It was the evening after I had gone over to the Covington's house and discovered Braden. I was helping my mom set the dining room table for dinner tonight. Mr. and Mrs. Covington had actually agreed to come over for dinner tonight, and they were even going to bring Braden with them. I spent most of the time wondering what lies they would come up with to tell my parents.

The doorbell rang, causing me to jump and a fork to clatter to the floor. "I'll get it," I said in a rush, abandoning the fork and hurrying to the front door.

I heard my mother scoff and saw her bend down and pick up the utensil off the ground. Hiding a smirk at her reaction, I opened the front door and forced a smile upon my face. "Hi Mr. and Mrs. Covington," I said a bit too brightly. My gaze slid to the boy standing uneasily behind them and added cautiously, "Braden."

He gave me a small nod in response before glancing over his shoulder and at the forest that surrounded our tiny little neighborhood. Maybe the Covingtons were working on his manners…

"You look nice tonight, Penny," Mrs. Covington said politely.

"Oh, um," I glanced down at the jean skirt and tank top. "Thanks." I said respectfully before stepping out of the door way. "Come on in, dinner's almost ready so you can just have a seat at the table."

"Alright," Mrs. Covington said lightly, stepping inside the house and wandering into the dining room.

"The muffins were wonderful, by the way." Mr. Covington said as he stepped past me, gracing me with a small smile.

I returned the gesture and said, "Glad you like them."

The couple was in the dining room now, leaving Braden outside standing on the dimly lit porch. I tried to stifle my unease as I watched him, and a shiver ran down my spine when his sharp gaze met mine. Trying to ease the tension—mainly my tension—I said nonchalantly, "Do you needed to be invited in or something?"

The corner of his mouth twitched up in a smirk and he said coolly, "That's vampires that you're thinking about." He stepped past the threshold of my house before adding, "And only Dracula needed to be invited in, I believe."

I managed to force a small laugh. "I'll be sure to keep my windows and door locked, then."

"You should." He said flippantly. "You never know what's out there." Without a second glance he strode into the dining room, leaving me frozen in place.

Once I came to my senses, I shut the front door with a little more force than usual and, with slight hesitation, slid the deadbolt into place. When I turned to face the dining room, I saw a small smirk on Braden's face, though he was paying attention to the conversation that my parents were trying to have with him.

I tried not to appear too irritated as I stepped into the room, taking my usual seat next to my mom. She usually sat next to my father, who sat at the head of the table. Mr. Covington would sit at the foot, and Mrs. Covington next to him. And then Braden in the empty seat.

Well, I thought gratefully, at least he's not sitting directly across from me. Just… right next to Dad… Pressing my lips together, I slipped my feet out of my tan-colored Rainbow flip-flops and folded my legs under myself.

Mom and Mrs. Covington, absorbed in a conversation about God knew what, walked into the kitchen, going to get the food. Dad and Mr. Covington sat in their predicted spots but… Braden sat right across from me.

When I met his gaze, there was a polite smile on his lips. "Your mother said that you go to the public school down here. Rumbling Waters or something?"

I nodded once and said, just barely audible, "That's the one."

Braden nodded slightly. "I believe my… parents…"—I noticed that he faltered on the word—"want me to attend that school."

Mr. Covington nodded once, apparently having been listening to the conversation. "That's right. He starts tomorrow. I hope you'll be able to show him around, Penny. It's always nice to know someone when you're new."

"Well, it's nice that you get to start on Monday. And sure, I can show Braden around and introduce him to people and all of that fun stuff." I said tightly, not liking Mr. Covington's idea one bit.

Mom and Mrs. Covington walked back into the room at that moment, setting the food onto the table. They had just saved me from continuing a strained conversation. I noticed that Mrs. Covington faltered slightly when she noticed that Braden had taken what would have been her assumed spot, but she didn't say anything. She sat silently next to her "adopted son" without a single objection.

Once dinner had started I decided to see how far the Covington's story went with their alleged son. "So Braden," I started, glancing up from my food. "Where are you from?"

"Around here, actually." He said blithely without skipping a beat.

"Oh. Well it's a small town, so how come I've never seen you around before?" I asked, cocking my head to one side curiously.

Braden glanced up at me, his dark eyes expressionless. "I'm from the city."

"I guess that could explain it." I said, shrugging my shoulders. "What school did you go to before Mr. and Mrs. Covington so kindly adopted you?"

I knew he didn't have an answer for that, and the Covingtons knew it, too.

"Braden was homeschooled. That's why he doesn't know most of the kids around here." Mrs. Covington said quickly, glancing at her husband once she was done speaking.

"Oh. That's cool." I said lightly before saying to Braden, "Maybe I could see where you used to live sometime soon."

"Maybe," Braden replied coolly, never having looked away from me with that blank expression. He knew I was up to something. Knew that I knew something.

"Penny what's with the interrogation?" Mom murmured to me, a smile plastered on her face.

"Just curious," I replied before going back to my food.

I didn't say anything for the rest of the dinner. My family and the Covingtons and their new "son" stood on the porch talking for about fifteen minutes. Braden and I stood by silently. I think he was actually listening, while I was swatting away mosquitoes and scratching the bites where they had gotten past me.

Finally, they decided that it was time to go. I was beyond relieved… until Braden pulled me aside. He kept his voice low as he said, "I know what you're trying to do, Penny."

"Do you now?" I asked lightly.

"Take it from someone who knows," He said, eyes slightly narrowed, "Knowledge isn't always a good thing. And if you actually had some common sense, you'd know that this isn't something that you want to find out about."