I laughed as I stepped out of Jackson's car and found myself surrounded by vampires, all arguing over who got to hug me first. Jackson stayed on his side of the car, his arms crossed over his chest and a scowl on his face. He was going to have to learn how to deal with this eventually.

Jerome won the argument by saying that he was the leader and his word was final. I rolled my eyes, but accepted his hug and friendly peck on the head. He pulled back, keeping his hands on my shoulders as he smiled. "My, my. Our little party girl is all graduated."

I rolled my eyes. "It's like I'm all grown up," I teased them.

Jerome winked at me. "Oh, I've never doubted that you're all grown up."

Jackson growled as he pulled me away from Jerome and into his chest, his arms settling possessively around my waist. All the vampires stared at him in shock, with the exception of Xavier and Levi.

I gave them an apologetic smile and said, "Guys, this is my mate, Jackson." Their faces twisted, but they all nodded politely in greeting to Jackson as I went around and introduced them all. Jackson returned the gesture but didn't allow me to move an inch.

I smiled at the group. "It's so nice to see you all again!" I told them, happily.

They grinned back and nodded in agreement.

"Congratulations, Cecilia," Nila told me with a bright smile. "I bet you're excited to be done with high school."

I nodded in agreement, patting Jackson's hands on my stomach before pulling away from him to hug her and Lewis. "I definitely am! It feels so good!"

Nila laughed and Lewis patted my back. Then they pushed me down to Anthony since he hadn't gotten a hello hug yet either. I was passed around until they'd all gotten a chance to congratulate, tease and hug me and then Jackson pulled me back into him.

I shook my head at his possessive behavior and had to hold back a laugh when Jerome and Levi rolled their eyes at his behavior. I glanced over the parking lot as cars started pulling in and then smiled at my vampire friends. "Well, I'd better start mingling for a while. Thank you guys for coming."

"Save a dance for me, Celia!" Jerome called after me.

I laughed and waved back at him. "I'll save a dance for all of you! I think I need to relearn the Cha-Cha!" Their laughter followed us as we moved down the beach to chat with the others that had shown up.

"Was that so bad?" I questioned Jackson as we walked hand-in-hand.

He gave me a look. "They're very touchy-feely," he commented. "And you are not dancing with them!"

I shook my head at him and glared. "I will too be dancing with them. They're my friends, Jackson and that's all they want to do! They were just hugging me. Even your pack members do that."

Before Jackson could reply, I was tugged out of his arms by Eli and I gave Jackson an "I told you so" look over Eli's shoulder as I returned the hug. Jackson rolled his eyes.

"Congratulations, Ceci," Eli told me, setting me back on my feet and giving me a smile.

"Thanks, Eli," I replied. "Where's Alice?"

"Right here!" she called happily, attacking me from my right side. I laughed as I turned into her hug. "Are you ready to party?" she asked of me with a cheeky grin.

I laughed as Eli pulled her possessively back to his side and nodded. "You bet I am," I replied.

She laughed and patted Eli's chest as she calmly assured him, "Calm down, I'll be partying with you and no one else."

Eli hummed in satisfaction and I waved as he pulled her away.

I smiled as I looked around the beach. There were a few people from school here already and more were pulling into the parking lot. The vampires and werewolves were already here and there was a DJ set up in the sand, people already dancing in the sand to the beat of the music pouring from his speakers. I grabbed Jackson's hand and pulled him with me as I starting towards the crowd.

I spent a decent forty-five minutes greeting and chatting with everyone that was there. I was incredibly proud of Jackson. He was handling the socializing with the vampires very well as long as I stayed by his side. I could feel him tense beside me, but he was polite and not completely overbearing with his protectiveness.

He grinned when I took his hand and pulled him into the crowd of dancers. I leaned into him for a sweet kiss before we began moving along with the beat. The music was loud and pumping and everyone seemed as into it as we were. I recognized the DJ from the club, but I hadn't been formally introduced to him before.

Jackson wasn't very happy when Anthony stole me away to re-teach me the cha-cha. He spent the entire time glaring. I caught him smiling a couple of times when I would mess up and laugh at myself, but other than that it was a big ol' glare fest for him. I eventually caught on to the dance and Anthony made a face at me like he didn't like what he was about to do.

"Jackson!" he called, waving him over and making my eyes widen. Jackson was wary, but his curiosity drove him to see why the vampire wanted his attention. "Now, mister werewolf, I'm not always going to be here to dance with her, so now it's your turn to learn."

I almost laughed at the look on his face. His jaw dropped and he stared at Anthony with a lack of comprehension. "Uh, what?"

His words broke my composure and a giggle escaped. "Anthony is going to teach you how to cha-cha as well, Jackson!" I told him.

Lewis had to have been in hearing range because in the blink of an eye he was beside us, using his creepy vampire speed, and eying Jackson appraisingly. I jumped at his sudden appearance and he winked at me before turning his attention back to Jackson. "That's a wonderful idea, Anthony!" he exclaimed excitedly. "You teach him to cha-cha and then I can teach him to waltz. Ceci won't have to ever worry about not having a dance partner that way!"

