Beatrice Harrison is your typical high school sophomore who has had glasses since she was three, but not for the reason that she initially thought. What happens when Beatrice loses her glasses in the woods and witnesses something she shouldn't have...
"Who do you live with?" Hannah Bynes asked, batting her lashes at Mason.
"Uh..." Mason looked to me for help and I quickly came to his rescue. We were in the same gym period because of how they split the sophomores and juniors. To my luck, Hannah had to be the one to start bothering my dead friend.
Hannah Casey Bynes was my friend up until freshman year. I never knew why she suddenly came back from summer break with a boyfriend and a whole new personality, but I couldn't have cared less. I wasn't going to keep people in my life who didn't want to be there.
"Mason, do you want to play volleyball with Carly and me?" My hand found its way to Mason's bicep.
He quickly nodded and sent me a crooked grin, his dark hair partially covering his green eyes.
"Looks like Harrison has herself a crush on the new guy."
I ignored her, instead opting to kick a ball back to the person who lost it. Petty arguments weren't necessarily beneath me, but I couldn't be bothered to partake in the one at hand.
"Actually, Beatrice is one of my most valued friends." Mason cocked his head to the side. "Why would she try to cr-"
"Volleyball?" I asked, cutting the brunet off from finishing his thought. Apparently he thought a 'crush' was literally crushing someone. I didn't even know if I'd be able to properly set him straight either.
We started to walk away when Hannah grabbed Mason's hand.
"Can I come over after school?"
I just stared at her, unsure what to do or say. I was just so mad and I didn't even know why.
"I'm sorry, but Jacob doesn't very much appreciate company." Mason bowed slightly.
"Is that your dad?" Hannah asked. "Why'd you call him by his first name?"
Mason shook his head. "He's not my father, just a roommate."
"You live on your own?"
"No. I'm pretty sure I just said that I live with my roommate, Jacob." Mason drew his eyebrows together before just walking off with me.
"Jacob?!" I asked. "Did you just name and gender Oxe?!"
Mason blew his hair out of his eyes. "Name, yes. Gender, no. He chose his gender himself. Said he'd just match me."
"That's cute," I commented.
"If you use that adjective to describe Jacob again, he'll become your designated Reaper," Mason warned.
I laughed and then caught the ball that Carly served over the net. She stuck her tongue out and I quickly explained the rules before playing two on two with Carly's neighbor, Tommy. He was a nerdy boy of about 5'5 who just so happened to have a crush on Carly. Of course she didn't know this bit of information.
Exhaling, I threw the ball up in the air and took a few steps before pushing myself off the ground, slapping the ball in a jump serve. Tommy dove to get it, but ended up falling on his face.
"S-Stop going so hard!" Carly whined, running to get the ball. "This isn't a varsity match."
"Sorry!" I called.
Mason looked at me and smiled. "That was impressive."
"Thank you."
"Wellre (way-re)." He caught the ball that Carly tossed over and then handed it to me.
I served it underhand so that it'd be easier to volley. Mason was surprisingly good and seemed to be learning from watching me, seemingly evolving. Out of curiosity, I set the ball up in the air and watched the brunet's feet.
Left, right, left, jump.
"M-M-Mason!" Carly jumped back. "Don't you dare spike e-ever again!"
"That was fucking awesome!" I jumped on his back.
He quickly grabbed my legs to keep me in place before straightening. It was weird being so much taller, as he himself was over six foot tall. I looked around the gym before settling on Tommy and Carly.
"B-Bea! What if you f-fall?!"
"Carly, calm down. She'll be a-okay," Tommy assured.
"Yeah, I'm fi-" I stopped mid-sentence, looking down at the brunet whose posture had become alarmingly alert.
"Mason...?" I whispered.
"I sense something."
"Then lets go," I urged. "We need to go somewhere where there'll be the least amount of bystanders."
"No. We should stay here. The presence of all of these other souls should confuse it and keep you safe."
"But others could get hurt."
"They won't. It only wants you."
"You can't one hundred percent tell me that no one will get hurt, so no. I couldn't live with that on my conscience. I'd rather just give myself to the damn beast than have everyone else suffer."
Mason closed his eyes and in one swift movement, pulled me down from his shoulders and pressed our lips together. It wasn't exactly a kiss or a peck, just contact.
The exchange oddly made me feel very calm and collected and nobody witnessed it. I wouldn't be surprised if he purposefully hid us from human sight for that very moment.
"It's going to be okay, Beatrice."
"I believe you," I whispered, closing my eyes. "Just keep them safe."
"We'll keep them safe, Beatrice," Mason assured me, massaging my shoulders.
My eyelids got heavier to the point where they felt too weighted to open. I nodded, feeling like a gas, a heavy gas. "I trust you."
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