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"Rose. Rose" Mia whispered urgently. "What are you doing in the car so soon; you know you're suppose to wait at least fifteen minutes after the bell rings before coming in."

"I did." I answered back annoyed. Mostly because I had to wait in the parking lot under the scorching sun to get in the car when I could have been in the air conditioned car several minutes ago.

"No it's only been thirteen minutes." She whispered back. I waited to see if she was kidding but her face was serious.

"Two minutes. You're bitching at me for two freaking minutes."

"Calm down, there's no need to shout but you should know better." She admonished.

Sometimes I didn't know if my sister was stupid or she just acted stupid.

"Let's change the subject shall we." She suggested in her Martha Stuart voice. You know the voice where she thinks she's better than you are but still says it sweetly like if it isn't obvious.

"Fine whatever," Anything was better than this.

"Why was Dimitri staring at you." She said her voice uninterested. But I knew my sister and she was very interested. I gave her the same answer every one else seemed to have concluded to.

"I don't know Mia maybe he wanted to see how much of a freak I am."

Her eyes snapped to me and there was no more pretense that she wasn't interested anymore.

"He's in our class and sits right behind you. He's already gotten an eyeful of you. If he wanted to know how big of a freak you are he would do it there."

Ouch. That hurt, more because it was my sister instead of the ass hats in school.

I turned my head toward the window so my sister wouldn't see the tears. She still managed.

"Rose I didn't mean that." Mia said. Her voice was ringing with sincerity. She always does this, lets slip what she really thinks of me and then thinks because she takes it back then everything is ok.

I always forgave her in the end though because no matter how much her words hurt I knew they were true. I couldn't punish her for her honesty.

I turned to look at her and saw the concern brimming in her eyes. Damn her and her twinkling blue eyes that gets her everything she wants.

I could feel the anger slowly evaporate. I could never stay mad at her, because for some unknown reason I loved her to death.

She seemed to realize that our fight was over because her face immediately brightened up. She always gets what she wants after all.

"Do you think he was curious about you because he heard we were sisters—No I got it, he is obviously too shy to come talk to me because I'm popular and always surrounded by people. But since you're my sister he could tell you to pass it on to me." She smiled completely satisfied. Her eyes got that glazed over look she gets when she's lost in a day dream.

It use to freak the hell out of me when she did it while driving but I got used to it.

The thing with Mia was when she convinced herself about something she really did believe it.

"Oh." She gasped. "Rose we have to give you a makeover. Dimitri can't see you like this; you have to look remotely normal so he won't get the wrong impression of me." Mia said like it made perfect sense.

I never understood how everything she said always revolved around getting me a makeover. It was always the same thing: Rose I need to buy eggs so you need a makeover or Rose we're going to Disneyland so you need a makeover. Ehh makeover, the word was a cosmic bitch slap if I've ever heard one. It basically meant you look like shit so let me change you so you look remotely human.

"Thanks, but no thanks." I had enough problems without the school thinking that the little freak was trying to fit in.

"Fine it was just a suggestion." She said. Her voice took on a dreamy quality when she continued. "What do you think his lips feel like; you think it's smooth and delicious or hard and rough."

I really didn't want to answer that especially since I myself had wondered that same question. Not because I like him or anything it was merely morbid curiosity. Which was understandable considering I had never kissed anyone; a girl could day dream about kissing a hot guy even if that hot guy was Dimitri.

"I don't know, I really haven't thought about him that way."

Ok so I was a big liar, but it was better than fessing up.

"How could you not?" She said surprised. "I mean seriously Rose every girl in that school has had at least one dirty dream about him."

"What?" What?

"Of course, there is not one girl in that school that has not dreamed of ripping his clothes off." She sighed. "And other things less kindly to say." She grinned making her dimples pop out.

"So you've had dirty dreams about Dimitri." My voice went whisper soft when I said his name. It was embarrassing how just saying his name could affect me.

Mia turned off the engine before turning her whole torso in my direction, for once excited to be talking to me.

I was actually shocked to see we were home already, so it took me longer than usual to see the wide grin on her face. Her eyes a bit bashful but the lust haze was evident.

