Bex’s mom came to wake her the next morning for school. What she saw made her smile at how adorable her daughter is. Bex had fallen asleep doing research. Her face was smushed against her laptop and the resources list has a bunch of sights crossed off.

She walked over to her daughter and shook her awake.

Bex shot up her eyes red from exhaustion. She looked to her mother who looked to her laptop which had come back on, showing a website on how to kiss a girl. Bex’s face went red and she slammed her laptop shut. Her mom shook her head and ruffled her daughter’s hair before walking out.

Bex quickly got up and got ready for school. She brushed through her tangled hair and shoved her laptop in her backpack. She slipped into a pair of red skinny jeans and a white shirt. After she washed up she went downstairs. Grabbed a donut from the box on the counter, eyed her treacherous siblings and hugged her parent’s goodbye before quickly running out the door.

She took the steps into the school two at a time before walking to her usual table.

Joan was waiting for her with a smile. Bex felt her cheeks turn red.

“Hey.” She said sitting at the table.

“Hey!” all her friends smiled at her.

“What?” Bex said confused as to their peppier mood.

“Well, we heard about you and Joan!” Darci smiled.

“Finally.” Mike sighed.

“Wait you guys knew?” Bex asked.

“Yeah we all knew, Joan made us keep it a secret from you.” Jaden concurred.

“Really.” Bex turned to Joan with a pout.

“What? I wanted to be the one to tell you. And it worked out in my favor. So for our date?”

Bex opened her mouth to say something but a sharp pain in her neck stopped her. She winced at the sudden onset of throbbing.

“Freaks in town!” Monroe called.

Bex’s eyes went to Lyssa who was eyeing her as if telling her to come to me.

“Uh hold that thought,” Bex said without looking at Joan before getting up and jogging off towards Lyssa.

“What!?” she hissed sitting across the girl.

The throbbing stopped.

“I have done extensive research into blood bonds and thought you would like to know my findings.”

“Do you have to do this now? I was sort of in the middle of something.” Bex pouted.

“In the middle of something?” Lyssa raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, if you must know Joan asked me on a date.”

“Joan, the slayer girl.” Lyssa frowned to herself.

“Slayer girl!”

“You didn’t notice? I am almost 100% positive your friend is a slayer.”

“She is not.” Bex looked over to Joan who was eyeing the two of them.

“Is too. You must stay away from her, that’s an order.”

“You can’t do that! She’s my best friend. Plus you don’t even have proof she is one.”

“Fine, go on your date. You will be my spy. See if you can find the proof I need. Once you see that I am right, you will realize that your friend nearly got you killed in her crusade to end me.”

“And if you are wrong, you owe me an apology.” Bex huffed before standing and walking back to the table.

Lyssa rolled her eyes before letting her gaze fall on Joan who still had yet to look away from her. Joan’s eyes narrowed at her. Lyssa shot the glare right back.

“Okay, sorry about that, where were we?” Bex took her seat next to Joan again.

“How and why are you friends with Lyssa Norwood again?” Joan asked.

“I thought you said she was a vampire.” Mike snorted in amusement.

“Oh that, that was a bet Lyssa and I made. She won. I supposed to see if I could convince you guys that she was a vampire. Uh, Lyssa and I literally ran into each other last week and well it’s been a weird ride ever since.”

“Anyways, the date?” Darci said in excitement.

“Right, our date?” Bex turned back to Joan.

“Well, I was thinking maybe dinner, then a movie at my place later?” Joan asked.

“Sounds great.” Bex smiled.

Joan smiled at her and kissed her cheek. This caused Bex to go bright red in the face which made everyone snicker.

After that, the day went on as usual. Just after band practice, Lyssa texted Bex a list of things to look out for. The list reads as such.

Slayer proof 101:

• Religious artifacts all throughout the house

• Unnecessary amounts of strong aromatics such as garlic, onion, horseradish, etc.

• Unnecessary amounts of silver things, mirrors, silver wear, etc.

• Look out for stakes, my red crystal necklace, and a trophy wall.

• Weapons, harpoon gun, net gun, etc.

