Clutching the dusty book to my chest, I stood in the parking lot dumbfounded. I had no idea what was going on and so many questions were whirling around in my head. The one I saved long ago? Who was that? When did I save anyone or anything besides Clarity's place in the coffee line at a cafe when she needs to use the bathroom?
"Aria! Sorry for making you wait," Clarity panted, bringing me out of my musings. "You know how far my Advanced Literature class is away from here."
"Yes, I know," I replied absentmindedly.
"Well, it's been a long day, and I call dibs on the bathtub as soon as we get home," Clarity scowled. "I need to chillax and I'm just really in a bad mood."
"Why? What happened?" I asked. She seemed fine before classes.
"Nothing, just that I saw some stupid b*tches flirting with Mr. Collins earlier," Clarity scrunched up her face as if she had eaten something sour. "Those sl*ts were totally molesting him! And he was flirting back! How can he ever like me when he likes skinny Barbies?!"
Clarity broke out in sobs and I had to usher her into the passenger seat.
"It's going to be okay, Clarity, just wait and see. Now give me your keys, I'll drive us home," I soothed. "Plus, we can have another girl's night if you want."
Clarity didn't reply and the entire ride back was silent, the silence only broken by the beeping of cars and Clarity's sniffles and hiccups. As soon as we returned to the apartment, Clarity rushed to the bathroom and locked herself in it.
"Just yell if you need anything!" I called out. "Anything at all! Like if you need your favorite ice cream or something!"
I smiled, satisfied, when I heard a laugh from inside the bathroom.
After finishing my last essay, I decided to take a look at the ancient book that Mr. Andrews gave me. I was hesitant to read the contents for I was afraid of what I would find, but I had questions that needed answering.
Sucking in a deep breath, I opened the book to the first page. I had no idea what I was expecting, may be for the book to burst into flames or for a magical golden light to shine from the book with a bunch of singing from heavenly voices. What I wasn't expecting was for the book to be absolutely, completely blank. There was no mysterious writing or symbols.
Confused, I closed the book and opened it again. Still nothing.
"I knew that Mr. Andrews was crazy," I muttered. "There are no such things as creatures of the night and they sure as hell aren't after me."
The clock continued ticking, and before I knew it, my digital clock read midnight.
With a loud groan, I thumped onto the bed and winced. Clarity had gone to bed two hours ago after crying herself to sleep. I sighed and curled onto my side, still clutching the book and throwing the covers over me.
The land around me was dark and terror was slowly consuming me. I felt skittish and ready to bolt at any moment. I felt like prey. Tendrils of shadow spun around me, slithering towards me and shooting away when I bat at them.
A cry started up in the distance, yelps and shrieks became louder. Squinting my eyes, I could see that dark figures with red eyes clambering towards me. A shriek of terror escaped my lips and my heart began pumping rapidly.
Glancing at the dark figures on last time, I turned on my heel and ran. Hoots and hollers picked up after me, and I could hear the footsteps picking up speed. They were chasing after me.
With adrenaline pumping through my blood, I was full on sprinting, but after leaping over boulders and scrambling up steep slopes, I could feel myself becoming tired. There was no sun, no light to guide my way, and in my struggle to run away, I earned several cuts and bruises.
Just as I saw a narrow cave up ahead, something flew through the air, and before I could understand what was happening, I tumbled to the ground, tangled up in a net.
"Help!" I yelled in desperation. "Help me! Please, someone help me!"
I let out a sob as I spied the figures catching up. Soon enough, black cloaks surrounded me.
"Well, would you look at what we have here," someone jeered. Others laughed.
"What are you waiting for, boys? Tie her up!"
"No, please!" I struggled, flinching away from the hands that reached for me. "No! Stop!"
A wave of darkness descended over us. The darkness was thick and allowed for no sight, while the smoke that accompanied it stung my eyes. Cries of surprise and pain echoed around me.
Hands grasped me in the darkness, freeing me from the net. Then, a hand clamped over my hand, stopping any cries from leaving my mouth.
"Sh," someone soothed. "I'm just trying to help you."
