Maya's POV

The plane ride wasn't that long actually, I was prepared for a 20 hour flight but it felt like 30 minutes. It was a private jet, which didn't really surprise me. I know our principal has money. I guess it felt shorter since I fell asleep. It was almost 8pm when I read the letter and I didn't even bother to grab my phone when we drove to Mr Woods's house.

Stepping out of the plane another type of cold hits me in the face. Definitely a snow storm. I don't even know where we are but the sun is out and the snow is thick on the ground.

There isn't much conversation going around. Mr Reynolds and Mr Woods talked but I didn't bother to listen and Lily slept almost the entire flight.

We walk out onto the runway and is met with two black SUV's. We get in and start to drive. The whole way wherever we were going, I fiddle with the necklace in my hand and the letter in the other. I don't even know what I am going to say or do. Everything happened so quickly, maybe to quickly. Mr and Mrs Reynolds didn't even object to me going and they came with as if it was the most normal thing. Lily seemed so eager just to get away. She likes to travel and any opportunity to get away from town is an adventure.

Looking out the window I saw a few Spanish flags hanging around. Are we in Spain? That kind of makes sense. Alex lived in Spain with her mother all these years. Oh gosh I am going to meet her mother.

About an hour of complete silence we were driving through the woods, far away from the last town we went through. My eyes land on a big set of gates and it immediately opens up. We drive further down the road for almost half an hour. Small houses start to appear with people working in the fields and in the little shops they had. Everyone kept staring at the cars that drove by. Where the hell are we?

We reach another set of gates and this time when it opens up my eyes land on a castle. "What the hell is this?" I whisper to myself.

"This is my home Maya" Mr Woods says from the front seat and my heart stops.

"A castle?"

"Yes Maya but we can talk about that later." He laughs.

We come to a stop around a big fountain. For some reason there is no snow here but it's still cold. Gosh I hate winter.

We step out and my jaw drops. This place is huge.

"Fucking hell" Lily yells in awe. "This place is amazing"

"Come let's go" Mr Woods says grabbing onto my arm a little aggressively but I don't say anything. There are a big set of stairs leading up to a big set of doors. And all the way up there are two lines of guards with spears. I feel all eyes on me as we walk but they bow in respect to Mr Woods.

We quickly walk up the stairs and through the doors. I hear Mr Woods take a deep breath of relief. "What the hell was that about?" I ask.

"Nothing, we are safe in here" he smiles.

"We weren't saf-"

"Darling you're home!" I hear a beautiful voice chant from a distance and I look to where the sound was coming from. Across the room is a woman with a beautiful red dress. Her hair is just like Alex's and her eyes just as blue. Now I know where she gets her looks from. This must be her mother.

She comes forward with arms stretched out wide. "This must be the beautiful Maya" she says pulling me into a hug. "Welcome to our home honey" she squeals.

"Selena not now. She has a bit of anger inside and we need Alex so she can direct it towards her" Mr Woods says taking her away from me.

"It's nice to meet you Mrs Woods and thank you for welcoming me to your rather shockingly massive house" I smile. "And yes I need Alex. Is she here?"

"You just missed her she went out the back" she says pointing behind her.

"Come I will show you Maya" Mr Woods says walking with me.

We walk through a huge room and into a hallway all the way down to a door which lead out to a large patio with the same large stair case that leads onto a green field. This place is massive. Far down the field I can see a few people running around but it's to far for me to see who it is.

"Where is she?" I ask.

"I don't see her. Maybe we should go inside. She will be back any minute." Her mother says.

"I want to see her now" I sigh looking around and seeing a piece of wire on the railing on the patio. I take the wire, take a deep breath and stick it into my arm and drag it through my skin. Within minutes the blood comes running out and dripping onto the floor.

"Maya what are you doing!?" He says covering my cut.

"Getting her attention" I stutter in pain. I look out onto the field but this time everyone is standing still and looking this way.

Suddenly the all start running our way. I hear Mr Woods growl a little next to me. He steps a bit forward looking down at the bodies coming our way. "You better show up Alex" he whispers under his breath and now I am a bit scared.

