Lifting my foot off of the last step, I stood at the bottom of the stairs as Brian answered the door. Soon a beautiful blonde woman who I immediately knew was Val entered the room with Matt trailing close behind. She gave Brian a quick hug before she turned in my direction. In her hand she held a suitcase and a small bag that I assumed contained personal items.

"Hello, you must be Chloe!" Val said extremely cheerful and sweet. The amount of warmth radiating off of her and the care in her voice eased the last bit of tension I had in my body.

"Yes, I'm her.' I replied as I let a genuine smile grace my features.

"Well I have a couple of things for you my dear, and if they don't fit we can always go shopping for some more." She said with a wink.

"Thanks, I'll let you know." I responded with a smile. I felt like I could really get along with her. She was nurturing and bubbly, and seemed like an amazing friend.

Ahem, I heard someone clear their throat, which knocked me out of my thoughts.

"I'm Matt, Val's husband and Brian's best friend. It's nice to meet you." he greeted himself as a big dimple filled smile over took his face. I couldn't help but smile at his warm dimpled face as he stuck his hand out to shake mine.

"It's nice to meet you too." I replied.

After a while of standing around and talking, I decided to ask Brian where my room would be as Matt and Val ventured into the kitchen to pour drinks for everyone. He took me back upstairs and into a room three doors down from his. The room was graced in white with bronze trimming and a balcony window-paned door. A white ceiling fan spun at low speed above our heads as he pointed at the two doors on either side of the huge, fluffy white and gold bed. He confirmed that the door on the left was the bathroom and the one on the right was a walk-in closet.

"So now that you're aware of where you're staying, make yourself at home. I'll be downstairs with Matt and Val when you're ready to come down."

I thanked him as he trotted down the hallway and out of sight. Still taking in the calmness of the room, I breathed a sigh of relief and closed the door. Walking over to the bed, I dropped the suitcase and bag on top. After a while of deciding, I settled on a black and red lace bra and underwear set, a pair of dark gray shorts and a Motley Crue tank. I took a bar of soap and a razor out of the bag and went to take my shower. Once I was finished, I dried my hair as best as I could with no blow drier and began questioning what to do with my tangled and messy locks. For some reason, I wanted to look nice. I wanted to feel good about myself for the first time. Grabbing a brush and some hair spray, I teased my hair up to my liking and stepped back into the room, slipping on flip-flops before I left the room.

I felt like an entirely different person as I walked down the hallway and to the top of the stairs. I felt a giant wave of relief brush through me. It seemed the incident was long behind me, though it transpired a little over 2 hours ago. Feeling my heart race as I walked down the stairs, I knew without looking that I would soon be face to face with the three others in the room.

I didn't know what the rest of the night had in store for me but dammit, I'd be ready for it.

Notes

I want to thank you guys for all the views and interest in my story! Since I get such positive feedback, I'll continue. Who knows, I might have another little story up my sleeve for you guys.

I'm thinking, A7X as vampires during their teen years? Maybe a Zacky story? Who knows...;)