Beth shut the car door with a growl, pulling her jacket tighter around her. Of course, she had to forget something. Of course. And it had to be the yams. Why did Willow insist on yams? Yams were gross, or at least that was her new opinion of the vegetable (Fruit? Root? She didn't even know), considering their absence in her kitchen was forcing her to be at the grocery store eight o'clock on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. How many old ladies was she going to have to beat before she got ahold of Willow's precious yams? And yeah, maybe Jackie liked them too, but he could die for all she cared.
The grocery store was hell. She had never been there, but her father had and from his explanation, this looked pretty similar. It was chaotic and she knew she was in for a whole lot of pain. Allowing a determined look to fall over her face, she pushed her way through the masses of people, working her way toward the fresh produce section. Was everyone in town using that very same grocery store? Because people sure as hell didn't seem to be anywhere else.
Once she found the yams (damn yams), she stuffed several into a plastic bag, forgetting how many Willow had said to get and planning on telling her aunt she'd just have to make do because this insanity made Beth want to break out into game face and clear the store herself. Of course, such activity was frowned upon and would likely only get her splashed with holy water and a dozen crosses pressed to her face. People in Bellevue were pretty well-prepared.
Yams in hand, she pushed and shoved her way to the front of the store just so she could stand in an obscenely long line to check out. And as terrible as that was, all she could think of when she reached the register was at least she wasn't the one working here. Yikes.
The cashier checked her out (aha, mom's credit card. What financial damage could she cause with such a small piece of plastic?) and she hurried out of the store. She walked toward the back of the parking lot where she had parked, not wanting to deal with the swarming mess that was the buildup in front. She wasn't worried about getting attacked out away from the crowd and lights. She was a slayer. Monsters feared her. It wasn't the other way around. That would be stupid.
She stopped at the car (also her mom's car. What sort of property damage could she cause with such a large piece of moving metal?), patting herself down for the keys. Layering up for the winter cold meant there were many pockets in which to search through, and she couldn't remember where she had put them. She should have just picked a pocket and stuck with it.
She was pulled from her key search when she heard what sounded like a fight. She looked up, trying to see what was going on. Were two grandmas going at it over one of those fancy cornucopias? If she didn't get that on camera, her father would never forgive her. Hell, she'd never forgive herself.
Except the noise wasn't coming from the store but from across the parking lot near where the Home Depot kept all those small houses. Another grunt, followed by a desperate "help!" and she snapped into action, dropping the yams (don't tell Willow). She raced across the parking lot toward the wooden structures. She came to a stop to see a vampire trying to put his teeth fang deep in his victim's neck. She rushed up and pushed the vampire away, delivering a kick to his stomach and sending him crashing into one of the little houses. The vampire hissed and picked himself up.
"Slayer," he growled before launching himself at her.
"Vampire," she greeted, spinning out of the way with ease. He was relatively easy to dispatch and she got a stake through his heart before he even realized she had pulled one out.
Vampire gone, she did the standard wiping of her hands that meant "job well done" or maybe "too easy." It could really go either way. She turned around to help the person up. He was a boy maybe a few years older than her with neatly styled brown hair. He was dressed in nice-looking sweater and slacks, a very sharp contrast compared to her army surplus jacket, jeans (no rips; too cold), and combat boots.
"Thank you," he said to her gratefully.
"No problem," she told him. "You're not from around here, are you? Most people would know better than to go off to some dark place without some form of defense."
The boy chuckled uneasily. "Hm, it my arrival that obvious? I came here for a job. I've only been here for about a month."
She frowned, looking him over. He didn't seem that old. "A job?" she repeated.
He nodded. "Yes. Family business. I finished high school a year early this summer so I could start working. Are you a slayer? The way you took down that vampire was amazing."
She nodded, used to the praise dropped on her by those whose lives she saved. It might be impressive to them, but after going to a school full of slayers, it wasn't so extraordinary. "I'm Beth. Also, strangely enough, in the family business."
"Really?" he asked, intrigued. "I didn't think slaying ran in families."
"It doesn't. I just got lucky," she explained.
