Yes, yes, I realize it’s been a very, very long time. I needed some time off this summer. It’s been very…complicated. But hopefully I’m back. Hope you enjoy this chapter.

Laela watched him slink away, wondering where the feeling of euphoria in her chest had suddenly appeared from. Shaking her head slightly, she tried to bring her mind back to breakfast. The ache in her belly helped, and she quickly made her way into the kitchen.

Much later, with a full stomach and a shower, Laela found herself pulling out the guitar again. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed her instrument. It just felt right to hold it in her arms, like a natural extension of her body. Humming softly under her breath, she found a tune slowly unfurling in her mind. Her fingers strove to find matching chords and notes on the guitar. It wasn’t so much of creating a new song as simply transcribing her feelings into music.

Midway through the song, she was pulled out of her creative flow by someone knocking loudly on the bedroom door. Setting her guitar down, Laela let out a low sigh as the door opened and Aiden entered.

“Hey, Tristin wants you to come downstairs.” He said quickly, hanging on the door handle. His blonde hair was tousled as if he’d been running, which, since it was Aiden, was probably the case.

Laela stared at him for a minute, then shrugged. “Ok, I’ll be down in a second.” About the only thing that hadn’t changed for her was Aiden. He still acted exactly the same as always, despite Tristin’s on and off jealous streak when Aiden got too touchy. Right now he grinned in response and took off the same way he’d come in.

Pulling her long hair back into a ponytail, Laela exited the room and slowly made her way downstairs. She wondered absentmindedly why Tristin wanted her to go all the way downstairs instead of simply coming up to her. Trotting the last two steps, Laela was met by Tristin at the bottom of the stairs. She looked up at him expectantly without saying anything, waiting for him to speak.

“C’mon into the front room. Someone’s here.” Tristin ran a finger down her long streamer of hair. “I like your hair like this.”

Laela smiled absentmindedly, not really paying attention. “Who’s here?” She demanded, peering around his broad chest.

“Don’t worry. It’s just Violet.”

She followed him into the front room timidly, distinctly remembering Violet’s venomous words at the concert. Hopefully with Tristin right there she wouldn’t say anything. Or do anything.

Laela was surprised to be met with the complete opposite. A huge, sparkling smile was stretched across Violet’s pouty lips, lighting up her purple eyes and making her seem like the friendliest person in the whole world. “Hi Laela!” She bubbled, getting up from her perch on the sofa. Laela took a step back, eyeing the vampire with a suspicious frown.

Tristin didn’t seem to notice Laela’s reaction. He was smiling too. Laela looked up at him, still frowning, then over at Aiden, who was standing to one side and also grinning.

“What’s going on?” She asked slowly, taking another step back.

“Tell her.” Tristin said to Violet.

“Really good news. Edible Glass is going on tour!” Violet practically squealed.

Laela smiled hesitantly. “Like, a real tour?”

“Of course, silly.” Violet giggled. “A west coast tour. With two or three other bands.” She named the other bands and Laela’s eyes went wide. She recognized all three names, and one was pretty big. She understood the huge grins now. “But that’s not even the best news.” Violet paused for dramatic emphasis, then continued. “The band’s getting signed to a record label!”

Laela’s mouth dropped open. “That’s awesome”

Tristin jumped in. “But we have to fly to meet with the label tomorrow and get started on everything. They’re in a rush to get everything going because the tour starts in a couple weeks.”

Laela furrowed her eyebrows. “Ok.”

“Well, we’re gonna be staying in a hotel and recording for at least a week. It might not be very fun for you. Violet suggested that instead of coming with us, you might rather she stay here and keep you company.”

“It’ll be fun. I know we don’t know each other very well, but I’m sure this will be a chance for us to spend some time together.” Violet sounded genuine, but Laela couldn’t help but be suspicious.

Laela glanced between the two of them, taking in Violet’s still smiling face and Tristin’s questioning expression. She bit her lip. “Can I talk to you for a second, Tristin?”

“Sure.” Taking her arm, he led her out of the room. “What?”

Laela had a nagging feeling that Violet could still hear her, but she told him anyway. “I don’t want to stay here by myself.”

He sighed. “Violet will stay with you.”

Laela chewed her lip. “What about Jace?”

“He’s coming with us.”

“But…” She didn’t know how to tell him that she thought Violet wanted to kill her. “I don’t know Violet.”

“Relax. I’ve known her since we were kids. She’s hard to get used to, but she’s not bad. You need to spend time with other girls anyway.” Tristin cupped her face in one hand and leaned in closer as he spoke. Laela frowned, leaning back.

“I don’t need to spend time with girls. I have Aiden.” She said stubbornly, knowing she sounded like a child.

