He reached out and trailed his fingers lightly down my cheek to my chin.
“Maybe I could photograph you,” he said softly.
Was I being mesmerized? Was he pulling vampire tricks on me? Was it even possible for a vampire to mesmerize another vampire? I had no idea. Perhaps he was just a strangelycompelling, regular guy with really cool eyes. Maybe I hadn’t eaten enough for breakfast, and that’s why I was feeling light-headed….
Someone jumped down the bleachers and jostled into Rowan, and he dropped his hand quickly. “See you,” he mumbled, ducking his head. Hunching his shoulders again, he hurried away into the crowd.
Well.
Solving this mystery wasn’t such a bad assignment after all. Apart from the fact that one of these totally cute boys was also a murderer, of course. Rowan’s clue sheet might say “Cool eyes” and “Potentially sensitive soul” but it also had to say “Poetry about blood…creepy? YES.”
I was still in a daze when I got to my history classroom, but everyone was freaked out by the assembly, so Mr. Wright just gave us a chapter to read and then sat at the front of the room watching us faux-sympathetically with a phony Talk to me if you need to expression.
And then, five minutes later, Daniel walked in.
He was even better-looking in the light, although today he was wearing a long-sleeveddove-gray shirt that hid his abs, which I didn’t approve of. He handed a note to the teacher, scanned the classroom, and spotted me. He smiled in that slow, charming way and gave me a wink. I saw a couple of the cheerleaders twist around to check who he was winking at. Apparently mourning for Tex wasn’t going to stop them from keeping an eye on the new hot boy and any potential gossip.
I was sitting in the back row, mainly because it was out of the path of the sunlight coming through the windows. It so happened that there was an empty desk next to mine. If he sat there, would it be because of me? Or would he just be avoiding the sun, too?
“Class,” the teacher said, “let me introduce our new student, Daniel Marvel. It’s a tough day to be starting out here, so I hope you’ll all be welcoming to him.”
Yes, please , I thought. I’d like to be very welcoming to him .
“It’s so odd,” said Mr. Wright, handing the slip of paper back to Daniel. “Normally we have a little warning about new students. I had no idea you were coming.”
Daniel shrugged. “That’s what the principal said,” he said innocently, “but my parents cleared my transfer to the school a month ago.”
Oh, did they? I wondered. Or did someone, ahem, sneak into the school last night and put you in there? Was that really why he’d been here in the middle of the night? But if he’d killed Tex, why would he be sticking around afterward? Surely most vampires don’t have to keep going to high school once they’re, you know, like, a hundred years old. I don’t care if I still look sixteen; one diploma is all I intend to get.
“Huh,” said Mr. Wright. “All right, take a seat.”
Daniel sauntered down the aisle and slipped right into that seat beside me. Blond heads in the front row swiveled and craned to get a look at him. Did I mention how hot he is?
“Hey, there,” he said to me.
“Hey, there yourself,” I said. “You missed the assembly this morning.”
“Forms,” he said, spreading his hands. “There seemed to be an awful lot of them. I think a certain guidance counselor didn’t want my first experience of the school to involve funeral services.”
“Count yourself lucky,” I said. “It was long and tragic. Can I see your schedule?”
“Shhh,” said Mr. Wright, but sort of halfheartedly.
Daniel slid a piece of paper out of his notebook and passed it to me. All of his movements were graceful, like those of a cat or a panther or a really well-trained dancer.
I ran my eyes down his schedule.
He was in every single one of my classes .
I shot a glance at him. He had his eyes on his
“Maybe I could photograph you,” he said softly.
Was I being mesmerized? Was he pulling vampire tricks on me? Was it even possible for a vampire to mesmerize another vampire? I had no idea. Perhaps he was just a strangelycompelling, regular guy with really cool eyes. Maybe I hadn’t eaten enough for breakfast, and that’s why I was feeling light-headed….
Someone jumped down the bleachers and jostled into Rowan, and he dropped his hand quickly. “See you,” he mumbled, ducking his head. Hunching his shoulders again, he hurried away into the crowd.
Well.
Solving this mystery wasn’t such a bad assignment after all. Apart from the fact that one of these totally cute boys was also a murderer, of course. Rowan’s clue sheet might say “Cool eyes” and “Potentially sensitive soul” but it also had to say “Poetry about blood…creepy? YES.”
I was still in a daze when I got to my history classroom, but everyone was freaked out by the assembly, so Mr. Wright just gave us a chapter to read and then sat at the front of the room watching us faux-sympathetically with a phony Talk to me if you need to expression.
And then, five minutes later, Daniel walked in.
He was even better-looking in the light, although today he was wearing a long-sleeveddove-gray shirt that hid his abs, which I didn’t approve of. He handed a note to the teacher, scanned the classroom, and spotted me. He smiled in that slow, charming way and gave me a wink. I saw a couple of the cheerleaders twist around to check who he was winking at. Apparently mourning for Tex wasn’t going to stop them from keeping an eye on the new hot boy and any potential gossip.
I was sitting in the back row, mainly because it was out of the path of the sunlight coming through the windows. It so happened that there was an empty desk next to mine. If he sat there, would it be because of me? Or would he just be avoiding the sun, too?
“Class,” the teacher said, “let me introduce our new student, Daniel Marvel. It’s a tough day to be starting out here, so I hope you’ll all be welcoming to him.”
Yes, please , I thought. I’d like to be very welcoming to him .
“It’s so odd,” said Mr. Wright, handing the slip of paper back to Daniel. “Normally we have a little warning about new students. I had no idea you were coming.”
Daniel shrugged. “That’s what the principal said,” he said innocently, “but my parents cleared my transfer to the school a month ago.”
Oh, did they? I wondered. Or did someone, ahem, sneak into the school last night and put you in there? Was that really why he’d been here in the middle of the night? But if he’d killed Tex, why would he be sticking around afterward? Surely most vampires don’t have to keep going to high school once they’re, you know, like, a hundred years old. I don’t care if I still look sixteen; one diploma is all I intend to get.
“Huh,” said Mr. Wright. “All right, take a seat.”
Daniel sauntered down the aisle and slipped right into that seat beside me. Blond heads in the front row swiveled and craned to get a look at him. Did I mention how hot he is?
“Hey, there,” he said to me.
“Hey, there yourself,” I said. “You missed the assembly this morning.”
“Forms,” he said, spreading his hands. “There seemed to be an awful lot of them. I think a certain guidance counselor didn’t want my first experience of the school to involve funeral services.”
“Count yourself lucky,” I said. “It was long and tragic. Can I see your schedule?”
“Shhh,” said Mr. Wright, but sort of halfheartedly.
Daniel slid a piece of paper out of his notebook and passed it to me. All of his movements were graceful, like those of a cat or a panther or a really well-trained dancer.
I ran my eyes down his schedule.
He was in every single one of my classes .
I shot a glance at him. He had his eyes on his
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