Predisposed

Chapter 1- Gleaming Eyes

"Good evening folks and welcome to tonight's episode of My Neighbors Are Having Sex AGAIN!"

Those words had hardly escaped me when I heard my sister's gasp, "Lisa!"

I rolled onto my side, allowing my comforter to bundle up as I propped myself up. "What?" I huffed. "I just want some peace and quiet for one night!"

My sister, with her legs crossed and her fingers frantically typing away at her laptop, spoke with a tone laced with both amusement and exasperation, "I know, I know."

I watched her for a moment, unable to get much of a grip on my growing agitation over the unwanted noises of our neighbors getting it on. Her lack of care around her hair falling into her face seemed to serve only to upset me further, even though it really had nothing to do with me. I kicked my legs up and swung them over the side of my bed, dragging the comforter off as well. She looked up at me and pursed her lips with a raised brow, questioning me silently as I pulled myself to my feet.

I ignored her stare as I went to the window I had thrown open in a last ditch effort to cool off the room, a decision I now regretted considering the current situation. However when I went to close it there was a loud crash and scream from just below the window and I sprang back, a chill running up my spine.

"What the hell was that?" My sister frowned and set her laptop down on her bed.

"Probably just some stupid cat." I offered with a small wavering grin. "What Sadie? Are you scared?" I managed a small jab at her.

She sighed and shrugged, "Whatever. Just close the window. The thought of what is down there is giving me the creeps."

With that, she conveniently exited the room.

I groaned. She always left me to do the dirty work. Even if the dirty work wasn't as dirty as it seemed. The only reason I let her do it was because of the panic disorder she had been battling the past year or so that had been quite a downer for her recently.

"Alright." I breathed in a half assed attempt to motivate myself.

Despite the tug of my paranoia stricken mind I crept towards the window and peeked outside, observing a pair of eyes gleaming right up at me. Not a moment later, whatever it was, lunged up at me and tackled me. I stumbled back and struggled against my attacker who's lunge had sent me to the floor.

My foot made contact with something that was slightly softer than the rest and I kicked-hard. The creature let out a howl and immediately it got off me to tend to whatever I had kicked. I sat up and my eyes widened when I registered that the creature that had attacked me was not much of a creature at all. It was a boy, probably around my age, with a rather bruised up appearance and dark tattered wings drooping behind him. Upon seeing how he cupped his crotch and the twisted grimace his face was worked into, I realized I had kicked him in the nuts. I couldn't help feeling like that was a small victory.

After a small acknowledgement of my triumph I scrambled to my feet and grabbed one of my sister's cosplay props, a bat of some sort. I swung it up and growled, "Who are you and what the fuck are you doing attacking me like that?"

He looked up and I got a good look at his young, but not youthful face. You could tell he was not old for little microexpressions he held showed that, but his eye bags were so heavy and he was so incredibly thin. He had a bony but handsome face and dark brown eyes. That was all framed by black, unruly chin length locks. He looked like death in human form, but with just slightly more color to him.

He looked between me and the bat before raising one brow, "Oh I really do feel obliged to answer. I really do." He stood up and his expression darkened. "But I am not afraid of a girl with a costume bat."

That scared me at first, until I remembered that I was the one holding a weapon. I promptly hit him across the chest with it and I was relieved by the satisfying punt of the bat hitting it's target. He stumbled back and gasped, checking himself for blood or bruises or whatever he seems afraid of. He was clean of visible injuries of any kind. That seemed to stun him though and he looked back up at me with eyes wider than the moon at its fullest.

"Can you see them?" He breathed, as if trying to speak to me without anybody noticing. This caught me off guard after the sarcastic remark from before.

"Can I see...what?" I tipped my head and, when he shifted, I tightened my grip on the bat.

"The wings....on my back? Do I really have wings?" He inspected himself.

I nodded slowly, "Yes, you have wings. Now answer my question!"

"What?" He looked up at me with that dopey, mouth half open expression.

"Who are you? And why did you attack me?" I growled.

His eyes widened and he bolted to his feet. As a result I stepped back and raised the bat again. He took note of my tension and backed up a step or two, his dark eyes fixed on me.

"I do believe that I am your guardian angel." He finally responded.