• Chapter 3
    I hovered over Aaron on the gym floor. Inside, my stomach was doing non stop flips. My heart in my chest started to feel heavy. So Aaron really was it; my true soul mate? All the facts were right in front of me. He was devilishly handsome, and every time I see him, I get a funny feeling inside; a good funny feeling, a feeling of . . . love. There, I said it. Love, I’m in love.
    As me and Aaron lied on the floor, we stared into each other’s eyes. My lips formed a smile, a big one at that. Aaron matched the same type of smile. I was lost in his eyes and I could tell he was lost in mine as well.
    “Aw man! Come on!” Josh’s loud voice brought us both to the real world.
    We looked up to see Josh with a disappointed look on his face. My gaze soon followed the other team, who was cheering and jumping up and down with joy. We lost. My team mates--not including Aaron--were sad that we had been defeated.
    Then, Mrs. Cooks blew her whistle; it rang loudly through out the gym. All of the students winced at the shrill sound.
    “That’s it for today,” with that said everyone filed in quickly to put away their rackets.
    At last, I slowly and carefully got up off of Aaron. I stood there, waiting for him to get up. It hadn’t even crossed my mind to retrieve my own racket, perhaps someone else will pick it up.
    Aaron rose soon after I did; rubbing the back of his head, but still smiling the smile that I loved. We didn’t say anything to each other for a few heart beats; we walked simultaneously to where everyone was putting away the equipment. Not knowing what else to do or say. My brain was yelling at me to say something, anything! But my mouth couldn’t form the right words. I was still too tongue tied, and happy.
    After that, Mrs. Cooks dismissed us. The girls and boys locker rooms were on different sides of the gym. If I wanted to speak to Aaron, it would have to be now. When he started to go towards the boy locker room, I grabbed him lightly by the arm.
    His eyes met mine in an instant, his smile never faltered once after I landed on him.
    “Yeah Charlotte?” He was first to talk.
    All of a sudden, my tongue seemed if it grew three times its size, I couldn’t form any words.
    “I-I,” I stammered, for once in my life, words escaped me. “I just wanted to say that I really am sorry for knocking you down and falling on you.”
    There, it was out. Some sort of sentence, at least it was an excuse to talk to him.
    His smile grew wider, “It was fine, and I should’ve watched where I was going.” Ah, he was trying to be nice.
    A giggle bubbled out of my mouth. “Are you serious? I was the one who ran you over.”
    He laughed with me; my ears rang with the delicious sound when he was done. “Well, I should’ve seen you coming.”
    “You know, you are r--,”
    “Oh look! Its little flower, the one who cost us the game,” Josh interrupted our conversation. He was leaning against the side of the bleachers, arms crossed.
    I hated it that he called me that. Where did he even come up with it in the first place?
    Aaron’s smile vanished, and his stance grew protective, he stepped in front of me, right in Josh’s path. Why did I need protection from him? First of all, I’m a vampire with super human strength. Secondly, what kind of a boy is Josh? Was he really competitive enough to hurt the person who ruined his chance to be a winner?
    “Easy, it’s only a game,” Aaron said with courage. “There’s no need to blame Charlotte for losing.”
    I poked my head out from behind Aaron’s arm. Josh was shooting daggers at me through his eyes. But my stance didn’t falter at his glare. Then those cold grey eyes ripped away from me and to my protector.
    “Oh, are you just defending her because she was all over you, Aaron?” Ouch. That was hitting below the belt.
    My eyes glanced up at Aaron’s face; to see his reaction. His brows were furrowed down in anger, and his mouth was twisted in an ugly frown. His hands by his sides balled up in fists. This was going to get ugly fast. I had to step in.
    “Boys, boys, boys,” I spoke, going in between the two of them, arms outstretched so that each hand was facing one of the guys. “There’s no need to fight here.”
    Silence fell over all three of us. The remaining class members stopped to watch us. Mrs. Cooks saw the soon to be fight, and she was making her way over.
    Aaron’s eyes narrowed, “She’s right, there’s no need. We’ll go get ready for next period. Good-bye Josh.”
    Josh merely nodded, and sauntered his way to the locker room. When he was completely out of sight, Aaron’s expression softened and he turned to me.
    “Are you okay?” He asked.
    The corners of my mouth pulled up in a small smile and I nodded. We were going to be late if we didn’t get going. But I didn’t want to leave his side.
    Reluctantly, my body headed for my own designated locker room. I shot one last look over my shoulder at Aaron and shouted back, “Sorry again for running into you.”
    “Hey, Charlotte!” I stopped at the sound of my name. It sounded so right on his lips, never did I realize I loved him saying my name so much.
    He quickly jogged over to me and bent down to my level to whisper something in my ear, “You can run into me anytime.”
    My head shot up in astonishment to look at him. Did he say what I just think he said? He enjoyed us falling to the floor together? Happiness and a new feeling rose inside and spread everywhere. When our eyes met, there was no feel of joking only pure seriousness. So he really did mean it.
