I'm going to be straight up with ya'll and admit that right now I should be studying and/or doing a writing assignment for a few of my classes but I also know that I don't start classes until 2:30 so that gives me time in the morning to do it.

(IT'S A BAD IDEA BUT YOU CAN'T STOP ME) Be a better person and get your shit done when it's handed to you! – makes the future easier. Or at least that's what I hear, haven't actually done it before.

Well that's all for the author's notes! Here's a spontaneous update because I got inspired by a review (gosh golly gee I forget how much I love those).

Also I didn't read this over and correct it because editing is a hard step.

Chapter three:
Woo a girl in 3 easy steps

"I'm thinking something a little more…classy?"

"Uh huh."

"Probably something knee length. And a cardigan? Though that would mean I need a patterned dress, and I really want to wear those heels that make my legs look longer than they actually are. And you know that they're very tricky to match with other patterns; I'd have to wear a solid colored dress and that, match with a cardigan, might dull me out. I guess I could wear a sweater then, tie it around the waist as a belt of some sorts. Oh yes! And then I could wear that baby doll sundress that flows just right and if I tie that royal green sweater around the waist – you know, the one with the ribbons – then I'll be able to – "

"Stop."

I look up, blinking at Leah's scrunched up face. The amount of irritation on her face makes me backtrack, trying to pinpoint a certain phrase that might have thrown her over the metaphorical ledge. Maybe it was me assuming she knew about my royal green sweater with ribbons? Leah never liked when I assumed things. Especially things she pegged as "shallow" and "not worth her time".

"Too much?" I ask, biting the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling.

Leah lets out a huff of breath, head tilted back at a weird angle to stare up at the ceiling of my bedroom. I hear mom moving about the rest of the house, dusting things she's already dusted and randomly sorting and unsorting our book collections. Being nosy, again, of course, trying to see if Leah will say something where it warrants a mother's intervention.

Mom has always wanted to be the one to couch me through love but it wasn't hard to figure out that she wasn't really the best sort of person to go through. You never really know how awkward your mom is until she tries to tell you to "be yourself" and that "things will come when they're meant to". Which is a nice sentiment, but a little hard to follow when "being yourself" means being a human/vampire hybrid. Things are just a little more complicated nowadays.

"How about you just wear some jeans and a shirt, yeah? Don't psych the girl out," Leah says, narrowing her eyes to look my way from her position.

I frown, turning my eyes to the heels at the foot on my bed, and can't help but imagine the height difference between Mabel and I if I were to wear them. Height differences are good, cute for a first kiss. And what's wrong with dressing to impress?

"She's a normal girl who works at a mall, Ness, can't have her feeling insecure so quick."

"I don't understand."

"No, I guess you wouldn't."

I scoff, moving in front of Leah and kneeling down by her legs, resting my chin on her knees and giving her an imploring look. Leah moves her head, looking down at me and her jaw twitches with her clenching it, hand reaching out to push my face away. This, of course, is routine, and I take the opportunity to grab her wrist, sending a nice, picture perfect image of Mabel and I standing side by side: me, in my heels, dress and sweater with a loose up do and Mabel, in her work uniform and her effortless hair braided loosely…

My hand ends up falling away from Leah's wrist and I can't help but sigh.

Would Mabel be the kind of girl to sneak out of work for a quick make-out?

"Oh Taha Aki, you've got it bad," Leah grunts out, finally pushing herself up from her spot on the loveseat and storming to the direction of my closet. And, well, I can't exactly argue with her so I just watch as she ventures deeper and deeper towards the clothes that I save for family baseball games and hunts. This, of course, means that there are grass stains galore along with some unseemly splotches of blood on any sort of T-shirt or jean.

Leah comes back out empty handed and her mouth twisted in a way that expresses that she won't like what she's going to say next.

I hold my breath.

"You need to go shopping."

I let out the breath. For some reason Leah still looks like I'm doing something to torture her.

"Okay…?"

"Your entire closet could end world hunger."

"A lot of them are hand-me-downs!" I defend, omitting the fact that they were never worn. Or that Alice bought them. Specifically, for me.

But she bought them when I was only physically 12 years old, way before I'd be able to fit into them. So they've been in Alice's closets for a while, which means they're technically hand-me-downs.

Leah's face tells me she doesn't agree.

I stick my tongue out at her in lieu of anything to say. Letting out a long suffering sigh Leah walks towards me and pushes me to sit down, rough hands firmly on my shoulders.

"You're a good looking kid, kid," she starts, and well, I'm liking the sound of this so far. "But you're intimidating. Your freaky perfect, blood-sucker face really puts people off. As stupid as the everyday person is, they've still got survival instincts and those instincts, more often than not, tell them to steer clear of you and your family."

I blink, slowly processing Leah's words and try to understand how they relate to me trying to look good for Mabel. Mabel who didn't look like she'd ever be insecure. She was one of those girls who just had good skin, nice teeth, pretty hair, and an alluring smell. It's hard to see her as a regular girl with insecurities, or even someone who could be intimidated.

Leah lets out a frustrated noise, squeezing my shoulders gently and I snap back to attention, looking at her scrunched up expression.

"Don't get lost in your head right now, okay? I'm trying to help you."

I nod quickly, widening my eyes and gesturing for Leah to continue. After taking a moment to glare in my direction Leah sniffs and glances around my bedroom, eyes skittering over to my closet.