"Oh, I'm being so rude. My name's Jacob," he told her with a smile. "I don't mean to sound rude, but I thought all new slayers went to some school? You seem awfully young to be out here already."
"I'm an exception," she said by way of explanation. "You get those when your mum's a very famous slayer."
"Well, I'm glad you're an exception," he said with a chuckle, "or else I'd be dead."
"You should be more careful then," she instructed him. "Bellevue's got a bit of a vampire problem, if you haven't noticed."
He smiled at her humor. "If I hadn't before, I can safely say I have now."
"Are you parked around here?" she asked. "I don't want to save your life and then have you get attacked again before you reach your car."
"I'm over there," he said, pointing towards a small black sports car parked a row over from hers. Huh. Well wasn't that convenient.
"You parked near me," she noted. "Well, I guess escorting you to your car won't be hard then."
"Isn't it the gentleman who's supposed to escort the young lady to her car?" he asked with a grin.
"And it's also supposed to be the knight whose save the princess from the evil monster, so I guess we're flipping gender roles all over the place," she joked.
He laughed. "As a slayer, I assume you're used to that. My mother taught me manners though, and that includes opening the car door for the lady."
"Oh no, it's cool. My parents also taught me manners, but I forgot them, so I won't even realize you didn't do that."
As they reached her car, she picked up her dropped goods, only a few errant yams having made their way out of the bag (the extra dirt would be good for their immune systems). She finally found her elusive keys, unlocking the vehicle.
"I do insist," he said, actually opening the car door. She did her best to not laugh, caught up in the absurdity of this all. She'd just saved his life and his biggest priority was maintaining proper etiquette.
"I don't know if this is forward of me," he began, looking somewhat shy. "But I do wish to somehow convey my gratitude for saving my life—"
"Oh, don't sweat it," she cut in with a wave of her hand. "Slayer. It's in my job description. Says 'save people's live' verbatim."
"I insist though," he urged. "Join me for dinner one night. I'd feel a bit more balanced knowing I've somehow paid you back for helping me."
"Your life is worth one dinner?" she asked.
"A dinner with you? Of course," he told her with a smile.
Well, Beth wasn't one to pass up free food. If he insisted…
"Okay then," she replied and he grinned. She quickly gave him her number and he departed, and she watched as he got into his car and drove off. She left shortly after him and it wasn't until she had pulled up to the light that she realized she had agreed to a date.
"Well fuck," she muttered, dropping her head to the steering wheel.
-.-
"You're stirring those mashed potatoes very angrily," Willow noted with a tad bit of concern.
"I want them to be well mixed," Beth replied with a sniff, returning to her wild stirring. Willow still eyed her, but didn't say anything further.
Mr. Woods and Jackie were going to be arriving for Thanksgiving dinner in a few hours and she still had a lot of food to work on. And considering her mother's record with cooking and the fact that her father went over a century not needing to eat anything further than blood, it was up to her and her Aunt Willow to get things done. In fact, both Spike and Buffy were banned from the kitchen. She still had to start the buns and get the gravy cooking, along with the yams (damn yams…), and a million other things before dinner started and all she could think about was that she agreed to a date with a normal boy named Jacob, and he hadn't texted her yet and she didn't know how to tell anyone. Keeping this to herself was going to be hard.
She hadn't meant to agree to the date; while she had tossed around the idea of dating, she wasn't certain she was ready to enter into the fray, fangs and all. She had only meant save his life, as was her calling. She barely knew the guy and he was probably high off of adrenaline when he'd ask, but he was cute and was it so wrong to do it? It felt silly to rescind his offer because she was suddenly struck with such anxiety over how he would react if he found out she was part vampire. The enormity of having to tell her family loomed in front of her too. And Nadja, she'd have to tell Nadja. Oh, and might as well throw in Daniel. Oh feck, and Zack?
Oh no, she didn't have to tell Zack. He was far away and she really didn't have to breach the vampire thing anyway. She could go on one date with him and say she had a nice time, but one was enough and then never go to that grocery store again in case she ran into him (was she panicking? This felt like panicking).
"Uh, Bethie?" Willow began, cutting in through her thoughts.
"Wha'?" she asked, looking over at her aunt.
