Chapter Six - Taken

As I enter the dorm, there are a lot of girls present. No sign of Monica so far. I walk up to the front desk where the attendant is. "Hi I'm Claire up on four, I had an accident yesterday, but everything's fine," I tell her." "You're the... they were looking for you, right?" She asks me. "Yeah. Just tell everybody I'm ok. I've got to get to class," I say as I rush through my things. I hurry up the steps as fast as my sore ankle will allow me.

I pass a few girls that give me some wide eyed looks, but still no sign of Monica or her crew. I hurry down to the end where my room is and start to unlock it. The knob turns to limply in my fingers. More graffiti that says, Monica wuz here. Sure enough the room is a wreck. I grab what I have left in my room that is still intact and stuffed it in my backpack. I go over to my desk and grab the picture of my mom and dad, and head out the door and hope not to bump into Monica as I head downstairs.

Halfway down the second floor I hear voices. "I swear it's her! You should see the black eye. Unbelievable. You really clocked her one," one of the girls tells Monica. "Where the hell is she? And how come nobody came to get me?" Asks Monica. "We did!" Some body protested. I went back up the steps to the third floor and went to the fire stairs and fling the door open and hurry down the stairs as fast as I could go, making sure no one can see me through the window on the door. I made it to the lobby exit. I risk a quick look out of the window to see Monica's groupie Jennifer on guard.

One thing's for certain, Jennifer would see me as soon as I opened the door. I flinch as soon as a fire door opened from a couple floors up, but there is no where to hide. there are footsteps coming down. I touch the phone in my pocket. One phone call away, it's ok. It wasn't Monica, it was Kim Valdez, a freshman like myself. She pushed back the hood of her cloak, revealing short, shiny black hair. She kneels down in front of me with a concerned look on her face. "They're looking for you," she tells me. "Yeah I know," I say with a scared voice.

"Monica do that?" She asked me as she looked at my bruised face. I nodded wordlessly. "I always knew she was a bitch. So you need to get out of here?" She asked. I nodded again and swallowed hard. "Will you help me?" I asked. "Nope," she tells me. Kim flashed me a sudden, vivid grin. "Not officially. Wouldn't be too smart," she tells me. Kim handed me a black sweater and a black cloak with a hood, and told me to put it on. I zipped up the sweater and pulled the hood down around my face. "Higher, tilt it so it covers your face. Yeah, like that," Kim advised.

"What about my bags?" I asked. "I'll wait a couple of minutes, then come out with'em. Wait outside and don't go nowhere with my sweater and cloak, and I mean it. I'll kick your ass," she warned. "I won't, I swear," I tell her. Kim opened the door for me, and I took a gasping breath and calmly walked out. I easily passed Jennifer, as she didn't notice me. As I swing the door open I heard Monica say, "That freak can't get out of here! Check the basement, maybe she went down the trash chute, like her stupid laundry."

The sunlight feels amazing. I head over to the corner where Kim had told me to meeter her so that I can give her things back to her. As I squinted against the sun I can see Eve's car parked in the distance. Gosh it's hot out here, I can only imagine how Eve feels sitting in the car, I thought. And just as I thought that, I saw a shadow fall across mine from behind, and as I went to turn around, it was too late. Someone put their hand around my mouth and yanked me off balance. I tried to scream but somebody punched me in the stomach, which took care of the screaming and most of the breathing.

Whoever has me, is dragging me down a flight of stairs. Once we stopped moving, I can hear breathing and whispers of what sounds like more than a few people. Then I'm shoved, hard, and fell off-balance onto a flight of stairs in a chilly room. The impact stuns me, and by the time I my eyes come into focus, I found there was a whole circle of girls standing around me. I take the cell phone Eve provided me, cover it with my body, and hit star 2. I hit send and shove the cell in between 2 boxes, hoping the glow of the buttons doesn't attract anyone's attention.

Monica steps out of the corner. "Well, look at what the cats dragged in. You ran away little mouse, and just when we were having fun," Monica snickers. "Oh for God's sake, get her up!" Monica orders. Gina gets me to my feet while holding my arms. Monica pulls the hood back from my bruised face and smiles, taking in the damage.

"Damn freak, you look like hell. Does it hurt?" Monica asks. "What did I ever do to you?" I ask. "You know exactly what you did. You tried to make me look stupid," she replies. "tried?" I shot back. I knew it was a dumb thing to say, but i couldn't stop the impulse. It got me hit. Right on top of the first bruise, which took my breath away in slow throbs of agony. I feel the pressure on my arms, and realize that Gina was holding me up. I put some stiffness back into my legs, open my eyes, and glare at Monica.

"How come you live in Howard?" I ask. "What?" Monica asks. "Your family's rich right? You could be living in an apartment or in a sorority house. How come you live in Howard Hall with the rest of us freaks? Unless you're a freak too. A freak who gets off on hurting somebody weaker than you. A freak your family's ashamed of. Somebody they hide here where they don't have to look at you," I snap. "Shut up. Don't be stupid! She'll kill you, don't you get it?" Gina whispered.

