The Vampire Prince goes to High School (Book 1)

Exquisite

"Tell me what's wrong."

It had taken me some time to get a hold of myself. I focused on the tissue in my hands as I nodded at Alexander's words. Even as he sat beside me on the bed, I still couldn't bring myself to look at him. Where was I supposed to begin? As soon as I tell him I had spoken to Micah, Alexander would be furious. And yet, if I didn't . . .

"How was your day?" I asked hoarsely.

A stunned silence followed my question. "Better than expected," he answered after a while. "I got in contact with Mr. Keys. He's been surprisingly helpful."

"I see he is moving up in the world," I whispered. "Now, he's also a lawyer for royalty."

"I guess," Alexander answered humorlessly.

Biting my lip, I took a peak at him from the corner of my eye. If anything, Alexander looked like a completely different vampire. His hair had lost its luster and so had his complexion. Was he really feeding? Was he getting any rest? A pang of guilt shot through me.

"A-Alexander," I began.

He turned towards me and the words died on my lips. No matter what Micah wanted me to do, starting at Alexander, I couldn't. Was that selfish? Alexander was in this state because of me. It would be better if he wasn't near me. But a part of me knew that I couldn't leave him alone like this. He was hurting even if he would never tell or show me. Everyone had turned against him. His family had abandoned him. I couldn't do that to him.

"Finally, ready to talk?" he asked.

I swallowed thickly. "Are - are you okay with - all of this?"

As soon as the words left my mouth, my heart started racing. Even as I wiped my palms on my pants, my hands wouldn't stop sweating.

"What kind of question is that?" he asked. "Who in their right mind will be okay?"

"S-so, you would take an opportunity to get out of this situation?"

Alexander frowned. "Rin, what exactly are you getting at?"

"Well, what if - do you think I might be distracting you from -?"

Alexander's hand covered my mouth. He leaned in closer. "If I was wasting my time, I wouldn't be here. Got that?"

Ah. He was angry. Not being able to speak, I nodded against his hand. Satisfied with my answer, Alexander removed him hand. This wasn't turning out the way I thought it would. I had to tell Alexander the truth.

"I - I think it's best if we don't see each other anymore," I blurted out.

I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting but there was only silence. Tentatively, I opened my eyes and glanced at Alexander. He hadn't left. If anything, he didn't look surprised.

"Is that what you want?" he asked emotionless.

My heart squeezed. "Wouldn't - wouldn't it be better?" I whispered. "You get to focus on clearing your name."

I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I knew I was the worst, doing this to Alexander. The thought had come to me beforehand. If I didn't break up with Alexander, how would Micah know? The answer had been simple. He probably had some listening device in my room. He was probably listening to our conversation.

Feeling cold, I hugged myself. I couldn't even escape Micah in the privacy of my own room. Suddenly, my blanket fell over me, turning everything dark.

"Is this you speaking or Micah?"

My heart lurched.

"I guess that answer that."