Blood Stained Rose

Just one of the guys

Just One of the Guys

​I finish getting ready and grab my bag. Yawning, I take the stairs one by one. Dad sits in his recliner watching the news. The blond news anchor with the really cheery, peppy, annoying voice is rambling on about the Children's Dental donating money to some charity. Oh, I'm so not a morning person. I pour a cup of coffee for my dad and myself then carry it over to him. He takes it with a smile and then I completely lose his attention. His green eyes trained on the TV screen. My eyes are blue green, a mix of both my parents' eyes, but other than that I look almost identical to him. His hair is also a lot darker than mine. I return to the kitchen and pour some cereal from the box. I grab the stack of unread mail from the counter. Half-heartedly, I flip through envelope after envelope of bills and finally find one. It was an acceptance letter but not the acceptance letter.
​"I got another acceptance letter," I say opening the rest of the mail and thumbing through it.
​"That's great, honey! Where is it from?" He asks, muting the news.
​"NMSU but I'm not interested. You know where I really want to go," I say.
"I can't believe you only have a month and a half until graduation and then you're off to college. What am I going to do here all alone?" Dad says, as he adjusts his glasses.
"Come on, Dad. You'll be fine. Just don't cook at home," I say with a smile. He gives a light chuckle and turns up the news. I grab my coffee and my cereal and head to the couch. I sit down and listen to the news trying not to be annoyed by Blondie.
​"There has been another homicide in Roswell. Police are still investigating and notifying family members. The victims all still marked with tell-tale white rose soaked in the blood of the victim. Police currently have no leads. Now we go to Tom with the weather report." The screen goes dark and it takes me a second to realize dad turned off the TV. Dad shifts in his chair and takes a sip of his coffee. This is how it's been since these homicides started, dad tunes into the news as much as possible. I assume it's because dad's afraid the serial killer will come here meaning he will have to work the case. He knows I hate it when he works big cases like that. I get up and put my bowl and mug into the sink and return to my spot on the couch,
​"Better get ready for work. Are you about to leave?" Dad asks. I nod and he tosses me the keys to my black VW bug.
​"Thanks. Are you working late tonight?" I ask.
​"Yes, sorry. Are you going to be okay, here alone?" Dad asks, worry clear on his face.
​"Of course, I'll be fine. I think I'll go eat with the guys," I say, giving him a smile.
​"Okay, sounds good. See you soon, honey." I nod and give him one last smile. I grab my bag and head for my car. The drive to school isn't very long but I decide to take the long way so I can grab a coffee from my favorite local coffee shop.
​I pull into the senior section of the parking lot. I park next to Braydon's truck knowing that all the guys are here. I turn off the car and throw my keys into my bag. I head for my locker. After turning the corner I can see Shaun's leaning up against my locker, waiting for me. I walk up to him and he smiles at me. A couple of strands of his dark brown hair hang in his face.
​"Morning," I grumble. He laughs and moves away from my locker.
​"Someone needs to drink some coffee," Shaun laughs.
​"Shut up. I already had two cups this morning," I say, holding up my empty to go cup. He laughs again. I grab my books from my locker and slam it shut. When I turn around he just looks at me with his brown eyes, his face gone serious."What?"
​"It's nothing I'm just worried about you being home alone all the time, especially with this serial killer on the loose. You could stay for baseball practice. I know it's not the most fun thing but you know."
​"I'll think about it."
​"Then what are you going to do? Stay home alone and wait?"
​"No, Aiden and I can hang out after school."
​"Nope, he's in Poetry Club and they meet today after school, remember?" I take a deep breath.
​"Yes, I remember, I was hoping you wouldn't. I'll figure it out. I'll be fine, though." Shaun shakes his head not ready to let it go and we head for first period. I take my seat next to Aiden and Shaun takes his next to Braydon. Aiden looks up at me and smiles.
