I'd never driven this slow. I wasn't only doing it to maximize my time with Minho — the speed limit was 60 miles per hour. Maybe I'd start obeying the law if it meant I could spend more time with him, feel that awful, perfect fire in my throat. I kept glancing at him out of the corner of my eye, and I smiled every goddamn time.

"We're not in public anymore," Minho said. "You were going to explain some stuff to me — hypothetically."

"Ah. Right. Hypothetically." I swallowed. "There's this person, and I admit that, yeah, they can read minds. But it's just hypothetical." Coming this close to committing treason was a little bit thrilling.

"Of course. So — I mean, not that you would know — but how did they get their powers?"

"It was a... phenomenon."

"Redacted?"

"Redacted."

"Okay." He sighed. "What does it sound like to the mindreader? Everybody's thoughts?"

"Imagine filling a room with a hundred radios — all on, all speaking at once. And then they tune into one, focus on it, and it's crystal clear." I couldn't describe it properly. It was so much more than a single, coherent voice to zero in on — it was trains of thought overlapping, random images, daydreams, memories.

"Can they hear everyone? Or are there any exceptions?"

I was hoping he wouldn't ask that question. That was where it got technical, became more of a story than a hypothesis. I reminded myself to unfreeze.

"One exception," I said.

"Oh. Hypothetically?"

"Yes."

"Like a busted radio among the working ones?"

I didn't want to imply that he was broken. No, he was whole, complete, unadulterated. I wanted to be like him.

"More like the mindreader isn't picking up their unique frequency."

"Does the mindreader know why the exception?"

"I have no idea..." Oh, shit. "THEY have no idea. They are stumped — hypothetically." Stupid, stupid, stupid.

He didn't look like he noticed my screw up. "Interesting hypothesis. What about the mindreader's fortune teller brother?"

"Their brother has premonitions — premonitions directly related to the choices people make, and the fallout of those decisions."

"Can the mindreader read their brother's mind?"

"Yes."

"So they can technically see the future, too?"

"Yes."

"Hmm. Trippy."

I laughed. I hadn't heard the word 'trippy' since Hyunjin's hippie phase in the sixties, and Chan's "ironic" throwback hippie phase in the mid-eighties.

"You're not human," Minho said then.

My hands shook a little. I gripped the steering wheel tighter. "No."

"You're more."

"You don't know that. Maybe I'm less."

"I think you're more and you just don't see it."

"You don't know me at all."

He didn't blink. "Then let me get to know you, dummy."

I laughed over the hitch in my throat. "What do you wanna know?"

"First, tell me how you're not human. Like, in what way."

"You want me to just tell you that?"

"I was hoping," he muttered.

"Have you thought of any more theories, since the last time we spoke?"

"Yes, actually. But I don't wanna say it."

"Honestly — and not hypothetically at all — it's really annoying when you don't finish your thoughts."

"Because you're the mindreader."

"Yes." I'm a moron.

"And I'm the exception."

"Yes." Utter moron. "Please, what's your theory?"

"It's stupid."

"I won't laugh."

"It might be offensive."

"I won't get mad."

"Yeah, yeah." He took a breath. "You're a vampire?"

My breath caught. I couldn't explain the panic I felt. So Minho knew — he guessed it. What if someone found out and tipped off the Volturi? What if Aro came for a random visit — another one of their dumbass recruitment ploys? All it would take was one touch and those tyrants would go after Minho. The laws in place were strict — assimilation or extermination. No human can know of our secret.

Minho's eyes widened, lips fell open. "Wait, you're actually...?"

"How did y-you know that?"

"I... guessed...?"

"You guessed?"

"Yeah?"

"You can't know this, you can't, you can't, you can't."

"I can pretend I don't know."

"It's more complicated than that."

"Oh, I'm goddamn sorry I don't know anything because you haven't told me anything."

"I haven't told you anything because you couldn't know about this."

"Well, now I know, might as well tell me everything."

"I will not say a word."

"That was six words."

Stop. Being. Cute. A snarl bubbled up my throat and hissed through my teeth.

"Try harder, Dracula, I'm not scared yet."

I closed my eyes, sifting through every emotion in my body, taking stock. Guilt, shame, anxiety, exhaustion... mostly love. How could love override everything else?

"Sorry," I said. "I'm being a jackass. It's dangerous that you know this about me."

"Why is it dangerous?"

"There are laws in place, to keep humans from knowing about us."

