Dance With A Vampire for Chapter 15

As Alexander and I descended the aging staircase, I could smell the strange scent of old books combined with the intoxicating scent of cheese pizza.When we reached the bottom, we saw a fountain with rocks running along the back wall. It held some hefty goldfish, and gold and silver coins lay at the bottom like sunken treasures. A woman was sitting with her child as the little girl innocently tried to pet the yellow swimmers. "My mom brought me here when I was little. She used to give me a penny to throw into the fountain, " I shared with Alexander as we walked past a round child-sized table riddled with picture books. "My wish was always the same. That I'd become a vampire. " I gazed into his eyes. "Maybe that wish can finally come true. " Instead of answering, Alexander led me toward the conference room. We walked by shelves of picture books, tables of computers, and posters of the Cat in the Hat, Curious George, and Babar. The normally quiet library was filled with the sounds of kids talking and laughing. We finally reached the doors of the conference room. A long rectangular table was covered with pizza, popcorn, chips, and all the soda a preteen's bladder could hold. A middle-aged man, who looked more like a football coach than a librarian in his sweatshirt and jeans, was at the head of the room, pulling a movie screen down over the blackboard. About twenty kids in all were having a blast, hanging out on the weathered brown carpeting, lounging in beanbag and folding chairs, playing with MP3 players or Gameboys, and munching on snacks. Stationed at the doorway, I quickly scanned the room, searching for any white-haired preteen. I breathed a sigh of relief when I didn't see Valentine. But I did see something I never thought I'd witnessmy pesky sibling entertaining a small group of students who had gathered on the floor around him, cracking up like he was a nerdy Chris Rock. I was stunned. I'd always called Billy "Nerd Boy" for a reason, but now he was shining in a way I'd never seen before. I realized the scrawny little brother that I'd always picked on my whole life had something I didn't havea club of peers that he related to and who looked up to him as if he were a king. I hated to admit it, but I felt a tinge of pride and a tiny bit of jealousy. My puny little brother was lucky to have a group to belong tosomething I had never had. There was Chess Club, French Club, but never the Goth Club. I imagined a preteen roomful of students like Alexander and myself, eating gummy worms, reading Bram Stoker's Dracula, and watching Queen of the Damned. Suddenly the laughter stopped, and the students glared at us, like we were the nerdy ones. Billy Boy turned around. "What are you doing here?" he asked, joining Alexander and me by the door. "Is something wrong?" "Have you seen that pasty kid with black fingernails that you promised to show Henry's treehouse to?" "No. I told him we had Math Club tonight, so we agreed to meet at Henry's tomorrow at sunset. He eats dinner late, "