The morning was cold, but the sun had finally come out after days of gray skies.
Kara walked through the university hallway with the same mix of anxiety and frustration she'd been carrying since that night in the forest.
When she turned the corner, her breath caught in her throat.
Alice.
She was standing near the water fountain, wearing her usual red coat, as if nothing had happened.
Kara approached her without a second thought.
"So you decided to come back."
Alice lifted her gaze, her expression almost blank.
"I was on medical leave." The words came out neutral, rehearsed.
"Medical leave…" Kara crossed her arms. "That's the official excuse?"
The corner of Alice's lips almost curved into a smile.
"It's the safest one."
"Safe for who? For me or for you?"
Alice glanced down the hallway, avoiding the question.
"I don't want to talk about this here. We'll… talk later."
Kara felt frustration rise, but before she could insist, she heard Natalie calling her name.
She was walking toward them, with someone that made Kara's stomach drop.
"Kara!" Natalie said brightly. "I want you to meet the new student. This is Rose."
Rose stood there, flawless, with a sweet smile and a friendly expression, as if the night in the forest had never happened.
"It's such a pleasure to finally meet you in a more… civilized setting," she said, and the way she looked at Kara made it clear that wasn't just polite small talk.
Kara kept her tone steady.
"You enrolled here?"
"Yes," Rose replied calmly. "I had to move cities and… well, your university seemed promising."
"She's in my program!" Natalie added, excited. "We already planned to study together for the History exam."
Rose's gaze drifted to Alice, who now looked visibly tense.
"Oh, sister… what a lovely coincidence, don't you think?"
Alice took a step forward, her voice low, almost a warning.
"Rose, don't play games."
"Me?" Rose smiled innocently. "I'm just trying to fit in. It's natural to make friends, isn't it?"
Natalie, unaware of the tension, kept chatting about classes and professors, but Kara barely heard her.
The way Rose leaned close to Natalie, casually touching her arm, laughing at every comment, it all felt deliberate.
When Natalie stepped away to take a phone call, Rose leaned slightly toward Kara.
"I told you we'd see each other again. And now… I have all the time in the world."
Kara stared at her, struggling to stay calm.
"If you hurt Natalie —"
"Relax, darling," Rose interrupted, her smile unbroken.
"I just want to get to know her better. Maybe even show her there are… other sides to the story. Sides Alice didn't tell you."
Alice stepped in, her voice sharp.
"Enough, Rose."
"As you wish," Rose said, stepping back with graceful ease.
"See you in class, Kara."
She walked away, following Natalie as if they were lifelong friends.
Kara turned to Alice, who still looked rigid, her expression heavy with concern.
"She's up to something," Kara said.
"She always is," Alice replied.
"And that's why you need to be careful. Rose never shows up without a reason… and when she gets close, it's because she wants something that'll cost someone dearly."
A chill ran down Kara's spine.
Rose's game had begun.
Kara watched from a distance, the scene that had been repeating for days:
Rose and Natalie sitting at a cafeteria table, laughing like childhood friends.
Rose spoke with that calm, entrancing tone that made people lean in to listen. Natalie's eyes were wide, fascinated, as if hearing some incredible secret.
Kara knew this wasn't good.
When Natalie stood to get coffee, Kara approached.
"What are you telling her?" she asked, keeping her voice low.
Rose smiled.
"Just stories. Things about your dear Alice's past."
"Stories or lies?"
"Depends on who's telling them." Rose tilted her head slightly.
"Have you noticed that Alice never told you everything? Maybe because the truth isn't quite as… pretty."
Before Kara could respond, Natalie came back, and Rose shifted the conversation as if nothing had happened.
In the days that followed, Kara and Alice's relationship began to change.
They saw each other more often during breaks, studied together in the library, and little by little, the tension between them turned into long conversations about books, movies, and even small memories from Kara's past.
"So… do you feed on humans every day?" Kara asked, laughing and curious.
Alice bit her lower lip, almost smiling.
"No… I keep a supply of blood bags to feed from. I'm not the kind who attacks humans, unless they deserve it."
"I see… and here I was thinking you wanted to, I don't know, bite me," Kara said, half-joking, half-embarrassed.
"Well… if I wanted to bite you, don't you think I'd have done it already?" Alice replied with a teasing smile.
"Yeah… that makes sense," Kara said, locking eyes with her.
"After all, we're friends now, and vampires don't bite friends, right?"
"Of course not." Alice smiled back, her gaze steady.
Despite the mystery Alice still carried, Kara felt there was something more — a quiet care, a constant presence that made her feel safer than she wanted to admit.
One afternoon, as they left the library, the chill in the air hinted that winter was near.
Alice stopped suddenly and looked at Kara.
"Winter break is coming… are you going back to your hometown?" she asked.
"Not really. My parents are traveling, and… I'd probably be alone at home."
Alice was silent for a few seconds, as if weighing something serious.
"If you'd like… you could stay at my place for a few days."
Kara blinked, surprised.
"At your place?"
"Yes." Alice looked down, as if saying it was harder than it seemed.
"It's… safer than here. And… I think it'd be nice."
Kara smiled softly, feeling her heart quicken.
"Then I guess I'll accept."
For a brief moment, Alice returned the smile, and at that moment, Kara knew that, despite all the danger, she was about to discover a side of Alice no one else had ever seen.
Winter was going to be much more than just cold.