Embrace the Dark
Chapter 1: Pale
‘Is it just me, or has he gotten paler than yesterday? That beautiful face was pale yesterday, but it had the slightest hint of tan to it. Now it’s gone and…how?’
‘Oh, honestly Morgan, you’d notice if the part in his hair was off by a millimeter.’ I scolded, once again annoyed by her OCD.
‘What can I say? I was a mother.’With a shudder, I dropped the conversation, letting my mind drift randomly amongst the other thoughts that plagued me lately.
“Excuse me; I don’t think I’ve met you?”
“Hmm?” I looked up into his stunning gray-green eyes.
‘Funny, I’d thought they were blue...’
‘Oh shut up, Morgan!’ I commanded harshly, being dragged out of my head and concentrating on nothing but his beautiful eyes-whatever color they were supposed to be.
“I don’t believe I know you?” He repeated.
“Oh! I’m uh…I’m new. Addriena LeFay.”
“Evander Dray.”
Returning the smile I’d responded with quickly, he turned to the front of the classroom at the sound of the final bell.
“You look…different than yesterday. Paler. And weren’t your eyes blue?” I whispered.
He ignored me for a long time-nearly half the period, but eventually, when I got a little frustrated, I threw across the isle onto his desk-top.
'They've always been this color,' he answered, but something about his body-language was just...off.
'He's lying,' Morgan noticed dully.
'Naw really?' I shot back.
'Rumors aren't my thing,' I assured him on the page and handed the note back.
For at least five minutes, he just let it sit there in his lap, but when I pointedly cleared my throat, he straitened up immediately and unfolded the page.
‘I’ll explain later. Not here.’ He wrote onto the slip.
Deciding not to push my luck, I turned back to face the front where Mrs. Anderson was lecturing about Edgar Allen Poe, my favorite poet. I knew he really had no intention of keeping his word, but I tried to let it go anyway.
The class period went on and on I sat their wondering...
Wondering if he was looking at me.
I hated myself for looking when I did. Honestly, I liked knowing that a boy was already looking at me on my first at a new school. Maybe I'd actually have a boyfriend soon.
As I;'d turned my head, his amazing grayish green eyes-or were they blue? Anyway, his eyes shot back to the front of the room were the teacher was talking on and on about Poe. It was the
first time I didn’t pay attention to the poet and paid attention to a guy instead.
‘I think he likes...something about me,’ I said it over and over again in my head, eventually becoming convinced that it was true.By the end of the class hour, I was almost chanting it (and ignoring Morgan as she basically rolled her eyes).
‘Hello?! You idiot, the bell just rang!’ She snapped, yanking me away from my fantasizing.
I got up and followed him out.
‘He walks fast for being so skinny, Addi, I’m not sure if-’‘Oh, God, please! Just shut up, will you?!’ “Hey,” I said, but he kept walking, so I ran after him, grabbing his hand. The next few seconds were...whoa. We literally locked eyes for at least a half a minute, right there outside the door of classroom number 317.
“Meet me at the lake, tonight at five," he muttered hurriedly. "You know the one? Maybe a mile from here? It’s right behind the school. I can’t tell you here, remember? Plus, I could really use someone to talk to.” The intensity of his stare combined the speed of his speech left me floundering to make sense of everything going on.
“Um…sorry? Not sure I got all that? But…Five? I won’t forget.” And I walked away after he nodded. Just like that. “I think I like him,” I said to myself quietly, more to irritate Morgan than anything else. Living with an ancestor in your head is no walk in the park.
I'd recommend you try it sometime, but it's supposed to be kinda impossible (key term being: "supposed to be").
‘You idiot! You wasted five minutes talking to him! Now you’re going to be late!’
‘Oh calm down, I did not waste five minutes!’
‘Oh? Then why did I hear the bell just now?’Uh-oh…I was late to 3rd.
