Here is the seventh 'chapter'. For you, the reader, from me, your humble writer. Enjoy! I've got a bit of a block at the moment, and I'm not really sure where I want the story to go :P So I may jump around a bit for the next few chappies! Thanks again for all the reviews and stuff, we're averaging three per chapter at the mo - and I'm wondering if I could just be a little daring and push to get that higher? REVIEW THE STORY, GUYS! Otherwise I may very well stop writing...

Ha, as if I'd do that to you :) But seriously, review! It's all that keeps me going! xxxxxxxx :D

'And Then Hell Froze Over' - 'cause (shock horror) Oliver may smile in this one! Aahhhh :)

Oh my God. I'm such a bad girlfriend, Claire thought miserably as she lay in bed later that night. Shane lay beside her, snoring softly as he slept. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping; all the tension in his features relaxed. He looked so...carefree. There was no pain or fear in his face. Claire reached out and stroked his cheek softly, shivering when she remembered how Myrnin had done that just hours earlier.

When she'd allowed him to kiss her. When she had wanted him to kiss her. Claire couldn't be angry at him for it, though. Both times he'd kissed her, he had looked like a little lost boy afterwards. Confused and embarrassed. She sat back, resting her head against the headboard. She didn't know what she was going to do. If she couldn't trust herself to be around him...but that was ridiculous. Claire hadn't even thought of Myrnin that way. Until recently.

Damn it! Why was it so difficult? It's not like I can distance myself from him. I work for him. Claire rolled over to face away from Shane, staring at the wall. As much as she hated it, she had to go and talk to Myrnin. Explain that she didn't have feelings for him. Because she definitely didn't. Definitely. Claire sighed. It was a long time before she closed her eyes, and even longer before she fell asleep.

Claire woke early the next morning, before the sun had even risen properly. She couldn't get back to sleep, so she got up as quietly as she could in the dark room, grabbing some folded clothes off the dresser. She got dressed quickly and quietly in the bathroom, pulling her hair into a ponytail to save time brushing it. Her rucksack was prepacked with stakes and silver powder, so all she had to do was to grab it in an emergency. She tiptoed into the kitchen to get a coffee and some toast for breakfast.

The coffee was nowhere near as good as Eve made it, and she burnt the toast, but still, it was food and caffeine. Just what Claire needed. She flicked the TV on and perched on the end of the couch, munching her blackened toast and sipping her way too milky coffee.

The sun was peeking over the tops of the houses now, bathing everything in an early morning glow. People were cautiously beginning to emerge from their homes, like animals slowly returning to a forest after being scared away by a predator. The vampires reigned at night in Morganville, prowling the streets in search of unsuspecting (and unprotected) victims.

Claire finished her meal and washed the dishes, (even though it was Eve's turn to do them) and stepped out of the door into the morning sun. She relaxed in its golden glow, feeling safe. She had never really appreciated the beauty of sunrise until she had come to Morganville. Now, not only did she appreciate it, she understood it. For the residents of Morganville, each new dawn means another night survived.

Claire looked up from her thinking and realised that she had no idea where she'd been going. Now she looked up and found herself about a block away from Common Grounds. She shrugged to herself. I've got nothing else to do, why not? Oliver can't hurt me, since I got neutral status. I hope.

She rounded the corner and the shop came into view. Claire pushed the door open and stepped into the dim café. It was pretty busy for this time in the morning. But then, the residents of Morganville always made the most of their daylight hours. She walked up to the counter, where Oliver was pulling shots. His long grey hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and he looked every inch the 'peace loving old hippie guy'. He looked up as she approached, and smiled.

"Claire. How nice to see you back again. How are you?"

Claire raised her eyebrows. Since when did Oliver care how she or any other human was? Now that she knew what was underneath the nice guy facade, she couldn't be bothered with the niceties.

"Do you care?"

"No. But it is essential to keep up appearances, Claire. Particularly in this town. I would have thought you of all people would know that."

Claire almost laughed, but realised that Oliver was right. It is essential to keep up appearances.

"OK then. I'm fine, Oliver. Never better. How about you?" She said stiffly, with a too-bright smile plastered on her face.

"I am well, thank you Claire. Business is good, as usual."

Claire shifted uncomfortably, leaning on her right leg. Her left ankle was still swollen and sore and wrapped in bandages. Oliver noticed her grimace, and looked down at her foot.

"Ah yes. I have heard tell of your little trip to the hospital." He said, smirking for reasons unknown to Claire. "And about the - ah...incident... afterwards." Claire held his gaze. What was he getting at?

