Flutter

“You’re what?” That got him. He sat up, propping himself up with his arms, and looked at me. “What did you say?”

“Jack wants us to move out,” I lowered my voice so Mae wouldn’t be able to overhear. “He’s out looking at apartments right now.”

“When you say ‘us’ you mean….” He waited for me to fill in the blank.

“Me and him, and you and Bobby, if you want to.” I tilted my head. “Does Bobby actually live here? Or does he have a residence somewhere else?”

“He technically lives in a dorm, but he hasn’t spent the night there since we met.”

“Don’t you think you’re moving a bit fast?” I asked. “You’re incredibly young to be living with a boyfriend.”

“Did you really say that to me with a straight face?” Milo raised an eyebrow at me.

I thought about trying to make some kind of point about how his situation was different than mine, but I just forgot about it. If we were normal kids living a normal life and going to high school and living with our mom, yeah, this would probably be weird and wrong. But we’re not.

“Never mind. That wasn’t the point.”

“So you’re really moving out?” Milo asked.

“I don’t know. Jack really wants to, and he has a lot of good points. This house is getting too small for all of us, as crazy as that sounds, and neither of us should be living under the same roof as Peter.”

“Yeah but… you want us to move with you?” Milo asked carefully.

“Yeah. Jack’s looking for places in the area that would be big enough for all of us.”

“But… what about you?” He looked at me seriously. “I know that you’re still having problems getting your bloodlust under control, and you don’t trust yourself enough to even sleep with him. How is that gonna work living together? Without Ezra to fix everything if something goes wrong?”

“I don’t know,” I sighed. “I’ve thought of that too. But I don’t know what else we can really do.”

“Not move out,” Milo suggested.

“I just don’t see how staying here could really work.” I resigned myself to moving out even though I wasn’t sure that’s what I really wanted. It just didn’t make sense to do anything else.

Milo lay back in bed and didn’t say anything for a bit. He was always better at coming up with logical solutions. My actions were based more on my heart and temper, which is probably how he managed more success as a vampire than I did.

It still shocked me that he had been the one that nearly killed his boyfriend, and not me. That actually happened because he had so much more control than me. Everyone gave him too much credit. The fact that I had no impulse control is what actually kept me from murdering Jack. Nobody trusted me to be alone with him, so I never had the chance to bite him, not like Milo and Bobby.

“No, I do not require your assistance,” Peter said wearily from out in the hallway, and I heard his bedroom door close a second later. “Jane, I suggest you just go back to the room and rest.” I glanced over at Milo, and from his expression, I could tell he was listening to them too.

“I don’t need any more rest. I’m bored,” Jane put on her baby talk voice that vacillated between slutty and whiny. Peter must’ve gone to his room to get something, and she followed him out.

“Try reading one of my books,” Peter said. “Or, if you cannot read, you can try one of Jack’s movies. Or perhaps you can pester one of the six other people living in this house to entertain you.”

“Come on, I bet you know plenty of ways to entertain me.” Jane was out in the hall, so I couldn’t see her, but I had enough experience with her to know that she was touching him in some way. Running her fingers down his arm or putting her hand on his chest.

“I can assure you that I am no good at entertaining anyone.” Peter sounded uncomfortable, and Milo smirked.

“Well, maybe I can entertain you.” Her voice went lower and sultrier.

“That’s why I got a book. I can entertain myself,” Peter said, his words clipped.

“Don’t you get sick of entertaining yourself?”

“Jane, just go back to your room,” Peter sighed. If she was touching him, he had just taken her hand away.

“Not unless you join me,” Jane said, oblivious to his rebuff.

“No, I most certainly will not,” Peter snapped. “This slutty little girl act may work for some people, but I can’t see how. You are so filthy and dirty that I wouldn’t bite you if I was starving to death. The only reason I am allowing you into my room is because of how much you mean to Alice, although, for the life of me I can’t see why. You are insipid and vain beyond what I had understood humans were capable of, and it would serve you well to steer clear of me.”

“Jeez,” Milo whispered.

Jane didn’t say anything, but I heard the door open, and she had started crying before she shut behind her. When Peter started walking away, I went into the hall to give him a piece of my mind. I should’ve gone out and defended her earlier.

“Peter!” I said quietly, so Jane wouldn’t overhear. Sighing, he turned to look at me. “Don’t you think that was a little harsh?”

“Not really, no,” Peter said, but he wouldn’t meet my gaze. I heard the shower in Jane’s bathroom, her attempt to cure her crying, so I walked over to yell at him. “I didn’t mean for you to overhear that.”