Auras-Book One

Chapter 3

I woke up the next morning with a massive headache.

Dani was sitting on her bed with her back against the wall. "Good morning sleeping beauty."

My head was throbbing, and my mouth was as dry as a desert. "What happened last night?"

Dani grabbed a large coffee cup off her desk and brought it to me. "I think you had too much to drink. Some of the guys started fighting and you passed out. Shawn and I brought you home."

I grimaced in confusion. I couldn't remember much past my second drink. Lightweight Katie at her best. "Remind me never to do that again." I struggled to sit up and take a small sip of my coffee. I knew I looked like the creature from the black lagoon. My hair was wild and crazy, and I still had on last night's makeup.

Dani, on the other hand, looked like she had just stepped out of the pages of a fashion magazine. Her dark, curly hair was pulled up in a high pony tail and she had just the right amount of day time make up on. "How much do you remember about last night?" She tipped her coffee cup and took a long drink.

"I remember us dancing and I remember meeting some people, but everything else is a blur."

Dani nodded. "I think the drinks were too strong. You should steer clear of alcohol for a while."

She tossed her empty coffee cup in the trash and stood up. "Today is our last day before classes start. Let's go into town and do something. Go shower while I get changed." She pulled her t shirt over her head, obviously not shy about changing in front of me.

"Wow, that's beautiful," I noticed an intricate circular tattoo on Dani's right shoulder. "What is it?"

She turned so she could see her back in the mirror. "It's my family crest. Everyone in my family has one. Legend says that it protects us from harm." She paused and ran her finger over the ink, her eyes taking on a far-away look. "It's protected me a time or two, I suppose." She seemed lost in her own reverie.

"That's really cool," I broke the awkward silence. "Okay, I'll go shower and then we'll figure out something to do with our last day of freedom."

Dani snapped out of her fog and continued to change.

One of the worst things about communal living is shared bathrooms. There's nothing fun about getting undressed in front of strangers. My mom had used that as another point to try and scare me out of leaving home, but I pretended not to care. "Never let them see you sweat" was my motto.

I tried to slip in unnoticed, but all the showers were taken, so I sat on one of the benches to wait for an opening. It seemed like all the girls knew each other as they chatted while in various stages of undress. I kept my eyes downcast, hoping to go unnoticed. I would have to get over the embarrassment unless I wanted to be last in the showers all year.

"Did you guys see Dustin last night?" I heard a group of girls behind me. "He almost killed Daemon over some girl. Wonder what that was about."

I tried to appear uninterested as I heard them approaching. "He's so beautiful. He can fight for me anytime." I caught the innuendo in the girl's voice.

"Good luck Annie, he wouldn't even talk to you if you were attached to his ass. He's hot but cold, if you get my drift." The girls passed by me without so much as a glance. I watched them gather their things and head towards the door.

When the showers were empty, I took my shampoo and soap into the stall. While I was lathering up my hair, something inside kept nagging at me, like I was missing something from the night before. Why would Dustin fight someone over a girl? Was it his girlfriend? Was I there when it happened? My memory was so foggy, I reminded myself again to forgo the alcohol at the next party.