Of course I'm just getting started, and I had to buy some time. I called Shane's cell, so either Shane, Eve, or even Michael should show up at anytime now. Monica Wouldn't look so big then. "What's the matter? Couldn't you cut it? I'm not surprised," I start on Monica again. I see the punch coming this time, and duck as best as I can. Monica's fist smashes into my forehead, which hurt, but it must've hurt Monica a lot more, because she let out a scream and backed off, clutching her right hand.

"Careful," I gasp, nearly giggling. "Don't break a nail! I'm not worth it, remember?"  I tell Monica. "Got that right. Let that bitch go. What are you waiting for? Go on, do it! Do you think that wimp's gonna hurt me?" Monica tells Gina. Gina lets me go and steps back. "You want to know why I live in Howard Hall? Because in this town, I can live anywhere i want, anyway I want. And you, you're just a walking organ donor. So take my advice, Claire. Don't get in my face, because if you do, you won't have one for long. Are we clear?" Monica says. "We're clear," I tell Monica.

I reached in between the boxes for Eve's cell phone, as Monica looks at me with curiosity. "You're one smart little freak, now run away, smart little freak, before I change my mind and stick you in one of these old suitcases for some architect to find a hundred years from now," Monica warns. "Archaeologist," I said and headed to the door. I open the door and walk outside to where I had been abducted, and walk across the parking lot to Eve's car. Eve was still in the driver's seat, looking crown-pale scared. I put the bag in the back of Eve's car, and tell her that I'm going to class. "Thanks Eve, here's your phone," I tell her. I grab my backpack and closed the car door.

I made it to the grocery store after class, nobody jumped at me while I'm gathering the things I need to make hamburgers for dinner tonight, or while I was in line for checkout. I walked back to the Glass House, watching for vampires, but didn't see anybody except for students. The front gate was open so I closed it behind me, unlocked the door with the shiny new key that I found on my dresser this morning.

As I enter the kitchen, Shane was looking for something to drink. He just looked at me for a few seconds, then said, "Eve put your crap in your room." "Thank you," I tell him as I start to get dinner ready. "Anything I can do?" He asked. "Slice onions," I tell him. "Um, I should probably call my mom. Can I use the phone?" I ask. "You pay for long distance," He shrugs, reaches for the cordless phone, and tossed it to me. I step into the living room to call my mom, which she answered.

"yes?" As it was never hello with my mother. "Mom, it's Claire." "Claire! Baby, where have you been? I've been trying to call you for days!" "Classes. Sorry, I'm not home that much." "Are you sleeping enough? If you don't get enough rest, you'll get sick, you know how you are," she tells me. "Mom, I'm fine," I tell her. "Claire, I know it's hard. We really didn't want you to go even just the few hundred miles to TPU, honey. If you want to come back home, your dad and I would be so glad to have you back!" She tells me. "Honestly mom, I don't. I'm fine. It's ok. I've made friends here. they're looking out for me," I tell her. "You're sure?" She asks me. "yes mom."Mom I have to go. I need to eat dinner and I have a ton of studying to do," I reply. "Honey, you call us if you get worried about anything, ok? Oh call us whatever happens. We love you!" She says. "Love you too, mom. Bye," I tell her.

I put the phone down and started cooking again. "So, finished lying to the folks?" Shane asks. Eve walks into the kitchen, still flushed from the heat outside. "Oh my God, that looks like real food!" She says. "Is Michael here?" I ask. "Guess so, he's always here for dinner," Shane shrugs. The three of us got everything ready, and set the table. "Hey, this looks good," Michael says. we grabbed our plates and sat at the table to eat, and talk about each others day. After dinner, Michael and Eve clean up since I did the cooking. I head for the living room and sat on the couch thinking about what I wanted to do.

Shane was concentrating on the video game selection, without even looking he asks, "Do you wanna see something cool?" Sure," I reply. I expected him to put a game in, but he got up and went upstairs. I stood at the bottom starring up, wondering what to do. Shane appeared at the top gesturing me to follow him.

As I reach the top, Shane's halfway down the hall. Is he heading for my room? Not that I don't have a crazy hot picture in my head of me sitting on the bed with him. Shane moves aside a picture hanging on the wall between my room and Eve's, and pushes a button underneath. A hidden door opens on the other side of the wall and reveals a flight of stairs. "Cool huh? This damn house is full of crap like that. trust me, in Morganville it pays to be up on then hiding places. Shane and i climb the stairs, once on the third floor, Shane flips on a switch. "Does everybody know about this room?" I ask. "Oh yeah. Eve says it's haunted," he tells me. 

Shane wonders over to an old couch and flops down. Dust rose in a cloud, and he waved it off, coughing. "So what you think? Think Michael sleeps off his evil un-dead days in here, or what?" Shane says smiling. "I blink and ask, "What?" "Oh come on. You think he's one of them, right? Cause he doesn't show up during the day?" Shane asks. "I.... I don't think anything!" I say. "Right. You weren't sent here," he says. "Sent by who?" I ask.