"Does that mean there are vampire police?"

"You could say that." 'Vampire police.' He was probably imagining a caricature of the real thing. Fangs and pale faces, donuts in hand and batons swinging. I was relieved he didn't know what the actual lawmakers of our world looked like. He was too good for that nightmare.

"Well, I won't tell anybody," Minho said. "If that's something you're worried about."

I never thought he would do that. From what little I knew of him, he wouldn't give my secret away — if he could help it.

"I'm not afraid of you, either," he said then. "You should know that."

I stayed motionless.

He booped my nose. That dumbass 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘥 a vampire's nose.

"I still think you're cute."

"You shouldn't think that. You should be very, very afraid."

"Can I hold your hand?"

"What?"

"I wanna hold your hand."

I stared into his eyes and measured him. He wasn't scared or unsure of himself, not bashful at all. He wanted to hold my hand. I wanted it, too. Was I an adrenaline junky now? I felt like I was on the very edge of Hornelen mountain again, facing the drop.

I took one hand off the steering wheel and placed it palm up between us. I prayed to God that he couldn't see it shake.

He held my hand gently, fit his fingers into mine. His warmth made me swoon, relax a little. The shaking slowed and stopped.

"So you're a vampire," he said.

"Yes."

"I want to say that's stupid and you're stupid, but I guess I kind of believe you."

"Um, okay."

"I mean, it's cool."

"I don't know how to respond to that."

"You don't have to. So do you sleep in a coffin and wear a cape?"

I laughed a little. "Capes are awesome — but no." Changbin talked me out of my cape phase twenty years back. "And I, um, don't sleep, actually."

He gasped a bit, his hand squeezed tighter around mine.

"Never?"

"Never."

"What do you do all night, then?"

Oh, my love. "I think about you."

The car was eerily quiet for a moment.

"Um, d-does garlic freak you out?"

I laughed again, loosening up. "Garlic means nothing to me. I spit on garlic. Garlic is irrelevant."

"For someone who doesn't care about garlic, you sure have a lot of intense emotions about garlic."

"I hear it's good with parmesan and shrimp. I dunno how I know that. I don't eat, either." The Food Network was rubbing off on me.

Minho slowly lifted our hands and held them to his chest.

My eyes darted to him. The back of my hand was pressed against his heart — his heart. The centre of his body, his life, his blood. My skin prickled.

"You've probably noticed how cold I am," I said lamely.

"Yeah."

"You're warm to me. It feels really nice."

He smiled his small smile — the one where the corners of his mouth quirk up. He kept asking questions seemingly as they came to him.

"If you don't eat, what was all that about cake? And earlier, when you were talking about cookie dough s'mores?"

"It was all a ruse — and you believed every word."

"I knew something was up," he sniffed. He took my soda from the cupholder and shook it.

"You pretended to drink this?"

"It would have been creepy — just sitting there, watching you eat."

He smiled. "I hope this isn't a rude question in vampire culture or whatever, but how old are you?"

"I'm seventeen."

"How long have you been seventeen, genius?"

I smiled, too. "A really, really long time."

"How come you don't talk like an old person, then?"

"The new way of speaking suits me better." I threw a peace sign. "Swag."

It looked like he was considering throwing himself out of the moving car.

I was still thinking about the soda. He knew I was a vampire, that I didn't eat... I wondered if his weird brain was connecting the dots. I looked at him.

"Aren't you curious about... what I do eat?"

"Or drink?"

I nodded, anxious.

"If you wanna tell me."

"We are 'vegetarian vampires.' We only drink animal blood." I was eager to tell him that, to make sure he didn't assume the... alternative.

"Bears?" he whispered.

I smacked my lips once, watching him out of the corner of my eye. He turned away from me and stared out the window.

"You okay?" I asked after a moment.

"Do you eat other animals? Ones less large and dangerous?"

Did he really think bears were a danger to us? "We drink whatever we can get our hands on — discreetly."

He was quiet again, squinting ahead.

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm just wondering about the, um, diversity of your meals. You know, what's on the menu — not that I'm judging, I just—"

"We don't drink cats."

"Oh, thank God!" he shrieked.

"You were picturing us as literal cat burglars, weren't you?"

"I was trying not to."

I stroked my thumb back and forth across his hand. "You don't have to worry. Cats are too boney."

He threw my hand away like it was a grenade, and whacked it out of the air when I grabbed for him again.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" I backtracked.

