Midnight Sun, “Invitations”

“Mike Newton was the most surprising of my torments. Who would have ever dreamed that such a generic, boring mortal could be so infuriating? To be fair, I should have felt some gratitude to the annoying boy; more than the others, he kept the girl talking. I learned so much about her through these conversations—I was still compiling my list—but, contrarily, Mike’s assistance with this project only aggravated me more. I didn’t want Mike to be the one that unlocked her secrets. I wanted to do that.

…

The possessive way he viewed Bella—as if she were an acquisition to be made—provoked me almost as much as his crude fantasies about her. He was becoming more confident of her, too, as the time passed, for she seemed to prefer him over those he considered his rivals—Tyler Crowley, Eric Yorkie, and even, sporadically, myself. He would routinely sit on her side of our table before class began, chattering at her, encouraged by her smiles. Just polite smiles, I told myself. All the same, I frequently amused myself by imagining backhanding him across the room and into the far wall… It probably wouldn’t injure him fatally…”

I didn’t want Mike to be the one that unlocked her secrets. I wanted to do that.