• A suspicious looking case that might be a vampire slayer kit.

Bex scoffed at the message and rolled her eyes. No way Joan was a vampire slayer, right?

Getting a bite to eat with Joan was nothing out of the ordinary. Bex had thought that things would be weird and tense, but it was just like all the other times she ate with her friend. Minus all the flirting that Joan was doing, which for the most part went unnoticed to Bex.

Bex had been to Joan’s house many times. Yet she had never actually been there with the intention to look for something. The first thing that greeted her eyes when she walked in was a harpoon gun mounted on the wall. It looked recently cleaned. She gulped.

As Joan led her towards her room, Bex took in the house. The many crosses on the wall and all the silver door nobs did not go unnoticed to her. Neither did the large net laying by the back door. An uneasy feeling bubbled in her gut.

Still, she would not believe that her friend was a vampire slayer until she saw stakes, the necklace, and garlic.

“I’ll go make us some popcorn,” Joan said.

“I’ll come with.” Bex forced a smile.

In the kitchen, she was greeted with a large bowl of garlic bulbs. The smell of garlic was strong.

“Uh, what’s with all the garlic?” She forced a laugh.

“Oh that, my mom went to the farmers market the other day and got a good deal on it.” She shrugged it off.

With popcorn in tow, the girls headed back to the room.

Bex started seeing things add up that she didn’t want to see. Like how the slayers knew to come to her house that night, or how they even knew where she lived. About the girl in the ski mask with the stake. Her mouth went dry.

“So what do you want to watch?” Joan asked.

“Are you a vampire slayer?” Bex asked outright.

Joan raised an eyebrow.

“A what?” she said confused.

“Nothing, never mind,” Bex said feeling dumb.

Joan sighed and pulled out the remote. She pretended to scroll through the channels before she turned the TV off again. Bex looked at her.

“Actually, do you just want to talk?” Joan asked.

“Sure.” Beg said popping open the popcorn.

Bex was about to eat some popcorn when Joan grabbed her hand to stop her.

“Actually, maybe I don’t want to talk.” She said.

“Okay.” Bex dragged the word out.

She was confused as to why Joan was acting weird until Joan leaned in and their lips met.

Bex’s eyes went wide and she dropped the popcorn. Joan didn’t care. She cupped Bex’s face with her hands and deepened the kiss. Heat rose to Bex’s cheeks as she forced herself to kiss back. It was all new territory for her.

Joan sighed into her as her hands ran down Bex’s neck and then her arms. Their lips moved softly against each other as they kissed. Joan pushed Bex down on the bed before kissing her again then trailing her lips down to her neck.

Bex’s let her eyes flutter closed and she enjoyed the sensations of Joan’s soft lips on her skin. Her mind brought her back to different lips that were usually on her neck. The feeling of euphoria, the haze of desire. The way Lyssa flicked her tongue on her skin.

“Lyssa…” she moaned.

Joan jerked back.

Bex shot her eyes open, her face going bright red with embarrassment.

“What did you just say?” Joan asked.

“No, I uh, it was an accident. I didn’t mean to.” She stammered.

“Did you just say, Lyssa?”

“I can explain. It’s not like that, I wasn’t, I mean, I, I, I,”

“You were thinking of her while I was kissing you!?” Joan accused.

Bex open and shut her mouth like a fish out of water. She was so embarrassed, utterly humiliated. Her first kiss ruined by Lyssa.

“I’m sorry.” She finally got out.

“So what you like her or something?” Joan asked.

“No! god no. I like you. I swear. It was just a slip. An accident. It won’t happen again.”

Joan eyed her; her face also red with embarrassment.

“Can we just start over and forget that happened?” Bex begged.

Joan took a deep breath and leaned in again. Bex met her halfway and once again their lips collided. Her hands went up Bex’s shirt as she softly pushed her back into the bed. Once again Joan trialed kisses down to Bex’s neck.

Bex winced trying hard to get the image of Lyssa out of her brain.

“Mmm.” Joan moaned into her skin as she softly kissed her neck.