Just before they reach the bottom of the stairs I see someone coming from way down the field and within seconds Alex steps inbetween the crowd and us. "No! She is mine!" She yells and they all stop in their tracks.

I feel my heart beating a little faster just seeing her from behind. Wearing black leggings, black boots and a leather jacket with her hair tied back into a ponytail, she looks absolutely beautiful. I missed her so much. Wait what does she mean about mine? Oh gosh she is going to stuck me dry.

The crowd of people start to walk off glaring at me. Alex turns around and looks at me. Her eyes are soft and welcoming but she sighs "Maya" she rubs her forehead and pinches the bridge of her nose. "What are you doing here?" She starts walking up the steps closer to us. Her father steps away with her mother, out of sight. "And why the fuck would you cut yourself next to a field of vampires?"

"What?" I frown. "Ok first of all I did not know that they were vampires and I might pass out in a few seconds but that's not why I am here" I almost yell feeling my rage towards her again. She is just a few steps below me and I take out the letter from my jacket. "I am here because of this!" I yell holding the open letter to her.

She sighs and looks anywhere but my eyes.

"So you came all this way to tell me that you got my letter and I assume you're not happy about it?" She frowns.

"Do I look happy to you?" I glare at her.

She doesn't answer instead she looks at her feet.

"Alex look at me" I snap clenching my jaw. "What is this?" I say pointing to the letter.

"You know what that is" she sighs.

"Oh and this" I show her my necklace before I throw it at her. "You don't buy someone a necklace like that without putting it on yourself!" I hiss at her. It hits her in the chest but she catches it.

She takes a deep breath looking at it. She looks up at me and we both stare at each other. I let out a frustrating chuckle.

"What do you want me to say Maya? I thought you would be happy?"

"Be happy? Be happy about what? That you left without saying goodbye? without any explanation? That you set me free" I look at the letter. "To explore the rest of the world and do what I want?" I feel a lump in my throat as I speak.

"Yes, you-" she starts but I cut her off.

"Oh wait maybe I would be happy because I don't have to worry about seeing you." I feel a tear run down my face. "Or maybe because you left me your car?" I look down at the letter again.

"This can be a good reason. Asking your dad and Lily's parents to watch over me. Or that you will do your very best to protect me.....from a fucking distance" I throw my hands in the air. I don't swear but I am so mad at het right now. I could see she is shocked by my choice of words. "These last few weeks, was that your very best attempt to protect me?"

"Yes it was" she says but I snap back. "Bullshit Alex. You and I both know that you are the best at protecting me. This is probably now the 4th time you saved my life. So don't come with this 'do my very best crap'. I don't believe you."

She looks down at the floor because she knows I am right.

"But do you know what the best reason would be for me to be happy? Or what you think would make me happy?" She looks up at me with tears in her eyes and I look down at the letter. "The fact that you think I would be happy that you are out of my life" I cry.

"Maya you said you wanted to leave" she steps a few steps closer. "The first time you said I should leave you alone. I didn't listen and look what happened. You almost died because of me. I couldn't let that happen again. That night when I found you on the floor I saw fear in your eyes and I promised myself I won't let anything or anyone make you feel like that again. And it happened again when I told you-"

"What did you expect Alex?" I cut her off. "You told me you were a fucking vampire. Of course I was scared. Of course I wanted to leave because my brain couldn't wrap around it. I just needed some time to process it. At this particular moment I am scared shitless because I flew halfway across the world to come yell at you. I am in a fucking castle which I have many questions about. A group of vampires just tried to kill me and I....." I pause to take a breath wiping my tears away. "I don't care about any of that because I wanted to see you. Even though I still think you want to kill me. I-I...... I miss you Alex."

She looks me dead in the eye and she is breathing heavily.

"You not being part of my day is awful. You leaving me broke my heart. So no. Nothing in this letter will make me happy. Not your car, not seeing you around, not your dad watching over me or going on with my life. The only thing that made me happy was my fuzzy slippers and hot chocolate but I still missed you. You weren't there"

"I am sorry Maya" she whispers in a breathless voice. "I thought that is what you wanted"

"No Alex. I just want you." I breathe out in desperation.

