Hello everyone! Here's my new story, called "Better with you". I hope you're going to like it. As always, it's all human. Here's the full summary:

Rose has to leave her whole life behind when her parents decide to move across the country. Fearing she won't adapt to this new life, she meets Lissa Dragomir at her new school and instantly becomes friends with her. She bumps into Dimitri Belikov as well, who's recently been released from juvie, and she's immediately intrigued. Despite all the warnings to stay away from him, she wants to get to know him better. Will she be able to break down his walls? Will he finally let someone in?

Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy. Richelle Mead, the most amazing author in the world who has given us Romitri, does. ;)

CHAPTER 1

RPOV

"Are we almost there yet?"

I knew I was being an impatient little brat, but I was tired of being cooped up in the car for hours. I wanted to stretch my legs and breathe in some fresh air – if only for a few minutes.

"We're almost there, kid," Dad answered.

He flashed me a grin and I glared at him. Seriously. He'd had that grin on his face the whole damn drive to Columbia Falls, Montana. I hated that he was so excited about the move. I wanted to wipe the grin off of his face and tell him to turn back around. I wanted to go back home.

I turned around in my seat to see if Mom was still driving behind us. She was. I'd expected Dad to drive the U-Haul to our new home, but Mom had insisted she'd drive the rental truck because she didn't trust my father to be careful with it.

Turning back around, I sighed. "Do I really have to go to school tomorrow?"

"Of course, Rose," Dad answered sternly. "You can't miss the start of the school year. It gives you an opportunity to make friends."

I pouted. "Can't I settle in first? Get to know the town…"

"I know you don't like being the new kid, Rose. If you wait another week, you'll still be the new kid. It's better to get it over with now."

I let out another sigh. "I miss my friends."

Dad gave me a sympathetic smile. "I know this isn't easy for you, Rose, but you'll make new friends. Don't worry."

I didn't agree with him, but I nodded anyway.

Dad must have sensed it because he said, his voice gentle and soft, "You're still young, Rose. It's going to be easy to make new friends. Besides, you're an amazing young woman. Who wouldn't want to be friends with you?" he added, winking.

"Dad!" I groaned, embarrassed. A reluctant smile crossed my face. "This town better has a good pizzeria."

"There's a Pizza Hut, yes," Dad said.

"Thank God." My smile widened. "I guess I'll be okay, then."

Dad squeezed my shoulder. "Of course you're going to be okay, kid."

We finally arrived in Columbia Falls. The town kinda looked boring. I was used to a bigger city with lots of people and noise, but here it was tranquil and peaceful. I guess I could get used to this, too. If I tried – really hard.

Our house was smack dab in the middle of a forest, completely secluded. Okay, maybe that wasn't entirely true, but it was definitely on the outskirts of a forest. In the distance, I could see mountains. I'd known my parents had wanted to move for the peace and quiet, but I hadn't realized until now they meant this. There were no people here, only animals. Was I supposed to make friends with animals now?

"Where are our neighbors?" I asked, a little desperate.

As I'd feared, Dad answered, "We don't have neighbors."

"We're all alone in this forest?" I exclaimed.

"No, of course not. This is the Meadow Lake resort. There are a couple of hotels here – and a golf course," he added excitedly.

I was outraged. "You moved us here so you could golf?!"

"No," Dad said patiently. "But it is a nice benefit, don't you think?"

I groaned, exasperated. "How am I supposed to get to school?"

"I'll drive you," he offered. "And when the weather is nice enough, you can take your bike."

I groaned again. "What if someone kidnaps me on the way to school? No one will see!"

I knew I was blowing this whole thing out of proportion, but I just couldn't help but feel like he wasn't being fair to me. He and Mom had decided in a whim to move and they hadn't even asked how I felt about that.

"It won't be as bad as you think," Dad said, getting out of the car. "Take a look at the house. Isn't it beautiful?"

I hadn't even spared a glance at the house. I was too distressed about the fact that there were no human beings in this forest, not as far as I could see. I didn't see any hotels or a golf course so how far into the woods were we?

"Do we at least have WiFi?" I asked, defeated.

"Yes. Now take a look at the house."

I did. I had to admit that the house was lovely. It was wooden, complete with large glass panels. I was a little curious to see the inside.

"Oh, it's gorgeous," Mom gushed as she got out of the U-Haul to stand beside us. She put her arm around my shoulders. "We're going to be very happy here."

I hope so.

"Let's go inside," Dad said.

I followed my parents to the front door. When I walked inside, my mouth fell open. I closed it quickly before my parents noticed and looked around with wide eyes. This house was actually really beautiful. The floor was hardwood. The walls were painted a soft beige. I walked into the living room, which was spacious. It also had a fireplace. The dining table was wooden as well – I hadn't expected any different. Everything in this house seemed to be wooden, but, strangely, I liked it. I walked into the kitchen and stared at the biggest refrigerator I'd ever seen. Walking around the kitchen island, I moved back to the living room.

"It's so big," I said to my parents.

"Wait until you see your bedroom," Mom said smiling.

I almost ran upstairs and passed the master bedroom – which was huge. My room was further down the hall and I was pleased to see that I had my own private bathroom. I squealed.

