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“That was a long time ago.” Ashley’s words were quieter now. Less certain than before. “I live in Romania now.”

Esther considered Ashley’s room lined with trophies and her old pom-poms. But she’d never said anything about cheering or wanting to coach before. Then again, she hadn’t given Esther any indication she had any end goal, aside from joining that house of vampires.

And Ashley wasn’t in Romania, not really. If cheering was her dream job, the only reason she couldn’t go for it was because shewas a vampire and couldn’t go out in the daylight. Esther wasn’t sure what to say, so she reached for Ashley’s hand. Their fingers laced together. Ashley’s hand was cold, but Esther pretended it was just the weather. She clasped it with her other hand to try to warm it and bring her back to life. Ashley smiled, and it was so bright Esther forgot what she’d been doing and where she was. She forgot the girl she was falling for was technically dead.

“What do you think, Esther, dear?” Suzie’s question broke the spell and returned Esther to the moment. “You know our Ashy. Wouldn’t she make a great cheer captain?”

“I, um. Well, the thing is… Haha.” Esther reached for her earring, rubbing the cool metal and second-guessed everything. Sure, Ashley was outgoing and driven, but did her mom really know what Ashley wanted anymore? It’d been twelve years. Surely, cheerleading couldn’t be Ashley’s dream if she left it to be a vampire.

A montage of observations flashed behind Esther’s eyes, the photos of Ashley at the beach with giant pink sunglasses and a blue bikini, raking leaves with friends in matching volunteer T-shirts, a framed acceptance letter from a university that wasn’t PlattU with an education major. What if the only thing stopping Ashley was the sun?

Esther’s mind clouded, losing the ability to form cohesive sentences. She had no right to interfere in Ashley’s future. She couldn’t possibly know the answer. Whatever answer Esther gave would be the wrong one, and Ashley would resent her forever. Esther’s breathing increased, and she barely registered Ashley clenching her hand tighter.

“My career is my choice, Mom. Not Esther’s.”

“She can still have an opinion. She’s clearly a special person in your life. Surely, she has a thought on how you spend your future.”

Esther couldn’t do this. It was all so clear now. Ashley was a vampire, and Esther was a ticking time bomb of bad luck. They were the worst possible ending for each other, even if it were possible for them to have a future. She would finish out this week, but no matter what, they were just friends at the end of this.

“Welp.” Dale slapped both knees with his hands and stood. “I’m beat. Come on, Suze. Let’s leave these two lovebirds to their Romania time.”

Suzie hesitated, clearly upset to leave the conversation but not enough to argue with her husband. “We’ll see you two in the morning then for a quick dinner for breakfast. I’m making kielbasa sausage and scalloped potatoes.”

21

Ashley

Ashley felt a familiar tightening in her skin as she watched her mom switch off the kitchen light for the small one over the stove and disappear down the hall to her parents’ bedroom. Her mom’s busybody tendencies, her dad’s aloof dadness. Every memory was another final memory. But these memories deserved only happiness. So, she watched her mom until she turned out of sight and told herself she wasn’t sad. Not yet. Because this was a good memory and she still had tomorrow to make another. She’d bottle up whatever sadness she might feel and save that for…well, for the end.

“I like your parents.” Esther’s comment interrupted Ashley’s musing. “Your whole house, actually. How your room is still a shrine to you. There’s a lot of love here.”

“You like them, huh?” Ashley turned to the woman next to her, tucking her leg under her and dropping her arm from Esther’s shoulder to the back of the patio couch.

The night sucked the color from them and dramatized the contrasts. Esther’s hair cascaded over her shoulders in a darkwaterfall over pale cheeks, and Ashley’s fingers itched to touch the silky ripples. The fire sparkled in Esther’s eyes, drawing Ashley in like a beacon. But she held back. They were just friends, and making a move—again—when Esther was already doing her a massive favor, would be a dickish move on Ashley’s part. The arm over Esther’s shoulder had been pushing the generous boundaries Esther allowed. And there was no need to put on a show now that her parents were gone.

“What are your Christmases like?” Ashley asked. “Please tell me everyone’s parents are in their kid’s business like mine.”

Esther huffed a quick laugh. “Hardly. I still tend to get a phone call on the big holidays. Christmas, Thanksgiving, and birthdays. Easter from Mom if she’s at port.”

“I just realized I don’t know much about your parents.”

“Well, Mom is a chef now for Mediterranean Cruise Line, and my dad raises Shetland ponies as well as a new baby with Marjorie in Nova Scotia.”

“A new baby?” She looked Esther up and down. “Shouldn’t your dad be getting kind of old by now?”

Esther shrugged. “He married younger, and I’m not sure the baby was planned.” She shifted, looking uncomfortable. “Enough about me. What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Well, you’re a vampire. Let’s start there.” There was a playful sparkle in Esther’s eye that Ashley was loving.

“You’re just cool with it? You know what comes with being a vampire, right?”

“I am familiar with the lore.” Esther tucked her legs under her like a kid anxious for a story. “Would you tell me what comes with it?”

“I have a list!” A bubble of excitement filled Ashley at the realization. Esther was interested in her. Maybe not in the way she’d hoped, but she’d take the attention where it came. Plus,she never missed a chance to brag about her lists. She pulled her Lisa Frank notepad out of her coat pocket.

“What is that?” Esther flipped to the cover as Ashley tried to find the page. “Is this actual vintage Lisa Frank?”