Awake at Dawn

Kylie got to Derek's cabin a minute later. She spotted Chris walking out of the cabin, dressed for his morning jog, and stopped. She would have jumped into the woods and hidden, but Chris was vampire, which meant he'd probably already heard her. So she started jogging and hoped he wouldn't stop and ask any questions.

When they ran past each other, she waved. He smiled and kept going.

She continued down the trail past the cabin until she felt he wouldn't be in hearing range. Then she spun around, ran into the cabin, and went straight into Derek's room.

He was in bed, still asleep. His wide chest was bare. The sheet came low around his waist and Kylie wasn't sure if he had anything on beneath the sheet. She'd heard rumors that most boys slept in the buff. But she'd seen him naked and that didn't scare her away.

"Derek?"

He dropped his hand over his face.

She moved over to the bed and touched his shoulder. "Derek?"

His eyes popped open and he shot up. He stared at her but didn't look awake. "You've got your clothes on, so this isn't a dream." He flinched as if he realized he'd said that aloud and then he dropped back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling.

"It's not a dream." She sat beside him. "I heard what you're planning to do and I don't want you to go. Please, don't go."

He looked over at her with heavy-lidded eyes, but she could tell he was awake. "How did you find out?"

He hadn't answered her question, so she didn't answer his. "Were you not even going to say good-bye?" Tears filled her eyes.

He sat up and pulled the sheet around his waist. "I was going to say good-bye."

She blinked away the emotion. "You're doing this because of me, aren't you?"

"No. Not completely." He touched her arm and the floodgates of emotion really started pouring.

"Please, don't go," she said in tears.

"I have to. I need to get my head on straight." He blinked. "You were right. Well, partially right. I still think you have issues you need to resolve about Lucas. But ... you were right about me being jealous. My ability to read emotions is getting stronger. And I don't know why, but with you, it's as if I feel everything you feel but ... more. I don't know if it's because I care about you so much or what. But when you feel something I don't like, an attraction for another guy, anger, or even disappointment at someone, I ... I go crazy inside. It's like someone is shooting me up with emotional adrenaline." He raked a hand over his face. "I've either got to learn to deal with this or..."

"Or what?" she asked. He didn't answer, but Kylie knew what he meant. He either had to learn to deal with the emotions she unleashed inside him, or walk away from her. But wasn't that what he was doing? Walking away?

"And you've got to deal with Lucas and..." He paused. "I'm also going to confront my dad. And when I come back in a month, we'll see how things stand. You may have fallen in love with Lucas by then. And if that happens, I'll have to accept it."

"Would it be that easy to accept?"

"No. But I don't see what other choice I have."

"But you do have a choice. Stay. Give us a chance. We'll work through this."

He shook his head. "I can't, Kylie. I just can't."

She looked at him and as hard as it was to accept, she finally did. Derek was leaving. He had made his choice, and it wasn't her.

Chin high, vowing that she'd done everything she could, she turned and walked out. He might have broken her heart, but he wasn't going to break her spirit. She would get over him. She would.

A week later, Kylie sat on a blanket out by the river where she and her mother had sat and talked about Daniel. Kylie just wanted to be alone to think, to try and wrap her head around how she was going to get her mom to sign her up for Shadow Falls' boarding school. And maybe, just maybe, Daniel would drop by while she was here.

She lay back on the blanket and stared up at the blue sky, and then she heard someone approach.

"See any elephants?" a familiar male voice asked.

She smiled at Lucas. "No, but I just saw a giraffe."

He looked up in the sky. "Where?"

"Over there." She pointed to the left. "Its neck is no longer connected to its body, but you can still see it if you squint."

He dropped down beside her. She thought he looked up at the clouds, but when she glanced back, she found him looking at her. He smiled.

"You just get prettier every day, Kylie Galen."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't start."

"Okay, can I say I'll miss you?"

She sat up. "Are you going to your grandmother's house?"

"Yeah. We're in Houston."