Dad smirked. "We thought you'd like it."

After inspecting my own bathroom, I looked around in my bedroom. The walls were bare and painted white. There was a queen sized bed, a closet and, near the window, there was a desk.

"You can decorate it however you like," Dad continued. He put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed it gently. "We want you to feel at home here, Rose."

"Thanks," I said, smiling up at him. "I like it."

He smiled back. "Good."

After investigating the rest of the house, we went back outside and brought our stuff inside. After sitting for hours in the car, my legs were sore so I was glad to be able to walk around. It was nearly midnight when we finished unpacking. Dad told me to go to bed. He said he'd drive me to school tomorrow for which I was glad. I wasn't looking forward to riding my bike to school after this exhausting day.

I collapsed into bed and sighed in contentment. Closing my eyes, I fell asleep in an instant. I didn't get much sleep, though. I had to get up early because I had to make a good impression on my first day of school. I didn't like that I was nervous. Making friends was easy, right? It was no biggie. So why were my palms sweating when I entered my new high school for the first time?

In the atrium, a freckled boy with red hair waved at me. When I didn't respond, he walked over to me.

"Are you Rose?" he asked.

"Yes," I answered dumbly. Who the hell are you? "How do you know my name?"

"You looked lost so I figured you're the new student. I'm Mason, by the way," he said smiling brightly. "Welcome to our school. I'm supposed to show you around today."

"Oh, I thought I needed to go to the main office," I said, a little confused.

"Change of plans. Here is a map of the school," he said, "and your schedule, of course. Come on, I'll give you a quick tour before first period."

We chatted a little as he showed me around the school. I'd noted that Mason was very friendly and sociable. He definitely seemed like someone I could be friends with. When the bell rang, announcing first period, he dropped me off at my classroom.

"Here we are," he said cheerfully. "I hope you have a pleasant first day. If you want you can sit with me and my friends during lunch."

"Thanks, Mason," I said, giving him a grateful smile. "It was nice meeting you."

"You too. Enjoy Calculus," he said, winking at me. He started to walk away, but stopped in his tracks. "Oh, look out for Ms. Kirova. She's nasty."

"What does she teach?"

He grimaced. "Calculus."

My eyes widened. Damn.

Mason laughed quietly. "Go inside. She won't bite – yet."

I watched him leave. Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door and walked inside. Immediately, twenty students turned their heads to stare at me.

"Ah, you must be the new student," the teacher said. She looked at me through her glasses, her eyes stern. I assumed she was Ms. Kirova. "Rose Hathaway-Mazur?"

"Rose Hathaway is fine," I said, my voice quiet. With everyone staring at me, I was even more nervous than I already had been when I entered the school.

"Take a seat."

There was only one seat left and it was in the front. A blond haired girl sitting next to me offered me a smile before looking at the blackboard.

After class, I stood in the hallway, feeling lost and helpless. Even with the map, I had no clue where to go next.

"Hey, do you need help with that?"

The blond haired girl that had smiled at me earlier in class walked over to me. There was a skip in her step. She seemed so…cheerful.

She pointed at the map in my hands. "Where do you need to be?"

"I have English now," I answered after glimpsing at my schedule.

"Oh my God, me too!" the girl exclaimed and her emerald eyes lit up in excitement. "I'm Lissa."

I smiled. "Rose."

"That's a pretty name! Come on, I'll walk with you," Lissa offered, linking her arm through mine. "Where are you from, Rose?"

"Helena," I answered.

"Oh, I've been there," she said excitedly. "Why'd you move?"

"My parents wanted to take it more easy," I told her, "so they decided to move to a quiet, calm place."

"Then they're definitely in the right place," Lissa giggled. "It's kind of boring here. But maybe that'll change now that you're here," she added with a wink.

"I don't know about that," I said dryly.

"When did you arrive? I haven't seen you in town yet."

"Yesterday," I answered.

Her eyes widened a little. "Oh, and you already had to go to school?"

I shrugged. "Yeah."

"Well, if you want someone to show you around…" Lissa said smiling.

"Thank you, that would be nice."

Her smile widened. "Just let me know when you have had some time to settle in and we'll meet up. Where exactly do you live?"

"The Meadow Lake resort or something," I said. "It's in the middle of the woods," I added, scrunching up my nose. "I'm not sure if I'm going to like that."

"You'll get used to it," Lissa said, giving me a reassuring smile. "I live on the other side of town."

She continued to fire questions at me as we walked to our English class. I could already tell that she liked to chat – a lot.

When English ended, she asked if I wanted to have lunch with her and her friends. I agreed, even though Mason had already offered. I just didn't know where to find him so maybe it was better if I went with Lissa today.

"Hey guys," Lissa said. She was still as cheerful as this morning, which I found strange. This was the first day of the new school year. Shouldn't she be a little grumpy that school had started again? Everyone else seemed to be grumpy – me included. But I couldn't deny that Lissa lightened up the mood a little. "I brought someone with me today. Her name is Rose."

To my surprise, Mason was sitting at the table. "Hey Rose, take a seat. How was your first class? Did Ms. Kirova behave?" he asked, winking.

