Fatal Attraction: I Just Want to Be Near Him

There was Jason, still skulking behind his team, so I handed my bag to Ava, pulled my hair back in a high pony, and threw down a challenge.

"Hey, Jason! Prove you're not all talk. Beat me in a one-on-one."

Before I could get my words out, his tall figure rushed up and clamped a hand over my mouth. His movements were so quick and forceful that my retractable fangs accidentally nicked him, drawing a bit of blood.

The cut wasn't serious—just a bead of blood.

But this poses a bigger problem for me. To blend in with humans, I've adopted their ways, living their lives, and eating their food.

Yet, lacking fresh blood causes me nutritional deficiencies.

I could survive on animal blood, but I'm an exceptionally finicky eater for a vampire. Most meats turn my stomach, so I've mostly stuck to a vegetarian diet.

Now this situation took a twisted turn—the big guy in front of me accidentally fed me a drop of his blood, and it awakened something primal in me. I felt an overwhelming urge, rising from the depths of my being, craving more blood.

And I couldn't resist. I fixed my gaze on Jason, pressing his hand still against my lips, desperately sipping more of his blood.

Jason froze, a deep blush spreading across his face, but his hand lingered.

That jolted me back to reality. What was I doing? This wasn't me! Can't let all my efforts go in vain!

I let go as if I'd touched fire, turned on my heel, and ran, leaving Jason and an audience of stunned onlookers in my wake.

In the following days, a new rumor spread around campus: Jason, the student council president, had supposedly led the basketball team to corner freshman Olivia, all just to hear her admit that he was good at what he did.

People who knew me kept asking what really happened, but I didn't have the patience to explain, so the rumors spiraled out of control.

The final version? Olivia was supposedly dumped by Jason and left crying on the basketball court.

In the past, I might have gone after every single rumor spreader to set things straight, but I had bigger fish to fry—I was desperate to hit up the local steakhouse for some blood-rare steak.

Arriving at the steakhouse, I was confronted with two plates of steak so rare they nearly brought tears to my eyes. I braced myself and grabbed a piece.

It tasted awful. As soon as I swallowed, a wave of nausea hit me. I clutched my mouth and fought hard to keep it down.

The steakhouse was sparsely populated that afternoon, but as luck would have it, Jason and his roommate were there too, dining at the same place.

This time, he didn't run. Instead, he came over, all awkward and blushing like a schoolboy with a crush.

His red face irritated me. "What's with you? You look like you're about to explode."

He opened his mouth to respond, but I didn't give him a chance. My stomach revolted, and I threw up all over him.

The world stopped. Everyone did too. I felt like I was sinking into the floor, utterly mortified.

It was a complete disaster. I had no idea what to do, so I just shut my eyes and passed out.

For real, I didn't fake it—I just blacked out from all the stress.

When I came to, I was in the infirmary, covered up and cared for.

"You up?" Jason was there, hovering with a worried look.

"Dreaming, so shush," I snapped, barely looking at him.

It seemed like Jason and I were just a recipe for disaster. Trouble brewed whenever he was around. Right on cue, Ava burst in, "Olivia, you pregnant or what?"

I was flabbergasted. Pregnant? As if! What kind of nonsense was she spouting?

"Why would you even say that?"

"Well, I heard about the vomiting and fainting, and how Jason carried you here..."

Just then, she noticed Jason. "Oh, the plot thickens. Look who's here too!"

Jason and I just froze, caught in the rapid spread of 5G-era gossip.