Supernatural Academy: Year One (Supernatural Academy #1)(15)

As if she’d heard her name, the tiny blonde vamp appeared on the edge of the commons. She caught sight of me and waved before she hurried along the path toward us.

Ilia waved as well before giving me a quick hug.

“You look gorgeous,” I whispered in her ear. She wore a low-cut red dress and dark suede boots. Her hair was glossy and red, and her makeup was on point. She was truly stunning. “Make him work for all that,” I said as she pulled back.

She smiled brightly. “You got it, babe. I always make them work.”

“She does,” Josh added, clearly having heard our convo. “And Leah is well worth it.”

My heart went all mushy then, especially at his use of a shortened version of her name. I realized that this wasn’t a first date for them, as I’d thought initially. They were pretty comfortable with each other, and I wondered how long she’d been seeing the shifter. I also wondered what animal he was, but that was something to ask another time.

They were off then, waving at Larissa as they passed by. She stopped at my side, and I noticed how nice she looked. She’d changed into a dress and tights, short black boots finishing the look. I wore jeans and a plain white shirt, one of the seven sets of clothing I owned. I wasn’t here to impress anyone, thankfully, and I’d learned long ago not to sweat that sort of stuff.

“Are you ready to eat?” she asked, somewhat breathless.

Examining her closely, I thought she was looking a little pale, despite the creamy brown of her skin tone. “Is everything okay?” I asked, wondering if she’d been running from something.

Larissa nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just almost time for me to feed again. I can only go so long.”

It took me a second to realize what she meant by feed. Blood. Larissa needed blood.

That should have grossed me out, because, honestly, it was so far removed from the world I had existed in. But … part of me had already started to accept this crazy new existence.

“As long as you’re not gonna munch on me,” I joked, because I already knew she didn’t drink from the vein, “then I can wait for you to get your blood.”

Larissa snort-laughed before reaching out and snagging my hand and dragging me through the tables. We were drawing attention again, and I was hoping that this “curiosity about the new chick” would end soon. It was already getting old.

When we finally reached an unoccupied seat, Larissa let me go and I sank onto the wooden bench. She sat across from me and leaned forward. “If you don’t mind, I’ll have some blood with dinner tonight.” She was watching me closely, waiting for my reaction. “It’s in a carton. You won’t even see anything.”

I waved my hand. “I don’t mind. I’m actually pretty curious about how all of it works.”

“Hold on to your panties, then,” she said, as she placed her hand on a small symbol carved into the center of the table. I hadn’t really noticed it at first, but looking closer I recognized it from the front entrance. It was the crest, with the M V F S on it. That had to be the school crest, and each letter represented one of the races.

A light burst up from the symbol, and Larissa reached out to stroke her hand along it. “Vampire,” she said.

Images appeared, and she brushed her hand across it again, rotating through them like she was scrolling through a menu selection. Paying closer attention to the light, I read the descriptions below each image. B+ infused with apple … AB-with a hint of spring.

“Whoa,” I gasped, my hands pressing hard into the wood table. “This is how you order blood?”

Larissa grinned before a grimace took over. “Yes, unfortunately. I still eat food, it’s my main source of energy, but once every three or four weeks I have to feed as well. If I don’t, I get weak and angry, and my friends start to look really delicious.”

I snorted at that, and then realized I was one of those friends now. “I taste terrible,” I said, trying to keep my expression serious. “Really bad. Watery, weak blood.”

Larissa shook her head. “Lies. You should smell your blood.”

I narrowed my eyes on her, and she winked at me.

Her hand stopped moving then on one of the blood selections. “This one,” she said softly, and a moment later it appeared right in front of her. The blood was hidden inside of what looked like a large square juice box, so I couldn’t even tell.

“So this is how we order dinner as well?” I asked.

Larissa nodded, before she lifted her beverage and started to drink through a straw. “Yep, just tap the Academy crest and say dinner.”

I was a little excited that she was letting me try it. There was no hesitation as I reached out and slapped my hand on the symbol. Warmth immediately filled my palm. “Dinner,” I said.

The heat increased and I pulled my hand away, waiting for the images to appear. The first was spaghetti bolognaise. Drool filled my mouth as I stared at the enticing food before me.

“Flick through,” Larissa suggested. “The menu changes daily, and there’s always so much to choose from. The food takes a little longer to arrive, because it’s actually prepared by hand—with a touch of magical help, of course. But it’s worth the wait.”

“Do we only get to pick one?” I asked, my eyes not moving an inch from the rich, red sauce of that spaghetti.