Feeling great after my shower, I returned to the room and started unpacking my suitcase. There were enough drawers that we had all been able to claim a couple, although I'd have to get some clean clothes from my room, soon. Charlie sat on his bed reading, and Dani worked on his essay. Thomas, Mariana, and TS were at the table, having what looked like a serious conversation. I tried to listen in while stuffing a laundry bag with my dirty clothes.

"I know it's only two days to Peru, but I'm worried we're not going to be enough, Tom," TS said.

Thomas didn't look happy. "I know. I just..." He sighed heavily.

"What about Mark?" Charlie said.

Thomas and TS both looked at him. "Who?" Thomas asked.

"Mark, my roommate. You're invited into my room already, so that takes care of that problem. Plus, Mark is kind of a jerk. I don't know, I mean," Charlie shrugged, "if you have to feed without permission, I would think you'd feel a little less guilty about someone like him."

Thomas looked thoughtful for a moment. "Actually, I think I would. And the invite would make things easier."

"What about Crackhead Jim?" Mariana asked.

This time, everyone asked, "Who?"

"You saw him, Dani. The creepy guy," Mariana said.

"Oh, the one with the scabby knuckles? Man, he is creepy," Dani said. "I don't know how he got on this voyage. He looks like trouble."

"Why is he called Crackhead Jim?" TS asked.

Mariana shrugged. "Supposedly, he does crack and who-knows what else. If half of the stories he tells are true..."

"Would it be a problem if he is on something?" Dani asked.

Thomas shook his head. "It would get filtered out before it hit my bloodstream. I guess... Yeah. I guess I'll start with him and Mark tomorrow," he said reluctantly.

"I really think you need three," TS said softly.

"I know that!" Thomas snapped. TS winced, almost adorably, like a puppy. Thomas dropped his head into his heads. "I'm sorry. I'm really, really not looking forward to this."

I didn't really have any ideas to contribute, so I just unpacked quietly. Then, an idea struck me, and I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it before. Dani's voice echoed in my head. Drinking your blood would be like drinking from three non-magics. I opened my mouth and closed it again. Did I really want to say it? TS didn't answer Thomas, and the silence dragged on. Thomas was on the verge of feeding without permission for the first time ever, and it was obviously a hard decision. Nobody knew what to say to make him feel better. I doubted anyone could say anything. But maybe I could.

"What about me?" Considering what I was offering, I was proud that I kept my voice steady.

Everyone looked confused.

"What about you?" Charlie finally asked.

"Thomas can feed from me." This time I heard a slight tremor in my voice. Was I crazy? Had I seriously just offered my blood to a vampire?

"Absolutely not," Thomas said immediately.

Dani and TS both exchanged a look, and I knew they had come to the same conclusion that I had: I was the perfect solution.

"And why not?" I demanded. "You have my permission!" Thomas looked like he was about to protest again, so I continued, "You feed from Mariana and TS!"

"That's... They're..." Thomas began.

"What? Your friends? They know what they're getting into? That's no different from me! And don't you dare say they're older than me! Unless all this 'age doesn't matter' stuff has just been a lie."

"It's hasn't," Thomas said, "but..."

"I'm a witch. My blood's better, isn't it?" If my blood really was worth three, then he wouldn't need anybody else. "You can just feed from me, with permission, and it'll be enough."

TS’s phone started to ring, but before he could answer it, Thomas grabbed it from him. "I got it," Thomas said. He hurried out onto the balcony and shut the door behind him. TS started to follow him, then stopped. Instead, he walked over to me and put his hands on my shoulders.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Are you sure, Jen? You don't have to do this."

"Yes, I do! You think he needs blood from three people, and mine is just as good, and he has my permission. It's the obvious solution. I mean... Things are hard enough for him, aren't they? It's the least I can do."

He looked at me for a long moment. He squeezed my shoulders and smiled. "Thank you." Then his eyes widened a bit, and he started laughing. "Bloody hell," he muttered. He gave my shoulders another squeeze and sat back down at the table.

Dani came over to me, too. "Hey," he said softly. "I know I was teasing you earlier, but if you aren't absolutely sure about this..."

"I am," I said firmly.

He smiled, one of his rare ones without a smirk in it, and ruffled my hair gently. "You're a good kid."

I didn't mind being called a kid; it made a lot more sense when I knew that Dani wasn't just a few months older than me. I protested, anyway. "I'm not a kid."

"No, you're not," Dani said. "You're a good friend, then." He grinned and gave my hair a more vigorous tussle.

Thomas came back in and sat down heavily. "Well, I've been assured that no vampires entered the port or got on the ship."

"But they didn't catch him," Charlie said, "which means he could still be here."