"I got to thinking.... The cops were looking for you, but maybe they were looking for you to make us want to keep you here, instead of pitch you out. So which is it? Are you working for them?" Shane asks. "Them who? Shane, I don't know what you mean. I came to Morganville to go to school, and got beaten up, and I came here because I was scared. If you don't believe me then I guess I'll go. I hope you liked that hamburgers," I tell him.

I went to the door, and stopped, confused. there isn't a doorknob. Behind me Shane said quietly. "The reason I think this is a vampire's room? You can't get out of it unless you know the secret. that's real convenient, if you like to bring victims up here for a little much session," he tells me. "Let me out," I say. "In a minute. First, you tell me the truth," he says. "I have," I snap. And to my fury and humiliation, I start to cry. "Damn it! You think I'm trying to hurt you? Hurt Michal? How could I? I'm the one everybody hurts!" I tell him.

He looks at me, and I see the hardness melt away. His voice is a lot gentler when he speaks. "And if I was somebody who wanted to kill Michael, I'd put somebody like you in to do it. Be real easy for you to kill somebody, Claire. Poison some food, slip a knife in the back...... and I have to look out for Michael," he says. "I thought he looked out for you? Why do you think somebody wants to kill him?" I ask. "Always somebody wanting to kill a vampire," he says. "But he's not.... Eve said...." I started to say as Shane interrupted me. "yeah, I know he's not a vampire, but he doesn't get up during the day, he doesn't go out of the house, and I can't get him to tell me what happened, so he might as well be," he says.

I blink back the last of the brief storm of tears away. "I'm not working for anybody. And I wouldn't kill Michael even if he was a vampire," I tell him. Shane laughed. "Why not? Besides the fact the he'd snap you like a twig if he was?" He asks. "Because I like him," I reply. Shane watched me for a few, long seconds, then pressed a spot on the arm rest of the couch. The door clicks and pops open. "Good enough for me," he tells me as he's comforting me to help dry the tears. "So desert?" He asks.

Chapter Five - Returning To Hell

I sat down to study, I must have really been into my studies since I didn't hear Shane come in. "What the hell are you doing?" He asks. "Studying," I reply. He sat down next to trying to convince me to take a break and play a video game with him. Well eventually after a lot of begging and pleading with me, I couldn't resist. 

This ought to be interesting, I thought, considering I have only played a video game once in all of my sixteen and a half years. "Tell me what to do," I ask him. "Easy. All you have to do is pull the trigger," he says. Easier said than done. He beat me in a game of zombies. "Good try kiddo," he says with a smirk. I put the controller down on the coffee table and watch him play for a while. 

After an hour, I stood, stretched, and asked," When does Michael get up?" "When he wants to. Why?" He asks me. I need to go back to the dorm, to get the rest of my clothes and stuff," I tell him. he paused the game in mid-shot. "What?" He asks me. "My stuff in my dorm," I reply. I get his full attention now. "Did you miss the part the cops are looking for you, and Monica is waiting for you to show up?" He asks sarcastically. "Maybe if I show up and talk to someone about my classes they will see I'm ok and stop looking for me, and I'll be really quick about getting in and out of there," I tell him. " You shouldn't go there by yourself, it's dangerous," he replies.

"But they don't know where I am, and if you go with me they'll know," I tell him. "And if you don't come back from the dorm, I'm the one who has to explain to Michael how I let you go off and get yourself killed. Claire! Maybe you're not getting this, but you're in trouble! Monica wasn't kidding when she pushed you down the stairs. That was light exercise for her. Next time, she might actually get mad," he tells me with a concerned look on his face. I stood up and hoisted my backpack. "I'm going," I tell him. "Then you're stupid. Can't save an idiot," Shane said and went back to his game. "Don't tell them where you were last night. We don't need the hassle," He says.

Just as I start walking towards the front door, Eve arrives home from work. "Oh hey Claire, where you off to?" Eve asks. "Funeral," Shane tells Eve. "Cool, Whose?" Eve asks. "Hers," he replies. Eve's eyes widened. "Claire, you're going back?" She asks. "Just for the rest of my stuff," I reply. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, bad idea. Bad. No cookie. You can't go back. Not by yourself," Eve tells me. "Why not?" I ask. "They're looking for you," She says as Shane pauses his game again. "You think I already didn't tell her that? She's not listening," Shane says. "And you were just going to let her go?" Eve asks Shane. " I'm not her mom," Shane replies. "How about a friend," Eve snaps back at him. "Seriously, you can't just... It's dangerous," Eve says.

"I'm going to my dorm, picking up my things, going to class, and coming home," I tell Eve. "Going to class! No, no, no! No class, are you kidding?" Eve scolds. I stepped around Eve to get to the door, Eve swirls around me to block me from getting out. "Wait! Just stop. You're going, I get that. At least let me drive you. You shouldn't be walking, and at least this way I can tell Shane if anything happens. And at least you'll have somebody standing by," Eve says. "I don't want to get you guys into any trouble," I tell Eve. "That's why Shane's not coming. He's well, he attracts trouble like tv screens attract dust. Besides, it's better not to put him anywhere near Monica. Bad things happen." Eve says. So finally I agree to let Eve have her wish and drive me. 

