Looking at You Looking at Me

When Rose showed up at school on Tuesday, Andrew wasn’t there.
“Where’s Andrew?” Rose asked Scott.
“He had to go out of town to get a few things that he couldn’t get here.” Scott lied. ‘Yeah,’ He thought, ‘he had to go get human blood because he couldn’t stand the animal blood anymore’
“Oh. Ok.” Rose said kind of sadly.
Rose drifted through her day, going through the same boring routines as every other school day. When it came time for lunch Rose headed out to her car.
“Hey Rose.” Keith said behind her. “I’m sorry about the other night. I never meant for that to happen.”
“Yeah, well you should have thought about that before you grabbed my ass.” Rose said pointedly.
“Look, I am really, really sorry. You have no idea how bad I feel. Honest.”
Rose looked at him, and she believed him. She knew that when he said honest, he wasn’t lying. He couldn’t.
“Fine. I forgive you, but I don’t think Andrew is too happy about it, and he wont be as forgiving.”
“Thanks. Rose, there is something really important that I have to tell you.”
“What?”
“I cant do it here. Can you please meet me tonight?”
Rose looked at him suspiciously.
“Look, this is not a scheme to get into your pants or anything. Honestly. I really need to tell you something that is really, really important.”
Rose could see the urgency on his face.
“Ok. Where do you want to meet?”
“Where we used to hang out, back in sophomore year.”
“Ok. What time?”
“About eight.”
“I guess I’ll see you then. Rose said, then turned and walked off.

After school, Rose went straight home. Lissa had told her that she was getting a ride from Scott because they were going to hang out for a little while. When she got home, she went straight upstairs and got on to her computer. She surfed the web for a little while, then checked her emails. She saw one from Andrew, and clicked on it.

‘ Hey, Scott most likely told you this, but I have to go out of town for a little while, and I wont be back until this weekend on Sunday. I know, that sounds bad, but don’t worry, it will be ok. I can always text you, and write you emails and all that stuff. I have to go now. I’ll talk to you later.
Love
Andrew.’