"Rose the better question is when don't I have dirty dreams about Dimitri." She grabbed her neck and closed her eyes in passion. She sighed—or more like moaned—before opening them. "And last night's dream was the best so far." She licked her lips and gave one last sigh before getting out of the car.

"Wait, that's all you're going to tell me?" I practically shouted.

"Yes because there my dreams not yours." She gave me another wicked smile before going inside.

It didn't seem fair, these past two weeks all I've been getting were my nightmares and Mia gets the lip smacking moan producing dreams.

I followed her inside are yellow house before plopping down on one of my mother's lime green cushion. The cushion alone would have been a monstrosity but my mother—a miracle worker—made it go well with the yellow patterned wall and dark green couches.

I loved/hated this house. On the plus side it was my haven away from the constant ridicule of school but it did have its disadvantages. Mostly in the name of my mother who aside from loving me thought it was her job to "fix" me. With her it was always why don't you dress like a lady, don't you want to look pretty, why aren't you more like Mia. Though she didn't exactly say the latter I know she was thinking it.

I popped in my ear phones and blasted the music in hopes that I would avoid my mom but try as I may she still got to me.

My earphones were ripped out of my ears in an instant and instead of an earful of music I got an earful of mom.

"Rose, how many times have I told you to not use this while I'm talking to you." She yelled. The lines on her forehead became more prominent and the vein on her temple pulsed almost bursting its blue jelly.

"Sorry mom I didn't notice you were talking." I replied almost bashfully because I knew I was lying.

"You certain of that." She narrowed her blue eyes and gave me the look. I was always a good liar but my mother had a way of seeing through my lies.

She waited with her eyes narrowed till I fessed up.

"Fine, I heard you." I admitted. "I was just trying to avoid this talk." I mumbled out.

My mother had recently picked out the habit of trying to find me friends. Last week it was with the elderly neighbors niece who according to my mother was a nice girl. And don't get me wrong I'm not picky about friends or anything. I did actually go there and say hi but the girl wasn't quite what I expected. She turned out to be 12, and if the age wasn't enough of a downer her obsession was. Her back pack and folder were covered in strawberry shortcake pictures. I knew right there that this friendship would never go anywhere and decided to drop it.

"I'm just worried about you sweetie, it's not natural for a girl of your age to not have any friends." She said, the lines of concern showing on her face. My mother looked a lot like my sister, they had the same features that defined there beauty. It also meant that my mother had no idea what it meant to not fit in.

"I do have a friend mom, remember Christian, he's been my best friend since the sixth grade." I hated how she easily discredited Christian, as if he didn't count.

"Yes, Christian." She said his name like if it left a bad taste in her mouth. "I wanted to talk to you about him. I don't think he's a good friend for you to have. Did you know that, that boy reads devil worshipping books and I heard from Kirova that she saw that boy try to contact the dead." She said whisper soft.

Of course Kirova would say something like that. She was the biggest gossip in town. She knew everything about everyone right down to their date of birth. What I didn't understand was how she found out about Christian contacting the dead. We usually did that in his bedroom, unless—and this is freaky to even think about—Kirova peaks in through the windows.

"Mom please, I know Christian like the back of my hand, if you ever want to know anything about him you come talk to me don't rely on what other people have to say." Even if they got half of it right but she didn't need to know that.

"I just don't like the looks of that boy. He doesn't look like a good influence." My mom always the worried one. "Can't you make decent friends."

"Mom, I understand why you would think that but what friends can I make. You want me to befriend the people who call me loser and freak every day."

Her mouth turned into a hard line. She never did like the fact that I was the school freak. She always blamed it on herself even though I told her many times that it wasn't her fault. That it was me, that it is me.

"Ok sweetie." Her eyes turned kind. "I trust your judgment. And Christian is a nice boy. You know me I always get caught up in Kirova's stories, but I can't help listening when it affects you." She patted my head softly and ruffled my thick curls, her signal to announce the conversation was over.

"So what are you doing today." She asked as she walked to the kitchen. Her voice sounded far away, probably more concentrated on the cookies on the table than the actual question she asked.

