, of course. "Fuck you – I'm gonna need so much therapy!" He'd cried, when Paul brought it up the next day.

Time had a way of blurring in Shelby's mind these days. She lost track of the date and didn't care enough to try and figure it out again. She could care less whether is was Wednesday or Thursday when she was having as much fun as she did with the boys. She felt so good about herself, and her life – or rather, her death – around them. Especially Paul… He had changed significantly since they'd first met. He didn't dwell on his past mistakes anymore. And he seemed happy. Shelby hadn't known him long enough to notice the mood change, but the rest of the guys had. He was ten times more fun to be around ever since she'd come into the picture. The boys – Marko, especially – were glad to see Paul happy. He'd been through a lot of crap and he definitely deserved someone like her in his life.

"Shit." he groaned, as she wrapped her legs around his waist, pushing him in deeper. "Fuck – you feel really fucking good, sassy."

The sun was just beginning to set over Santa Carla – which meant they'd be going out soon – so Shelby and Paul were getting some fuck time in beforehand. She was laying on her back while he stood by the edge of the bed – a lit cigarette in his hand – pounding into her. Her fingers clawed the sheets and a moan escaped her lips as she rolled her hips in time with his thrusts. He took a drag from his cigarette, blowing the smoke down towards her.

"Mmm…" she breathed, closing her eyes and bucking her hips steadily.

"You close, baby?" he murmured, tossing the cigarette away and reaching out to tickle her sides gently.

"Oh!" she cried, laughing and panting, "Paul, stop! Fuck – you know I'm ticklish."

His fingers danced across her stomach now, as he continued to thrust and make her sweat. "I said: Are you close?"

She giggled at the feeling of his hands on her, then moaned when he stroked her clit. "Yes. Make me come…"

He licked his lips and grasped at her hips to get in further. They hissed collectively and then Paul came. It was the first time he'd come before her, and she held him to her while he caught his breath. She came shortly after, and he pulled out to wrap his arms around her, lying down next to her amid the rumpled sheets.

They looked at each other's flushed faces and smiled. Shelby reached out to run her fingers through his hair and he leaned close to kiss her nose.

"Are you okay?" he asked – as he always did after they had sex.

She nodded, "Mmm-hmm. I'm happy."

Paul grinned, "Me too."

She moved in to kiss him, just as Marko's voice interrupted them, "Hey – guys?" They sat up to see him standing on the other side of the cave – by the entrance to where the boys slept – with his hands over his eyes. "Guys?"

"What is it man?" Paul asked, slightly annoyed, but mostly amused.

"Sun's down – it's time to go." he replied, "And sorry if I, like… interrupted your fucking."

"Wouldn't be the first time." Shelby laughed from her place in Paul's arms.

Marko sighed, "For the fifteenth time: it was an accident. Just get dressed so we can get out of this fucking cave, alright?"

"Will do." Paul responded.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

It had taken them less than five minutes to get dressed, after which the boys had joined them and they'd headed out – deciding to leave their motorcycles behind, in favor of walking. By now, Shelby had worn the jacket Paul had let her borrow so much that it was basically hers. He didn't miss it; he still had his favorite leather jacket, and besides, she looked better in that particular one than he did.

He and Shelby walked in the same position they always did; Paul with his arm over her shoulder and hers around his waist. He hugged her to him and she smiled. Sticking her right foot out, she gently kicked Dwayne, who was ahead of her. He turned around and narrowed his eyes at her, jokingly. She winked at him, while Paul chuckled.

"Paul?" David spoke, without turning around, from where he walked up front, "Next time you two feel the urge to –," He cleared his throat, "– fuck like bunnies, can you at least try to keep it down?"

Dwayne nodded, "We could hear everything."

"Oh, Paul!" Marko mimicked Shelby, in a high-pitched voice, "Oh fuck – right there! Yeah!"

She laughed, "Fuck you."

Marko feigned offense, clutching at his chest, "Oh – that hurts, Shelbs! Right here." He indicated his heart, sticking out his bottom lip in a puppy-dog pout.

"Relax," she said, rolling her eyes, "You know I love you, bro." Marko gave her a quick high five, before she continued, "I'm sorry about all the… noise, guys. We'll be quieter in the future."

Dwayne put his hands together, as if he was praying, and said, "Thank Christ."

"Not that we aren't blissfully happy for you," David smirked, "But I need my beauty rest."

She nodded, as Paul rubbed her neck gently. Marko tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned, "What?"

He leaned in to whisper, "How's my boy in bed? Like – scale of one to ten. Two? Negative seven?"

She lowered her voice and replied, "He's off the charts, man. In the hundreds somewhere – he's fucking great."

Marko snickered, looking impressed, "Well, I did teach him everything he knows."

"Sure you did." Paul snorted, making Shelby giggle.

When they reached the Boardwalk, there were already tons of people there – mostly teenagers. Some rock band was performing up on the stage, and a mosh pit had formed around it. The music the band played was pretty good, and Shelby let herself move to the beat. Paul laughed as she pulled him forward, holding his hand, into the mosh pit to dance with her. He rolled his eyes, but started to move with her, steadily. She decided to take the sexy route, grinding up on him and shaking her hips. He wrapped his arms around her from behind, caressing her breasts through her shirt. She leaned back against him, swaying to the sound emanating from the speakers around the stage. Looking around, she saw David and Dwayne surveying the crowd, like fucking vultures. David had said that night would be a murder-free one for once, so Shelby couldn't figure out what they were up to. Marko was jumping around like a maniac a few feet from her and Paul. She laughed at him and then spun around to kiss Paul slowly, only to find that he had tensed up; Something was wrong…

"What is it?" she yelled, over the pounding music.