"Oh, you two have already met!" Lissa exclaimed.

"This morning," Mason answered.

Lissa motioned towards a boy with black hair and icy blue eyes. "This is my boyfriend, Christian," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder and squeezing it gently.

I offered him a smile, but he just stared at me.

"Who's this?" he asked.

"Rose," Lissa said patiently. "She's new here so be nice."

She sat down next to him and kissed him on the cheek. "How has your day been so far?"

They started talking so I moved to the other side of the table and sat down next to Mason. The guy next to him introduced himself as Eddie and shook my hand. We chatted a little during lunch and I found out they'd been best friends since kindergarten. They even finished each other's sentences.

Christian, Lissa's boyfriend, didn't say much. He seemed dark and broody. He was the complete opposite from Lissa and I found myself wondering what had brought them together.

"How are you getting home after school?"

Lissa and I were walking back to our lockers. Hers was close to mine. Unfortunately for me, we didn't have any more classes together today.

"My dad's going to pick me up," I answered.

"Good. Normally, I spend my afternoons with Christian, but my offer still stands," she said. "If you need a tour guide, I'm your girl."

I smiled. "Thanks, Lissa. That's very kind of you. I'm not sure when I'll have the time, though. I still have a lot of things to do at home…"

"Of course! Just let me know when you're finished," she said.

I nodded. "I will."

She grinned excitedly. "Great!"

"So how did you and Christian meet?" I asked curiously. She'd been asking questions about me all day, but I wanted to get to know her a little better as well.

"At school," she answered, leaning against the lockers. "I was dealing with some stuff and…well, one day he found me crying in the hallway… I'd never really talked to him before that day, but he was so kind to me." She smiled and a dreamy look appeared on her face. "That was last year. We've been dating ever since and I have to say it's wonderful with him. He's so…"

I was distracted when someone bumped into my shoulder and didn't hear the rest of Lissa's story. Instead, I looked up to glare at the guy who'd almost knocked me over. When he looked back at me, my heart skipped a beat and I froze. He was hot. No, wait, that wasn't right. He was incredibly hot.

The first thing that I noticed about him was his chocolate brown eyes and his dark hair that was tied into a small ponytail. What I probably should have noticed first was that he was freakishly tall – or maybe I was just really tiny. But those eyes… I kept looking back at his handsome face, at his eyes.

What the hell is wrong with me?

I blinked a couple of times. The guy was still looking at me, probably wondering why I was staring at him with my mouth wide open, and frowned before looking away and continuing down the hallway.

"What are you staring at?"

Lissa had finally noticed that I wasn't paying attention to her anymore.

I blinked again. "Who's that?"

Lissa followed my gaze. "That's Dimitri Belikov."

"He's hot," I blurted out, still staring at his back. His shoulders were broad and he looked like he was chiseled underneath that shirt.

"No, no, Rose," Lissa said, shaking her head at me. "That's a bad idea."

When he'd disappeared around the corner, I looked back at Lissa. "What's a bad idea?"

"I know what you're thinking, Rose," Lissa said, "but I'm telling you…it's not a good idea. You should stay away from Dimitri."

I frowned. "Why?"

"He's bad news."

"What do you mean?"

Lissa bit her lip, hesitating. "I don't like to gossip about these things, but… I'll say it if it means you'll stay away from him."

I was starting to feel annoyed. Why was she being so cryptic? "Just tell me."

She sighed. "He spent a year in juvie. He was released last week."

My eyes widened. Juvie? Really? "Why was he there?"

"He beat up his father," Lissa answered. "They say Dimitri almost killed him, but I'm not sure I believe that. You know how people like to exaggerate."

"If he really almost killed his father, wouldn't he still be in juvie?" I said. "I mean, they wouldn't let someone just leave after a year for a crime like that, right?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I don't really know the guy. No one does. He was kind of a loner before this all happened. Well, except for-" She cut herself off, frowning.

"Except for?" I pressed.

"Christian," she answered, almost reluctant. "They were friends before Dimitri was sent to juvie."

I raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Kind of," she said. "It's not like they were best friends, but they talked from time to time."

"And Christian doesn't know what happened?"

Lissa shaked her head. "No. Like I said, they weren't that close."

"Maybe he had a good reason for beating up his father," I said, pensive.

She looked at me as if I was crazy. "Is there any good reason to beat up your own father?"

I shrugged. "There might be."

Lissa looked doubtful. Glancing at the clock, she said, "We should hurry. Class is about to start."

I nodded and followed her down the hallway. She dropped me off at my classroom and told me she would see me tomorrow. Apparently, she had to leave early today because she had a dentist appointment.

Before she left, she asked me once more, "You're going to stay away from him, right?"

I forced a smile onto my face. "Of course."

"Rose, I'm serious. You shouldn't get involved with him."

"Don't worry, Lissa. I was just asking about him because I was curious," I reassured her. "I won't come near him."

"You promise?"

I hesitated, but then acquiesced. "I promise."

Thank you for checking out the first chapter to my new story. Please let me know if you liked it and want me to continue. I'm always a little nervous about posting a new story because I don't know if it's any good :P

Have a nice day/evening! :)