"I'm just going to hang out with Christian today." I flinched. Please don't say no.

It took her longer than usual to answer but when she did it was in resignation. "Fine, if that's what you want to do then take the Toyota—"

"No, no, no!" Mia yelled from the kitchen. Her voice shrill as nails. She came bargaining into the living room with the fury of hell written on her beautiful face. "She can't take the Toyota, I'm taking it. The girls and I are going to the mall and I already promised I'd drive. Please Mom." She puckered her full pink lips and fluttered her eyelashes in a way that mom couldn't resist.

I could see her walls crumbling when she took a look at Mia before conceding to her wish.

"I guess you could take the car Mia." She exhaled. I already knew it was going to end this way, nobody denied anything from Mia.

"Thanks mom love you." She leaned over and kissed my mom on both cheeks before taking her winnings; the keys to the car that only she seemed to drive. I could have argued that I never get to drive it but what was the point, I knew I wasn't going to win.

There was something about me that made me an outcast even in my own family. I would never win against Mia and I would never win against any other girl in the planet. I couldn't quite grasp what was wrong with me. I mean I acted normal enough; I didn't have any weird obsessions like Christian.

All I know is that in the middle of sixth grade everything changed, instead of being Mia's little sister I became a freak.

The only explanation I came up with is that the freak gene kicked in and everybody but me seemed to notice it. Either way it left me friendless until Christian came along.

"I guess I'll just walk to Christian's house."

"Ok sweetie, be careful. Don't come back too late, your father wouldn't like it." My mother said before she walked back into the kitchen.

"So Rose you're going to visit your boyfriend Christian." Mia teased.

"Eww." Seriously eww. I've known Christian for a really long time and I see him more like a brother. The thought of Christian and I together is as gross as the thought of a brother and a sister together. Both are just wrong and should never happen.

"Sheesh, Rose, no need to be mean." She giggled. "But Christian is gross so I can understand why you said that. Remember when he tried giving me that love note. Eww." She gagged.

"Christian isn't gross," I said a bit defensive. "He's misunderstood. And you should think yourself lucky that someone as cool as Christian liked you once."

"Cool." She laughed out loud. "Rose, Christian and cool definitely don't belong in the same sentence." She finished between laughs.

So maybe describing Christian as cool wasn't the smartest idea.

"What I mean is that he's amazing and my best friend so you can't say he's gross, only I'm allowed to call him that." I warned.

"Ok, fine I won't say anything about your boyfriend anymore."

I almost punched her in the face. "He's not my boyfriend!"

"Ok then, whatever you say." She called as she jingled the keys, taunting me a bit before she walked out the door.

It wouldn't be Mia unless she rubbed it in a little.

I quickly gathered my bag and clutched it tightly to my chest before walking out into the fresh breeze. Sure walking isn't as cool as driving—according to Mia—but I happened to enjoy walking. Or maybe it was my quest to do everything the uncool way which made me pick walking. Either way the world seemed to always look better to me when the echo of gravel bounced off my feet. It made me feel like technology hasn't quite taken over if someone could do something as simple as walk.

I walked to Christian's house with two things on my mind first robots better not take over the world; I don't think I would do well if humanity was enslaved by machines. And second, Christian better have found something important in that book of his. I was getting tired of reading myth after myth each seeming more unreal than the next.

Ten minutes later I made it to Christian's house. His house was about four blocks away from mine and in the times when I had to walk to his house—which was every time—it really came in handy, living so close.

I gave my signature 3 knock beat on the door before his mother, Mrs. Ozera answered. She was a woman in her mid-forties; her jet black hair was pulled in its usual tight bun. Her clothing were the embodiment of the classic business woman with her black pencil skirt and white collar shirt, both smoothed out as if they were freshly ironed.

I had been to Christian's house about a million times but each time Mrs. Ozera gave me the same look. It was a look that I have been accustomed too, just about every one—aside from my family, Christian, and though it pains me to admit it Dimitri—gave me when staring directly into my eyes. It was a look filled with genuine fear.

I quickly side stepped her before I gave her a heart attack and let myself into the house.