We got into Eve's nice little black car, we headed out to get to the dorm before lunch was over for the students that have classes today. Once we arrived at the dorm, Eve pulled into a parking space and clicked the ignition. "You go in and get your stuff, be back here in fifteen minutes or I start launching operation, Get Claire," Eve says. As soon as I get out of the car handed me a cell phone. "Here, Shane's on speed dial, just hit star two," Eve told me. I slipped the phone in my back pocket. "I'll be right back," I tell her as I head nervously inside. 

Chapter Four - the Stranger

I woke up to the smell of frying bacon. I stumbled to the bathroom down the hall, dressed in only my extra long T-shirt until I remembered, Oh my God, Boys live here too. So I ran back into my room and put my pants back on. I then headed back to the bathroom down the hall and showered, and gave myself a little makeover to make myself look a little better than a girl who had just got the crap knocked out of her. I could have died, I was lucky I thought. I tossed the T-shirt back on, then dashed back in my room to dig out the panties I rescued from the washer. They were still damp, but I put them on anyway. I opened the closet door to find some old stuff shoved in the back, a few old T-shirts that had the names of bands I'd never heard of and a couple of sweaters. I changed my shirt and headed downstairs for breakfast.

As I walk into the kitchen, Shane and Eve were arguing about the right way to make scrambled eggs. Eve said they needed milk. Shane said milk was for weaklings.

"I see Michael didn't pitch you out," Shane said. "No, is there a reason he should have?" I asked Shane. "Something you should know about Michael, he doesn't like to take chances. I wasn't sure if he would let you stay. If he did, then he got a good vibe off you. Don't disrespect that, because if you do.... I won't be happy either," Shane told me.

"He;s your friend right?" I asked. "He saved my life, I'd die for him, but it'd be a dumb thing to thank him for it. So yeah. He's been my friend all of my life, and he's more like a brother. So don't get him into trouble," Shane told me. "I won't, oh by the way, no milk in the eggs," I told Eve. "See told ya," Shane snickered. Eve and Shane finished cooking breakfast as I set the table. We were about to sit down to eat when suddenly the doorbell rang. "Quick, get her out of sight", Shane whispered to Eve. Eve nodded, put her plate on the counter, and hustled me to the pantry. "Inside. I'm going to turn the light on out here, but try to keep that flashlight off if you hear voices. It could show through the cracks," Eve warns.

Voices. Shane's and someone else's. A man's voice, deeper than Shane's. "Standard inventory," the stranger said. "Sir, there's nobody living here but what's on the roaster. Just the three of us," Shane told the stranger. "Which one are you?" The stranger asked. "Shane Collins Sir," answered Shane. "Get your third in here," the stranger said. "Well I would but Michael's not here. He's out until tonight. You want to check back then?" Shane asked. "Never mind. One other thing, here's a picture of a girl that disappeared from her dorm last night. You haven't seen her?" The stranger asked Shane and Eve. They both chorused a "No." "What's in here? You always leave the light on?" The stranger asked. "I was getting some jam when you rang Sir. I probably forgot to turn it off, Sorry," Eve said. "You ring the station if you see that girl. She's got herself in some trouble. We're supposed to help her get straightened out," the strange man said as he was heading out of the door.

Eve watched the man out the window as he drove away. Eve opened the door to the pantry to let me out. "It's ok, he's gone," Eve says as she lets me out of the pantry. "No hell it isn't ok. Thos jerks have her picture. They're looking for her. What'd you do Claire? Knife the mayor or something?" Asked Shane. "Nothing! I don't know why... Maybe it's that they're just worried because I didn't show up last night?" I stated. "Worried?" Shane laughed bitterly. "Yeah, that's it. They're worried about you. Right. I'm going to have to talk this over with Michael. If they're going to turn the town upside down looking for you, either you're too hot to stay in Morganville, or we need to get you under some kind of protection, fast," said Shane. "But maybe the police....?" I asked. "That was the police. Told you they run the town. These guys work for the vamps, they're not vamps themselves, but they're scary enough without the fangs. Look, can you call your parents? Get them to pull you out of school and take you home or something?" Eve asked me.

"But I haven't done anything! How can they be after me if I didn't do anything?" I asked trying not to tear up. "Life ain't fair. You must have pissed off the wrong people, is all I know. What's the girl's name? The one who smacked you around?" Eve asked me. "M...Monica," I answered. Their mouth dropped as they both looked at me. "Oh crap," Eve said horrified. "Monica Morrell?" Eve asked. Shane's face went blank, except for his eyes, there was something pretty scary going on behind them. "Monica," he repeated. "How come nobody told me?" Asked Shane. "We would have.... I swear, I thought she left town. Went off to college somewhere else," Eve said. She shook it off,and shrugged, trying to look like he didn't care. She probably couldn't stand not being the queen bee and had to come begging Daddy to buy her some grades. "Shane," Eve said as she broke Shane free from his trance. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me," snapped Shane. "She probably doesn't even remember you," Eve said. "Oh shit," Eve said. "What?" I asked. Eve pointed at the counter. Shane's, Eve's, and a third plate which was mine were all on the counter. "Three plates. He knew something was up. We told him Michael wasn't around. No wonder he kept poking," Eve pointed out. Shane said nothing, but he picked up his plate and went up to his room. "So Shane and Monica?" I guessed. "Not like you're thinking. He wouldn't touch that skank in a million years. But they were in high school together, and Shane got on her bad side. Just like you did," Eve said. I suddenly lost my appetite for breakfast. "What happened?" I asked Eve. "He stood up to her, and his house burnt. He nearly died. His sister wasn't so lucky. Michael got him out of town, off on his own, before he did something crazy. He's been gone a couple of years. Just came back right before I moved here. Lets east yeah? I'm starving," Eve said. We sat in the living room, chatting about nothing, not talking about the one thing that was most important : What to do.