Rose opened up a blank email and started to write back, but then changed her mind and deleted it all. She didn’t know what to say, and she did not want to tell him that she was going to hang out with Keith tonight. She just wondered what he could possibly be getting that he couldn’t find there. Rose was tired, and decided to lie on her bed and read for a little while. Rose read for about an hour and a half before her mom called her down for dinner. They were having cold cuts, because Shawn couldn’t cook. After dinner, Rose told her mom that she was going out for a little while to meet some friends. Her mom had no objections, like always. Rose headed out to her car, and drove to the place where she and Keith used to meet. When she got there, she could see that Keith was already there, along with the rest of the varsity foot ball team.
“What’s up?” Rose asked kind of nervously.
“Nothing. I just need to tell you something really important.” Keith said seriously.
“Then why are they here?” Rose said gesturing to the football players.
“Because they’re part of it.”
“What? What’s going on here?”
“Look, what I have to tell you is going to be hard for you to hear, and you won’t understand it at first, but we are here to help you through it.”
“Tell me what? What’s going on?” Rose said wordily.
“Rose, its about your dad.”
Rose couldn’t speak. Her throat got tighter and tighter.
“What?” She finally said.
“Rose, this isn’t going to be easy, but there’s something about your father that you need to know, something about your self too.”
“WHAT!?”
Rose couldn’t say anything else. She was too shocked and didn’t know what to say.
“Rose, I know how this sounds, and I’m so sorry that you didn’t find out earlier. Your dad was supposed to tell you, but he didn’t want the same fate for you, so he walked out, then he was killed.”
Rose stayed silent, just staring at him. Her legs gave out from under her, and she felt her knees buckle. With incredible speed, Keith caught her before she hit the ground.
“I don’t know how else to put this, so I’m just going to say it. I know, its going to sound crazy, but you have to believe me.”
Rose stayed silent, not knowing what to say.
“Rose, your father was a werewolf.” Keith said.
“Is this a joke?” Rose asked getting angry.
“No Rose, I’m afraid its not. As a matter of fact that’s why we are here telling you this, we are all werewolf too, and we were part of your fathers pack. Your one too, well half any ways.”
“You have got to be kidding me! Those things are fake, fairytales. What’s next? Are you going to tell me that vampires are real too?”
Keith didn’t say anything, but just looked at her.
“You’re crazy! You’re insane!” Rose said.
“No, Rose, we’re telling the truth. Watch.” Keith said, then he sat back from her and Rose stared in horror as his shape started to change. His whole bone structure changed. He got hairier, and his legs and arms became the same length, and he was on all fours. His face got longer, as if he was growing a muzzle, and his ears got longer. When it was all done, it wasn’t Keith that was standing in front of her any more, it was a wolf. Rose couldn’t say anything. She just sat there, staring at him, frozen. Keith walked over to her, and rubbed his head against her shoulder. Rose didn’t know what to do. To convince herself that she wasn’t dreaming, she reached out and touched him. She jerked her arm back when she touched his fur.
“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON!?” Rose screamed.
“Rose,” Casey said, “We know how hard this must be for you, but its true. We would never lie to you about this.”
“I think that you are all crazy, and I’m going insane!”
Then, Keith changed back, and stepped toward her.
“No, your not, I promise, but you need to be with your own kind. You can’t be with Andrew! It is the biggest insult to our kind!”
“Why? Why can’t I be with a human? I am not one of you!”
“Yes you are Rose. That’s why you feel the way you do when you are under the moon. Your father never awakened you. And Andrew is not human. Hasn’t he told you yet?”
“Told me what?”
Rose was getting tired of all of the secrets and the games. She couldn’t take it anymore.
“What the hell is going on? Why dose this have to happen to me? Why can’t I just be a normal teenager?!” Rose screamed in to the night looking up as if to question who or what ever was up there.
“Is this some sort of sick game you are playing with my life? Is this fun to you?!”
“Rose, who are you screaming at?” Keith asked her.
“I don’t know anymore…” Rose said in a whisper.
Rose at that point collapsed she let her body fall until she was lying on the cold hard ground.
“Rose?” Keith asked
Rose just looked up at him, and then she rolled over, and looked up at the moon.
“So, you’re all werewolves?”
“Yes.”
“And so was my father?”
“Yes.”
“What about my mom?”
“No. You are only half werewolf.”
“So I can’t change?”
“I don’t know. The pack leaders always said that if you take a human for your mate, then you must turn them. No one has ever broken that rule, until your father that is. We don’t know what you can and can’t do.”
“Well, that doesn’t help me much dose it?”
“Your father never awakened it, so you can’t tap in to it fully yet.”
“How would he have awakened it?”
“He would have to bite you, bit just a little nip, nothing huge like you see in the movies.”
Rose fell silent for a moment.
“Why can’t I be with Andrew?”
“Because he’s not human…”
“What do you mean?”
“Rose, I don’t want to be the one to have to tell you.”
“Yeah, well you should heave thought about that before you made me come down here and revealed a part of my life that I didn’t even know was there.” Rose said staring at him.
“Rose, I’m sorry. Your grandmother told me that I had to when she found out about Andrew…”
“My grandmother?!”
“Yes, your father’s mom.”
“Wow.”
“Yeah…”
“Are you going to tell me or not?”
“Rose, I don’t want to have to be the one to tell you. If you want to know, then ask him. Call him now. I’m sure he’s awake.”
Rose just looked at him, nit sure what to do. Finally, after thinking it over for a few minutes, Rose pulls out her cell phone. With shaking fingers, she dialed Andrew’s number. He picked up on the third ring.
“Rose? What’s wrong?”
“Andrew, I need you to tell me the truth. No lies ok?”
“Rose, I would never lie to you. What’s going on?”
“Andrew, what are you?”
Rose heard silence on the other end of the phone.
“Andrew?”
“Rose, what are you talking about?” Andrew said, his voice laced heavily with worry.
“Andrew, what are you? I know you’re not human.”
“How do you know that? Who told you that?” Andrew said getting a little angry.
“Don’t get angry. It doesn’t matter who told me. Alls that matters is that you tell me the truth, and you tell me right now.”
Rose heard more silence. She didn’t know what else to say, so she figured she should just let him take his time.
“Rose, can we talk about this later? Like when I get back?”
“No. I need to get this straightened out right now. I’m. You know that I will still love you no matter what.” Rose tried to reassure him, and her self.
“I hope that’s true, because I will love you no matter what too.”
“Just please, I need to know…”
“Ok, just know that I was going to tell you when I thought that you were ready.” Andrew said. When he heard silence he continued.
“Rose, I am not human. I am a… vampire.”
Rose didn’t say anything. She couldn’t. The phone fell from her hand, and hit the ground. She felt her head hit the ground and hear Andrew yelling her name through the phone, and then she lost consciousness.

She woke by someone shaking her shoulders. When she opened her eyes, she saw Keith leaning over her. She was in the bed of Keith’s truck, and all the football players were standing around her. She hoped that everything was just a dream, but she knew better.
“Are you ok?” Keith asked her concerned.
“I think so. My head just hurts a little…”
She was silent for a few moments.
“Andrew…”
“What about him?”
“He told me…” Rose trailed off, not able to finish the rest of the sentence.
“Now do you see why you can’t be with him?”
“No. I don’t understand.” Rose said angrily.
“Rose, our kind doesn’t get along with his kind very well. We hate each other.”
“Yeah, well I’m not one of you.”
“Yes you are. No matter how much you don’t want to be, you can never change who you are.”
Rose didn’t say anything. She just laid there and stared up at the night sky.
“I have to go. I can’t take anymore surprises. I just want to go home and go to bed. I didn’t ask for this!”
“I understand. Just let me know when you are ready to talk about it.”
“Yeah…” Rose said, and then drove off.
On the ride home, she thought about everything that had happened that night. She thought about what Keith said, how he changed, and then she thought about Andrew, and even though all that stuff happened, and he told her what he really was, she still loved him. She was confused, and her world seemed to be falling apart around her, but some how, thinking about him, made her feel better. She knew that even though he wasn’t human, she loved him and that as long as they were together, everything would be ok. ‘Am I going crazy!?’ Rose thought to herself. ‘My boyfriend is a vampire, and I’m a werewolf, well at least half werewolf, but some how, I know it will be ok. I hope…’

Rose got home, and called Lissa right away.
“Lissa?” Rose said.
“What?” Lissa asked.
“I need to talk to you.”
“What?”
“I know how this is going to sound, but you have to believe me ok?” Rose asked.
“Ok. I promise.” Lissa said.
“I’m a werewolf. Well technically half werewolf…”