"I needed time."
"I can't even bear the thought," I began. "This isn't possible! Well never see each other again. I'm not letting you go! You should have told me."
I knew Alexander's parents had missed him. Their only son, several time zones away.Left alone to be attended by a single butler. This wasn't what they wanted for him. He was supposed to be hiding from theMaxwells , not falling in love.
"I was trying to figure out a plan."
"I'm all about figuring things out. And in this case, I think I know exactly what to do."
"Yes?"
"A solution to your problems and mine."
"Okay..."
"We're on sacred ground."
"Yes we are."
"I'd be yours forever."
"No- that's not an option." Alexander stepped back.
"It's our only chance," I said, tugging on his shirt. "I would be just like you-and your family. Then they won't worry about you being the only vampire in town."
"It's not time-"
"Is there any other time better than this? Is there any better reason? If not now... then when?"
Alexander gazed down at me. His eyes were loving, yet sad. "You don't understand what you are asking me to do."
"I absolutely do. If I become a vampire, we will be bonded forever-together for eternity. If I stay a mortal, I'll never see you again."
Alexander paused. He was as dreamy as the first time I saw him. His hair blew in the breeze. "My home is here," he said, "with you the way it is now."
"You're the one making the decision for me," I challenged. "Maybe I should make it for myself."
"What would you do if it was the other way around?" he suddenly asked me. "And there was some way I could be justlike you-a mortal.Then what?"
Take the vampire out of Alexander? I hesitated. I pondered the thought of changing Alexander. I never realized the strain and burden I was placing upon him to fulfill my dream. What if I changed him and he didn't like being a mortal? What if it changed his personality? What if he was bitter and unhappy and, most of all, blamed me?
I never thought of it that way.
"Do you only like me because I'm a vampire?" he asked.
"Of course not.I'd like you if you were a troll. But it is who you are. I wouldn't want to change you."
"And that is how I see you." He cupped my face in his hands. "I love you just the way you are."
"So you wouldn't like me if I were a vampire?"
"Of course I'd love you, but... what if you didn't like being a vampire?" Alexander asked.
"But I'd love it! I've always dreamed of being like you."
"You'd never be able to tell your family about your new identity. And if you did, do you think they'd be happy? Their daughter is a bloodsucking vampire? It might be fun in theory until you have to leave town because you are being persecuted, like my grandparents. You think you are an outsider now, but what do you think you will become as a member of the Underworld?"
I really hadn't thought of all the details, just the highlights.
"So when you say, 'Just bite me,' it is always much more complicated than that. I'd be making a decision for you- for the rest of your life. And it's not an easy decision to make."
Alexander was always looking out for me. Not just presently, but forever.
"You can't leave Dullsville. Promise me you won't!" I said.
"I promise-to the best of my ability. I'm trying to figure out a solution, every minute of every day."
He squeezed my shoulders.
"Besides," he continued, "I can't leave you here alone with Trevor Mitchell."
I thought of the Mansion, of all the time I'd spent in Alexander's coffin, the nights watching him paint or walking through the corridors by candlelight.
"My heart is breaking," I said.
"Mine is, too. It's something I never thought was a possibility. I thought the Mansion would remain our family's forever. And I'd remain in it."
"Now you'll live inRomania ?" I asked. "I'll have to come with you. It's the only way I'll survive."
"We can't be so grim yet," he said softly, touching my cheek. "At this point there have been no offers on the house. There's still time to figure out a plan."
Chapter 21 News Travels Fast
When I arrived home, my parents were on the edge of their couches waiting up for me. I was racked with pain and torment.
"So, what did Alexander have to say?" my mom asked. "Are they staying in town?"
I shook my head.
"You must be devastated."
"I am!"
Tears began to roll down my already-soaked cheeks.
"We were so taken with his parents, too. We were hoping to spend more time with them. I'm so sorry, honey.
I could barely speak.
"I thought they liked it here, but I must say that I can imagine it would be difficult for them," my mom said.
"Why, because she wears a corset?And uses an umbrella to block the moonlight?" I asked.
"You gripe about how conservative this town is," my mom said. "They might be seeking someplace more cosmopolitan."
"What are the chances-if Alexander does move that I could go with him?" I asked my dad.
"Zero," he answered.
"Honey," my mom said softly, "I know he is your first love."
"He's my only love!"
"I know," she continued, "but you are only sixteen."
"I'm almost seventeen. Juliet was married at that age!"
"And look what happened toher " my dad said.
"This isn't funny! If Alexander moves, my life is over- pure and simple. I'll never wake up again." I burst into tears.
My mom hugged me like I was a child.
"Why can't theSterlings like it here?" I sobbed. "Why do they have to go back toRomania ?"
"I'm sure they have family there," my mom said, brushing my hair away from my tearstained face. "That is their home."
"But this is Alexander's home. If we buy it-then Alexander can live there. He's almost eighteen, you know."
"I'm not sure we can afford two homes."
"But can't you try? Use my college money. I'll get a job."
"Now you are thinking." My dad smiled.
"I mean it," I said. "I'll do it." But then I calculated the wages I'd made when I worked at Armstrong Travel. "It would take me years working part-time to earn enough for 'Jill a house," I said, frustrated. "By then I'll be buying into a retirement community."