"Exactly," Thomas said. He looked at me and smiled. "By the way, welcome to the pack." Before I could ask what he meant, he turned back to TS and Dani. "So, are we still on for classes?"

"I've decided I'd rather skip," Dani said.

Charlie looked at him in surprise. "Didn't you say earlier that you're sick of 'cowering in the room and letting some biter ruin your vacation’?"

"Yeah, but I realized that if I don't go to class then I don't have to finish my essay."

Thomas smacked him in the arm. "Idiot."

Dani grinned. Then, his eyes darkened, and his expression grew serious. "I say why not go. We don't know for a fact that he's back on the ship. Given how he's been sneaking around, he's not eager to fight us again, especially not during the day. As long as we don't do anything stupid, we'll be fine."

"Agreed," TS said.

"Class it is then," Thomas said. "Dani, you said you have a map of the ship, right? Let's take a look at that."

Thomas and Dani spent the next hour muttering to each other and looking at the map. I started reviewing my class notes, and it looked like the others did the same. When he and Thomas were done, Dani picked up his notebook and returned to his essay. It wasn't until we were all getting ready for bed that I realized Thomas never said whether or not he was going to bite me. Mariana was already snuggled into our shared bed, and Charlie was getting comfortable in his. I set my alarm on my phone and went into the other room where Thomas and TS were. TS had already transformed and sprawled out on the floor by the couch. The light was off, but Thomas had a book open.

"Thomas?"

He glanced up at me. The light from the bedroom was enough to see that he looked nervous.

"Are you going to..."

He looked back down at his book and sighed. "Tomorrow night. If you're still willing."

"I will be." When it looked like he wasn't going to say more, I added, "Goodnight."

"Night."

TS lifted his head, tongue lolling out comically. "Night, Jen."

"Goodnight, TS."

I closed the door and went back into the bedroom. The door to the balcony was open and a nice breeze came in. Dani had moved the deck furniture to the side and settled in with a pillow. I walked over to the door and watched him fluff his pillow before lying down on the bare wood.

"Are you sleeping out here?" I asked.

He nodded. ""It occurred to me that the biter could go all Spiderman on us and climb onto the balcony. So, I'm crashing out here tonight to claim it."

"Claim it?"

"Sorry, I guess nobody really explained that." He smiled sadly. "Would've helped the other night, huh? A vampire can't enter a room where somebody sleeps. But, you have to sleep there first. If I sleep out here tonight, then it’s off limits to any vampire I haven't invited for a couple of weeks."

I looked around nervously. "But he could still come here tonight while you're sleeping?"

"It is a risk. But, I'm keeping the door open. Don't you worry." He glanced behind me, then beckoned me closer. "Come here and close the door for a sec though."

I stepped out onto the balcony, slid the door shut, and knelt down next to him. He beckoned again and propped himself up on his elbows. I moved a little closer and eyed him skeptically. "You're not going to mess up my hair or kiss me or something, are you?"

He laughed. "I'm sure you're very pretty, but you aren't quite my type." He grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me off balance. For a moment, I thought he was going to be a jerk and kiss me, anyway. Before I could escape he whispered in my ear. "Besides, I'll leave kissing you for Tom."

"Dani! What if he heard that?" I hissed.

"His hearing is good, but not this good," he breathed softly.

He loosened his grip enough for me to pull back. I paused, when I caught sight of his eyes; they were turning gray and churning slowly.

"Look, Jen." His voice was so soft I could hardly hear him. "Tom's never happy about having to feed, especially from friends. I think your offer is still sinking in; it sort of surprised all of us. Tom isn't the most... eloquent. I'm not sure if he'll say anything or not, but even if he did, I don't think words can describe how grateful he is. We all are, actually. You didn't have to. I meant it earlier when I said you're a good friend."

I wasn't sure what to say, so I nodded.

Dani smiled and gave me a gentle push toward the door. "Get to bed, hm? We have to pretend to be college students tomorrow."

I smiled back and couldn't resist teasing him, since he frequently did it to me. "Done with your essay?"

He grinned. "I'll finish it in the morning."

I opened the door and looked back. "Do you want a blanket?"

Dani shook his head. "I'm a water elemental."

I took that as a 'no'. "What about to sleep on?"

He shook his head again. "I've slept in worse conditions than the deck of a cruise ship. I'll be fine."

I stayed awake long after settling into bed. I wasn't having second thoughts about offering to let Thomas drink my blood. The idea made perfect sense and really was, in my opinion, the best solution. But the idea of being bitten by a vampire was a little freaky. I didn't even like having my blood drawn at doctor's appointments. I figured that if Mariana and TS both did it I'd be fine. Even so, I felt slightly insane, as I drifted off to sleep. It was bad enough that I was starting to develop a serious crush on a vampire, now I was going to let him feed from me.