I felt myself being picked up and I desperately clung to the stranger that was rescuing me. The stranger started to run to the narrow cave that I spotted earlier, and carefully slipped through the slim entrance.
"Where are we going?" I asked, my voice loud in the silence.
"Somewhere safe," was the stranger's only reply.
The stranger started walking faster, and I could see a sliver of light in the darkness. Eventually, we reached the sliver of light, and the stranger set me down. In the small amount of light, I could tell that he was a boy, no, a man. Unconsciously, my face started to flush and I instantly berated myself for it. He could be saving you just to kill you himself, I told myself.
The stranger placed his hand on the sliver of light, which upon contact, swirled into a large, shining oval. Colors swirled in the oval, and the whole oval seemed to shimmer with magic.
"It is magic," the stranger said.
"How did you-" I gasped.
"You think with your mouth," he answered. "Meaning you mutter whatever you are currently thinking."
I flushed. Did I think my thoughts out loud? I didn't remember muttering anything. I must be going crazy.
"Come on," the stranger beckoned.
"Where?" I asked confused. There was nowhere to go.
The stranger sighed impatiently. "Through the portal."
Hesitantly, I took the strangers hand. I was strangely excited, although my mind was screaming at me that this was all a trick, a lie. The stranger pulled me through the portal and I immediately held my breath. It felt like my whole body was being ripped apart and being assembled back together incorrectly.
When we landed on the other side, I fell to the ground and crawled a foot away, retching. I felt hands running up and down my back, calming me. Raising my head, I found that we were in a forest.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"Somewhere," he answered, offering no more explanations.
In one fluid motion, he was sitting right in front of me, his eyes scanning me over. In the light, I could see that he was indeed handsome and his eyes were the most beautiful turquoise that I had ever seen. The intensity of his gaze lit my body on fire.
"What is on your wrist?" he asked me. I looked at the scar on my wrist that I had for as long as I could remember.
"It's a scar," I told him. "I think I've had it forever."
"Do you remember where you got it?" the stranger asked, watching me intently.
"I-I don't remember," I stuttered. The words sounded infinitely wrong in my mouth. They felt like the biggest lie I've ever told, even though I really didn't remember.
"Hmm," he mused, his hand going to the gold, heart-shaped locket around his neck, stroking it almost routinely, as if he did this a million times.
"What is your name?" I asked, eyeing him curiously.
"Eon," he told me carefully, watching my reaction, almost as if he was searching for something.
"I- That's a nice name. It's unique. It suits you," I offered a smile.
I couldn't shake off the feeling of familiarity. I heard the name Eon before, I just didn't know where. It was a unique name, one that I would have remembered if I heard it before, and surely I would have remembered his devilishly handsome looks?
"Anyway, thank you for saving me," I whispered, a little shy.
"It was no problem," Eon answered easily. "My pleasure."
Something about his voice was infinitely sexy to me. Deep and husky, his voice was one that I wouldn't mind listening to forever.
Suddenly, my vision seemed to blur and come back into focus. When I blinked, the world looked like it was turning to static on a TV screen.
"You're waking up," Eon told me, noticing my confusion.
"This was a dream?" I questioned, shaking my head to rid myself of the static
. "You are pulled too far into this world. You need to be careful," Eon grasped my shoulders, ignoring my question. "They are coming after you, but don't worry, I'll protect you with my last breath."
"Wait!" I gasped, trying to hold on to him, but he was slipping through my fingers. "Wait! I-" I cried out as the world slipped out under me and I was falling into darkness.
***
Hurray! I'm back! Kind of...
I don't know if I can manage to publish more before the summer, but I'm going to try my best even though my finals are coming up. I promise (even though we all know by now I have a hard time keeping promises on Wattpad) that I will do my best to update.
One problem that I'm frequently having with this story is writer's block. I just had a super idea for this story that I just jumped right into it without planning it out. Now, that is becoming a problem. This doesn't mean that I am giving up on this story or putting it on hold! I just think I need to stop for a second and regroup.
On the other hand, there probably will be more frequent updates in the summer so don't lose hope. I really hope you guys haven't given up on this story...
Thank you for reading! I promise things are going to get super fun from here on out!
Love Ya!
~Thesmallthingsinlife