I couldn't help laughing again at the look on Jackson's face. He looked like we were about to rip off his manhood, feed it to wolves and take away his man card. I patted his back as I tried to stifle my laughter. "It's fun, Jackson," I assured him. "I promise."

He gave me a skeptical look, but it was Lewis that got him to open up to the idea by leaning over to whisper, "She's right. She has fun and you get to hold her close."

I watched Lewis and Jerome teach Jackson the basics of the two dances for nearly an hour. When he'd grasped it, they pulled me in and made him dance with me so they could watch his footwork and make sure he was doing it properly. He wasn't nearly as confident and smooth as Anthony and Lewis, but I enjoyed dancing with him even more. The tingles from our mate bond were constantly present and I could never complain about being in his arms.

We were interrupted after three dances when a new song came over the speakers that didn't fit the waltz or the cha-cha. Chubby Checker's the Twist.

A lean, dark hand tapped Jackson on the shoulder as Jerome appeared at our sides. "May I have this dance?" he asked me, holding out a hand with a bow. I kissed Jackson on the cheek before accepting Jerome's offer. It wasn't really a dance where you hold each other, so we separated and started dancing as if we'd been alive in the sixties. I guess if you wanted to be technical, Jerome had been alive in the sixties, but I hadn't been.

When the song finished, Jerome thanked me sweetly and kissed the back of my hand before moving to find another dance partner. I was parched after all the dancing and looked around for Jackson. Lewis and Anthony were teaching him again, so I headed towards the drink table by myself, smiling at the fact that Jackson didn't even seem to realize that he'd been left alone with vampires.

Everyone must have been dancing or otherwise occupied because I found myself the only one getting a drink at the table set up. There were multiple options to choose from, ranging from beer, wine, pop and water. I grabbed a clear plastic cup from the table and filled it from the pitcher of lemonade that was half empty. Taking a sip, I sighed as it immediately cooled my throat. It was the most delicious thing after dancing for a couple hours.

"Congratulations on graduating, Cecilia." The deep voice came from directly behind me and my blood went cold as I recognized the malice in his tone.

I turned slowly and came face to face with none other than Bane Drabek. He prowled slowly around the drink table with a smirk on his face. "What do you want?" I snarled at him, angrily. What did he honestly think he could do to me here?

He put a hand on his hand as he dramatically pretended to think about it. Then he looked straight into my eyes, fire burning in his gaze. "You." Reaching out, he gripped my arm in a bruising grip and yanked me towards him.

I slammed against his chest and huffed. "I don't think so, Buster," I growled, kicking out at his legs and nailing his shin.

He let go of me in reaction to the pain and I spun around, lifting a leg and slamming it right into his stomach. Being a werewolf, the kick didn't affect him as much as I had wanted it to. He only glared at me and snarled, "I'm going to make you pay for that when I get you home."

"The only home I'm going to is my own," I told him. "You really need to plan better. How exactly did you plan to take me from my own graduation with a pack of werewolves and a coven of vampires present?"

He glared at my sass. "Can you tell me it's not working? Has anyone noticed that I'm here?"

I hated that he had a point. I didn't understand how no one had noticed him yet, but I figured it was only a matter of time. They had to pick up his scent eventually right? Maybe the wind was just blowing in the wrong direction?

"Exactly," Bane replied to my angry silence, smirking as he gained the upper hand. I didn't plan on letting him keep it. "Now, do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?"

Well, I wasn't one to just give in. Plus, I could get a couple good hits in and then get Jackson's attention myself. I wasn't stupid enough to think that I could take him down on my own. "I'm not easy," I replied confidently.

"More fun for me," he remarked before lunging towards me with his hands out. I dodged around him to the left and spun to kick him in the back. He stumbled forwards, but spun around quickly. His face was drawn in a snarl and he was beginning to look more like a wolf than a man. He came at me again, landing two quick blows to my side and face before disappearing.

Jerome had knocked him five feet away with a tackle and was currently beating the snot out of him. Levi stood to the side, ready to jump in if necessary, but I doubted Jerome would need any help. It was obvious that he was the leader for a reason.

Lewis, Nila and Xavier closed ranks around me protectively, Xavier snarling when he caught sight of my face. I lifted my hand to my throbbing nose and pulled it away to find blood coating my fingers. At least it wasn't broken.

"Let me see that," Nila said, reaching worriedly for my face. She gently probed my nose and then sighed in relief. "At least he didn't break it," she told me with a comforting smile.

I nodded in agreement. "I know. Does anyone happen to have a napkin or something? I don't want Jackson to freak out when he sees me."

Before anyone could answer, we were distracted by a commotion from where Levi and Jerome were fighting Bane. Bane was running for the woods with a slight limp that made me smile. His parting words wiped the smile right off my face. "I will have you, Cecilia!" he declared before disappearing into the trees on the other side of the road.

Jackson ran into the little circle at the same time Jerome and Levi joined us as well. "What the hell just happened?" he asked worriedly, his eyes darting around. "Are you okay?" He growled angrily as he noticed the blood dripping from my nose and pulled me around behind him, away from the vampires.