Tristin laughed and planted a kiss on her pouting lips. “It’s close, but Aiden’s not a girl. You’ll be fine.”

Laela looked down. “You want to leave me for a week?” She really hadn’t realized how attached she’d become to him, but the thought of Tristin leaving her sent a clenched, despondent feeling surging through her chest.

“I wish I never had to leave you.” He whispered, planting another cold kiss on her cheek. “But this is for your benefit. I’ll bring you when we go on tour.” Standing up again, he appeared to have settled the matter in his mind. Leading the way, he walked back into the front room.

“So, everything good?” Violet asked, looking between the two of them innocently.

Tristin smiled. “Yeah.” He nudged Laela. She did her best to smile too.

“Sure.”

Violet gave another dazzling smile. “I’ll be over tomorrow night then.” She pulled a pair of sunglasses off the top of her head, slipping them over her face. Shrugging into a trendy black jacket that had been resting on the chair, she waved her fingers in a half wave and slipped out the front door. Laela watched her go, still unconvinced.

Tristin and Aiden immediately began to chatter about the good news, the excitement in their voices obvious. Laela tried her best to shrug off any misgivings. This was a huge thing for them, and she didn’t want to ruin their happiness by being selfish. Kyle and Hurley showed up at dusk to celebrate. Laela joined in their conversations and tried to ignore the strange feeling of dread that was growing by the moment.

Laela finally managed to get away sometime very early in the morning, so tired her eyelids felt like they wouldn’t stay open. Tristin hadn’t really noticed her slip out of the room, so she assumed he wouldn’t come in for quite awhile. She was too tired to even change into pajamas, instead pulling her jeans and t-shirt off and slipping under the feathery comforter. She was out almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

She dreamed of the werewolves that night. She didn’t see their faces, but she could hear their howls, circling her and hedging her in. She was alone, somewhere in the dark, and completely blind. There was no way to escape. Only the inky dark, her racing heart, and the blood chilling howls coming closer and closer.

Laela let out a gasp as her eyes flew open, panicking when she found herself still alone in the dark. “Tristin?” She called pitifully, her hands searching blindly for his familiar cold shape. He caught her wandering hand, letting out a comforting murmur.

“Shh, I’m right here.” He tugged her gently to his side under the blankets, wrapping her shivering form in his granite arms. “What’s wrong?”

Laela buried her face in his chest, breathing in his familiar scent and trying to calm down. “Just a dream.”

He gently stroked her hair. “About what?”

She didn’t answer. “Nothing.” She finally said, her eyelids heavy again. She felt secure in his arms. “Don’t leave tomorrow.” She didn’t hear his response as she drifted back to sleep.

“Wake up Laela.” A voice tapped into her dreams, waking her up from a deep sleep. “We’re leaving.”

As soon as she heard the last two words, Laela rolled over and opened her eyes. It was still dark in the room, but what little light there was glinted off Tristin’s pale skin as he stood over her, fully dressed. Yawning slowly, Laela sat up.

“You can go back to sleep if you want.” He whispered, kissing her on the cheek. She shook her head sleepily, yawning while she did so. He laughed softly, tossing feathery strands of dark hair out of his eyes. “Say goodbye then.”

Laela suddenly felt a sinking feeling in her chest. She didn’t want to say goodbye. He leaned in to kiss her and she ducked back. “Don’t leave.”

Tristin let out a low groan. “C’mon babe. I’ll be back in a week.”

She sighed. “I can’t go with you?”

“Nooo.” He drawled, the corner of his mouth curling up. “C’mere so I can give you a kiss goodbye.” He leaned in again, but she scooted away. In a blur of movement, Tristin pounced and she abruptly found herself pinned underneath Tristin. He let out a low growl, his face inches from hers. “I said, let me give you a kiss goodbye.” He was holding both her hands above her head and his knees were planted on either side of her. Laela swallowed, every bit of sleep shaken out of her.

“Ok.” She whispered, her eyes huge and staring straight into his glinting amber ones. He bridged the last couple inches, finally touching his cold lips to hers. He kissed her softly at first, still pinning her hands above her head. His kisses trailed down, the length of her jaw line and to her neck. She tensed as he passed the spot he’d bitten her before, but his lips continued downward. He lingered over her collarbone and she shivered, her bare skin raising in thousands of goosebumps. She suddenly remembered that she was only wearing a bra and panties, and he was very, very close to her. Although they had slept together every night, and not shied away from kissing, they hadn’t….gone further. She was too scared, and he could sense it. Even now, her heart was racing. He could feel it. His kisses, soft and light, moved up her neck to rest right beneath her right ear. He bit down, ever so lightly. Laela let out a soft gasp.