She studied the tip of her tennis shoe, and decided to just ask. "Lucas, are you working with FRU?"

His eyes widened. "Who told you?"

"I overheard Burnett and Holiday talking about it."

"After I got inside the gang that had my sister, I got with Burnett to help me bring down a few really bad guys. So yeah, I sort of worked with them. And I told them if they needed me for anything else, I would be available."

"Isn't it dangerous?"

He studied her. "Are you asking out of concern for me or for Derek?"

"Both." She had accepted that Derek had left. She hadn't completely gotten over the heartbreak, but she would.

"It's not that dangerous. If you follow the game plan, things generally go okay."

He brushed a long stand of hair from her cheek. "You know I want to be more than your friend, right?"

She went to studying her tennis shoe again.

"I don't expect you to answer. I just wanted you to know before some other guy tries to move in." He leaned closer. "I'm patient, Kylie. I've waited eleven years for you. I can wait until you're ready." He pressed a kiss to her cheek. It wasn't anything like the kisses they'd shared, especially those in her dreams. But his nearness-his woodsy scent, the feel of his lips against her skin-sent a hundred butterflies into full flutter mode.

When she looked over at him, he was gone.

And obviously so were Kylie's wits. Because for the life of her, she didn't know what she'd planned to do, reprimand him for kissing her ...or kiss him back.

And maybe it was better if she didn't answer her own question, too.

Friday morning, Kylie, Miranda, and Della, each carting suitcases, walked the trail to meet up with their parents. They walked slowly, like condemned prisoners moving to their executions.

"I'm going to be peeing on a drug test stick every hour," Della muttered.

Miranda sighed. "I'm going to screw up at my competition and my mom is going to give me up for adoption."

"I'm going to a ghost hunt," Kylie added. Both girls looked at her.

"Don't ask."

Holiday met them at the end of the trail, channeling her normal, peppy self. "Smile, guys. It's only for a few days."

They all turned and looked at each other again. Kylie dropped her suitcase and hugged them both. "I expect a phone call from each of you twice a day."

"Twice a day," Della said. "I hope you don't mind if I call when I'm peeing on a drug test stick, because that's what I'm gonna be doing the whole time."

"Just don't flush," Miranda said. "I hate it when people flush when they're talking to me."

Five minutes later, over in the dining hall, Kylie gave Holiday a big hug. "Take care of Socks," she told her.

"I'm planning on bringing him over to my place," Holiday said. When Kylie and her mom started out of the dining hall, Perry came over and gave her a nudge with his elbow. For Perry, that was equivalent to a hug. Kylie gave him a warm smile.

"It seems like you've made good friends here," her mom said.

"Yeah, I have, Mom. They're special."

Kylie almost ran out the door when Lucas stepped in front of her.

"Hello, Mrs. Galen," he said. "My name is Lucas. I just wanted to say good-bye to your daughter."

Kylie's heart raced as she worried her mom might recognize him. "Nice to meet you, Lucas," her mom said, and stepped away to give them some privacy.

He smiled. "Take care."

"I will."

He leaned in. "Dream of me," he whispered.

She rolled her eyes, but he just grinned and walked off. Kylie headed over to her mom.

"He's kind of cute," her mom said, but she had that tone-the tone she got before she started handing out the sex pamphlets. They walked out of the dining hall and headed for the car.

"Yeah," Kylie agreed, and for the umpteenth time, she hoped that the weekend went okay. No unexpected surprises, no long, uncomfortable silences with her and her mom.

When her mom started the car, the cold that filled the interior was more powerful than any car air-conditioning.

"Wow. I've never had this car get cool so fast." When her mom pulled out, Kylie glanced in the backseat to stare at the ghost in her bloody nightgown. Suddenly the ghost lurched forward and threw up all over Kylie's shoulder. The stench was awful.

Kylie fought to keep her gag reflex from bouncing up and down her throat.

"So," her mom said, oblivious to it all. "Where would you like to go for an early lunch? I'm starving."