I took aim, fired, and missed. I sighed and holstered
the gun. “Clearly, I suck at this, too.”
Tatiana shook her head. “You don’t suck.”
“Well, thanks, but—“
“Only vampires suck, and you are not a vampire.”
I arched an eyebrow at her.
“Okay, no. That was a Tyren look. Don’t you go
using a Tyren look on me.”
I sat down
on a bench on the far side of the shooting range. “I’m really bad at every
weapon I can get my hands on.”
Tatiana sat next to me. She shrugged. “So?
Everybody has their weaknesses.”
“Tch. You, Tyren, and Sai don’t.”
“Uh, yes we do. Tyren’s a vampire, I can’t use
magic to save my life, and Sai.” she paused, thinking. “Okay, you’re right. Sai
has no weaknesses.”
“You can’t use magic?”
Tatiana shrugged. “I can, but I’m not very good—not
like you, Sai, or Julian.”
“But, you’re awesome with that gun.”
“See, we all have our strengths and our weaknesses.
You’re good at magic.”
“Thanks.” I paused, remembering something. “I’m
pretty sure being a vampire doesn’t count as Tyren’s weakness.”
“Sure it does.”
“Why are you so racist against vampires?”
“Eh, it’s just part of being werewolf.”
“That’s a stupid reason.”
“Okay, if you must know, Tyren and I don’t actually
hate each other.”
“Then why—“
“Somebody’s got to rub her the wrong way.”
“You’re stupid.”
“You’re stupid.”
I laughed shaking my head. “You’re incorrigible.”
After a lull, I asked, “So are you like the pack leader, or whatever?”
Tatiana shrugged. “Yeah, until my dad gets back.”
She glanced at me. “The demons have my mom and dad.”
“Ah. Sorry.”
She shrugged. “Yeah, it’s rough sometimes. I know
it’s a trap, but it’s so frustrating sitting around and doing nothing to rescue
them.”
“Hone your skills so that when the day comes to
rescue them, you’ll be ready.”
She looked
at me, surprised. “That’s really good advice, M.C.”
I scowled at her. “Don’t look so surprised.”
“No, I mean it! I hadn’t thought of that before.
Thanks.”
“Yeah, anytime.” I sighed, missing my dorm room. I
felt the familiar tug, and I knew it was time to go home. “Hey, Tati, tell Sai,
and Tyren I’m going home for a little while, okay?”
“What? Why?!”
“I don’t think I can stay. I think I need to take a
little break and head home.”
“That’s understandable,” Sai commented as he
stepped into the room. “Have a good rest, my friend.”
I nodded, focusing my mind on my time and my dorm
room. The light blue light appeared, and buzzed around me. Sai and Tatiana
waved. And I was back in my dorm room. Glancing at my bed, I realized I had
forgotten to get Sai’s help on my physics homework.
~~~~~
Henry burst into the door like he was late for a
frat party, or something. I arched an eyebrow at him from my bed. His dramatic
entrance had just interrupted my studious mode. He frowned, hands on hips. “You
have been doing that eyebrow-thing since the other day. Just randomly, like you
picked it up somewhere, or something.”
Naturally, I had. However, I was not about to tell
my roommate that the habit had come from hanging out with an icy vampire in
1888. Somehow, I think he would give me
the Tyren-look. “Um, I’ll stop?”
He waved his hand in dismissal. “That’s not the
problem.”
Now I was really confused. “Problem?”
“Yes. No roommate of mine is allowed to be a
recluse. You’re like an eighteen year-old hermit!”
I sighed. Oh non-science majors. How wonderful the
world must be to them. “Henry, I’m just trying to pass physics.” Well, that,
and I was practicing magic when he was not in the room. Might as well return to
1888 with something to show for the time I had been away.
He sighed, as if the weight of keeping me social
was nearly too great for him. “You know what you need?”
“A quieter roommate?”
“No. A girlfriend.”
And there was the eyebrow again. Tyren was really
rubbing off on me. I had to spend more time with Julian. He didn’t make too
many signature expressions.
“I’m serious. It would get you out of the dorm,
spice up your life.” He paused, then decided to be brutally honest. “Make you
look like less of a loser.”
Great. I had to get out of this fast, without
looking like a bigger loser. I so did not have time to put up with more girls
than the too odd ones I already dealt with. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe
I have a girlfriend?”
Henry looked shocked. “But on facebook you’re
single.”
Ah yes, the one problem. Facebook. I thought a way
around it fast. “Yeah, well, it’s not facebook official, but we’re still going
out.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “I don’t
believe you.”
“You’re entitled to your own opinion. It’s a free
country.”
“What’s her name?”
I said the first name that came to mind. “Tatiana.”
Oh crap. I had not just told him that Tatiana and I were dating. Please tell me
I didn’t.
“Oh.” He sat down backwards on his desk chair and
regarded me with a grin. “Is she hot?”
“Yes. No.” I spluttered. “Mind your own business.”
“Is she or isn’t she?”
“Yes, okay?” In a werewolf sort of way. I was not
about to tell him that my supposed girlfriend was part wolf. I wondered what
Tatiana would think of it, if she knew. Tyren would probably think it was
hilarious. I knew Sai would.
“Ah, would you look at that? Physics Boy is
blushing!” Henry sounded like he was gushing about a baby. And “Physics Boy?”
Honestly, why is calling me “M.C.” so hard?
Henry leaned back. “So, you have a girlfriend.
Good, that’s a start. Now you just need friends.”
I threw my pencil at my physics book. “Oh for the
love of science. Look, I have friends, too.”
“Name two.”
“Sai and Tyren.” I mean, I guess Tyren was sort of
my friend. Eh, if Tatianna was my girlfriend, Tyren might as well be my friend.
“Those are weird names.”
“Hey, lay off. Sai’s Japanese and Tyren’s—“I made a
wild guess. “—Romanian.”
He nodded thoughtfully. “Okay, name another.”
“Julian.”
Might as well be.
“What’s
Julian, Portuguese?”
“Irish,”
I corrected.
“What
is he, a leprechaun?”
“Um,
sort of.”
Henry
burst out laughing. “Ha! I knew you were making this up!”
“I
am not.”
“Sure,
whatever. There’s a party in the coffee shop tonight. It’s just a small group.
You’re coming.”
“What?
No! I don’t have time! I have to practice mag-math! Yeah, math!”
However,
I had no choice in the matter.
--------
Oh, Henry. You don't understand
how difficult balancing a life of science and magic is. Trust me, I do it all
the time. It's hard, man.
Yay, I’m on time!
Interesting fact: This story idea
came from a dream I had about demons taking over the world, and how only a
group of vampires could stop them. Yes, I have very weird, very vivid dreams.
See ya’ll next week!
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