It's the first time I have said it out loud and my legs are a bit wobbly right now. I think Alex noticed my vulnerability because she closes the space between us and pulls me into a hug. I tense up a bit at the sudden contact. The contact I have been craving for the past few weeks. The warmth of her body. The way she makes me feel safe and protected. Her holding me is like she is putting all my broken pieces back together. Being this close to her is what I want. I am still scared but I can't stay away from her.

She releases me but doesn't move back. My hands slightly resting on her shoulders and her hands on my hips. Very touchy but I kinda like it. "Maya are you sure? I don't want you to feel pressured or anything. Even if you don't want me I would never hurt you or let anyone else hurt you"

I smile and shake my head "I want you Alex. That's all I ever wanted but yes I was scared. And yes I am still scared. I might really pass out but I have these feelings inside me that I can't explain. Doesn't matter how mad I am at you right now my heart is calm because I am near you"

She smiles slightly. "I can explain all of that to you. If you will give me a chance"

"I still think you are going to kill me though" I breath out.

"I know but I am not." She laughs softly with a caring look.

"Here's your stupid letter back" I press it against her chest. "I don't want it"

She takes it from me and rolls it into a ball throwing it down the steps. "I like your slippers. Very elegant" she chuckles.

"It's winter" I blush now seeing how it must look wearing my sleepwear while she is dressed like that. Not even talking about her mother with that gorgeous gown. I flew in a private jet with my school principal. Walked past two lines of guards who obviously wanted to kill me.

Just thinking about all of that, I start to feel a little dizzy.

"You want to go inside?" She asks a bit concerned. Probably seeing the realisation on my face.

"Hmm I am good. I might need some fresh air in a few minutes. A lot has happened in the last I don't know how many hours." I shift in my stance remembering everything that happened.

"Are you still mad at me?"

"Yes" I frown. "Did you not hear my speech?"

"I did, I think the whole kingdom heard you" she laughs.

"Kingdom?" I raise my eyebrows.

"Oh boy. We have a lot to discuss. Can we go inside please?" She asks.

I slowly turn around and I feel her hand slightly brushing against my back as we walk towards the door. I feel my blood sugar dropping, shit now I am panicking. I grab onto her shoulder and take a few deep breaths. When did her parents leave? They were here behind me?

"Are you ok?" She asks holding me steady right before we enter.

I feel my head spin and my vision become blurry. "Uhmm no , I-I don't th-" my speech becomes sloppy.

"Maya.....no, no,no..." Is all I heard right before everything went black and my body became limp.

....

Alex's POV

"For fucks sake. Can't anything be normal with us!" I yell into space as I carry her inside the castle. What the hell? She passed out. From what? Hunger? Exhaustion? Shock? What the fuck?

"What happened?" My mom comes running to meet me in the ceremony hall that connects with the outside staircase. We have the best parties here and it's so beautiful at night with the low lights and the view from the nearby town in the distance.

"She passed out" I sigh and continue walking with my mother running beside me. As I get to the stairs I am met with Lily and my father who immediately looks at me with wide eyes.

Oh shit Princess Alex.

Oh yeah she is finally 18 and her parents must have told her about everything. Her concern should be with Maya and not me but that's ok.

"What happened darling?" He asks as we all walk up the stairs now. I didn't need everyone's help but it's nice that they care so much about her.

"She passed out." I say again finally reaching my side of the castle. Kicking the doors open I carry her to my bed and lay her down. She is so light and delicate, I want to carry her all the time.

"Lial!" I yell and my new personal helper comes through the door with seconds to spare. They are all afraid of me. Everytime I come here there is always someone new. It's never the same person. Maybe they quit after I leave. I don't know but I don't care.

"Yes Princess?" He says in a shaky hesitant voice.

"Get me a glass of ice water" I command and he immediately leaves.

I turn my attention back to Maya. My sweet beautiful Maya. I can't believe she is here. She came back because she wants me. She wants to be with me. I think. I first have to tell her everything though. I am not going to get my hopes up this time. She is in control of her own body and she always will be. The decision will always be hers.

