Blood and Betrayal

Chapter 9

Author's Note: Ugghh I don't like this chapter. Things are gonna get a lot more interesting, I promise. Also, after reading this chapter, tell me what you think of this new boyfriend development! Inbox me, leave comments! I must know >_< Thanks, everyone!

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         What could be worse than an alarm clock suddenly going off so close to my ear that it threatened deafness? Birds. Lots and lots of birds. I was naturally a lover of all living creatures, but when the sun was just coming up, the last thing I wanted to hear were a hundred assorted birds, all doing a sad impression of a song.
        My eyes were still squeezed shut against the invading sunlight of the morning as I tried to search for a pillow with my hands, and I found it odd and unmerciful that they found no cushion to press over my ears. Had I pushed them off the bed in my sleep? It was apparent that I had no other choice but to open my eyes, and when I did I fell off the couch. My rear end came into contact with something crinkly and smooth, which was strange because that wasn't what my carpet normally felt like.
        Using the couch to my right and the coffee table to my left, I pushed myself up and surveyed my surroundings. From the looks of things, I had fallen asleep on my couch amidst a mess of note papers, pens, my English books, and my English notebook.

        After returning from Summersville last night I had changed into my PJ's and immediately attacked another one of Avery's evil assignments, which promptly knocked me unconscious. Nice. I probably had a pen tangled up in my hair somewhere.
        The lights were still on in my kitchen and living room, but the sun illuminating my white apartment prevented them from making any visible difference. So I turned them off, then got another shock as I entered my kitchen. It was barely even six o'clock in the morning. I was still entitled to at least five more hours of sleep!
Grumbling about the injustice of it all under my breath, I stomped down the hall to my bedroom and finally flopped onto the appropriate sleeping vessel. I really hoped I didn't look tired today on my first date with Michael.

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        As I looked in my bathroom mirror one last time before leaving, I realized that not even my flawless make-up and cute outfit could hide the intense nervousness I felt for tonight. In less than five minutes Michael was scheduled to knock on my door and take me on my first date ever, but I didn't think I was ready. My stockinged legs shook under my black skirt and it felt as if my stomach was being wrung out like a wet cloth. The person staring back at me from the smooth glass looked scared, beyond nervous and a few seconds away from being sick. How could she be me? I had waited for this day for eighteen years, and now here it was; yet I was terrified? Why? Michael had gentleman written all over him (as well as a few other juicy words), and it wasn't like I didn't know him! We had been close friends for the better part of a year, and I trusted him more than my own parents! But for some reason, the fact that he was fifty-four years older than me and a werewolf didn't rattle my cage as much as something else I couldn't put my finger on, which was even more infuriating than my knocking knees.

        A loud noise coming from the front door nearly made me wet myself, and I thought my whole body would turn to jelly as I walked out of the bathroom and towards my date. Before I opened the door, I took a deep breath to compose myself and smoothed out my blouse. It wasn't like he was going to eat me, after all.
        And once I saw the dazzling smile lighting up his face, I thought that there would be no way someone so dashing could eat a person. I returned his smile and waved nervously as Michael checked out my outfit (or so I hoped), glad that no explosions or other catastrophes were happening. I had worked myself up for nothing.
"Wow, Abby. You look good enough to eat!"
All good humor immediately left my face. Was that supposed to be funny?
"Sorry. Werewolf humor. But really, we don't eat people. It's against our laws, remember?" Michael rocked back and forth on his heels, hands clasped behind him while he looked at me calmly. I remembered, alright. But what about the wolves that turned Andrew? They certainly ate people.
"Yeah, I know. Anyways, thanks! You look great too." And he did, with perfectly tailored slacks and a dinner jacket, which was opened to reveal a black button-down evening shirt. He looked like a guy ready to go about the town.
"You're just saying that!" Michael did a perfect job of making himself sound like a blushing bride while putting one hand to his cheek and waving the other through the air modestly, making me laugh with something else besides nervousness. A sort of emotional release happened then, and I knew everything was going to be alright.
Finally getting the satisfaction of making me grin, Michael reached out and took my hand before lifting it to his lips and planting a soft kiss on the top of it. Now I was the one to blush.
"So are you ready?" Michael lowered his head and looked at me through his lashes with a snarky smirk, and the tone he used made me think we were about to get on a really scary roller coaster. I gulped.
"Sure." Without another word, I turned off the hall light and locked up, then let Michael guide me down the hall and the stairs towards his car. It really belonged to all the werewolves since they had a 'what's-mine-is-yours' policy, but it was in Michael's name so he got it tonight. The exterior was a green so dark it could pass for black at night, and I always appreciated that it was a sedan. Better for the environment.