"Don't you know how hard it is!" he cried, springing up from the sofa and whirling around to face me. "Don't you know how hard I have to control myslef, so I don't kill you by mistake! I'm so much stronger than you, I could kill you with one blow!" He turned around and buried his face in his hands.
I bit my lip, feeling awful. Ian took a deep breath and turned towards me again.
"I'm sorry." he said smoothly. "Of course you couldn't know, I never told you. Forgive me?"
"Duh." I said raising my eyebrows at him. "You saved me from freezing, remember?"
Ian's mouth curved into a teasing smile. "How could I forget?" He sat down beside me again.
"Here," he said, pulling me into his lap.
He kissed me again. This time was much gentler, and very sweet.
"I'd better go," he said softly, touching my cheek. "Love you."
I didn't see or hear from Ian at all the next few days. I was worried that he might have thought it was too dangerous for him come back. The thought hurt.
One day, at breakfast, my mom mentioned Loretta.
"Nice girl, Loretta is, huh?" she said, biting into her PopTart. My mom was a sap fro crappy breakfast foods.
"Yeah, she's awesome." I said quietly, staring down at my cereal.
"Know why they haven't been coming?" she continued. I shook my head.
"Honey, I don't mean to pry, but I think I know why you've been so down lately." she said, putting down her PopTart. "You like Ian, huh?" I dropped my spoon. It was a bit more than "like", but all the same, how had she guessed?
My mom nodded understandingly. "And you haven't heard from him, with no warning?" I nodded mutely.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. I'm sure they're just busy." She got up and pecked me on the cheek. "I'm off." she said, grabbing her keys and heading out the door.
I rinsed out my cereal bowl and slowly walked up the stairs to my room. I sank onto my bed, my heart aching. Why wasn't Ian coming back?
A noise from my window made me turn my head. There was nothing there.
All of the sudden, a hand pressed against my mouth, preventing me from screaming.
"Shh, it's me!" Relief flooded me. I would know that voice anywhere.
"Ian!" I cried softly, hugging him. "You could have come in the normal way." I said, pulling back and looking at him reproachfully. "You almost gave me a heart attack."
Ian chuckled. "I didn't know where your mother was."
"I don't think she would have cared, even if she was here. She loves you guys."
We sat there for a few moments, his arm around my shoulders.
"Listen," he said, his tone suddenly serious. "My mother has forbidden me to see you, and she's watching my every move. That's why I didn't come back for a while." Ian rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I told her I was going hunting, but I don't know how long I have until she figures it out." He paused and toyed with a strand of my hair. "Ugh. Parents can be so....."
"Interfering?" I supplied.
"Exactly." I squeezed his hand in agreement.
"I have this feeling she's looking for me." Ian sighed after a few minutes. I stood up with him, and he kissed me gently.
"Don't come back." Ian warned. "I don't know what she might do. I'll come back here when I can."
The next few weeks were hard. I couldn't forget Ian's words; "I'll come back here when I can".
One day, a month after I had last seen Ian, I couldn't take it anymore.
I tripped down the stairs, poking my head into the kitchen.
"Mom? I'm going to Ian's, okay?" she nodded vaguely, not looking up from her crossword puzzle.
I rushed out of the house and into the forest, following a path Ian had made so he could find his way to my house. Suddenly, I realized that everything was completely silent. Not even the birds were chirping. I caught my breath, aware that something was seriously wrong.
"Mom? I'm going to Ian's, okay?" she nodded vaguely, not looking up from her crossword puzzle.
I rushed out of the house and into the forest, following a path Ian had made so he could find his way to my house. Suddenly, I realized that everything was completely silent. Not even the birds were chirping. I caught my breath, aware that something was seriously wrong.
I was dragged to their camp and bound tightly to a tree. As I watched them lounge around the fire, I realized that I was being held captive by a pack of werewolves.
One of the werewolves bent down to eye level beside me.
"Tell me, mortal." It spat. "Are you a spy? Because if you are, and you're trying to get information on our battle plans, you're dead meat."
"I'm not!" I cried. The werewolf struck me hard across the face, and stars winked in front of my eyes. "That will teach you to mind your manners, spy." It snarled, returning to the pack.
A while later, as night was falling, I was given food. I hungrily devoured the stale tasting bread and water.
Just as I finished eating my "meal", a girl was thrust down beside me and bound.
Though her red hair was tangled and her face was beaten and bloody, she was still one of the most gorgeous people I had ever seen. I noticed immediately that her eyes were blood red.
Night fell. I shifted my position, my back aching from being in one position for so long. Finally, I gathered up the courage to lean over and whisper to the girl;
"Are you a vampire?" she jumped and glanced fearfully over at the pack, stretched out and snoring beside the dying remains of the fire.
"Yes," she whispered back. "My name is Shaya."
"I'm Erika."
"Nice to meet you Erika." Just then, an ember was spit out of the fire and landed on her arm. She gave a small cry of pain, realizing her mistake too late.
One of the werewolves nearest us had heard her, and had awoken with a grunt. He squinted closely at Shaya.
"Well, well." He growled quietly. "Looks like we caught ourselves a little vampire." He pulled out a knife and cut through Shaya's bonds, hauling her to her feet.
I knew what was going to happen a second before it did.
I shut my eyes tightly, but I couldn't cover my ears against the groan of pain that echoed through teh still air. I heard something thud to the ground, and felt something graze my foot. I kept my eyes closed. I had no desire to see what lay before me.
It was at least and hour before I opened them again. The fire had mercifully gone out, so I could only see shapes in the darkness. I stretched out my foot, feeling around for the knife I had felt earlier. I found it and dragged it close enough with my feet so that I could reach it.
I cut through the ropes and crept silently out of the camp without looking back.
Somehow, I found the path again. I knew I was probably closer to Ian's house than I was my own, so I stumbled through the trees until the house finally came into view.
I pounded on the door, exhaustion draining my stregnth by the second
The door flew open and I fell into Ian's arms.
"Erika?" Ian's voice was incredulous. "Dammit, I thought I told you not to come here! You're lucky my mother's out! If she had been here---what's wrong?" he said suddenly, realizing that tears were streaming down my cheeks.
"Werewolves..." I whispered, fighting to stay standing. "They're close.....they're talking about a war.... they captured me when they thought I was a spy......" My knees gave way and Ian caught me.
"You need to sleep. Tell me more in the morning." I was asleep before the words were out of his mouth.
I woke up the next morning with a numb feeling of unexplainable dread. I couldn't forget Shaya's murder, and I couldn't stop worrying about what the werewolves had meant by "battle plans".
Loretta skipped in, cheery as ever. I envied her.
She plopped down on the floor, and I slid off the couch to join her.