I sit next to her looking at her beautiful face. She has a few scars and I can heal them for her but it has to be her decision. I want her to be apart of everything I do and can do.

Her hand is so soft in mine and I wipe a strand of hair from her face. Her heart is beating peacefully and her breathing is normal. I know she is ok but I will stay here until she wakes up.

"We will leave you. Come down for dinner ok" my dad rubs my shoulder and I slowly nod not taking my eyes of Maya.

I hear Lial running back from downstairs just as everyone leaves. He places the glass of water next to the bed. "Will that be all princess?"

"Yes thank you. You can leave" I slightly smile and he bows before leaving the room. He closes the door behind him and silence fills the space around us. The only sound is Maya's heartbeat and it is beautiful.

Alex. No, no, no, no.

Maya jerks up from the bed breathing heavily.

"Hey, it's ok. You are ok" I say in a concerned tone.

As soon as she saw me and felt my hand in hers she let out a deep breath. "I thought it was a dream" she wipe her forehead. "Wait what happened? Where am I now?"

"You passed out either from hunger or because you are tired and you are in my room.... again" I smile.

"This is now the second time I have woken up in your bed." She laughs falling back down on the pillow. "Oh but this one is nicer than back home" she groans cuddling into my pillow and blankets.

Now this I can get used to.

"Are you ok? Do you want some water?" I offer and she nods with a small smile.

Oh wow. Atleast this time I didn't wake up without her. I am so glad it wasn't a dream.

I hand her the glass as she sits up with her back against the headboard. "You have a really nice room. I am not surprised about the colour but it's really beautiful"

"Thank you" I smile resting my hand on the other side of her body next to her hip, leaning a bit towards her.

I don't even know if she noticed her hand movements along my forearm, gently rubbing over my jacket. I should've taken it off.

She looks around the room taking everything in while sipping on her water and my focus is only on her and her hand. I am screaming inside. Her touch is amazing.

"So can we talk about the castle part now?" She snaps me from my trance.

"Are you sure? Don't you want to sleep for a bit first?" I frown tilting my head in sympathy.

"No I am ok. I will sleep early tonight. Wait is it ok if I sleep over I didn't even ask you or your dad oh and your mom. What must she think if me? Just coming here unannounced and then staying without asking."

I roll my eyes at her. "Would you stop please. You don't have to ask their or my permission to stay here Maya. You are like a daughter to my dad, you know that right. I think he likes you more than me" I laugh

"Yeah I am his favourite" she smirks. "But seriously though is it ok if I stay here for a couple of days? The Christmas holidays are over in two weeks. Is that to long?"

"Actually the total opposite" I smile. "You can stay here as long as you want."

"Thank you" she smiles giving my arm a tight squeeze. "Now about this beautiful place you call home"

"Ok uhmm" I stand up but she holds onto my hand."please don't go"

"I just want to get a chair so you don't feel overwhelmed with me being so close to you"

"I won't. Please don't go" she sighs trying to pull me down to sit and I eventually give in.

"If you want some air or want me to go stand in the corner that is fine. I know this is going to be a shock to you. But please don't run. You can if you want to but just know that I am coming after you ok"

"Are you going to kill me now?" She asks.

"No Maya. I am never going to kill you" I sigh in frustration.

"Ok then I won't run" she smiles.

I shift my sitting position on the bed to be more comfortable still facing her with my hand where it was and her hand still holding onto my arm. "Ok uhm. Let's start at the beginning. Have you ever heard of Dracula?"

"Yes everyone has. The great legend. The most powerful of vampires" she nods.

"Very true but he is not just a legend. He is my father" I squint looking at her for a reaction. Her eyes go wide and her mouth slightly opens in shock.

"You're joking right" she chuckles. "He is a myth"

"Oh he is very real and no I am not joking. The great Dracula is my father. He is the King of vampires, hence the castle"

She pulls her legs up in a bent position but her hand is still gripping on my arm. "So if he is the King then you are....a princess?" She frowns with a small smile.

"I hate the title though but yes I am." I smile.

Her smile widens and she covers her mouth. "Oh my gosh that is so cool. You are a princess. My school Principal is the most feared being on earth.....well that explains a lot. His eyes are very intimidating" she raises her eyebrows with a nod as she stares into space.

