Part 3Who Tastes Better

We were so close I could see the rapid flutter of his eyelashes. I saw his pupils contract, a flash of pure panic crossing his dark eyes.

[His breathing is getting heavy again. His face is red because he's so frustrated with you. Back off,] the System chimed in.

I scrambled out of his embrace, taking a step back.

"Are you... out of it this morning because your urge is acting up again?" Ross asked, clearing his throat after a long silence.

He shouldn't have brought it up. The moment he did, my mouth began to water. My eyes instinctively locked onto the small brown mole on his neck. I pressed my lips together.

"No. I'm fine."

Ross lowered his gaze and nodded slowly.

After that, the silence between us became deafening. I had never realized how long the walk to school actually was. Ross had always been a quiet guy, but I used to chatter endlessly to fill the gaps. Now, I didn't have the energy.

The System had convinced me that Ross hated me. He hated my touch, he hated being bitten, and he hated my voice. And looking at him now, I realized his mood really was terrible. Several times, he looked like he wanted to say something, his jaw clenching in irritation.

I quickened my pace, wanting to end the torture.

"Kate, if you need to..." Ross started, but the System cut in.

[What a saint. Even though he finds you repulsive, he's still offering himself up to help with your disease.]

I waved my hands frantically. "I don't need to. Not at all. I've been feeling much better lately."

Ross's dark eyes studied me for a few seconds before his lips pressed into a thin line.

"Okay. But let me know if you do."

I muttered under my breath, "I won't. Not anymore."

It was only when I walked into the classroom that the suffocating weight on my chest lifted slightly. My desk mate, Mary, looked up from his textbook, glancing between me and Ross, who was walking in right behind me.

"Did you guys have a fight?" Mary asked.

Ross's expression was so dark that even Mary, who usually noticed nothing but calculus, could feel the tension.

I rested my chin on my palm, sighing. "No. Hey, Mary, do you ever read romance novels?"

He flipped a page of his practice exam. "Never. But the girls in the back say Ross looks like he walked straight out of one."

That made me feel even worse. Even my classmates saw him as a male lead.

We had just returned to the classroom after running laps in gym class, and I was still talking to Mary. I asked him if he thought I could be the female lead of a story. He stared at me for two seconds.

"Most female leads aren't this dumb."

I pinched his arm in annoyance. As we were messing around, a shadow fell over my desk. Two insulated tumblers were placed before us.

Ross was standing there, his face clouded with an icy, undeniable irritation.

"I brought you some fresh juice this morning," he said, his voice flat.

The System sighed. [The poor guy has been treated like your servant since childhood.]

I took one of the cups and took a long sip, trying to figure out how to tell him that he didn't need to bring me drinks anymore.

The classroom was quiet, save for the scratching of pens. Suddenly, Mary cleared his throat.

"I think you grabbed the wrong cup."

I looked down. I had just drank more than half of Ross's personal tumbler.