"How is your face, by the way?" Claire just stared at him blankly, and Oliver's grin stretched wider. "Your lips still look a little swollen."

Claire couldn't stop the blush that spread across her cheeks as she finally realised what he was talking about.

"I-uh-That's not...um..." Claire trailed off, at a loss for what to say.

"Eloquent as usual, Claire." Oliver said drily.

She blushed even more, hating how stupid he could make her feel. Claire raised her head and looked him in the eye, doing her best to radiate Amelie's coldness.

"As you seem so well informed about what happened, I'm sure you are aware that I was drugged. I didn't have any control over my actions." She said angrily. Oliver didn't react; if anything, he smiled even wider. What was with him today? Seriously. Oliver, and smiling don't go together.

"Oh, I know that. But does he?" By 'he', Oliver obviously meant Myrnin. Claire frowned, and Oliver continued, "Myrnin appears to have convinced himself that you knew what you were doing. Obviously delusional, as no female would kiss him whilst still in their right mind. I had to be sure, though." Oliver cocked his head to the side and watched Claire as she processed this information.

"W-What?" She spluttered. "What do you mean, he's convinced himself I knew what I was doing? I was drugged!" Claire's voice got higher and higher as she got more worked up. "He was the one who did it, for God's sake! How can he - that's just - I mean..."

Oliver smiled thinly.

" I am not supposed to tell you this. Amelie has forbidden it. However, I think...I think you have a right to know. For your own...protection. Myrnin thinks..." Oliver pinched the bridge of his nose with his finger and thumb, and sighed. "...He thinks he is in love with you. Normally I would find his love-sick brooding amusing at best and irritating at worst. But. But, I do not think it would be amusing if he kills you. He is in enough trouble as it is, for...this."

Claire just stared at him, mouth agape. Little waves of shock washed over her mind, momentarily paralysing it. "Wh...What?" She said faintly. Oliver turned away to deal with a customer, and when he turned back to Claire, all traces of his smile were gone. He leant across the counter, and spoke in deadly serious tones.

"Claire. I will only say this once. Do not make the same mistake Ada did. She trusted him. She died because of that." Oliver paused to pass a cup of coffee to another customer. "Not that I am particularly interested in your human affairs. But you are...valuable...to this town." He continued grudgingly. Wow. Coming from Oliver, that was like a declaration of his undying love. Speaking of love...Myrnin thinks he's in love with me? Claire decided to deal with that later. Otherwise she was in danger of having a breakdown, right there in front of Oliver.

"Is that just your twisted way of saying you care about me, Oliver?" She said, grinning. Oliver gave her a withering look.

"Of course not. It's just it would be such a waste of perfectly good blood." He said, looking at her neck. His eyes glowed a dull red colour. Claire fought the urge to take a step back, and lifted her gaze to meet Oliver's. He looked surprised for some reason, then gave a tiny shrug and in the blink of an eye, returned to being the friendly-coffee-shop-owner-guy that she used to trust.

"OK. Um, thanks for the...advice?" She said hesitantly. Oliver nodded, looking bored now. Her time up, she guessed.

"Are you going to order anything?" He asked her tonelessly. "I assume you didn't come in just for the friendly conversation."

"Right. Uh...Mocha, please."

Oliver just slid the drink he'd already made across the counter to her. Was she that predictable? Claire dug in her purse, pulled out a five dollar note, and pushed it across to Oliver, who took it and unfolded it before smoothing it out and placing it in the cash register. Claire felt like they'd just completed a drug exchange or something.

She grabbed the foam cup of coffee, thanked Oliver, and left the shop. She could feel Oliver's eyes on her the whole time, and didn't really feel like sitting down in there after the conversation they'd just had. Claire didn't stop until she'd rounded the corner. Well out of sight; vampire eyes can't see through wall or around corners.

She sat down on a bench, sipping her mocha. Oliver had said that Myrnin was in love with her. Or at least he thought he was. What was that supposed to mean? Maybe it was just a cruel joke that Oliver had thought up. But then, he had seemed serious enough. And it wasn't exactly the type of thing you joked about. Claire supposed the reason she wasn't completely freaking out was because she didn't really believe it yet. There was only one way to find out if Oliver was telling the truth.

She had to go and talk to Myrnin.

Yeah, that's going to be an awkward conversation. "Hey Myrnin, are you in love with me? 'Cause Oliver said you were. Yeah, we have regular chats about my love life. Oh, and please don't kill me like you did with Ada." Yep, Claire was pretty sure that wasn't going to go down too well.

See, I'm putting a note at the bottom as WELL. So now, no excuses if you don't review. Even if it's just to tell me to stop ruining the story with stupid notes! :D x