"Are you alright?" she asked. "You've been acting weird ever since you came back from the grocery store last night and you haven't been stirring the potatoes for the last five minutes."
"Oh, was I?" Beth asked, looking down to realize the spoon was actually a few inches above the pot. Well, wasn't that awkward?
She sighed, putting the spoon down. "Something happened last night. Something big, possibly bad."
"Oh no, did you push an old lady?" Willow asked.
"No, nothing like that. See, this guy was being attacked by a vampire so I saved him," she began.
"You're upset you saved someone?" her aunt asked, confused.
"No, it's not that. It's the after that. Let me finish before you ask any more questions," Beth told her. "He said he wanted to repay me for saving his life so I agreed to go to dinner with him one night."
The silence that followed was uncomfortable. She couldn't read Willow's expression so all she could do was shift her weight back from foot to foot, waiting for her aunt to say something. Or scream, maybe laugh. Anything would be good really.
"So, you're going on a date?" Willow asked for clarification.
She paused before nodding. "I think so. I mean, maybe it is just dinner, bu—"
"Oh my goddesses!" Willow squealed, throwing up her hands and running over to Beth, pulling her into a tight hug. "My little niece is growing up so quickly!"
"Ergh, Willow, let go," she got out as her aunt crushed the very breath from her lungs. For a willowy (mind the pun) woman, she sure was strong.
"Oh gosh, I'm just so happy for you! A date! With a boy! You do like boys, right?" Willow inquired, stepping back enough to be able to look Beth in the eyes.
"Well I haven't had much experience with them, but Jacob is kind of cute," she conceded.
"His name is Jacob? Oh, he sounds handsome! Ooh, what are you going to wear? Where are you going? Oh, this is going to be so much fun!"
Unless Beth was mistaken, she thought it was her that was going on the date, not her aunt. What is it they said about living vicariously through another? Except Willow had a girlfriend, so that didn't make any sense.
"We haven't made concrete plans yet," Beth informed her. "He said he would message me, but he hasn't. Do boys normally take a long time to get back to you?"
"Why do you think I stopped dating them?" Willow asked her.
"I thought you stopped dating boys after your boyfriend left you for the Himalayas or whatever to control his inner beast."
"But he didn't send me any messages now did he?" Willow asked and honestly, she didn't really know how to reply to that.
"What was with all the screaming?" Buffy asked, coming into the kitchen.
"Oh whoa, you're not allowed in here," Beth said as Willow squealed, "Beth's going in a date!"
"Shush, do you want my dad to hear?" Beth hissed, waving her hands frantically.
"A date?" her mother repeated, eyes wide. Beth cringed, waiting for the second bomb that was Buffy to go off. "A date!" Another squeal and hug that seemed to be less congratulatory and more with the single-minded goal of squeezing her soul out through her eyes. Beth let it pass though, allowing herself to be moved up and down as her mother bounced on her feet.
"When did this happen? What's his name? What does he look like?" Buffy demanded rapid-fire.
"Last night at the grocery store. He got attacked by a vampire and I saved him. His name is Jacob. And, um, he looks like a boy?" Beth answered.
"Psh, no, I mean what does he look like?" her mother asked again, adding emphasis. That sounded like the same questions as before, but Beth was pretty sure she was supposed to give another answer.
"He's got dark hair, cleaned up well," she commented. "He didn't seem that much older than me. He said he graduated school a year early and is here for a job in the family company."
"So rich?" Buffy inquired, her eyes alight.
"Maybe? I didn't really ask," Beth replied, and then frowned. "We didn't talk much before he left."
"That's what the date's for," Buffy assured. "What's important is if you think he's cute."
"Well, yeah, he was a pretty good-looking guy," she decided, never having ever sat down with the thought of what a cute boy was supposed to look like. Boys weren't supposed to like her, so why would she have given any thought to which ones she would've liked back?
"I'm so happy for you!" her mother gushed, taking her daughter up into another hug, this one not as soul-crushing. "A real date with a real boy. This is very exciting, especially since I was let down with that Daniel boy."
"Daniel's a fine person," Beth defended her friend. "And it's just one date."
"Which could lead to two," Willow reminded her with a smile. "If you like him, you can go on a second."
