Dance With A Vampire for Chapter 25

I commanded to Billy Boy when we walked through our front door. "He's trouble. " Billy Boy rolled his eyes. "Just because he didn't show? Something must have come up, " he surmised. "Besides, I'm sure he's just lonely. I've never seen him at school, so he probably needs a friend, " he said, stopping at the foot of the stairs. "It doesn't matter; you have a friend already. " "You're not my boss. " "Running around with him can lead to all sorts of mess. " "How do you know? You don't even know him. " "I can just tell. " "Why, because he has tattoos and wears black? You're judging Valentine, just like everyone judges you. Just because he has black fingernails doesn't mean he's a monsterthat's how you've defended yourself for years. And now look at you, behaving just like the town reacts to you. " Billy Boy would've had a point if Valentine wasn't a vampire. Even so, maybe my brother was right. Maybe Valentine was more like Alexander than Jagger. Maybe I was making assumptions that weren't fair. "The day you start listening to others is the day I start listening to you, " he said, and stormed up the stairs to his room. "What's going on?" my mom asked as I entered the kitchen to find her wiping off the countertop. "I heard you two shouting. " "Nothing, " I replied, opening the refrigerator. "One minute you're insisting we include your brother at dinner, the next you're yelling at each other. " "I thought that was normal, " I said, grabbing a soda. "I guess it is, " she admitted. I closed the refrigerator door. "I have some news, " I said. "I'm going to prom. " My mother's face lit up as if I were a twenty-five-year-old woman announcing my engagement. "Congratulations!" she exclaimed, hugging me hard. "We'll have to buy you a dress and shoes. " "That's not necessary, " I said, twisting off the plastic bottlecap. "I'll find something at the thrift store. " My mother wrinkled her nose. "You'll be attending prom, not a nightclub.