​"I like your dress. Looks good on you," He says. I smile and take my seat. Aiden is like a brother to me. He's really smart and sensitive. He has hazel eyes and shaggy brown hair. Any girl would be crazy not to fall for him. I don't think of him like that. I actually think I would like Shaun or Braydon. They're both amazing guys and incredibly cute. Shaun is sensitive and strong. He's the running back of our football team and currently a pitcher on our baseball team. He's got some muscles and he's good with the ladies. Braydon is all muscle, best quarterback our school has seen in years, in fact he took us to the State Championships four years in a row, and he plays third basemen on the baseball team. He's got beautiful green eyes that you could lose yourself in and sunshine yellow blonde hair. I don't know why I schedule a first period because I know I won't pay attention. I lose focus and end up daydreaming and doodling in my notebook all class period. I cannot wait to be done with high school and this town in general.
​The bell rings indicating the end of fourth period: social studies. Thank goodness for the bell. I gather my stuff and follow Shaun, Braydon, and Aiden. We join the rest of group at the back of the lunch line. Daniel is the only one missing because he's saving us a table. He packs his lunch every day. Daniel is a good friend, his dad works with my dad, so that's how he kind of joined our group. Daniel and Aiden are the only of the guys who aren't on the football team. Aiden was always a good friend of Shaun's so that's how he joined the group. I was adopted in, I guess. I moved here when I was seven because my mom died and we needed to be closer to family. I play with my long light brown hair. Josh and Brian bicker about some stupid assignment they got today in trigonometry.
​"You want to go, loser?" Josh says, tugging at his shirt. Josh and Brian never get along. Josh is considered one of the "cool" kids. He dresses like a gangster. What a shame, he could be so cute. He has long blonde hair and blue eyes and he's tall and skinny like most everyone here. Brian on the other hand dresses in a t-shirt and jeans that show off how muscular he is. He has brown hair and muddy brown eyes. He has the biggest crush on Michelle Gordon since our freshman year. She's pretty and athletic. She has really long brown hair and bright green eyes that Brian just can't get enough of. He doesn't ever shut up about her. We grab our lunch and take a seat. Daniel is probably the cutest of our group. He has long, shaggy brown hair and big baby blue eyes. Everything about his appearance is child-like. His face is round and he's not very tall at all. He's very quiet and a little bit shy.
​"Any more acceptance letters?" I ask, pushing around some noodles with my fork.
​"Yes, but not anything I'm interested in. What about you?" Aiden asks.
​"I've gotten a couple. I got one from NMSU recently. Not what I was hoping for though," I say. Aiden nods and gives me a smile.
​"You know you're going to get that acceptance letter. Be patient, okay?" Aiden says with a smile. I nod. Braydon starts talking about football practice and all the guys engage. I try to pay attention but I struggle to focus. My vision goes black and I can't hear the boys. What the heck is going on? I struggle to remain calm and end up falling out of my chair, struggling to regain my vision. A woman dressed in a long, flowing red dress comes into sight. Her appearance doesn't shock me but what does is the white rose in her hand. This isn't real, I know that. The air around me is thinner and hot. I look around and notice flames closing in. She calls out to me. I swear I even hear her say help. The woman tilts her head back and screams. I watch as she collapses and the flames engulf her. I take a few steps trying to get a closer look at her. She has long red hair and she is very pale. I turn around and a shadowy silhouette steps in front of me. It moves past me and closer to the woman. The shadow leans down and begins disappearing into the woman's mouth. The woman's once still body begins to jerk and twitch, uncontrollably. She rises unnaturally from the fetal position. Bright red, fresh blood drips from the woman's mouth onto her dress and more eerily the white rose she is still holding. The woman seems to get farther and farther away and finally my vision goes back to normal and I can see my friends. Aiden and Shaun help me to my feet.
​"What happened?" I ask my voice cracking. The boys all look at each other and then back at me.
​"We were about to ask you the same thing," Shaun says. I shake my head and take a couple of steps.
​"I'll be back. I need a moment," I say and then I head to the bathroom. I throw cold water on my face, hoping to calm myself down. I shut my eyes but all I can see is the blood and the rose. Taking a deep breath and opening my eyes I look at myself in the mirror then notice my mother's necklace is red. It's not normally red it's supposed to be blue. How weird that this happens right after I have a weird vision. Something tells me that this isn't a coincidence.