Christian's house was everything he wasn't. It was orderly, classy, and perfect with beautiful Venetian couches smothered in white fluffy pillows and huge hand carved—according to Mrs. Ozera—tables.

It was too perfect. The furniture was as fresh as the day they bought it. I was always afraid to touch any of it in fear that I would ruin its perfection.

I headed towards the stair well and ran up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time. I needed to get out of the stifling room; it was so clouded up with smugness I was nearly choking on it.

I barged into Christian's room, yelling "boo" as I came in. Christian was half sprawled on his bed, mauling over a new comic. He looked seemingly unaffected by my interruption even though it was loud and I'm sure the house might have shook a bit from the force of the door smashing against his poster wrapped wall.

"I knew you were coming." Christian said ominously while turning the page of his comic. He always seemed to know when I was here. "You might be wondering how I knew." He said, still not looking up from his book.

"No." I lied.

"Liar you always want to know." He smirked, finally turning his head in my direction. "And just because I'm feeling nice I'm going to tell you."

"Oh great one, tell me what I need to know." I quipped. He smiled smugly. Clearly the signals going through that thick skull of his were off because he didn't notice that I was being sarcastic.

"You always seem to suck the entire atmosphere out of my house like some black hole leaving it empty." The seriousness in his voice made me shiver. I always noticed how a room would go quiet when I entered but I always thought that it was all in my head. Or at the very least that it happened to everyone. Having my suspicion confirmed made me feel paranoid; like everyone was in on what made me a freak but me. I felt left out in my own secret.

"What do you mean empty?" Because that was the real question, how could any person leave a room empty?

"Just listen for a second, what do you hear?" He whispered. I perked my ears and tried to listen to what he was talking about, but there was nothing.

"Christian I can't hear anything." I whined. If this was one of Christiian's jokes he shouldn't be standing so close to me.

"Exactly," He said.

"What?"

"My mother is never quiet, she's always talking to someone on the phone or humming in that overly excited voice she always uses." He rolled his eyes showing how much he hated that voice. "And do you hear her now?" He asked. I was starting to get what he was talking about.

"You mean she always gets quiet when I come?" I couldn't believe it. How could I would have this much effect on a person? I always heard gossip about what a talker Mrs. Ozera was, but I've never heard a peep out of her. I was beginning to think that all that gossip about her was a lie. Well until Christian burst my bubble.

"Yep; and that's how I know that you're here because the house gets unusually quiet whenever you're around. It's like you completely suck the life out of my mother leaving her—

"Empty." I finished. I couldn't believe it; what had I ever done to her? Was it just gossip? Did Mrs. Ozera here something about me? Did she make her own conclusions and labeled me untrustworthy. Was I not even worth a simple acknowledgement in her books?

Even as I said it I knew it wasn't true. There was something else, something more that I was missing. Everyone in town couldn't be this stupid to believe some nonsense rumors that didn't even make sense. They had nothing on me except for the label of freak; there was no explanation to that label.

"Rose?" Christian snapped his fingers in front of my face interrupting my internal conflict.

"What?" I replied.

"What's with you, you've been inside your own head rather than on your feet these past two weeks." He looked me straight in the eye and the concern I saw there almost made me tell him about the dream. Almost, but I chickened out.

"I'm just tired, I haven't been sleeping well." I lied, hoping it wouldn't show on my face.

It made me feel a guilty when he didn't question my lie. Christian and I never lied to each other. So I wondered, why all the secrets now. Especially to Christian who knew everything and then some about me.

"So you want to study the book now." Christian asked. He made it sound like a question but I could hear the desire under his voice. There was no putting it off when it came to his obsession.

"Like I have a choice," I grumbled. I was still a bit ticked off over having to study another one of his books.

"Good." He seemed satisfied enough with my answer and went to go fetch the book like an over eager puppy. Of course the son of a librarian would drool over books.

He went no further than his bed and flipped the book out from under his pillow. It was all leather like an over-sized journal, the color so faded it was almost impossible to know what the original color had been. The bind was gnawed off as if Christian had gotten a little too over joyed and bit it, and the title was scrawled on in big old fashioned writing.