"Second what?" Spike asked, coming into the kitchen. Beth groaned, nearly collapsing to the floor in despair.
"Second patrol with Daniel," Buffy told him quickly, eyes wide.
He studied her for a second, looking skeptical. Plus, Beth's dramatic display behind the counter wasn't helping Buffy's case. "That's what you lot were screamin' about?" he questioned.
"Yes," Willow assured. "Daniel. We were talking about Daniel."
"Beth?" he asked, looking over at her daughter as she slowly sunk to the ground. He could actually only see her leg, but it was still her.
"Yes," she groaned, hoping he would leave soon. She didn't want to have this discussion with him. God no, she wasn't insane. Telling her dad there was possibly another boy in her life? She made a face. She didn't even know Jacob. He seemed nice, but he could collect toenails for all she knew. Or worship Byzou. Considering the people she tended to attract, that last one was just as likely.
"Alright," he said, though he didn't look like he believed any of them. How could they blame him for the lack of trust? He knew these women and he knew when they were keeping things from him. Besides, Buffy was a terrible liar.
He backed out of the kitchen slowly, as Willow and Buffy smiled at him disarmingly. No one said a word until they heard the door the basement close. Beth listened for her father's heavy-booted feet on the steps down into the training room, so he couldn't trick them by closing the door but staying upstairs.
"He actually went into the basement," Beth notified them.
"A date?" Buffy said again, this time in a much lower tone. Bet she was happy Spike didn't have vampire hearing anymore.
"Yes," she groaned, still not getting up from her slumped position behind the counter. "Could we not make a big deal out of this?"
"But Bethie," Willow whined before sighing. "No, no, you're right. This is your first date and while that is such good news, we don't need to rush things."
"Yes, thank you," she breathed. "Besides, this can't be anything. I'm part vampire, remember? I bet that'd freak out even the most accepting of men."
"Zack didn't have an issue with it," Buffy reminded her none-too-gently.
She sighed. "Yes, but it's different when you're friends. You don—you don't snog your friends!"
"You're getting ahead of yourself, Bethie," Willow informed her. "You haven't even gone on your first date yet. You don't have to drop that on him right away. You can wait until the right time to bring it up."
Beth was thoughtful as she considered her aunt's words. Since her vampirism wasn't obvious to people, it was true that it wasn't something she needed to drop on him right away. She could chalk it up to medical conditions, and nobody brought those up on the first date! Besides, she didn't exactly want to say no. The idea of going on a date—a romantic date with a boy—eased the ache that had been in her chest since the beginning on the school year. Maybe she wasn't so hopeless; maybe she could find love like her mom and dad had.
"See?" Willow said, noticing Beth's look. "Now, we'll tone it down so you don't feel so embarrassed."
Buffy harrumphed. "Speak for yourself. As your mother, it's my job to embarrass you. So make sure he knows that he's picking you up here because I want to meet him and I want pictures. Lots and lots of pictures."
"Mum," she groaned, sliding down until her head hit the floor.
"Oh Bethie, get up, that floor's probably dirty," Willow fretted, but no one heard her as Buffy went on talking.
"Don't 'mum' me," she said. "I have a right to this. I am happy that you have a date and I want to remember this moment forever and to do so, I need pictures. Lots of them."
"This isn't Prom, Mum," she whined.
"Oh, just you wait until Prom," her mother warned, then gasped. "Oh, can you imagine, them going to Prom?"
"You don't even know if it'll last that long!" Beth reminded her. "I haven't even gone on the first date with him!" She was pretty sure she'd have to tell him about her genetic makeup before Prom two years from now.
"I can dream, can't I?" Buffy asked with a sigh.
"Okay, out now," she demanded, standing up. "Unless you're going to help me cook, out."
Buffy pouted, but actually listened, wanting dinner as much as anyone else.
"And you don't say anything," she directed, turning to point at her aunt. "We don't talk about this again until I say so, okay?"
"But we will talk about it?" Willow asked.
"Yes," she groaned, pounding a fist on the counter. "But he hasn't even texted me. So there's nothing to talk about. I've got work to do and so do you. You wanted these damn yams, well let's get to cooking them."