    He smiled playfully at me and then ran off. This was a new side of Aaron that I hadn’t seen before. Before, he was so kind and different than the other drooling males at this pathetic school. Now, it seemed like my beauty was finally starting to get in his head and clog all his highly rational thoughts.
    I stared after him, worried. Was he really going to end up like all the others? Or was I just paranoid? I would have to figure it out later because I was going to be majorly late to English.
    At an incredibly fast pace, my feet carried me to the locker rooms and got me dressed in a blur. No one was there to see me. Just as I was leaving the gym, I heard a scuffle coming from the boy’s locker room. A part of me wanted to go and investigate, but the other was insisting that I get to class on time.
    Rushing up the stairs and through the halls with vampire speed really helped me. The bell rang seconds after I stepped through the door. Once I was seated in my desk, I breathed in and out slowly.
    What an eventful gym class it had been. First, me and Aaron topple to the floor, then he and Josh nearly get into a fight and to put the icing on the cake, Aaron told me he liked it that I fell on him. What it was meant to mean, I had no desire to care anymore. It was a clue that he might like me . . . more than a friend. All that was standing in my way was that annoying little girlfriend of his; Shelly.
    Inside my head, I saw me as the winner and Shelly under my foot, defeated. She would fall in the battle for Aaron’s heart. He was meant to be mine, not hers, mine. He was my realized soul mate, nothing would change that.
    It was full on girl war from now on. Shelly wouldn’t have things go smoothly any more, it was going to be my job, no, my pleasure to be certain that she doesn’t get Aaron.
    As the glorious plan was forming in my head to be rid of her, never did I consider that I had more than her to deal with for Aaron. At the moment, my mind was whipped clean of the studies I did of fated vampire twins. Never did I bring Violet into this crazy mix of love.

    English went by in a hazy blur. My mind didn’t focus on what we were supposed to be learning during the class but only on Aaron and only him. Nothing else crossed my mind. My photographic memory allowed me to study every perfect detail of him. His features were practically inhuman. No wonder so many girls had been wanting him. Too bad ladies, he’s mine.
    A wicked smile spread across my face at the thought. It was true, but . . . my soul mate still had a girlfriend and I wasn’t sure if he liked me the way I liked him. That was something I always forgot.
    The final bell rang and I literally ran the way to my car, hoping to see Aaron once more. It was silly of me, to think that this morning I wanted nothing to do with him and I had no clue what I was getting into. Yet now, he was my whole reason for existence. Love was a funny thing. My pace slowed once I was out the main door, relaxing at the same time. Once my Benz was insight, so was a figure leaning against the driver door. To me, at that moment, my whole world brightened instantly.
    Aaron greeted me with a smile as I approached him and my car.
    “Hi, Charlotte,” He said through the lovely smile.
    “Hi,” I replied simply.
    “So . . . how was the rest of your day?” He was trying to make small talk, how charming.
    The corners of my lips turned up in a light smile. “Good, how about you?”
    “Just fine, I think the whole highlight of my day was you and me falling to the ground.”
    I laughed and looked away slightly, “Really?”
    He nodded and moved a smidge closer to me. “But then . . . that damn Josh had to ruin it all with his snarky comment.”
    I didn’t answer; Josh’s comment spoiled it too for me. We were both silent, obviously the mention of Josh’s name hit a nerve. I blew out a breath loudly. Neither of us wanted to leave. As we stood there, motionless and quiet, my eyes roamed Aaron’s lovely features. From his chiseled chin to his perfect lips. Lastly, I set my gaze on his brown eyes, which were boring into my own
    “Well, sorry, but I have to go, Aaron. I have to get home, start working on homework,” what homework? “And start dinner.” Dinner? Not the dinner he’s probably thinking of, “so, I’ll see you later?”
    His face fell slightly and he gave a small smile then stared to walk around my car to the other side to his own. Something was nagging me at the back of my mind and I wanted to know the answer.
    “Aaron?” I called.
    He turned around quickly, his eyes smoldering. “Yes?”
    Slowly, my feet shuffled a few inches closer to him. I had to ask, I had to know. “Was what Josh said true?” My voice grew softer towards the end. Truthfully, I was scared of his answer. Terrified actually. This was the test, a way to see if he really cared for me or just thought I was another pretty face.
    His expression grew hard. Oh God. His lips pressed into a thin line. My whole body went cold; I was scared out of my mind at the moment. I held my breath. Aaron moved closer to me, only so I could hear. We were less than two inches apart, my heart felt heavy as lead. What was he going to say?
    A piece of my hair fell into my face, and Aaron gently moved it out of the way and tucked it behind my ear. While doing so, his fingers brushed my cheek; a trail of fire was left where he touched me. I got excited, I felt like I was going to melt on the spot.
    “Of course not, Charlotte,” he whispered as he looked me in the eyes. A faint smile spread across his face. “Never would it be true.”
    I smiled widely, excitement ran through me. He really cared about me! He really did! “Thanks Aaron,” before I knew it, I wrapped my arms around him and was hugging him. What was I doing?! I didn’t care though, it felt right. I buried my face in his chest. “You don’t know how good it is to hear that someone thinks more of me than a girl with a pretty face and hot body.” My voice was muffled into his shirt.
