Vampire academy

"Hey, we're going to watch a movie in Erin's room after school. You going to come?" I'd always made jokes about Natalie being boring, but her friend Erin had the personality of dry wall.

"I know you heard what people are saying, that I—”

"I know it's not true," he interrupted.

His immediate, certain answer surprised me, and I stupidly found myself questioning it. "Yeah, but how do you—”

"Because I know you," he replied firmly. "I know your character. I know you're going to be a great guardian.”

His confidence made that warm feeling return. "I'm glad someone does. Everyone else thinks I'm totally irresponsible.”

"With the way you worry more about Lissa than yourself…" He shook his head. "No. You understand your responsibilities better than guardians twice your age. You'll do what you have to do to succeed.”

"Oh God," I said. How horrible. I tightened my hands in his. He squeezed back. "That's horrible. And she…she just let it happen?”

"She did." The corner of his mouth turned up into a sly, sad smile. "But I didn't.”

Excitement surged through me. "Tell me, tell me you beat the crap out of him.”

His smile grew. "I did.”

"Wow." I hadn't thought Dimitri could be any cooler, but I was wrong. "You beat up your dad. I mean, that's really horrible…what happened. But, wow. You really are a god.”

He blinked. "What?”

"Uh, nothing." Hastily, I tried to change the subject.

"This…this life. It destroys them. Their looks, I mean.”

He hesitated for a moment and looked up from my hands. Those warm brown eyes surveyed me, and something tightened in my chest. Damn it. I had to stop feeling this way around him. "It won't happen to you. You're too . . ." He groped for the right word, and I mentally substituted all sorts of possibilities. Goddess-like.Scorchingly sexy. Giving up, he simply said, "It won't happen to you.”

"You told him?" exclaimed Lissa.

"No, he guessed." I was starting to feel sick.

"He apparently did more than guess," muttered Christian.

I turned on him. "What's that supposed to mean?”

"Oh. You don't know.”

"I swear to God, Christian, I'm going to break your neck after class.”

"Man, you really are unstable." He said it almost happily, but his next words were more serious.

I like…" She paused.

I could hear the word forming in her mind.

"Christian.”

"I wish you couldn't do that. Or wouldn't.”

"Sorry. Do I need to give you the Christian's-a-psychopathic-loser talk again?”

"I think I've got it memorized after the last ten times," she muttered.

I was crushing on my mentor. Crushing on my older mentor. I had to be out of my mind. He was seven years older than me. Old enough to be my…well, okay, nothing. But still older than me. Seven years was a lot. He'd been learning to write when I was born. When I'd been learning to write and throw books at my teachers, he'd probably been kissing girls. Probably lots of girls, considering how he looked.

I looked at the dusty clock on the wall and perked up. Almost time for the banquet. The thought made me giddy I felt like Cinderella, but without the clothes.

"Now get back to your room—if you can manage it without throwing yourself at someone else.”

"Is that your subtle way of calling me a slut?”

"I hear the stories you guys tell. I've heard stories about you.”

Ouch.

"Oh, I see. Is that what this is about? Am I hurting your big, bad male pride? Are you afraid I'll ruin your reputation?”