The rest of the dinner-making went by without any more hiccups, with only a few, occasional sneaky smiles in Beth's direction. She ignored them for the most part, choosing instead of focus on her gravy. As long as she didn't see it, it wasn't happening.
"Oh, well lookie here. Never thought I'd see the Wild Child so domesticated," Jackie intoned, causing Beth's head to snap up. He was standing in the doorway to the kitchen, dressed in a short-sleeve shirt (probably to show off his tattoos; it was cold outside anyway) and black slacks. Beth grinned at him, forgetting her gravy and running over to give him a hug.
"Ah, I'm so glad to see you," she murmured.
"I am too, Miss Liz," her replied with a chuckle. "Boy, have you gotten strong. How much do you lift?"
"Did you see that truck across the road?" she began with a grin. "It was parked where my dad normally puts his car."
He snorted, shaking his head. "Mm, glad to see modesty hasn't abandoned you. And how are you, Miss Willow?"
"I've been doing pretty well," she replied, coming over to give Jackie a hug. "How's your dad?"
"Now? He's in a glare contest with Spike, so he's been better," he answered with a grin. "I told him he could stay home this year, but he insists on coming for some reason. Maybe he thinks Spike'll think he scared him away if he doesn't come one year."
"That'll show him," Beth mumbled, peeking out into the dining room to see Spike and Mr. Woods awkwardly sitting in the living room, Buffy looking equally as uncomfortable as Andrew went off on some nerd rant about Star Wars probably.
"I'm feeling the festivity," she commented, stepping back into the kitchen. "Willow, why don't you go save them from Andrew's long, drawn-out thesis on the biblical symbolism in Lord of the Rings?"
Her aunt winced. "Ooh, gosh, doesn't he know that's a crowd-displeaser?"
"It'll work for him when Uncle Xander comes for Christmas," Beth replied and her aunt hurried out of the kitchen.
"Want me all to yourself, hm?" he asked, wriggling his eyebrows.
She laughed, pushing his shoulder. "You're here to help," she told him.
He pouted. "But I thought I was the guest."
"Help," she repeated, handing him a spoon. "I'm tired of stirring the gravy."
He sighed, but relented, stationing himself in front of the stove. Beth checked the turkey again, finally pulling it out.
"Mm," he murmured. "You know, despite your parents utter lack of culinary skills, you cook very well. It's not hereditary, so what did you do, sell your soul or something?"
"I do have a spare," she reminded him. "Nothing happens in a vacuum anyway. Somebody had to do the cooking. And my mum did do Thanksgiving once, a long time ago, way before I was born. My dad was there, though he can't attest for her cooking."
"Probably would have drowned it in blood anyway," he muttered, making a face. "He'd ruin a perfectly good turkey."
"Oh, don't be so squeamish about blood," she scolded. "You've been around me for how long?"
"But that's different," he told her. "You're not ruining a perfectly good turkey when you do it!"
She rolled her eyes at him. "Lots of vampires eat food with their blood. Something about texture, I don't know. If you're going to date vampires, you might as well get used to it."
He rolled his eyes at her. "I'm not dating a vampire."
"But you were before," she reminded him. "Ever thought about meeting other girls?"
"You know I like strong women."
"Considering your mother, I think Freud would have a field day with you," she sighed and he stuck out his tongue at her. "Oh very mature, how old are you again? Twenty-three?"
"Twenty-four in March," he told her snidely. "But still old enough that you can't tell me to act my age. You act your age. Gossip. Squeal. Kiss a boy, I don't know."
"I do act my age," she informed him. "Just last weekend I begged my dad to let me borrow the car so I could hang out with my friends. See, acting sixteen."
"Did you get it?" he inquired.
"Does my father really look like the kind of person who can so no to this face?" she asked, making her eyes go wide and mouth go all pouty (she knew she looked good. She practiced it in the mirror often enough).
He laughed. "If he could, he is a greater man than I. You are going to give your significant other a run for their money later."
She made a face. "Can we not talk about my dating life? I already got my fill of that from my Aunt and Mum earlier today."
