Hailey

I told myself I’d try not to do it again. I keep trying to find another way…and yet I keep planning the next one—who it will be, how I’ll do it…. But there had never been anyone to show me how to exercise control. And my parents, well…obviously they couldn’t help. God damn the one who cursed me.

It hurt—how my parents didn’t understand me anymore. My grades just went way down; they didn’t matter anymore. I never talked to my parents anymore; I was afraid I might hurt them. And same with my little sister, Alex; if I ever hurt her…I swear I would kill myself. I always seemed to be sneaking around, hiding something from them; I had to find somewhere to hide the bodies. There was no way I could let them see them.

School had officially become the worst part of my life. They all just looked too good, and if they got too close…it would be a problem…a very…very big problem. I tried my best to walk the halls when they were emptier, to sit in the parts of the classroom that were more vacant.

I keep trying…just not hard enough I suppose.

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I tossed my books carelessly on the desk across the room from the windows, where nobody usually sits—probably because it’s too close to the teacher’s desk to pass notes—before sitting down. I glanced around the room—I was the first one to arrive. Math class was the easiest. Not very many students lasted up to eleventh grade advanced math, meaning the room had very few people in it.

“Danvers,” Mr. Edwards said abruptly from the front of the room as I had started to open my notebook. Without lifting my head, I stared up at him, which he probably would’ve taken as more of a glare, but I didn’t really give much of a damn.

He eyed me oddly. “I guess they didn’t give you the message yet. I’m sorry, but we don’t feel…that you’re…” he sighed wearily. “We’re kicking you out of advanced.”

And that made me let my notebook shut. I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out, only slight stuttering. Finally, the only thing I could manage was, “E—Excuse me?”

“Troy—”

“You can’t kick me out!” I yelled angrily, standing up. “I’m the smartest one in this class! What are you—“

“Mr. Danvers!” Mr. Edwards shouted over me. “That’s enough. You’ve been failing my class for almost a month now. I warned you you’d have to improve.”

I held my tongue reluctantly, glowering at him, trying—and failing—to keep my lip from snarling, a habit I’ve had for…at least the past four months.

Sarah and Kelly came into class after several long moments, giggling madly. They stopped immediately when they entered the silence, first staring at Mr. Edwards. Then they followed his gaze to me, still glaring. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sarah’s lips curve into a smile. She snapped her head back to her friend, her and Kelly exchanging glances, then, both of them smirking, they strutted to the back of the room and sat on either side of me.

Great. Even if I had still been in this class, I would’ve moved my seat. A class sitting between two constantly giggling girls would’ve been a complete hell. Swinging my messenger bag over my shoulder, I strode to the door. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw them stare after me, looking disappointed and slightly hurt.

“Room three twelve.” Mr. Edwards said brusquely, without looking at me.

I paused a moment longer than necessary, then stalked out the door. I stared down at the floor as I walked down the hallway. It was only when I was through the door that I realized how full the hall was. I always tried to be either early or late—whatever it took to stay out of the crowded hallway.

I tried holding my breath—but it still didn’t work. People pushed and shoved, trying to get to their classes. Only then did I realized how pissed my parents would be about my being placed into “stupid math,” as we called it.

The hell with it…. Well, I knew my grades were dropping….I just hadn’t known how badly.

Actually, you did. He warned you about them.

Shut up.

I started to enter the room—and so did Hailey. My eyes still wandering the floor, we knocked into each other. Her bag landed on the floor with a soft thud as I grabbed her arm to keep her from falling.

That was a mistake.

Her skin was incredibly soft, and catching her got me way too close to her than I should’ve been. She was so warm on my permanently cold hands...it made me think of how warm her blood must’ve been…. Its scent stood out from everyone else’s, it was tantalizing….

She, of course, didn’t seem to notice anything odd.

“Sorry,” we both said in unison—and, of course, just like they always do—she looked up at me, saw who it was, and began to turn a slight shade of pink. I used to enjoy it. I used to shake my straight, black hair, which came down to my shoulders, flash my beautiful, white teeth…and the ladies loved it. They always had. But lately, all I did was stare down at them, watch them get even more flustered, then eventually one of us would walk away.

This time, though, after she managed to mutter a small thank you, I gave her a smile and said in a poised way, “No problem.”

She, at least, did not giggle uncontrollably. But the scent was getting to me now. Without another word, I strode into the stupid math classroom, taking, again, the seat farthest from the window. Hailey followed me.

“Troy!”

Oh, god…I thought, she’s going to be such a pain…. When I put my stuff down on a desk, she put hers on the one next to it. No! What the hell are you doing…?

“Weren’t you in advanced?” She asked.

As if on cue, Mr. Trall answered her question, “Ah, Troy Danvers! Mr. Edwards told me you’d be joining us from now on…don’t you worry. I’ll have you back on track in no time!”

Another perfect thing to add to my day. I’d forgotten about how my friends had told me how…jolly Mr. Trall was.

When we sat down, I got out my notebook again. Next to me, Hailey pulled out her hair tie and shook out her long, black hair.

Oh god…. Oh. My. God. She has no idea what she’s getting herself into…. And she was doing it on purpose. She had to be.

And then, suddenly, the wind blew in from an open window. It carried past her, and lightly to me—but more importantly, it carried her scent closer to me.

And that was it.

“Hailey.” She seemed slightly startled by my abruptness. “Tomorrow. Saturday night. Are you doing anything?”

And now she was genuinely shocked. It took her several moments to answer, “I—er—n-no! No, I’m not doing anything.”

“Now you are. Come to my place at six. I believe there’s supposed to be a lunar eclipse.”

I didn’t even need her response.

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Here's the first chapter. Hopefully I'll get the second one done soon...but it's more of a short story, it's not going to be very long. I'm guessing...maybe three? four chapters. I dunno. We'll see. But i don't write stories often so some feedback would be very much appreciated!!