Deaths Apprentice

Chapter 2

~~~~~~~~~CAROLINE ~~~~~~~~~
A few weeks have gone by since Coles arrival at my school and I can definitely say one thing. He was a pain in my tush! One moment he was smiling and joking with me and the next he would be staring straight ahead and ignoring me completely. Not to mention all the girls that were crawling all over him. I looked up from my latest sketch and he was standing in the lunch line looking at the food behind the glass in disgust. I looked over and I saw Blair strutting twords him and she looked like a cat stalking its prey. She got to him and slid her arms around his stomach and rested her head on his back. She had made her move on him countless times and he always turned her down. This particular time he simply removed her arms and walked away, the gross food forgotten and came to take a seat next to me. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Not hungry? "
He grimmessed, "How could they pass that off as food? It looks like something dragged out of a swamp. "
"Aww, you're too kind. It obviously is way worse. That's why I don't eat school lunch. " I pulled out my PB&J and handed him half of it. He took it with a smile.
"Thanks. "
"Er elcom." was all I could manage through a big bite of peanut butter.

We have grown pretty close over these past few weeks and I can't lie, it was nice having a friend. But for some reason when I looked at him my stomach would flutter and my face would burn. I heard him growl and looked over at him, he had sat his slice of my sandwich down and was eyeing something across the cafeteria. I looked up and Chad Mathews was making his way over to my table, eyes fixed on me. Chad was Blair's on and off again boyfriend. He was also the star quarter back and had the biggest ego ever. I can't lie though, he was gorgeous. He was very pale and his eyes seemed to pierce my soul. He finally made it to my side and stroked my hair. " I like your hair. I would love to see it down." He then traced under my jaw and lifted my face inches from his. "You smell really... good. " He took a big wiff and licked his lips. I couldn't move, I was entranced by his silver eyes and wasn't able to think properly. Only when Cole cleared his throat was I able to regain control of my body.
" Thank you, what do you want?" I tried my hardest to sound brave and thankfully succeeding.
"Oh I want you, dearest. " That threw me off my guard. I nearly choked on my orange juice.
"Excuse me? " I was able to manage between coughs.

~~~~~~~~~~~COLE~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cole had heard enough from this leech. He looked up and made sure to only make eye contact with Chad and flashed him his Grim eyes. The familiar burning ignited in his brain as his reaper tried to tear his way out. The vampire seemed to understand the threat as his eyes had widened and he quickly left. Cole closed his eyes trying to dismiss his reapers energy.
"Cole? Are you OK? "
"I'm fine he opened his now blue eyes and smiled. Excuse me. " He got up and left leaving behind a very confused Caroline and his PB&J.
He left the school grounds and went for a jog. That would clear his head. He had no clue why he was so protective of her and he knew that he should not be interfering with anything in her life. He had got a good look into the leeches mind and knew exactly what he had planned for Caroline and it wasn't pleasant. "Damn it! " he cursed and punched a nearby tree. Why was she getting to him. He needed to distance himself from her. He already knew that wouldn't be easy.
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That night he called Caroline and scheduled for her to meet him at a nearby park, he had to make things clear for himself. At 9:00 he headed out the door with a quick goodbye to Death. He only had to answer where he was going. Thank goodness. He arrived at the park and found Caroline already there. She was sitting on a swing and swinging slightly. She had her eyes on the sky and didn't notice his arrival. He took that moment to admire her. She had wore her hair down and the blond locks flowed whispily to her lower back and she had wore jeans and a cute dark blue jacket over a black tank. Her eyes were lined with wings which accented her cat shaped eyes marvellously. She looked over and noticed him staring.
"Like what ya see? " she joked.
"Well aren't you confident?" he asked avoiding the question and taking a seat in the swing next to her.
"So what did you want to meet me for?" she looked at him, eyes expectant. He let his eyes wander her face. He stood up and walked over to her and grabbed her hand. She looked confused.
"Come here, I have something to show you. " He guided her through a jumble of trees to a nearby pond. The fresh moon had just touched its surface and reflected ripples off of their faces. He watched her expression as she took in the scene in front of her. He had worked especially hard on what lay before her. One half of the pond was vibrant and full of life but the other half was covered in dead plants and wilting flowers.
"What do you think about death?" he asked her. She gave him a funny look, it was an odd question. She looked straight into his eyes almost as if she knew everything about him, all of his darkest secrets and deepest desires.
"I think death is finally being free. We are sent to earth to endure trials and sometimes overcome them. We are meant to learn and grow wise and finally die. It's a simple way of life. To be honest it's a mystery. " She was staring over the water now. "I think I was in the 2nd grade when I first realized there was such a concept as death. I recall going into Mama's room and telling her I was afraid of it. Mom sat me on her lap and asked why and I told her I was afraid it would hurt. Mom said, "Do you remember being born?" I told her "No." and she said, "Well, that's what death is like." That satisfied me. If Mom wasn't afraid, then all was well. Little did I know that she herself was afraid. She knew death was coming." a tear slid down her cheek. I reached over and whipped it off and cupped her face in my hand.
"It's ok, she's in a better place. " she smiled weakly and I couldn't take it anymore. I leaned in and pressed her lips to mine. Her lips were soft and gentle and sweet. I felt a fierce heat burning in my stomach when I remembered what was going to come. I couldn't deal with that, I grabbed her shoulders and pulled her closer. I felt her snake her hands up and tug at my hair. She was going to drive me crazy. I pulled away and rested my forehead on hers.
"I'm sorry."
I took one last look at her and walked away leaving her there with tears drying on her cheeks and the water reflecting on her face. I had went there for answers but left more that confused.