Glitter & Gore [a vampire romance]

1: A Sparkly Skin Condition

I was in the middle of an alchemy breakthrough when Amy slammed her laptop on my work table, ruining the crystallization process and knocking half my liquids on the basement floor. My mother would throw a hissy fit if she discovered the ruined carpet, but right now I was the one ready to raise hell.

My eyes cut to Amy like two blades, but, as usual with her, they didn't slice. She barely offered a wincing smile before clapping her hands in excitement.

"Nova Nova Nova! It's tiiiiiime!" she sang at a high enough pitch to rattle my remaining liquid vials. "We can finally see if we passed our first semester."

"It's barely been twenty-four hours," I grumbled, crouching to pick up the broken glass and ignoring how a few shards sliced my palms. I hadn't given school a thought since we finished our exams and left campus to return to our hometown yesterday. All my brain power now fixated on my alchemy research, more important than my stupid psychology degree.

"I know, but if we didn't pass, we need to start applying to new schools immediately." She plopped onto the stool across from mine, her pastel purple nails clacking against her keyboard. For once she'd actually dressed down, wearing a blush pink t-shirt under black overalls with metal chains for straps. Not one spiky bracelet or gaudy ring in sight. I might've complimented the outfit if I weren't so pissed about the mess she'd made.

"We obviously passed," I droned, dumping glass onto the table. She flinched when a little bloody piece bounced onto her laptop but resumed her enthusiasm as soon as she flicked it away.

"Sure, but which one of us got a higher GPA?" She arched one dark eyebrow, knowing she'd snared me. I couldn't turn down a competition.

"Fine, but you're scrubbing the black sulphur from the carpet after."

"Loser scrubs the carpet."

I pursed my lips but didn't affirm that deal, knowing her intelligence rivaled mine and she was better at playing by the rules. Usually with exam questions, I found a way to subvert the professor's authority on the subject and turn it into a philosophical debate.

"What's your password?" she asked.

"I-H-A-T-E-A-M-Y, all caps."

"Ha, ha, funny." Her icy blue eyes rolled but then quickly narrowed on me. "Wait...is it really?"

I rounded the table, face impassive. "Yes."

She typed it in, and when my online dashboard popped up, she scowled. "Ugh, bitch."

A small smirk inched on my lips as I watched her position our results on either side of the screen. Biting her lip and practically closing her eyes, she scrolled down until we could see our grades, and then she squealed loud enough to test the foundation of my parents' house.

"Three point nine! Oh my god, oh my god! And you got..."

"Three point eight nine," I read with an aggrieved sigh. "Fuck. I knew I bombed that chemistry final. I keep getting mixed up with what's real and what's better than real."

My eyes slid accusingly to my hodgepodge of alchemy equipment, though really I was peeved that school was distracting me from my true passion. The world wouldn't take my discoveries seriously if I didn't have some kind of degree, though, so I had to suck it up and put my dreams on hold for a few years.

"Ha-ha-ha!" Amy pointed tauntingly at me until her nurturing nature took over. "Hey, are you okay? You know I'm just–"

"Yeah, I know. I'm fine. Good job."

Trying to smile like a normal person must have given me away, because she crossed her arms and fixed me with a mothering glare. "You know you did a good job too, right? Like, nearly perfect."