school couldn't be better

@ momentai.
Lang sluggishly got in line for "lunch" -- or what he liked to call it better: "feeding time". It made them sound more like the monsters they were rather than little school kids. They were sorta both - but mostly monsters. A vampire might as well embrace it. He hated this school and being told what to do in general but he tried to make the most of it. Not looking where he was going, he bumped right into another vampire at the end, knocking her right down to the ground. "Oh... I'm so sorry!" He said as he reached his hand out to help her up.

Mia smiled as she took a seat next to Jackson. She was fairly new to the "pack" having just moved into the area with her family and being sent to this school.. Luckily the local pack accepted her, and that was how she met Jackson. Jackson was the first friend she had made here at school and she couldn't help that she might have had a slight crush on him.. There was just something about him that she just couldn't get over - but she would never tell him that... "Ready for gym?" She asked him, nudging him with her elbow to get his attention from the other circulating conversations.

(Is his name Jackson or James? I'll edit this later, depending on what his name is, if it's wrong.)

Eliza hated having to wait to feed. Her throat burned and her gums itched and she wanted nothing more than to sink her fangs into something and relieve the burning and itching she felt. She was caught off guard when somebody knocked into her and she cringed when she hit the ground. With her irritation from being hungry, it was hard to avoid getting even more annoyed but she tried to force the annoyance away. "It's fine," she muttered as she placed her hand in his and pulled herself up. "You should be careful, though. Plenty of people have fought over less than that."

James admittedly loved being part of a group, part of a pack. It felt like a family and it made it feel as though it was impossible to be alone. It was why he'd invited Mia to join their pack, because he didn't want her to feel lonely at a new school. Besides, she fit right in and everybody seemed to like her already. When he heard her speaking to him, he turned his attention to her and offered a small grin when she nudged him. "Of course I'm ready," he said honestly, "It's a running day. We haven't had one since you moved here, but everybody gets to run together." It was to help them when it came time to hunt as a pack, but it also had other purposes sometimes.

[ah, sorry, I'm a mess and got their names all confused - James is correct!]

Lang helped her up and then smiled. "Oh I'm sure they have. Especially hungry vampires... I'm fairly certain everyone here would love a show like that though, give a little excitement." He joked. For some reason he had an image of her beating him up - maybe it was because he didn't believe in hitting girls or because he just got the strong sense that she could certainly take him - and at least it would be a fair fight there. "I'm Lang, by the way - how rude of me to just knock you down and not even introduce myself." He joked.

Mia smiled when she got his attention. She sometimes felt oddly alone even within the pack, so it was nice when she had his attention. It made her feel good to feel like someone actually wanted to pay attention to her. She was a little nervous for this supposed running day. Her family had been outcasted from her pack quite a while ago and she didn't even know what that was like, for them to all run together. She was sure she would learn but she was afraid of being able to keep up. "Yeah, running sounds nice... I haven't been able to stretch my legs since getting settled in."

(No worries! I was just uncertain.)

Eliza found his words a little amusing, despite her current grumpy and hungry self. Her amusement found its way to her features in the form of a smile and she quirked a brow. "But do they deserve that excitement? It's their own fault for being boring," she chimed casually, though she nodded to his later words. "Well... It could be worse," she told him, "I'm Eliza."

James nodded to her words as he eyed her for a moment. "I think you'll have fun with the running," he said honestly, "But, make sure you eat plenty to keep your energy up for it. It would suck if you got tired halfway through the run." He was mostly telling her it because he worried that the others would treat her differently if she couldn't keep pace with them. He tended to worry about her a lot.

Lang smiled as she joked back with him. It was quite infrequent that he found someone to joke with him like that and it was a nice change for once - even if it wasn't the best way to meet her. "Yeah - at least I didn't interrupt you in the middle of a feeding. I don't know about you, but I get pretty cranky when people distract me from food." He chuckled. "It's nice to meet you Eliza"

Mia smiled a little at his concern for her. She didn't know why he took such worry for her but she liked that he offered his help. "Good to know!" She said with a smile. "The last thing I want is to be the one person who can't keep up..." She said with a blush in between bites of food. The lunch period was close to over and she was both excited and nervous for that

Eliza pouted at the mention of feeding, her gums aching and her stomach grumbling with the thought. "Speaking of feeding, I'm starving," she muttered before she turned her attention back to the line and sighed, "Can't this line move any faster?" There was a whine in her voice and she tried not to complain too much, but she couldn't help it. Really, the school needed more lines available for feeding. "It's nice to meet you, too, Lang, even if you did knock me down."

James returned her smile, though he nodded and nudged her gently. "I have faith in you, so just have faith in yourself and believe that you can keep up with everybody," he told her quietly, though he leaned over to whisper, "Or just leave everybody in the dust." He was sure that such a thing would impress the pack and he knew that she needed leverage like that because she was so new to the pack. She needed more respect and he wanted to help her gain it.

Lang nodded his head. His stomach also was grumbling at the very thought of sinking his teeth into something delicious. "I don't know - I think they make the line go so slowly to torture us.. That's really the only answer I think." He said with a smile. "Are you ever going to forgive me for knocking you down?" He asked with a pout as they moved one step closer.