"Why? Are you dating someone?" he asked. When she didn't reply, he looked up at her, eyes wide. "Wait, what? You serious? A boy?" he hissed.
"Shh, my dad is right in the other room and he doesn't know yet," she warned him.
"Oh, my lord Jesus, Beth's got a boy toy," he continued on like he hadn't heard her. His voice didn't escalate though, so for that she was happy. "Why am I just now hearing about this? I thought I was your confidant."
"Because it just happened," she told him, smacking his arm. "It happened last night to be exact."
He gasped, looking scandalized. "You rendezvoused with a boy last night? Oh, how juicy."
"Shut up. He hasn't even texted me yet. You're being too dramatic," she told him.
"Did I ever tell you I was in Drama?" he asked her.
"Yes. Multiple times. There was a pretty girl. I know."
"And she broke my heart, my Juliet. Oh, wherefore art thou, Romeo, because it sure as hell wasn't me."
"It's not that big of a deal, alright?" she told him, blowing a piece of hair out of her face. "I just saved his life and he wants to repay me with food. That's all. Thinking about it, I don't even know if it really is a date. It could just be his way of saying thanks."
"You really believe that?" he asked skeptically.
She shifted uncomfortably. "Well, it's not like I know what it looks like when boys flirt with me," she reminded him. "The Academy wasn't teeming with blokes. And the ones who were there—the young, Watchers-in-training the older slayers went googly-eyed over—usually looked at me like I was something they'd like to poke."
When he gave her a sardonic grin, she realized the double entendre she'd just spoken, and smacked him on the shoulder. "Don't be gross," she hissed at him.
"You poor, sweet innocent girl," he tsked, shaking his head. "This is what your dad gets for sending you to an all-girls' school. My dad had once told me he thought it was a bad idea that they kept you locked up at the academy. You needed to get out more. It's probably why he let me spend whole summers there."
"You know my parents have always been worried something would have tried to nab me if they figured out what I was," she reminded him.
"I know, and what do you do?" he asked, chuckling. "Get grabbed by some harbingers just a few scant months in."
"You act like I did that on purpose!"
"Look, my point is that you wouldn't know if a guy was interested in you if he hit you with a bus," he intoned.
"That doesn't sound like interest."
"But I can almost one-hundred percent assure you that if he's asking you out to dinner, it's a date," he explained. "As a specimen of the male population—and may I add what a fine specimen I am—"
"You may not."
"—I can with much confidence say that if a pretty girl so much as says anything to a boy, it might as well be flirting. You say 'hello' and he's pretty sure you're already dating."
"Really?" she asked, appalled. "Are men really like that?"
He nodded sagely. "Boys mostly. Hormones and all that junk, keeps them from having standards. If she talks to them, she's a possible hookup."
"I'm not going to 'hookup' with him," she told him, squirming at the idea. Already the idea of kissing him was sending her into hyperventilation. She never kissed a boy! What if she wasn't careful and vamped out? Nicked him with a fang? Great Zeus that would put a fantastic end to her dating life!
"Oh, what, no snogging?" he teased and she scrunched her nose up in disgust.
"No one is getting snogged or shagged or nothing," she affirmed. "It's a dinner date. He might just thank me for saving his life and then we'll never see each other again. See, maybe that's why he hasn't texted me. Because he's not interested in me."
"You sure are protesting a lot for something you claim isn't a big deal," he commented. "You do actually like this guy, don't you?"
"He was attractive, but we didn't talk much," she admitted. "And besides, I've got this whole other life going on—a whole other half of me. How am I supposed to explain that to some civilian?"
"Beth," he stated calmly, "you're not signing a marriage license with this guy. It's one date. In high school. You might love him one moment and then break up with him the next. You're allowed to enjoy yourself and have fun. And that includes dating cute boys."
"I know," she sighed. "It just…feels wrong. Like if I go out on this date with him without telling him what I am, I'm lying to him."
He sighed, leaning back against the counter. "Give the guy a chance," he told her. "Let him get to know you. Hell, let any guy get to know you. It's easy to make assumptions about what being part-vampire might do to a person when you don't know them, but even I know you're pretty awesome. Any guy would be crazy to turn you down just because you can drop some fangs."