    Once I hugged him, Aaron immediately returned my affection; placing his arms around me and laying his cheek on my head.
    “I would never think that, granted, you are gorgeous but there’s more to you,” his words shocked me. They touched me. No one ever thought of me that way, not once. Tears started to appear in my eyes and few leaked out.
    Aaron must have felt them through his shirt. He pulled me away to get a good look at me.
    “Are you crying?”
    Quickly, I whipped the trails of tears of my cheeks. “N-no,” I stammered.
    He laughed lightly, “There’s no need to cry, Charlotte.”
    “I know. It’s just that . . . it was very nice of you to say that. No one has ever seen me the way you do.”
    Once again, he laughed. “Is that a good thing?”
    I smiled, “Yes, a very good thing. You’re different from the other guys.”
    “Oh really?” He taunted.
    I nodded.
    He gave me a crooked smile. “That’s good then.” He glanced at his watch, “Hey, what happened to going home?”
    I shrugged, “I don’t exactly have to go now . . .” my voice trailed off, trying to give him a hint that I wanted to stay with him.
    “Well I don’t have to either.”
    We both smiled widely. I liked where this was going. A lot.
    I was playing with my fingers for a few moments before Aaron said something. He exhaled loudly, sounding somewhat nervous. Why would he be? I would practically do anything with him.
    “So . . . do you want to go--,” Aaron’s sentence was drowned out by a shrill voice.
    “AARON!” Oh God no! No, no, no, NO! I recognized that voice any where. Shelly. God damn it! Rage rushed through me, hot like lava. How could she ruin this perfect moment?! HOW?!
    I turned around angrily and Aaron looked up, unhappy as well.
    Shelly came over to us, red curls bouncing all around her face. Oh how I wanted to cut those curls off, make her not be so giddy. My frustration was clearly displayed on my face. When Shelly saw my expression, she turned smug. She glided right past me and to Aaron; kissing him on the lips right in front of me.
    I was fuming! It was bitchy enough to interrupt our lovely conversation but to kiss him right in front of me?! That’s just an all time low. Listen girl, do not and I repeat, do not piss off a vampire! I had to pull myself together though, I had to make it seem like every little gesture she did didn’t annoy me to the brink of biting her head off.
    Maybe I could . . . no, no. Easy Charlotte. She’s temporary, remember that.
    Shelly was attached to Aaron’s arm--as usual, yet her boyfriend didn’t look at all happy that she was there. That gave me a sense of relaxation; he had no feelings for anymore. At least from what I read on his face.
    “Are we still on for our study date after school, Aaron?” She batted her eyelashes at him. My lips pressed in a line. It took a lot of my strength to not kill her at the moment.
    Aaron glanced at me for a fraction of a second; considering if he should go with me or her. He would choose me; he obviously had more interest in me. His feelings for Shelly were gone as soon as he saw me in math class. Maybe . . . please let him choose me.
    “Uh, y-yeah.” He stuttered.
    My face and hopes plummeted. But . . . stop, your getting too contaminated in this whole Aaron thing. Perhaps that’s because I’ve never been in love before. Yes, that’s it. I’ve never experienced this kind of emotion ever in my vampire life.
    “Great!” Shelly pecked him on the cheek, this time I handled it more coolly. “I’ll see you soon, be at my place in ten minutes ‘kay?”
    “Sure thing,” Aaron answered dully.
    With that settled, Shelly walked to her car across the lot. My eyes narrowed as I watched her go. There was an awkward silence between Aaron and me.
    “Well, I guess I should get going, and so should you.” My voice was soft and had a hint of sadness. “Wouldn’t want you to miss your study date with Shelly.”
    My voice filled with venom when I said her name aloud. Never would I speak it again in my life! Ugh, I was going to vomit if I said it one more time.
    “I guess so,” his voice was disappointed as well. At least I knew he didn’t want to leave either.
    Slowly, my feet headed towards the driver’s car door. Aaron went to his truck as well. Just as I was unlocking my door, my gaze instantly landed on Josh, who was walking out of the building and had a black eye. Stunned, my head whipped around to Aaron. Did he cause that? Did he punch Josh on what he said to him earlier? No . . . he wouldn’t, would he? Aaron did seem furious when we mentioned him in our conversation.
    My mind played back the noises I heard in the locker room. Could that have been Aaron and Josh fighting?
    Aaron looked at me.
    “Did you do that to Josh?” I made a pointing motion with my head to the injured boy.
    He followed where I was pointing and smiled evilly. His gaze returned to me and he shook his head; still having that wicked smile on his face.
    “Nope, not at all.”
    But inside, I knew it was him. He got severely mad when Josh had made the rude comment, perhaps he couldn’t keep his anger in any longer. Or did he respect me enough to respect my wishes half way and not hit him in front of me?
    I slid inside my car and revved up the engine. Emotions were swimming within me, I couldn’t sort them out. Love was confusing and painful, but it was entirely worth it.