I sighed at his behavior. I thought he'd made some more progress than this when Anthony and Lewis were teaching him how to dance. "It's fine, Jackson. They aren't going to hurt me. Quite the opposite, actually. In case you didn't notice, they were helping me."

"They're vampires, Cecilia. They can't help themselves around blood."

His ignorant comment had the five vampires glaring at him and I snorted in disdain. "Yes they can!" I argued angrily. "Nila was helping me with it before you showed up." I shoved him out of the way and walked back to Nila, who handed me the tissue I had asked for before Bane escaped.

"Thanks, Nila," I told her with a smile.

"Anytime, hun. You need to be more careful with that one," she warned, nodding in the direction Bane had left. "He's a dangerous wolf, that one."

I agreed with her. "He only seems to be getting worse."

Jackson pulled me back into his arms, sighing angrily as he buried his nose in my hair. "We need to figure out how he keeps getting so close to you," he growled.

The others agreed. This was the second time that he'd gotten around the entire pack and coven without anyone noticing and it was really starting to worry me. How was he doing it?

It took a little while for everyone to settle down after Bane had left, but eventually my nose stopped bleeding and we all moved back to the group of people dancing in the sand. Jackson was even more clingy and overprotective than before, so I didn't dance with anyone but him for the rest of the night, but the vampires were understanding. They gave me sympathetic smiles and just danced and had fun around us so that I could still laugh and joke around with them.

Jackson was uncomfortable around them, but I wanted him to get used to it and I was really enjoying getting to know the coven a little better. I knew that I would never intentionally become a vampire, but Bane was beginning to make me nervous. If something happened to me, I wanted to know that Jackson would know a little more about vampires, be a little more accepting of them, and wouldn't immediately hate me.

Few of the pack were brave enough to enter the group of vampires that were surrounding us, so I led Jackson over to them for a while. I didn't want them thinking that I was picking favorites between them and the coven, so I tried to spend an equal amount of time between them. Alice stuck by my side as the guys all started wrestling together and having a good time, so I spent a while dancing with her and Mason, who didn't join in the wrestling.

Ignoring the incident with Bane, it was probably the best graduation party that I could have asked for. I got quite a few looks from the vampires when I danced like a typical teenager, throwing myself around to the beat of whatever song was playing and Alice, Mason and Eli even started talking to a few of the vampires, though they seemed a little tense. Well, Mason did great, but he'd also survived just fine at the beach with Xavier and Levi.

The party ended around midnight and Jackson took me home after everyone had gotten a chance to say goodbye and congratulate me on graduating. Xavier was one of the last to leave, telling me that he'd be back after feeding and dropping Levi off at the club.

When we had made it back to my house, Jackson turned in his seat to look at me. "I'm really proud of you for graduating, Ceci."

I smiled softly over at him. "Thanks, Jackson," I replied, leaning forward slightly to kiss him. He leaned into the kiss and sent tingles all the way to my toes before pulling back. "See you tomorrow?" I asked.

He nodded and kissed me quickly one more time. "Of course. We have some things we need to talk about. I'll pick you up late in the morning." His face darkened at the mention of talking, but lightened again quickly. "Sweet dreams, Celia."

I smiled and decided that I wanted another kiss before I got out of the car. He chuckled, but didn't waste any time kissing me again. "Good night, Jackson," I whispered as I pulled away. I hopped out of the car and ran inside, waving to him before I closed the door behind me.

I found both of my parents in the living room, cuddled up on the couch together and watching reruns of NCIS as they waited up for me. "How was your party, sweetheart?" my mom asked, looking up at me as I sat down in the chair beside the couch.

I grinned happily. "It was great! I had a bunch of friends from school there, as well as people that Jackson and Xavier have introduced me to. I'm exhausted, though," I added with a rueful smile.

My dad laughed. "Too much dancing tonight?"

I nodded vigorously in response. "Way too much dancing!" I agreed. "It was more than worth it though. I had so much fun! I even learned to cha-cha and waltz."

"Oooh!" my mom sighed wistfully. "Those are such wonderful dances! You should invite the friends that taught you over to teach your father and I."

My dad's face was alarmed and he started shaking his head quickly. He stopped when my mom looked up at him, but his eyes were still pleading with me to make an excuse when she couldn't see him.

I wanted to laugh at him, but I resisted as I took pity on the poor man. "I don't know mom. I doubt that they want to come over and teach my parents how to dance." Actually, I'm pretty sure that they would love it, but my dad just looked too terrified to tell her that.

She waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, you're probably right. I'll just sign us up for ballroom dancing classes one of these days."

My dad's eyes widened in fear. He hadn't thought she'd have a backup plan. I couldn't hold back my laugh this time. "I think I'm going to go up to bed," I told them when my laughter had abated. I stood up and walked over to hug them, kissing their cheeks in turn. "Love you guys, see you tomorrow."

"Good night, sweetheart! Love you too!" they chorused as they squeezed me back and then released me so that I could go upstairs and get ready for bed.

I was planning to sleep for a good long time before I had to face reality tomorrow. Bane could wait until I'd had a good night's sleep.

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