"You make it sound all so simple," she retorted, ducking her head so he wouldn't see how red her face could get. "You're just saying that because you don't mind all the fangs and ridges."
"I am saying that because I know you," he corrected, then paused. "Also because I am a man. I know how men think and it's not as big a deal as you might think."
"Oh, suddenly you're the spokesperson for your whole gender?" she inquired snidely.
"Your mom certainly didn't think it was a big deal," he pointed out.
"So if I were to ask, I dunno, Daniel or Zack—"
He laughed. "Yeah, please, ask them if given the chance to be with a pretty girl, they'd turn her down because sometimes she has fangs. Some might even think the chance of biting is a little hot."
"You don't know Zack at all if you think he'd be cool with that," she told him.
He smiled. "Ask him if he thinks biting is a turn-on and then come talk to me."
Now her face really was heating up. "I can't ask that!" she bit out.
"Just don't rob yourself a chance of happiness because you're afraid of what others might think," he instructed her kindly. "The academy was insular; it was not some microcosm of the world at large."
"Aren't you supposed to tell me to find happiness with myself, and not with another person?" she asked snidely.
He rolled his eyes at her. "You are so persnickety sometimes."
-.-
Beth shivered, pulling her coat tighter around her as a nice, freezing breeze decided to blow right past her. She didn't know whose idea it had been to go to the park, but it wasn't hers and judging by the equally as sour expression on Nadja's face, it wasn't hers either. That left only one person: Zack, who was currently skipping rocks across the pond that would likely be frozen over soon.
"It's freezing out here," Nadja commented, wrapping her scarf around her neck again.
"Oh, you've lived here your whole life," Zack told her. "You can handle this. This is a warm winter so far."
"That doesn't stop me from thinking it's cold. I'm small and don't have a lot of body fat," she complained.
"You could always try jumping jacks," he offered and she glowered at the back of his head.
"Beth, if you're cold, can't you just go all vampirey and not be cold?" Nadja inquired when Beth gave a particularly violent shiver.
"Yes, but that's not usually suggested in public. In broad daylight. When there are kids across the pond from us," Beth told her.
"Don't British people refer to the Atlantic as 'the pond'?" he inquired, skipping another stone. He got five skips in it and Beth wondered if he was using his magic to make it go farther. Before, he hadn't gotten past three.
"Yes, but I don't see how that's relevant," she responded.
"I told some of my friends I knew a girl who grew up in Scotland," he explained, "and we ended up talking about some of the language differences. Also, they were very shocked and disappointed that you weren't a redhead."
"Did you explain to them that I'm not actually Scottish?" she inquired.
"I don't think they were listening."
"High," Nadja murmured with a nod and in a louder voice, asked, "Zack, are you doing drugs?"
The rock faltered and plopped in the water with a complete lack of grace. Beth raised an eyebrow at the sudden loss of composure he had.
"Did my mother set you up for this?" he asked, turning around to look at his cousin suspiciously.
"No, of course not!" she promised.
"How much is she paying you?"
"That's not important," she said, waving off the question. "Look, your mom's just concerned that you're doing stupid things while you're in Boston. She still thinks you should have gone to U-Dub."
"Becca didn't," he grumbled, kicking at a clump of grass.
"Rebecca is much more responsible than you," Nadja reminded him.
"I can be responsible!" he claimed, raising his voice enough to catch the attention of the two kids across the pond. They didn't seem too interested in the loud boy though, quickly turning their attention back to their one-on-one soccer game.
"Sure you are," she placated, turning to give Beth one of those "Can you believe this guy" looks.
"I once saved you from getting your soul sucked out of your body," he reminded her, coming over to sit down beside Beth. Great, now she was literally stuck in the middle of this.
"Yes, and would you like me to tell everyone that I actually got close to being killed once? The fact that my dad actually believed I 'accidentally' fell asleep at the library is really quite astounding."
"Okay, but there are other things that make me a responsible person," he told her and Beth groaned.
"Oh, who cares?" she asked, breaking apart their little argument. "You're already in Boston and you can lie about the drugs anyway."
"I'm not doing drugs," he asserted defensively.