"You need to be a regular teenage girl, which means no designer clothing and no exclusive restaurants that cost an organ to get into. You need to make this girl-"

"Mabel."

"You need to make Mabel feel comfortable with you. Like she doesn't have to keep impressing you at every turn just so that you'll pay attention to her."

"That's ridiculous! I'd never get bored of her!"

"She doesn't know that, for all she knows a girl like you goes through people as often as you go through money."

I open my mouth and end up closing it, a startling amount of shame rocking through me. Did I really give off that impression? Is that what Mabel as thinking when we first met? Oh God she probably hates me! I feel Leah's hand tighten on my shoulder again, giving a gentle shake.

"Just…don't bother with being flashy, Ness. You're enough."

"Okay," I say, my voice cracking and cheeks heating up. Leah shifts away, letting go of my shoulders and walking back into the closet, and I take the opportunity to get my heart beat under check so I don't embarrass myself any further. Goes to show you don't actually get over your first crush.

Scowling at the ground and my bare feet I barely look up in time to catch the pair of jeans and shirt Leah throws my way.

"These jeans have stains on them."

"Not blood stains."

"I'm not wearing these out in public! And definitely not to go meet Mabel! What will she think!"

"She'll think that you came to visit her and will spend the majority of the time with you focusing on you and not your outfit."

"But—"

"Also, when you talk to her, make sure that you make eye contact and touch her as often as you can. Don't send any sort of mixed signals. I know you like to worry about girl's orientations and try to play friendly. You need to make your intentions clear."

"I don't—"

"You do. I've seen you try to pick up girls before. It's hard to watch."

I puff out my cheeks, crossing my arms and glaring down at the stained jeans laid across my lap. If I didn't already know how good Leah's advice was I'd probably just go straight to Auntie Alice who was, admittedly, a little out of the social trends. Sure she knows how to dress, but her interactions with humans, I've noticed, is really weird.

Never mind Auntie Rosalie who'd tell me to "dazzle the fuck out of the girl" and then ask me when I was planning on telling her about the family.

Uncle Emmett is just as terrible and Uncle Jasper is more hands on with his advice. As in, he'd once followed me on a date so he'd get a feel of my date's feelings.

No thank you.

Plus dad is hard to talk to about that kind of thing without me feeling overly conscious of my thoughts and whether or not they were pure enough for him. Mom is awkward. Enough said.

Leah was my best choice.

Though maybe Seth…?

Leah snaps her fingers in front of my face and says, "you want my help or not?"

I sigh out long and hard, glaring at the jeans again.

"Fine. But if Mable hates me I'm blaming you."

"And if she marries you?"

My breath unintentionally hitches, my heart stopping for a second and I feel a revolution of butterflies combust in my stomach. Leah looks over and rolls her eyes.

"You are unbelievable."

"I'm in love," I say, barely resisting the urge to cross my arms and stomp my foot. Leah, of course, probably knows this like she knows everything and just points at the clothes in my lap.

"Get dressed and I'll drive you to the mall."

"Wait! Why? We could just take one of…" Leah raises an eyebrow.

"Did you absorb anything I said? Don't be flashy. You can get to the mall just as well with my car, don't you think?" Pouting I do cross my arms and stomp my foot, taking the bundle of clothes to the walk in closet to change. I hardly think wanting a little style is something to frown at. So what if I want to impress Mabel just a little bit? I do have to beat out the inevitable competition after all.

Jerking on the pair of jeans and T shirt I forlornly look at the pair of heels that were front and center, just begging me to put them on.

Leah pounds on the closet door.

"Hurry up if you want to make it to the mall during lunch."

"I'm coming, I'm coming, sheesh."

Stepping out of the closet in only jeans, a shirt, and socks felt oddly like walking out of the closet completely naked. Even if I wasn't actively trying to impress Leah there's still an undercurrent of embarrassment at the fact that she was assessing me. However, despite me looking less-than stellar Leah nods her head as if she were satisfied and gestures for me to put on a pair of sneakers that I know used to belong to my mom when she was human.

Gag.

"You can't be serious."

"Do I look like I make jokes?"

Grumbling under my breath about how absolutely unfair this was I had a fleeting idea that maybe Leah was intentionally sabotaging my improvised date with Mabel. On the other hand, that didn't seem like the kind of bitch Leah was. She was, undoubtedly, a bitch, but not so much as petty as witty. Besides, when has Leah ever steered me wrong?

Wait.

"Are you secretly in love with me and purposely trying to ruin my chances with Mabel?"

Leah turns to look at me, eye unblinking and face set grimly.

"Yes. For the past 3 years I've been dating Jacob just to get to you."

"Right, right. Just checking."

Leah rolls her eyes one last time and exits via window just as mom walks in, her face set in a forced smile and her nose crinkled.

"You're going to the mall again?"

"You know it!"

"Shopping?"

I can't help but laugh a little, reaching out and squeezing my mom's hands, letting a quick image of Mabel flash.

"Not this time, mom."

Mom smiles and squeezes back, nodding her head slightly.

"Good luck."

I don't bother telling her that I didn't need it. Mabel felt more like somebody I was meant to be with, rather than another girl that I had to woo. Mabel was it. Everything about her sung to me and I'm almost certain it's the same feeling dad had when mom came into his life.

Maybe a little less on the bloodlust – but the love is all the same.