“Uh, thanks,” Jacob said, looking away from them both, down at his own feet. Not because he needed to watch where he was going, but just for the sake of looking away. Once again, girls had never been his strong suit. “But I think I’ll be able to cope. I love camping, so I can stay out here. But I wouldn’t mind having some real food every once and a while.”

“Okay, to each his own,” Jess said under her breath. Jessica rolled her eyes.

“Just because you prefer a computer’s glow to the light of the sun doesn’t mean that sunlight is necessarily all that bad. You’re like a freaking vampire,” she said. Neither of them noticed Jacob tense up for a second. He sniffed, but didn’t catch a scent, and then realized that they were probably just kidding around. They probably didn’t even think vampires existed, since couldn’t live comfortably here, what with all the sun. “I like it just fine,” she added, giving a spin and beginning to skip slightly. Jess ignored her, rolling her eyes. Jacob grinned from one to the other. They seemed to do this sort of thing all the time, and it was a friendly sort of banter that seemed almost routine, like they had been thinking up these wisecracks all night.

“How old are you? And how long are you staying here?” Jess asked, finally looking up at him. Jacob flushed and looked away again.

“I’m, uh, sixteen,” he said, surprised at the bashfulness that showed itself even in his voice. “You?”

“Ditto,” the two Jessicas said together.

“So how long are you staying here?” Jess repeated, still watching him closely. “You’re going to need clothes if you’re going to get a job here, or go to school, or function in normal society. I bet you would fit into some of Joe’s clothes, you’re about the same height. If, that is, he would loan you some. Maybe in exchange for music theory lessons,” she mused, turning back to the front.

“Music theory?” Jacob asked, intrigued. She looked up at him and smiled with genuine enthusiasm.

“Yeah. I love music,” she said, sounding much more cheerful to have found such a good topic of conversation. “Especially singing. I love singing. I also play a bunch of instruments, and I tried composing, but arranging is easier. Mostly, I stick to musical theatre.”