Vampire Princess

Chapter Nineteen: Truth or Dare?

I opened Heather’s door and walked in without even knocking. Heather made a start on her bed. She quickly got up and pulled out her earphones. “What’s wrong with you?” she demanded. “Why did you just walk in without knocking?”

My mouth opened slightly and I raised my hands innocently. Heather’s usually not like this. Back in college, when we were roommates, she doesn’t mind me opening the door without saying permission. “Hey, what happened? Are you okay?”

And just like that, Heather burst into tears.                                     

She fell to the ground without another word, still sobbing hysterically. I kneeled down in front of her and placed my hand on her shoulder. I don’t know why she was crying. Heather’s strong and she never cries. Okay, sure, she sometimes cries in movies (especially Titanic). But this was different.

“I told him I loved him!” she blurted out and hid her face in her hands. “I’m such a stupid person! I told him I loved him!”

“Who are you talking about?”

She looked up at me, her eyes red and puffy. “Stanley Green! You know, that guy I’ve met in the diner and the guy in the council?”

I frowned, but nodded nonetheless. I remembered Stanley, but I never thought that Heather’s still hanging out with him after all those time. “You’ve been hanging out with him? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I… I did tell you that I’m hanging out with him.”

“No, you didn’t. You just say that you’re hanging out with this ‘guy’. I thought it was other guys.”

“It’s not important!” she insisted. “Melanie, I told him I loved him!”

I shrugged. “And? What did he tell you?”

She gave me a disapproving look. “If he told me he loved me back, would you think I’m crying like this?”

I smiled sheepishly. “Oh.” Then I buried her into a tight hug. “I’m really sorry about that. Stanley’s a jerk. You deserve better.”

“But the worst part is that he doesn’t want to break up with me,” she continued sobbing.

“You mean you’re with him?”

“I always am! But we never said ‘I love you’ to each other. Then I took up the courage to say it first, hoping that he will say he loves me too. But he does not. He confessed to me that he was using me to get back to her!”

“Her?” I repeated. “Who the hell is ‘her’?”

“How am I supposed to know? I didn’t ask him… But I think ‘her’ is his ex-girlfriend or something.”

“So why didn’t you break up with him? Why would you be with someone who doesn’t love you back?”

Heather gave out a sniff, her lips trembling. “Because I love him, Melanie. I love him!”

“Oh, but Heather—”

“You don’t understand, Melanie!” she interrupted and grabbed my arms, gripping them tightly. Her green eyes were so wide as she stared back at me. “It’s not only because he’s handsome, or he’s good in bed, or rich… But because he makes me happy! He makes me feel like I’m the only girl in the world! He makes me laugh; he makes me feel comfortable with just being me! That’s why I fell in love with him…”

I didn’t say anything but just continued staring at Heather in shock. This was the first time Heather felt like this. She’s a player back in London, and she does not believe in commitments. But now… she fell in love with someone? Wow, this Stanley Green must have hit her so hard.