Chapter Three - Meeting Michael

I woke up in the dark with a panicked flinch that sent the ice pack thumping off of my pillow and onto the floor. I slid out of bed and fumbled for a lamp and found one next to the bed. I heard music playing downstairs, the music was slow and warm, kind of like a guitar. I fluffed my out my hair to make it somewhat presentable, put on a little foundation make-up and opened the bedroom door. The music was coming from downstairs, in the living room. I checked a clock hanging on the wall at the far end, it was after midnight. I had slept for more than twelve hours. My bruises felt better, and in fact my head hurt only a little. My ankle was still the worst of it, sending jabs of pain up my leg with every step down the stairs. I was halfway down the stairs when I saw the boy playing his guitar. Oh the music, I thought it was a recording, but no, this was real, this was live, and he was playing it.

I coughed. The boy turns, startled, and saw me standing there on the stairs, his frown cleared after a second or two. "Oh you're the one Shane said wanted to talk to me about the room. Hey, come on down. I'm Michael, and you're not even seventeen. We don't take anybody in this house who isn't legal. Not that you'd be signing onto orgy central, but sorry. Me and Shane have to worry about things like that. All it takes is you living here and somebody even hinting there's something going on," he says. "Wait, I wouldn't do that, or say that. I'm not looking to get you guys in trouble. I just need...." I say as he interrupts me. "No. I'm sorry , but you can't stay here. House rules," he says. I reach into my pocket and pull out my wallet. "How much? I ask and start counting bills.. "Three hundred enough? I can get more if I have to," I say. "How? he asks. "What? I reply. "How would you get more?" He asks. "Get a job or sell stuff. Not that I have much to sell. I want to stay here Michael, I really do. Yeah I'm under eighteen, but I swear, you won't have any trouble out of me. I'll stay out of your way. I go to school and study. That's all I do. I'm not a partyer, and I'm not a slacker. I'm useful. I'll help clean and cook," I say. "No.I'm sorry kid. But it's just too much risk," he says. "Eve's only a bit older than I am!" I say. "Eve's eighteen, you're what sixteen?" He asks. "Almost seventeen! I really am in college. I'm a freshman, look here's my student ID...." I say as I'm holding it up. He ignored it. "Come back in a year. We'll talk about it then. Look what about the dorm? He asks. "They'll kill me if I stay there. They tried to kill me today," I tell him. "What?" He asks. "The other girls. They punched me and shoved me down the stairs," I say. "What else? Besides what I can see? You're not going to drop dead on me are you?" he asks. "I'm ok. I saw the doctor and everything. It's just the bruises and a strained ankle. But they pushed me down the stairs, and they meant it, and she told me....."

Suddenly Eve's words about vampires came back to me and made me trip over my own tongue. "The girl in charge, she told me that tonight, I'd get what was coming to me. I can't go back to the dorm, Michael. If you send me out that door, they'll kill me, because I don't have any friends nor do I have any place to go!" I explain. He unlatched the guitar case again and cradled it. I thought was his comfort zone. He then asks me to have a seat on the couch as he starts to play his guitar again. "These girls, do they go out in daylight?" He asks. "You mean outside? Sure. They go to classes. Well sometimes," I reply. "Do they wear bracelets?" he asks. " You mean like...." Eve left hers on the table so I pick it up. "Like this? I never noticed. They wear a lot of stuff," I reply. I thought hard, and maybe remember something after all. "The bracelets didn't look like this though. They were gold, and Monica and her friends all had them on their left wrists, although I never paid much attention," I reply. "Bracelets with white symbols? Do you remember?" He asks. "No. Does that mean they have protection?" I ask. "You mean condoms? Doesn't everybody?" He asks. "You know what I mean," I say. "Don't think I do," he says playing dumb. "Eve said....." I start to say.