Mia blushed a little when he leaned into her. She felt his breath at her ear and shivered a little. He was her best friend and she liked that he had so much faith in her. "Thank you for that vote of confidence." She said with a smile. That seemed like some good information so that she would finally get some more trust and respect in the pack.

Eliza idly wondered if his words were right. Vampires weren't really the favorite of the creatures that went to the school, so... Well, it wouldn't surprise her if the school really did want to torture them. "I'll forgive you after I feed and stop being grumpy," she assured him.

James smiled and nodded before he straightened himself up. "Give yourself a vote of confidence," he told her, "If you're not confident in yourself, you'll fail." It was what he believed in, anyways; if you didn't believe in yourself, you could never hope to accomplish your goal.

Lang smiled nodded his head. "Does that mean I might even get so lucky to see you again after feeding?" He asked. It wasn't often that he got to enjoy the company of a pretty girl. He was normally quite a loner and didn't associate too much with many others, so it was rare that someone like her caught his interest. He was okay with that though - and hoped that she would be okay with it too. It gave him some hope for some more fun.

Mia wrinkled her nose and smiled at his words. "That was so deep - you should make motivational cards!" She laughed at him and then flinched a little at the sound of the school bell. That meant it was gym time and she had to keep up. "Thanks for the motivation." She said. She stood up straight. She was going to do just that - and act confident.

"Maybe," Eliza hummed out in response. "I guess that depends on whether you're even allowed to, though." After all, a guy like him had to have a mate by now, and his mate might not be very happy with him trying to hang out with some other girl. She groaned when the bell rang and pouted. "I swear, it's like they're trying to make us decide between starving or being punished for not attending classes."

James offered a small chuckle in response to her words but nodded slightly. "Any time. I'm always here for any of your motivational needs," he teased lightly before he moved to put his tray away, having cleared it easily. Despite that he had spent most of the lunch period talking, it never took him long to eat his meal. Turning, he led the way out of the cafeteria so they could head to the gym.

Lang was confused by her words but was caught off guard by the bell ringing. He was also very annoyed that the line had barely moved by the time that lunch was over. This whole school was a punishment to vampires while others got to enjoy it. "Yeah, they really are..." For a moment he forgot about his confusing words and was only thinking about food. "Hey - wanna get out of here. I know a great place where we could feed." He offered.

Mia smiled as she followed James out of the cafeteria. She fell in line with a few of the girls who were nice but didn't really seem all that interested in knowing her. It was because she was new. They seemed nice enough but they were all marveling at James as he walked in front of them. Apparently he was a highly sought after pack member and she couldn't help but feel a little jealous. It wasn't like he was ever going to pick her of all of them.

Eliza was mildly surprised by his offer. At first, she was hesitant, but it wasn't like she wouldn't be skipping class regardless since she hadn't fed yet. So, without thinking too far into it, she offered a small nod in response. "Okay," she told him, though a small grin formed on her features. "I'm sure we both need a good meal, anyways," she said honestly,

James led the way to the gym, though he was mostly listening to the others chat during the walk. There wasn't much of a reason for him to get involved in their conversation; really, he was trying to get in the mindset of preparing for the run. When they got to the gym, he went to the male's locker rooms so that he could get changed for the gym class.

Lang smiled when she accepted his offer and he started to lead her out of the cafeteria. He knew a quiet area where they could just feed and get to know her. He was drawn to her and he wanted to do that. He remembered what she said earlier than. "Why would I not be allowed to see you?" He asked her, as he walked outside, headed toward the remote area.

Mia continued to feel discouraged as she changed in the female's locker room and she pulled her hair back into a high ponytail, trying to ignore what they were saying. She walked into the guy and started to stretch. She was a wolf so she was used to running but that didn't mean she wasn't nervous about it.

Eliza had been so focused on following him because of how hungry she was that she had barely realized he'd spoken. She blinked, glancing to him for a moment as they walked before she turned her attention back ahead. "I don't know. You could have been mated already and, while some mates feel secure in their relationship, others are super territorial," she explained.

As James finished getting ready, he stretched his arms out a bit as he made his way back into the gym. There, he went ahead to stretch out as much as was necessary while his eyes scanned the others and he offered a small, encouraging smile to Mia. He didn't have time to say anything, though, because the coach blew the whistle to start running and James took off.

Lang smiled at her from the side and nodded his head. "I like to think that I would be a healthy mix of both you know? Territorial and secure." He chuckled. "But you need a mate for that first - which I don't have." He led her just a little bit farther and they had finally arrived where they could feed.

Mia was caught off guard when the whistle blew but she felt the thrill and exhilaration of the run and she took off. She had ended up starting in the back of the pack but they were going to slow for her so sped around them, calmly enjoying the adrenaline in her body. Before she had known it, she caught up with the front of the group, with James.

Eliza arched a brow in surprise and eyed him for a moment. "Is that so?" she asked. "That's a little surprising. I'd expect somebody to have already claimed you," she chimed before she moved to the human. She said nothing else to him and instead sank her fangs into the human's neck, her hunger evident.

---

James was used to having nobody near him when he ran. Most people ended up at least a couple yards back. He was the fastest and that made him proud of himself. When he realized somebody was not only near him but had fully caught up to him, he was surprised, but he couldn't risk glancing over without slowing himself down.