He was staring over in David's direction – so was Marko. She mimicked them and saw that David looked absolutely livid. Dwayne was muttering to him and had a hand on his shoulder, seemingly in an attempt to calm him down. Even though she was a considerable distance away, Shelby could see that David's eyes were dark and full of malice. Paul left her to go see what the problem was, but when she tried to follow him, Marko appeared at her side and held her back.

"What the fuck is going on?" she asked, not understanding. Marko looked pained, and pulled her away from the mosh pit, where it was quieter. "Marko – what the fuck? What's up with David?"

He sighed, "It's Star."

Shelby's eyebrows furrowed, "Star – is here?"

"No, no, no," Marko shook his head, vigorously, "God no – he'd be ten thousand times worse if she were here. He's just… remembering her. He first met her during a show here – in a mosh pit. He saw her dancing."

Still confused, she asked, "Who was she?"

He rubbed his eyes, slowly, before answering, "She's – well, she was – David's girlfriend. He met her here and turned her into a half-vampire two nights later. She stayed around with us for a while – but she wasn't happy being a vampire."

"What do you mean?" How could anyone not like it?"

"She and David weren't exactly what you'd call 'The Perfect Couple'… They weren't the way you and Paul are with each other. You genuinely care for him – and vice versa. It was different with them. Star was sweet on David for about a week – once he turned her. After that, she started to lose that feeling. He kind of became more like a slave driver than a soul mate. She resented him, and she resented herself for what she'd become. About a month after that, she met this guy name Michael, and fell in love with him. David tried to rope him into the group – he became a half-vampire, too – but he didn't know how Star felt about him. A week later, she ran off with Michael and left us. David was fucking devastated. I've never seen him so upset. Even though Star didn't love him, he had loved her." Marko shrugged, reaching into his pockets and producing a pack of cigarettes, along with his lighter. He gave her one, lit it, then did the same for himself. They both took long drags before he spoke again, "We looked for them for week after that, but we never found them. But we do know that since then, both Star and Michael have become full vampires."

"So," she blew the smoke out, "David's pissed because he's being reminded of this Star chick? Shit… Was she, like, really gorgeous or something?"

Marko snorted, and lowered his voice, "She was a bitch, to be perfectly honest. And personally, I think you're much prettier than she was."

Shelby smiled and leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek, "Come on. Let's go see if everything's calmed down yet."

They maneuvered their way around the mosh pit to where Paul was leaning up against the railing, overlooking the beach.

"Hey man – is everything cool?" Marko asked, as Shelby moved over into Paul's arms.

He shrugged, "I guess. Dwayne took him away – said David needed to blow off some steam – and they went off in that direction." He pointed to his right, down the Boardwalk.

"I'm gonna go see if I can find them – you guys'll be okay, right?"

"Duh." Shelby told him, grinning.

Marko nodded and disappeared into the crowd. Paul looked down at her, "Did he fill you in on who Star is?"

"Yeah, he did."

He said a few words in reply, but she wasn't paying attention. Her eyes had fallen on something that way taped to one of the huge lamp posts nearby; A 'Missing Person' poster – with her picture on it. She let out a gasp and ran forward to rip it down to study it. Her name was in bold print, as was her height, age, the date she was last seen, and her parents' home phone number. Paul came to stand beside her and examined the sign over her shoulder.

"Shit – your family must be looking for you." He murmured.

"Yeah…" Her mind was reeling. In the midst of all that she'd gone through, she had forgotten that she had a… life. And a family – an entire group of people who must be worried sick about her. Her parents must have been completely panicked at this point. She'd been gone for… how long? Two weeks?

She glanced up and down the Boardwalk, to see that there were signs with her face on them up all over. Now she was starting to feel dizzy. Her breathing caught in her throat as she reached out to Paul for comfort.

"Can… Can we go home? B-Back to the cave? Please."

He nodded, "Of course we can, babe. I'm sorry –,"

"Shelby?" An eerily familiar voice rang out from behind them.

Her eyes went wide, and she turned to see two people she thought she'd never see again standing not two feet away. "Oh, Christ…" she groaned, closing her eyes, in the hopes that maybe, when she opened them, they'd be gone.

They weren't. They stared up at her in disbelief, a mix of anger and relief on their faces. Paul watched the scene, not understanding what was happening yet.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck." She cursed, stomping her foot.

"Shelbs… What the hell are you doing here?" The boy on the left, with a gruff voice, asked.

The other boy – they both looked about sixteen – was equally bewildered: "We haven't seen you in weeks. We thought you were fucking dead."

Shelby bit her lip, un-sure of what to say, as Paul spoke up: "Who are these guys? What's going on?"

The two boys stood in expectant silence, while she looked down at her feet, cursing under her breath.

"The real question is why are you hanging out with a twisted sister reject?" The deep-voiced boy, who had a red ribbon tied around his head, asked.

"He's… He's my boyfriend." She squeaked, shuffling back and forth on her feet. "Edgar, Alan – this is Paul."

The boy on the right gave Paul a disgusted look, "The guy you ditched us for?"

"You know what? It doesn't matter who I am – Shelby, who are they?" Paul demanded.

She took a deep breath, and swallowed her fear, "This is Edgar," She indicated the boy on the left, "And Alan," The boy on the right raised his hand sullenly, "They're, uhm… They're…"

"We're her brothers." Edgar finished for her.

Alan nodded, "She's our sister."

A/N: Reviews are love :) I'll update ASAP :D