"Eve needs to keep her mouth shut. She's in enough danger as it is, trolling around out there in Goth gear. They already think she's mocking them. If they hear she's talking...." He says as his voice trails off. "They who? I ask. "People. Look I don't want your blood on my hands. You can stay for a couple of days. But only until you find a place, right? And make it fast, I'm not running a halfway house for bettered girls. I've got enough to worry about keeping Eve and Shane out of trouble," he says. I put the money on the table and he stares at it, with his jaw tense. "The rent's a hundred dollars a month. You buy the groceries, once a month too. First month in advance. But you're not staying past that, so keep the rest," he says. "Thanks," I say. "Don't thank me, just don't get us into any trouble. I mean it," he says. I went to the kitchen, spooned in two chilli bowls, added the bowls to the trays along with sppons and cokes, and brought it all back to set them on the coffee table. Michael took his bowl and tasted it. "Shane made it. It's pretty good," I tell him. "Yeah. Chilli and spaghetti, that's pretty much all Shane can cook. You know how to make anything?" he asks. "Sure," I reply. "Like?" he asks. "Ratatouille, Aloomasala, Potato and Truffle Torte, and hamburgers," I reply. "Could you make hamburgers tomorrow?" He asks. "Sure. I have classes from eleven to five, but I'll stop and pick up the stuff," I reply. "I'm sorry," he finally says. "About what?" I ask. "Being an ass. Look, it's just that I can't, I have to be careful. Really careful," he says. "You weren't being an ass, you're trying to protect yourself and your friends. That's ok. That's what you're supposed to do," I say. "If you're in this house, you're my friend. What's your name by the way?" He asks. "Claire, Claire Danvers," I reply. "Welcome to the Glass House Claire Danvers. But only temporarily," he says. I went up to my room, spread out my books on the desk, and started the day's studying, as I listened to Michael play the guitar downstairs.

Chapter Two - A New Home

Erica was right about the quack shack being the first stop. I got my ankle wrapped, an ice pack, and some frowns over the forming bruises. Nothing broken but I am going to be black and blue for days. The doctor asked some questions about boyfriends and stuff. She gave me an excuse note, pain killers, and told me to go home.

No way was I going back to the dorm. I limped down to the small cafe in the clinic and sat at a table. I picked up a campus paper from the table and opened it to The Housing section. Dorm rules were out of the question. Howard Hall and Landsdale Hill were the only two that took in girls under twenty. I'm not old enough to qualify for the coed dorms.

I dug in my backpack, found my cell phone, and started dialing numbers. The first person told me that they already found somebody and hung up before I could say thanks. The second sounded like a weird guy. The third one was a weird old lady. The forth one...., Well, the fourth one was just plain weird. The fifth listing down read, Three roommates seeking fourth, huge old house, privacy assured, reasonable rent and utilities. I called and got an answering machine with a mellow-sounding, young male voice. "Hello, you've reached The Glass House, If you're looking for Michael, he sleeps days, if you're looking for Shane, good luck with that, cause we never know where the hell he is, and if you're looking for Eve, you'll probably get her on her cell phone or at the shop. But hey leave a message, and if you're looking to audition for the room, come on by, it's 716 West Lot Street. Yeah just look for the mansion, Gone With The Wind meets The Munsters. Laughter and then a beep. "My name is Claire, Claire Danvers, and I um... was um... Sorry" and I hung up. I checked the rest of the listings, and felt my heart sink a little. Fine I thought, and snapped my phone shut, then open again to call a cab.

It didn't take too long for the cab to get to the clinic to pick me up. I got into the cab and told the driver "716 West Lot Street ." "Gone With The Wind meets The Munsters right? You meeting someone?" The cabbie asks. "No. Why?" I reply. The cabbie shrugged, "Usually you kids are meeting up with friends. If you're looking for a good time," he starts off as I interrupt him. I shivered. "I'm not.. I'm... Yes, I'm meeting people. If you could hurry please?" I say. He grunted and took a right turn, and the cab went from college town to creepy town in one block flat. "Lot Street," The cabbie announced, and squealed to a stop. "That will be ten fifty," he said. I paid him the money I owed him and got out of the cab. I hoisted my backpack again, hit a bruise on my shoulder, and nearly dropped the weight on my foot. Tears stung at my eyes. All of a sudden I felt tired, shaky, and scared again. At least at campus I'd kind of been on relatively familiar ground, but out here in town it was like being a stranger all over again. I counted the house numbers, and realized I was standing in front of 716. I turned and looked behind me, and gasped. Because whoever the guy was on the phone, he'd been dead on right in his description. 716 looked like a movie set, something straight out of the civilwar. The place was huge. Well, not huge, but bigger than I had imagined. 