"Yes he has" I laugh. "So my dad rules over all mystical creatures and this Kingdom is a safe haven for any creature. This is where they train or just don't want to go out into the world. There are no rules that state that they have to leave. They can live here for the rest of their lives"

She blinks a bit. "All mystical creatures?"

"Yeah, vampires and werewolves"

"Werewolves!" She gasps gripping on my arm a little tighter in fear.

"Yes but we all live in peace. I have many friends that are wolves. We don't fight with each other. They know their place. You don't have to be scared Maya. They are actually very gentle beings" I smile.

"Yeah till you piss him off"

"True" I laugh.

"Ok so you are a vampire princess and you have werewolf friends. Got it. Anything else?"

"A lot more" I laugh. "But maybe I shouldn't tell you everything at once. It can be a lot"

She sits up and crosses her legs. We are really close to each other now so I move a few inches away to make her more comfortable. "Alex. I have been confused for the last 4 weeks. Please can you just tell me everything?"

"Ok I am not going to tell you everything. You can ask any questions and I promise to answer it"

"Ok uhmm earlier today, when the group of vampires came towards me. You appear almost out of nowhere? How did you do that?" She asks fiddling with her hands in her lap. I miss her touch but it's ok. She is still here so I am happy.

"Ok so vampires have certain super abilities. We can move really fast. And because I have my father's blood I can move faster than any other vampire. So yes it seemed like I came from nowhere but I ran from the woods across the field as soon as I heard your heartbeat. And when I smelled your blood I ran even faster" I sigh looking at her wrist where the cut was. "That was really stupid by the way"

"Okkk. I know that now, I'm sorry" she says with a cheapish smile.

"It's ok, my dad wouldn't have let anything happen to you but it had to be me" I sigh thinking back to that moment. I was so far out, I thought I wouldn't make it in time.

"Why?" She whispers. I look up away from her wrist to meet a confused face. I shake my head and take a deep breath through my nose. I don't want to tell her. Not now at least, I want to have her to myself for a while just incase she runs away again. "Alex?"

"Yeah?" I breathe out.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah I am good. Can I get you something to eat?" I decide to change the subject with a convincing smile.

"No thank you and don't change the subject" she laughs obviously catching on.

I smile and look down at my lap before rubbing my hand over my face. "How about I tell you something else? I absolutely know you are concerned about Lily" trying again and this time it worked.

Her eyes go wide and she shifts in her seat. "Oh shit yes. Where is she? Her parents?"

"Ok relax" I touch her arm. "Lily is fine. This might come as a shock but Andrew and Alana are also vampires"

She gasps covering her mouth again.

"And we have a rule that if both parents are vampires they have to tell the children or child when they turn 18 because things can change when she turns 18" I smile hoping not to explain that.

"Oh shit. So she knew this whole time and she didn't tell me about her parents? I have slept in their house they could've killed me!" She starts to panic and I grab both her hands. Her heart is beating fast and her breathing is shorter.

"Hey, Maya look at me." I call for her. She looks at me. "You were so safe with them and they know the rules Maya. They would never hurt you. Please know that." I say that in my most sincere voice.

"Is Lily...." She says in a shaky voice gripping onto my hands.

"No she is not" I smile slightly. "Would it be so bad if she was?"

"If she didn't tell me from the beginning like you did, the yes!" She exclaimed.

"Ok, ok, ok. I am sorry" I sigh. "But she couldn't tell you because she is not allowed to tell anyone else. So don't be mad at her ok"

She nods and rests her head against the headboard with a big sigh. "I hate all this secrecy. Because right now I am the only one who doesn't know anything"

"I don't want to overwhelm you with everything at once. But I promise to tell you everything. Maybe even something that Lily will never know" I smile.

That caught her attention and a smile spreads across her face. "Promise?"

"You know, we already have a secret that nobody else knows" I smile.

"What?" She frowns and the scar above her eye catches my attention. I need to change the subject again. I need to make her happy.

I smile and stand up from the bed. "I can't say it out loud. There are eyes and ears roaming these halls."