Her hands slowly traveled up Bex’s shirt which caused Bex to shiver. Bex kept expecting Joan to bite down on her neck, in fact, she almost yearned for it. Yearned for that sweet euphoria that always overtook her.

Those black painted lips and piercing chartreuse eyes. The ice cold touch of her breath on her skin. Her voice whispering in her ear…

“More.” Bex moaned out loud. Her eyes fluttering closed as she let her mind wander.

Joan took it as an encouraging sign and moved her lips back up and kissed her once more. Her hand finding Bex’s breast.

The image of Lyssa’s naked body once again came into her mind. The soft pale skin. The curves of her body. The scars put there by vampire slayers. Bex’s eyes shot open and she quickly pushed Joan away.

“What?” Joan asked breathlessly.

“Sorry, it was just, getting to be too much.” She blushed.

“Oh, sorry.” Joan smiled; her face covered in blush.

“I uh, I uh should go. I got homework and what not. See you tomorrow?” she asked.

“Yeah, see you tomorrow.” Joan leaned in a kissed her one last time.

Bex cringed internally. Then she grabbed her backpack and quickly ran out of the room. On her way out a red glint caught her eye. She paused. It came from inside a curio cabinet. She walked over to it and opened it, pulling out the red crystal necklace. Her heart fell to her stomach.

She looked in the cabinet and saw many other necklaces similar to that one.

She really is a vampire slayer.

“What are you doing?” Joan asked, coming up behind her.

She flinched and jumped back, the crystal in her hands.

Joan’s eyes went to the crystal.

“Bex I can explain,” she tried.

Bex quickly turned on heel and ran out of the house. She ran down a couple of blocks to her house and ran upstairs shutting herself in her room.

“Well?” Lyssa asked.

She’s sitting on Bex’s bed with her legs kicked up and a book in her hand. She was looking over the rim of the book at Bex.

Bex yelped in surprise.

Then she opened her palm and looked down at the red crystal necklace. Lyssa followed her gaze.

Lyssa stood and walked over to her, her lips in a tight frown.

“I knew it.” She said grabbing the necklace.

Bex sat on her bed still trying to take everything in.

“I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so,” Lyssa smirked putting the necklace around her neck.

“W-what do I do?” Bex looked to Lyssa.

“Well follow my orders, stay away from her from now on. The only way they can get to me is through you. So stay away from her.”

“But she’s my best friend…”

“She also tried to kill me and you by extension.”

“And you tried to kill me! you literally pushed me off the roof.” Bex pointed out.

“And I literally don’t care. No slayers. Simple as that.” Lyssa inspected herself in the mirror.

“You are so cruel!” Bex shot at her.

“Excuse you?” Lyssa whirled on her.

“It’s all about you, Lyssa this and Lyssa that. Don’t I get a say? I freaking helped save your life. I am your blood bank; I say that gives me equal say in this relationship. I’m not a vampire, I am sure if I talk to her and tell her not to attack you---”

“You truly are dense. Read my lips. She will use you to get to me. Need I remind you who’s in charge here? You belong to me now so you will obey me whether you like it or not.” She hissed.

“I am not your property! I can make it to where you will never drink my blood ever again. You haven’t even given her a chance!”

Lyssa grabbed the bridge of her nose. She muttered patience is key, under her breath in French.

“I won’t let you see her,” Lyssa said sternly.

“I hate you! You stupid vampire!”

“There is a reason for my methods. Whether you like it or not.”

“And what reason is that? Is it because you are too much of a coward to face the slayers and apologize for whatever you did! Maybe if you faced them and talked to them like a normal person they would leave you alone.”

“Oh like I haven’t tried that before. You have no idea. You don’t think this hasn’t happened to me before!? Why do you think I don’t like slaves!? It’s because the last slave stabbed me in the back and left me to rot in the ground literally!” she shouted her eyes flashing red.

They both grew silent as a tear slid down Lyssa’s cheek.

“Forget it, I knew this wouldn’t work. All humans are the same. You are the cruel ones.” She wiped her tear and in a flash, she was gone.