A second later he released her neck and spoke in a raspy growl. “Something to remind you of me.” He nipped gently at her earlobe, and planted one more kiss on her lips.

“Tristin?” She whispered as he released her hands and hopped off the bed.

He turned, already heading out the door. “What?”

“I’ll miss you.” The voice that spoke was hesitant and innocent, unsure of the words. Laela truly believed it was the first time in her entire life she’d told someone that. He paused. She bit her lip.

“I’ll miss you too.” His voice was low, almost inaudible. She blinked, and he was gone.

Laela managed to fall back asleep after he left. She slept deeply, and didn’t wake up until the sun was streaming into the room. A sinking feeling hit her right in the middle of the chest when she remembered that Tristin was gone. She wasn’t sure what to do with herself. It made it hard to get out of bed. She finally found the energy to get up and get dressed, and head downstairs. Even though the house always felt rather empty, it was more so with the thought that both Aiden and Tristin were gone. She thought of Angela. Now would be a nice time to have her back. If she had some way to get in contact with her, she would have done it.

Even as she thought about Angela, a very different female figure popped into her line of vision. Violet. She was wearing a tiny skirt and a halter top, with a pair of six inch heels that made her tower over Laela’s petite form. The same fake smile was plastered across her beautiful face. “Good morning. You slept for a long time.”

Laela eyed her distrustfully. “I was tired.” She replied politely.

“Well, that’s fine. You’re allowed to sleep as much as you want.” Tossing black hair over one shoulder, Violet took a step closer. “So what do you want to do today?”

Laela stared at her blankly for a moment. Nothing. She wanted to say, Especially not with you. Instead she shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not sure.”

“Well, I was thinking that maybe you’d like to go for a picnic?” Violet widened her eyes with a look of complete innocence.

“A picnic.” She responded dully.

“I’ve heard you humans like to do stuff like that. Of course I won’t eat anything, but the outdoors are nice.”

Laela shook her head. “I’m not supposed to go outside. There are werewolves next door.”

Violet laughed, a bit condescendingly. “Oh, you don’t have to worry about them. I can handle dogs. Besides, I heard their pack is out of town, looking for someone.”

Laela felt a little bit lighter on the inside. They were out of town? Maybe the person they were looking for was her, and that meant they’d given up on her being here. “Well, maybe…I haven’t been outdoors in a while.”

Violet gave a broad grin. “It’s very nice outside. I have to stay in the shade, but you can still enjoy the breeze.”

Laela felt a twinge of uncertainty, but shrugged it off. If the werewolves were gone, then there wasn’t any danger. Being outside for just a little while wouldn’t hurt. Her skin was almost as pale as a vampire, and could use a bit of sun. “Alright. For a little while.”

Violet clapped her hands together, letting out a giggle. “Fun! I’ll get the cook to whip up some food for you, and then we can go.”

Laela nodded, still feeling strangely reluctant. Violet disappeared into the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with a wicker basket and a blanket over one arm. “Let’s go.” Laela trailed behind her as they went out through the front door. The sunlight made both of them pause on the doorstep. Violet quickly pulled a large pair of sunglasses over her eyes and let out a sigh. Laela squinted, not used to such bright light. But the taste of the fresh, outdoor air was wonderful to her nose. She breathed deeply.

Violet led the way to a clump of trees a few minutes walk from the house. They lay on the other side of a hill, just out of sight of the house. Laela watched Violet closely as she lay out the blanket and set the basket down. There was a distinctly uncomfortable look on her pale face.

“Is something wrong?” Laela asked finally.

“Just not used to so much sunlight.” Violet answered, wrinkling her dainty nose. “Do you mind terribly if I run in and grab my jacket?”

Laela glanced around. The grass waved gently in the breeze, and she could hear a bird call from the trees. Everything seemed very peaceful. “That’s fine.”

“Be right back.” Violet took off at a gentle lope for the house, her long hair swirling across her back. When she was out of sight, Laela dropped down onto the blanket, staring up at the blue sky. The breeze blew across her skin, cooling the effects of the warm sun. Smiling softly, Laela closed her eyes and imagined what Tristin and Aiden were doing right now. Poor Aiden had probably gone nearly crazy, cooped up on that tiny plane. And Tristin and Jace probably wanted to kill him because he was annoying them. She almost giggled.

Laela was so caught up in her own thoughts that she nearly jumped a foot in the air when she heard a rustling in the trees. Her eyes flew open and she sat up. Violet should have been back already. She glanced around, her feeling a twinge of fear. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to have left the house.

There was another rustle of leaves, from somewhere behind her. Laela turned around slowly, her hands in tight fists at her sides. Her eyes widened.