"That's a dangerous thing to say in front of a person like me." But he took my hand, pressed it to his gentle, thumping heart.

I just grinned.

"Moving on," he said. "Why are you vegetarian?"

"It's an ethical thing, an atonement. We don't want to be what we are. Might as well play righteous, make the best of it."

"Why just 'play' righteous?"

"Because living as a vampire is inherently immoral, therefore we cannot 'be' moral, we only 'play' moral."

"Did you really just say 'therefore'?"

"The rest of my sentiment just, whoosh, out your other ear, huh?"

"Kinda. But seriously, that's really honourable, Jisung."

"No way, it's the bare minimum."

"I thought the bare minimum would be eating people."

"That is the norm, but I don't believe we should settle for that. If 'bare minimum' is, let's say, five, then drinking humans is three." Where the hell did this number system come from?

"What's a 'zero'?"

"Slaughtering villages, torturing our victims, amassing an army."

"Cool? What's a 'ten'?"

I spoke quietly. "Not this... not this."

He waited a second before speaking again.

"I didn't know there was a numbers scale to vampire morals."

"There isn't. I'm making this up as I go along."

He smiled at that. "So you were eating bears at Goat Rocks. What were you eating when you were 'camping'?"

"I made that up, too. Sorry. We came back after Goat Rocks."

All I could hear was his eyelashes fluttering. "Came back to Forks?"

"Yeah."

"When did you get back?"

"A few days ago."

"Why weren't you in school?"

"It was sunny, we can't go out in the sun."

He opened his mouth — I could tell what he was going to say.

"No, we don't turn to dust."

"I was gonna chew you out, actually."

"Why?"

"I was worried for days when you didn't come to school. I mean, you could have told me — called or, I dunno, sent a bird."

"You were worried about me?"

"Er, yeah. I was a zombie for a day or two there."

I couldn't stop myself from smiling. He'd been thinking about me. I'd been thinking about him — constantly, round-the-clock. I never dreamed he'd been feeling the same way.

"But I guess it's okay if it was because of vampire stuff," he continued. "Never do it again, though. Ever. I will tackle you to the ground."

"Feel free." WHY DID I SAY THAT. "Um, how did you come up with the vampire theory?"

"From a movie, actually."

"That checks out."

"You check out."

Good comeback, love. "What movie was it?"

"It was called Maiden Stealer, I think."

"Maiden Stealer? You watched Maiden Stealer and thought of me? That's so insulting. That may be the most insulting thing anyone has ever said to me."

"Were you expecting Blade?" He scoffed.

"I was hoping. Or at least Underworld."

"When you watch a vampire movie, is it like a nature documentary to you?"

"That's like asking a chicken if they can relate to Jurassic Park."

I had parked in front of his house a few minutes ago. Finally he noticed — let my hand go and passed my coat to me. I held it to my stomach. It was warm.

"Thanks for the date," he teased.

"It wasn't a date, but you're welcome." I shrunk into my shoulders a little. "I was having fun, talking to you."

He smiled perfectly. "Me, too. Do you wanna hang out again tomorrow?"

I froze, too many emotions to count flipping through my head.

"You could pick me up for school," he said. "Or I could pick you up — but I'm not too proud to admit that your car is better than mine. Or we could just meet there. I dunno."

It was just a ride to school, I told myself. Just a ride to school. "Okay. I'll pick you up tomorrow."

"Cool. See you then."

His heart had stayed at a steady 62-76 beats per minute on the drive back. So lovely and calming, an average rate for a healthy human.

Now his heart sped up, pounded, like he was seeing something horrifying. He stalled with his hand hovering over the door handle.

He turned back to me. "Hi."

I was trying hard not to freak out all over him. "Hi — is something wrong?"

"Can I ask a question?"

"Um, sure."

"Can you be there tonight?"

I froze. "What?"

"It's just — what happened earlier — it freaked me out, I feel freaked out. You make me feel better. I kind of want you there."

"You... want... me... where... exactly?"

"My room."

In his room? "Minho, it's weird."

"Maybe."

"You want me to just... watch you?"

"Keep me safe, yeah. I mean, you think about me all night anyway. And that's not a jab — just a fact."

"I shouldn't."

"Please" — his voice cracked like the most delicate glass — "be there."

I wondered if breaking into someone's house was ethical if the breakee asked the breaker to do it. Was it even a break-in anymore once it was consensual?