The book looked like it had come straight out of Dracula's castle but that wasn't what made me shiver. It was thick, the pages reaching up to the zillions. The sight alone made me quiver in my dark brown, ready to kick ass, combat boots.

"What the hell is this?" He better be joking or else Christian was looking at serious head up his ass time.

"It's the book." He shot back though his stance had turned a bit wary. I guess he notice the don't mess with me look on my face. Or maybe the I'm about to kick your ass posture I was holding. Either way it looked like he knew he was in big trouble.

"Book, that's no book. That's a freaking encyclopedia."

"What? No its not, it's the book." He retorted, but I thought I saw him take a quick glance at the book just to make sure.

"I know that, what I'm saying is couldn't you find a book bigger than the United States." I sassed.

"This book is big." My goodness this boy needs to know what sarcasm is and quick.

"Really." I made my voice sound like an airhead. "Because I thought it was small."

"Ro, shut up and get reading. Stop trying to wiggle yourself out of reading." He guessed. Damn, I was hoping this banter would go on longer and cut through reading time.

"Fine." I surrendered and flopped on the floor. There was no distraction in the world that could get Christian out of reading. Even if Pamela Anderson walked in topless, he would still be more interested in the book on his lap.

"Good." He ran his fingers through his dark locks before signaling me to come next to him.

"I found out that the book is separated into sections." He pointed out once I joined him. We were both sitting crossed legged on his bed with the book on our laps. His deep black comforter felt cotton soft against my legs. I felt like I was sitting on a giant black marshmallow.

"What kinds of sections?"

"Well the underworld section is split in two parts, there's first the actual description of hell." He whispered. "And then there's the demon section."

"Ok so we just read the first part and there." Seemed simple enough.

"That's what I thought. But I found something very interesting in the demon section. It described a ritual to send a demon to hell." He looked excited, his dark eyes showed a boyish mirth. "It's not like the other ones we've read about that just traps the demon in one spot. With this ritual you could banish him from this world and send him to the fiery pits."

"What? And more importantly why the hell would we need to know that?"

"Well you never know what could happen. We need to be prepared. But it's actually quiet hard to send one to hell. Killing them is much simpler."

"Yeah, Yeah I know." Christian and I had spent a whole week, a couple of months back, learning incantations to kill demons. Each incantation was several phrases of Latin words that had to be said precisely, if you pronounced even one word wrong it wouldn't work.

"Well it says in this book that to send a demon to hell you have to drop three dots from the blood of the willing, and a virgin with the intention of sending the demon to hell should kiss the demon to seal the deal." He finished.

"A kiss, really?"

"Yeah. It has something to do with the purity of the virgin. A demon is everything unholy in this world. He wouldn't be able to stand the pureness of that kiss; even if it is intended to send him to hell." His eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. "But what's the willing?" He asked.

"Someone who willingly gives up their blood." I stated the obvious.

"Ohh. Well that's that. I can't seem to find anything about opening a portal though.

"So this whole search is useless." I exasperated.

"No, there was something not quite adding up. I think it's somewhere in the demon section but I can't find it." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully and stared at his wall, as if it had all the answers to the world.

"And that's why you need me." I guessed.

"Yes." He said still not looking away from the wall. "Those eyes of yours miss nothing, there like hawk eyes only scarier."

"What?" I asked startled. That was the first time he had referred to my eyes as scary. And even though it was only Christian, something about it didn't feel right.

"Hmm."

"What about my eyes?"

"Oh nothing it's just that your eyes get really scary sometimes. I feel like you could see right through me. I feel naked like you've stripped me of all my secrets." He sounded far away. I knew he was more concentrated on the thought of the demon than on the question he answered but it still made me shiver.

"So you need my naked stripping eye." I tried to joke but it fell flat against the panic bubbling up in my chest.

"In lack of a better word yes." Christian agreed. I was thankful that he was preoccupied with the book so he wouldn't notice the full blown panic attack I almost had.

"Ok then let me have at it." I didn't know until several hours later how much I would regret saying those words.