This was such a bad idea, I thought, and there were those tears again, bubbling up along with panic. What am I going to do? Walk up to the door and beg to be a roommate? How lame was that? I dropped my backpack, burried my bruised face in both hands, and just started sobbing. "Hey," a concerned girls voice said behind me. "Hey are you ok? My name is Eve," The girl said, and smiled. Her smile faded, and she took a good look at my face. "Wow Jeez, nice black eye. Who hit you?" Eve asks. "Nobody, I had an accident," I reply. "Yeah, I used to have those kinds of accidents, falling into fists and stuff. Are you ok? I can drive you to the doctor if you would like?" She says. "I.... Look I'm sorry, it's been an awful day. I was coming to ask about the room," I started to say, as Eve interrupts me. "Right, the room!" Eve snaps her fingers as, she'd forgotten all about it, and jumped up and down in excitement. "Great! I'm home for break, I work over at Common Grounds, you know, the coffee shop? And Michael won;t be up for a while yet, but you can come in and see the house if you want, I don't know if Shane's around, but..." she says. "I don't know if I should....." "You totally should. You wouldn't believe the freaks we see trying to get in the door. You're the first normal one I've seen so far. Michael would kick my ass if I let you get away without at least trying a sales pitch," she says. "Yeah, I'd like that," I reply. Eve grabbed my backpack and slung it over her shoulder. "Follow me," she says as she bounces away, up the walk to the front porch to unlock the door. Up close the house looked old, but not really run down. "Yo!" Eve yells, and dumps my backpack on a table. "Roomies! We've got a live one!" Eve yells. I stop moving, frozen, and just look around. Nothing overtly creepy about the inside of the house, at least. It smells like chilli? "Yo!" Eve yells again, and clumps down the hall. "Shane, I smell the chilli. I know your here! Get your headphones out of your ears," she yells again. I take a couple of hesitant steps down the hallway. Eve's footsteps are clinking off into another room, maybe the kitchen. The house seems very quiet. Nothing jumps out to scare me, so I proceed, one careful foot after another, all the way into the family room.

As I enter the family room, I spot a guy lying sprawled on the couch, the way only guys sprawl, yawns and sits up. He surprises me into silence by grinning at me and putting his finger over his mouth to shush me. "Hey," he whispers. "What's up?" He asks as he blinks a couple of times, and without any change of his expression, says, "Dude, that's a badass shiner. Hurts huh? So I guess you're gonna say the other chic looks worse?" He asks. "No, I um... How did you know it was?" I start to say. "A chick? Easy. Size you are, a guys would have put you in the hospital with a punch hard enough to leave a mark like that. So what's up with that? You don't look like you go looking for trouble," he says. "I'm Claire," I say and wave awkwardly. "Hi," says and nods toward a leather chair. I slide into it, feet dangling, and feel a weird sense of relief wash over me. "You want something? Coke maybe? Chilli? Bus ticket back home?" He says and grins at me. "Coke and chilli please," I ask. "Good choice," he says as he slides off of the couch weirdly, boneless for his size and padded bare foot into the kitchen where Eve had gone. I listen to a blur of voices as the two of them talk, and relax, one muscle at a time, into the soft embrace of the chair.

I open my eyes at the sound of Eves boots clomping back into the room. She calls me into the kitchen to eat the chilli Shane had made, sits an ice pack on the counter. "Ice pack first. You can never tell what Shane puts in the chilli. Be afraid," she says. Shane flops on a chair in the kitchen next to me, sucking on his own can of coke... Eve shot him an exasperated look. "Yeah man, thanks for bringing me one too," she says. "Dork! Didn't know if you wanted zombie dirt sprinkled on it or anything, if you're eating this week," Shane replies to Eve. "Go on and eat Claire, I'll get my own," says Eve. I pick up the spoon and try a small bite of the chilli, which is thick, meaty, spicey, and heavy on the garlic. Delicious in fact. "Well how is it?" Shane asks. "It's very good," I say. he gives me a lazy salute. By the time I'm halfway done through the bowl, Eve is back with her bowl of chilli, which she plunks down on the counter next to me. Eve sits in the chair next to me, crosses her legs, and digs in. "Not bad. At least you left the oh-my-god-sauce this time," she says. "Made myself a batch with it. It's got the biohazard sticker on it in the fridge, so don't complain if you get flamed. Where'd you pick up the stray? Shane asks. "Outside. She came to see the room," Eve replies. "You beat her up first, just to make sure she's tough enough?" Shane asks. "Bite me chilli boy," Eve shot back. "Don't mind Eve, she hates working days. She's afraid she'll tan," Shane says. "Yeah, and  Shane just hates working. So what's your name?" Eve asks. I open my mouth but Shane beat me to it, happy to one-up his roomie. "Claire. What, you didn't even ask? A chic beat her up too. Probably some skank in the dorms. You know how that place is," Shane says. They exchange a long look. "Is that true? You got beat up in the dorm?" Eve asks. I nod, as I shovel more food in my mouth to keep from having to say much. "Well that blows. No wonder you're looking for the room. You didn't bring much with you," Eve says. "I don't have much. Just the books and maybe some things back at my room. But I..... Don't want to go back there to get stuff. Not tonight," I reply. "Why not? Somebody still looking to pound you?" Shane asks. "I guess so. It's not just her, she's got friends and I don't," I reply.