"So then don't lie about them," she told him.
"I'm not doing drugs, Nadja, you can tell me mom that," he announced.
Nadja stood up off the grass with a smile. "Awesome. Well, I now am the proud owner of twenty bucks. I'm going to go spend it. You guys want anything, food-wise?"
"But you don't have the money yet," Beth pointed out.
"It's called a cell phone and Venmo," she explained. "You don't think Zack's mom isn't sitting by the phone, waiting for that call right now? Because she is. Promise. So food?"
"Hot cheetos," Beth asked. "Oh, and a coke."
"Just get me something salty," Zack asked, laying down on the grass. "And maybe something sweet. You are getting this money because of me."
Nadja rolled her eyes. "Whatever, druggie. I'll be right back, so don't move."
Nadja strolled across the park toward the convenience store on the corner, phone already at her ear.
"I mean, who really counts weed as a drug anyway?" he muttered, mostly to himself. "It's legal."
"Does she always do recon for your mother?" Beth inquired, looking down at him.
"Ever since Becca went off to college, yeah," he replied. "Watch yourself around that woman. She might start asking you for intel as well."
"She should," she told him, just to see his stunned expression. "I'm much more covert about it than Nadja. I have actually training."
"Oh, please don't ever tell my mom that," he groaned and she laughed.
"So, how is college by the way?" she asked. "You barely talk to me about it."
He sat back up again, looking apologetic. "Busy, if you can't tell by my lack of contact with you. Sorry about that. I should really try harder."
"Oh, no need to apologize," she told him, although she felt a sort of funny pain in her heart. "I get it. You've got new friends and everything. You've got to spend time with them first."
"Well, I'm not the only one with new friends," he reminded her. "Why was Daniel not able to come again?"
"He went to visit family," she explained. "In China. I don't know why though. Isn't Thanksgiving an American holiday?"
"Well, other countries do have Thanksgiving," he told her. "But maybe it's a good time as any. I can't imagine there being a lot of flight traffic to China. As for me, that airport was crowded. I think I went deaf momentarily."
She smiled. "Can you hear me now?" she asked, leaning in closer to his ear. He jerked back in surprise and she laughed.
"I can hear you fine, yes, thanks," he grumbled, although he was smiling too. "So, anyone else I should know about?"
She stopped laughing, suddenly thinking about Jacob. She did plan on telling Nadja (uh, because, hello, she had actual girl talk? She never had that before!), but the thought of telling Zack weighed heavily on her. She remembered what Jackie had told her, that maybe men wouldn't really mind if she was all that different. She found herself having questions about Zack and his feelings and her feelings and it all felt like a jumbled mess in her head. It was easier to just stuff it all back into her head-closet.
"Nope," she answered with a grin she hoped looked sincere. "Just Daniel. He's the only new one. Nobody else. Nu-uh."
"Okay," he replied, though he looked suspicious of her.
"What about you?" she asked. "Any other girls?" she stretched out the word, even batting her eyelashes for added effect.
He snorted. "Nope, no girls for me. I've already got you and Nadja and that's my limit. You and her come together with enough energy to make about five girls and I don't need a sixth."
"Well, isn't college supposed to be about that dating stuff?" she asked.
"Dating?" he repeated. "Who said anything about dating?"
Her eyes went wide, realizing she had accidentally changed the topic of conversation based upon her own train of thought.
"Wel,l you must be thinking about dating," she insisted, ready to ham-fist her way through a topic she hadn't meant to go into. "I'm sure there's lots of pretty girls in college."
"No, not for me," he explained. "It's engineering and computer science. Not too many girls. And besides, I'm too busy to date. I'm studying until midnight most days." He paused, looking out over the water, before continuing, "I guess no one over there has caught my eye."
There was some hidden meaning behind his words, an expression that she could suss out if she poked at it enough. It made the jumble in her head spill out again. But before she could ask anything—hell, even think of what she could ask-Nadja returned with a banquet of snacks and junk food that would be enough to send Beth into a food coma. Which was a good thing, considering she wanted to steer clear of talking about their dating lives from now on. Because if he got to asking her about hers, she didn't think she'd be able to lie to him.