I shouldn't do this — it was creepy and dangerous on so many levels. I should tell him no, advise him to speak to his father, let him be...

But wouldn't I do anything for him? Was this really where I drew the line — when he was directly asking me for comfort? How could I reject him like that?

"I will be there if you want me to." It really was all I could do. Maybe his existence was my guide, my compass. All I could do was follow.

His heart started to calm. "Be there."

"All right. Anything you want."

"I mean, unless you have other stuff to do."

"Let me check my schedule." I pretended to flip through a book, searching the pages. "Look at that, I'm free."

He smiled, satisfied.

"Just a suggestion," I said then, "but maybe you should tell Charlie about what happened. In the alley. It would feel good to talk about, right?"

"Charlie's not a big talker. I'm not, either, actually. It's okay, though — I'm okay."

"You shouldn't keep it bottled up."

"It's not — you know about it."

I was about to explain the logistics of secret bottles, but I gave up.

"Sleep well," I said.

"Okay. Bye."

He climbed out of the car. I didn't wait to wave or anything — I had to get rid of my car before I could come back. I sped to my house and left the car outside the garage.

I was about to pivot back to Minho's place, but a torrent of thoughts hit my mind.

Jisung, are you okay?

Come talk to us.

What happened with Minho?

I cringed. Weren't they angry with me? I had told Minho I was a vampire, I'd broken the ultimate law. Felix would have seen it before it happened and told them just as quickly. I had hoped I could postpone this conversation until later. I needed to be there for Minho.

I burst in the front door and stood noncommittally at the edge of the living room. They weren't thinking about it — about me or my mistake — and there were only five of them sprawled on the wrap-around couch. Felix and Changbin were missing. So they didn't know. Maybe I could still make it to Minho's before shit hit the fan.

They had paused their gameshow to talk to me.

Jisungie, is Minho okay? Jeongin asked.

"He's fine — shaken, but fine. Where're Felix and Changbin?"

Solo meditation time. I dunno what they meant by that, and I don't think I want to. Chan patted the spot next to him. C'mere, we wanna hear the story.

"Uh, yeah, I have stuff to do, actually. Sorry."

What stuff? Hyunjin's head tilted.

"Just — stuff. I'll tell you about it later."

Two bodies were flying toward the house, faster than light. I backed toward the door.

"Have fun, see you later, don't worry about—"

"Han Jisung, you stay where you are!"

Felix's bass voice reached us before he did, echoing as he slid down the chimney. He raced up, covered in soot, and stood like a gargoyle at the top of the staircase. Changbin wandered up beside him.

"Felix?" Haseong said. Felix only came through the chimney when he had urgent news.

"Jisung, you know you're my fourth favourite brother, but are you literally mental?"

"What are you talking about?" Seungmin ordered. "Jisung, what did you do?"

All eyes on me. I fiddled with my fingers and avoided all of them.

"Minho knows I'm a vampire. He asked and I didn't deny it."

Hyunjin gasped loudly.

"Jisung," Haseong sighed.

"Okay, okay, okay," Chan said, problem-solving mode on. "Okay, okay. This isn't too bad but we're gonna have to move — we were coming up on a deadline anyway. You six'll have to stay home from school while we lay the groundwork. Haseong, can you find us a place to stay somewhere in Yakutsk — Oymyakon, maybe?"

"I'll ask my guy. Cross your fingers that Felix didn't screw it up with that idiotic borscht crack." Haseong was already across the room, phone in hand.

"Stop," I said, "we don't have to move — Minho said he wouldn't tell anybody."

Suddenly Seungmin was in front of me, grabbing my shirt and shaking me around. "Humans are stupid! They let things slip! He's gonna make a joke, gossip to the female with the big hair and the one who's in witness protection, and screw everything up!"

"Not to mention the Volturi!" Hyunjin added. "It wouldn't take much for Aro to see everything. Who knows who he's got in his arsenal now, someone with more power than than Alec or Jane — than Aro, even!"

"Someone else could rat us out, too," Seungmin continued. "That succubus from Norway hates me, she'd snitch on us in a second. You rig a few casino games and suddenly vampiric solidarity means nothing!"

"You're all acting crazy, stop it!" I yelled, prying Seungmin's hands off my shirt.

"We have not even begun to act crazy!" Felix yelled back. He hurled himself down the stairs and landed on the floor.

"Dimitri says there's a cabin available, but it only has three bedrooms," Haseong said, palm over the receiver.