We all head back into the living room so that we can carry on our conversation more comfortably. "That place is just.... well, it's creepy," I start off. "Been there, oh wait still there," Eve says. "What time is Michael getting up?" Eve asks. "Hell Eve, I don't know. I love the guy, but I don't love the guy. Go bang on his door and ask him. As for me, I'm gonna go and get ready,"Shane says. "Ready for what? You're not seriously going out again are you?" Eve asks Shane. "Seriously yeah. Bowling. Her name's Laura. If you want more details, you're gonna have to download the video like everybody else!" Shane says as he heads to the second floor. "See you later Claire," Shane says. Eve made a frustrated sound. "Wait a minute! So what you say? You think she'd do ok here, or what?" Eve says. Shane waves a hand. "Whatever man. Far as I'm concerned, she's ok," Shane says."Guys,"Eve sighs. "Damn, it would be good to have another girl in here. They're all like yeah whatever, and when it comes to picking up the place or washing dishes, they turn into ghosts," Eve says. "Um, I guess I should ask about the room? I ask. "Well, you have to talk to Michael, and he has to say yes, but Michael's a sweetie, really. Oh, and he owns this place. His family does anyway. i think they moved away and left him the house a couple of years ago. He's about six months older than I am. We're all about eighteen. Michael's sort of the oldest," Eve says. "he sleeps days?" I ask. "Yeah. I mean I like to sleep days, but he has a thing about it. I called him a vampire once, cause he really doesn't like being up in the daytime. Like ever. He didn't think it was very funny," Eve says. "You're sure he isn't a vampire? I've seen movies. They're sneaky," I say. I was kidding. Eve didn't even smile. "Oh pretty sure. For one thing, he eats Shane's chilli, which God knows, has enough garlic to explode a dozen high-quality Dracs. And I made him touch a cross once," Eve says as she takes a big swallow of her coke. "You what? Made him?" I say in shock. "Well sure.... I mean a girl can't be too careful, especially around here," She replies.

"In Morganville? You know? Eve says. "What about it?" I ask. "How can you not know? Morganville's full of vampires," Eve says. I started laughing because I don't believe in such things. Eve didn't find it funny at all. She just stands there with her arms crossed looking very serious. "Um... You're kidding? How many kids graduate TPU every year?" Eve asks. "I don't know. It's a crappy college, most everybody transfers out...." I reply. "Everybody leaves. Or at least stops showing up right? I can't believe you don't know this. Didn't anybody tell you the score before you moved in? Look, the vamps run the town. They're in charge, and either you're in, or you're out. If you work for them, if you pretend they're not here and they don't exist, and you look the other way when things happen, then you and your family get a free pass. You get protection. Otherwise...."Eve says. Eve pulls a finger across her throat and bugs out her eyes. "Right. No wonder nobody rented a room with these people, they're all nuts, I thought. "You think I'm wacko? I get that. I'd think I was too, except I grew up in a protected house. My dad works for the water company and my mom is a teacher, but we all wear these," she says. She extends her wrist. On it is a black leather bracelet, with a symbol on it in red, nothing I had ever seen before. "See how mine's red? Expired. It's like health insurance. Kids are only covered until they're eighteen. Mine was up six months ago. Might as well stop wearing it, I guess. It sure wouldn't fool anyone," Eve says as she drops it on the table. "Fine, think I'm nuts. Why wouldn't I be? And I won't try to convince you or anything, just....don't go out after dusk unless you're with somebody. Somebody protected, if you can find them. Look for the bracelet," she says as she nudges the bracelet on the table. "The symbol's white when it's active," She says. "But I... Is Shane?" I ask. "Shane? Protected? As if! Even if he was, which i doubt, he'd never admit it, and he doesn't wear the bracelet or anything. Michael isn't either, but there's sort of a standard protection on houses. We're sort of outcasts here. there's safety in numbers too," she says.

Without even knowing I was going to do it, I yawned. Eve laughed. "Call it a bedtime story," she says. "Listen, let me show you the room. Worst case, you lie down for a while, let the ice pack work, then bug out. Or hey, you wake up and decide you want to talk to Michael before you leave. your choice," she says. I dig into my pocket, find the package of pills the doctor had prescribed for me, and swallow one with the last gulp of coke. Then I head into the kitchen and help Eve with the dishes. When we finished, we went to head to the second floor so that Eve could show me the room. Eve turns around as we reach the top of the first step and says... "Hey do you think you can make it up the stairs? Because you know?" She says. "I'm ok," I reply. I lied. My ankle hurts like hell, but I want to see the room. As we reach the second floor, Eve pointed and named..." Shane's the first door, Michaels' the second door, the main bathroom is the third door. The second bathroom is downstairs that's kind of the emergency back-up bathroom when Shane's in there mousing his hair for like an hour or something," she says. "Bit me," Shane yells from behind a closed door. Eve pounds her fist on the door and leads me to the last two doors. "This one's mine. Yours is in the middle there," she says. When Eve swings the door open, I actually gasp. "Is that a TV?" I ask. "Yeah. satel-lite cable. You'd pitch in, though, unless you want to take it out of the room. Oh, and there's internet too. broadband, over there. I should probably warn you, they monitor internet traffic around here though. You have to be careful of what you say in messages and stuff. You don't have to decide right now. You ought to rest first. Here, here's your ice pack. When you get up, Michael'll probably be awake. I have to get back to work, but it'll be ok. Really," she says. "Thank you Eve," I say. "This... Wow," I say. "Yeah, well, you look like you could use a little wow today. Sleep well, and don't worry, the vampires won't come in here. This house has protection, even if we don't," she says. I turn that over in my mind for a few seconds as Eve left the room and shut the door. the pain medication kicks in and I fall into a deep sleep.