She opens her mouth in disbelief looking at me while I walk into the bathroom. I get the mirror from the wall and bring it to the bed.

"What is that for?" She frowns.

"I want to ask you something and it is totally your choice if you want to or not" I sit down and look at her.

"Ok?"

"I see you still have your scar above your eye and on your cheek. And if you want to, I can take it away. If you want to forget about it? But if you don't then that is ok"

She frowns throughout my questions. "How will you do that?"

"Have you checked your arm after you cut it?"

She immediately lifts her sleeve and gasps seeing her arm is totally fine. "What the hell?"

"When my father held your wound he healed you. We have the ability to heal. So I can heal those scars for you. I can only imagine that every time you look in the mirror you think of that horrible night?"

She looks down and sighs "I do. I hate it"

"Do you want me to heal it for you?" I smile.

"Yes plea- wait. First tell me how." She quickly asks in a nervous tone.

I laugh. "Ok uhm it might be weird but I will use my saliva. Don't worry I won't lick you though. I will put it on my finger? Is that ok?"

"Ok a bit gross but I want to see it" she laughs.

I roll my eyes. "Don't be so dramatic" I move closer to her and hand her the mirror. "Ok you look in the mirror and you will see it heal."

She nods and looks at herself. I lean closer to her and I can hear her heart speeding up a bit. This is the closest we have ever been other then when she layed in my arms in the back of the car. I lick my finger and slowly trace it over her cheek bone. After a few seconds the scar disappears. She gasps immediately touching her face.

"No way!" She yells in shock but she smiles in excitement. I only smile and watch her be amazed. She giggles like the cute girl she is and in the moment I am just so happy that she is here with me.

"Ok do the other one please" she says holding the mirror even closer to her face. I lick my finger and trace it abover her eye. She watches closely and her mouth falls open. "Oh my goooosh!" She squeals.

"I feel like I should've showed you this before I told you I was a vampire" I laugh.

She rolls her eyes and keeps looking at herself in the mirror. "To soon Alex. I am still mad at you"

I groan and fall down onto the bed with a loud sigh.

"Oh don't be so dramatic" she says in a sarcastic voice and hits me on the stomach with the mirror.

"Ow!" I yelp in pain holding my stomach.

"Oh whatever. I assume you don't even feel pain" she laughs.

"Not physically but emotionally yes." I say staring up at the ceiling. Maya then straightens her leg over my stomach. I smile at the weird way of affection because she is still looking at her face and she did it with ease. She is starting to feel comfortable with me and I love it.

"I can't believe your spit can heal scars. I could sell it and become a millionaire" she smiles looking at me.

"How the fuck would you get the saliva from my mouth into a bottle?" I laugh putting my hand on her lower leg.

"I could catch your drool while you sleep?" She laughs with a disgusted face.

"I don't drool, thank you very much" I smile.

"Of course you don't" she rolls her eyes.

A knock on the door startles Maya a bit and she looks up at the closed doors.

"Yes?" I ask.

"Dinner is served your highness" I hear Lial speak from behind the doors.

"Oohh, your highness?" Maya smirks with playful eyebrows.

"Shut the fuck up" I laugh standing up. "Come let's go get some food in your body"

"I don't want to. I want to stay here" She whine cuddling into the pillows. How cute is that? I wish she would cuddle into me like that. I would stay in bed with her the whole day, wrapped up in each other, naked.

"Come let's go. You and Lily can gossip about the secret you both had" I say holding my hand out to her.

"Oohh that's true" she smiles grabbing my hand and I help her stand up from the bed. She puts on her slippers and ties her hair. "Can I have dinner in my pajamas? That's probably not appropriate?"

"Maya. You can wear anything you want whenever you want. Technically you are still celebrating Christmas so you can wear your fuzzy slippers for as long as you want" I smile walking her out the door.

"Ok good because I didn't pack a bag" she laughs.

"I know. You can wear my clothes or we can go get you some tomorrow?"

"I can't even remember the last time I went shopping for new clothes." She frowns and that makes me sad.

"Ok we are definitely going." I say as we walk down the stairs to the dining room.