In Love with the Prince (of Darkness, That Is)

There was no leaving the yacht the next day--they didn't wake until noon, and the sun was blinding. Taylor scrounged up a meal from the contents of the fridge and they sat on the bed while they ate, Dreama happily listening to the birds that were circling outside.

Taylor didn't look quite so happy, and by the third time she'd asked what was wrong, Dreama was starting to get worried.

"It's nothing," he insisted.

"Taylor, we've talked about this. I want to know what's going on with you."

He offered a smile that seemed a little forced to Dreama and reached out his hands to rub her shoulders. "I'm just supposed to get a call from my doctor today. It's no big deal."

"Call about what?"

"Routine testing. Don't worry."

"I really wish you wouldn't tell me that. I'll worry about you if I want to."

He chuckled and kissed her cheek. "You're worked up over nothing, baby. I can call him back when we get back to the hotel."

Dreama groaned. "Do we have to go back?"

"Unfortunately, yes. My dad will have gotten in this morning, and I want you two to meet properly."

"What for? He obviously doesn't like me."

"I did warn you. But it's not like that. My dad can't deal with my XP the way Mom can--he wants me to be normal, and yet he knows that I never will be. It's tough on him to see me stepping outside my little bubble in the basement. I mean, I've never dated anyone that didn't have XP, and other than Dean, Jen, and Lydia, I don't have any friends that aren't sick either. He doesn't like to see me put myself out into the world, knowing that it can't last."

Dreama scowled. "I can."

"He just doesn't see that yet. Give him a chance--I know he's difficult, but he really a good guy, and I know you'll like him if you give it time."

Dreama said nothing and resolved to be civil for Taylor's sake.

"Where is he, anyway?" Dreama asked.

"Philadelphia--he has some little girlfriend there."

Dreama gaped. "You know, too?" she blurted.

" 'Too'?" Taylor echoed. "What do you mean?"

"Your... your mom knows. About the girl, I mean."

"I figured that. I can't hold it against him, Dray. My dad grew up as a single child and always wanted a huge family, and then they had to find out there was no way they could have a normal kid. He took it hard, and he put up with it for as long as he could. My being sick put a lot of stress on my parents' marriage when I was younger."

"I bet."

"He would never leave my mom, Dray--he loves her. But he needs to have his little fantasy every once in a while. I get that."

Dreama sighed. "I don't know how you do it. If I ever found out that my dad had been cheating on my mom, I could never forgive him. There's no excuse for that kind of betrayal." She frowned for a second. "What do you mean, you get it? Get what?"

"That he needs to live a different life every so often. I understand that completely. That's why you're so good for me, you know? I don't feel like I'm sick, or weird, or--" he grinned "--a vampire when I'm near you. I feel like I can really get everything I've ever dreamed of having."

Dreama shook her head.

"What?"

"I just.. never have you pegged as the self-conscious kind, and then you say something like that."

"You can't be different and not feel self-conscious. It's good to get away from that."

Dreama looked down at the sheets and picked at a loose thread. Would he end up like his dad one day, needing to get away from them? Would there even be a "them" that far into the future?

As if he had read her mind, Taylor reached over and took her hand. "I love you," he whispered. "And I'm not my dad. Just because I understand why he does it doesn't mean that I like it. I would never do that to you."

"I know." She snuggled up against his side and wrapped her arms around him, closing her eyes.

After a long minute of silence, Taylor murmured, "It was a tumour."

"Sorry?"

"The mark on my side. It was a tumour that I had when I was seventeen. They removed it and put me on chemo, and I haven't had once since."

Dreama remembered the putrid black thing underneath Scott's eye and shuddered a little. But at least she knew now.

"Thank-you for telling me."