"We'll take it," said Chan. "Debit or credit? Or will someone have to bring him a suitcase full of cash again?"

"God, I'm gonna miss this place." Hyunjin sniffled and wiped his eyes. "I guess I can start collecting nesting dolls again."

"Mm, ay, matryoshka, seems you're—"

"Changbin, shut up," Seungmin said.

"You're moving too fast." I was holding my head to keep it from spinning out of control. "I know I screwed up, there's no way to fix it. Felix, what're the percentages?"

"It's not that simple, pop tart. I can't predict a future for someone in Italy. And if Seungmin is right about Minho letting it slip, how am I supposed to see it coming? Mistakes are too fast for me. Remember the van thing? I saw that one-'n'-a-half seconds before it happened."

"So our lives are up in the air?" Seungmin huffed.

"I don't like being this defenceless," Jeongin murmured. Haseong, Chan and Hyunjin all hugged him.

"These are all what-ifs," I said. "What if the Volturi found out, what if Minho mentioned it by accident, what if the Norwegian vampire gave us up — none of those things are set in stone. Felix?"

He crossed his arms. "No. None of them are definite, none likely — for the moment. Things change."

"Then where does that leave us?" Hyunjin asked.

"We wait for Felix's futures to get clearer," said Chan.

"Wait for someone to twist our heads off?" said Seungmin.

"I've heard it's unbelievably painful," said Changbin.

Chan shushed Changbin. "Seungmin, calm down. It's okay. Sometimes you have to wait for answers to come to you. In the meantime — Hyunjin, unpause Wheel. Everybody sit down."

They all converged on the couch. I didn't move.

Jisung? Chan thought.

"I'm just... sorry. I didn't mean to scare you all. I'll try to be less stupid. This family is my top priority."

I don't think that's true anymore, Haseong thought. You're thinking it, too.

I hung my head.

"We forgive you, Jisung," Chan said. "Sit."

"There's a spot for you right here." Hyunjin gestured to his own lap.

"No, I have plans. I'll see you guys before school."

"Dude, don't beat yourself up over this."

"I'm not, I swear. I'm going to Minho's house. He asked me to keep him safe."

"You sure that's a good idea?" Jeongin asked. "It'll smell a lot like him."

"I couldn't tell him no. It really scared him, what happened in Port Angeles."

"We could" — Felix smiled, teeth bared — "take care of the perpetrators for ya."

"Felix, no," said Chan.

"Felix yes," said Hyunjin, cracking his knuckles. "I could use a few human bones for my bone necklace."

"You don't have to," I said. "They're lowlifes. They don't mean anything."

"So that's a maybe?" Felix thrust his eyebrows.

"No murdering," said Haseong. "That little emblem you insist on carving into their foreheads has already gotten you on a 'most notorious unknown serial killers' list twice in the last century."

"Those scumbags had it coming."

"All right, I'm leaving." I sprinted for the door and swerved wildly through the forest, across town. I was at Minho's house in less than a minute, hiding under his truck. His bedroom light was off.

I flitted across the lawn, leapt into the air and landed on the overhang. I pulled myself up to his window sill and peeked in. He was two disembodied feet, sticking out from under the blanket.

I couldn't go into his room. It was dangerous, creepy, even though he wanted me here. Instead, I crouched on his window sill, listening for danger. Nothing could touch him now. I'd keep him safe — always.

---------------------------------------------

i hope you guys liked this chapter! the "oh my love, i think about you" gets me every time 🥰

my favourite parts of this chapter are whenever changbin speaks or moves or does anything. when i first wrote felix throwing himself down the stairs i literally laughed for fifteen minutes straight. i'm not exaggerating, i laughed for fifteen. minutes. straight.

because this will be the last time I post in 2019, here's a sample of one of the first stories I ever wrote — in 2013, when I was 10:

"Yolko and Jessie go onto the Green Mountain to hang out with each other. And then this monkey comes along. So Yolko hugs the monkey, calls her Bananas, and makes her her pet. Later Ribbons comes along and says "Hey Lara, time to go to the mall." And Bananas turns out to be Lara. Yolko is heart-broken – until she meets a Tree Frog."

i think i've improved a bit hehe 😎

anyhoo i hope you liked this chapter

look out for chapter 11 where hyunjin gives jisung a neck massage, jisung searches for forgiveness, minho is a button, felix has a lot of visions, and the author shoehorns in another gratuitous skz reference.

bye