When I woke in the morning, I kept perfectly still, with my eyes still locked shut. The first thing I was aware of was a burning sensation slowly creeping up my hand and tickling with fire at my wrist. The pain had probably been the thing that had awoken me.
Slowly, I unglued my eyes and feathered my eyelashes to keep out the bright light that stole into my eyes. I cursed myself internally- I'd forgotten to close my blinds last night after falling into bed, having come back from spending time with Dean on the rooftop. Eventually my eyes adjusted and I managed to open them properly. I inhaled sharply as I glanced around my bedroom, seeing everything in brilliant colour and clarity. It was amazing. I could see the dust motes dancing in the morning sunshine and it distracted me. Remembering the pain, I looked down, and let out a strangled shriek. Curling and twisting it's way from inside my thumb out over the back of my hand, and wrapping itself around my wrist was an ink black swirling mark that looked like a tattoo. Looking closer, I could see the end tendrils slowly creeping themselves towards the inside of my wrist- that must be while I was still in pain. Morbidly fascinated, I watched it slowly move across my skin like a living thing.
While I was processing all of this, a voice in the back of my head was yelling:
'You're a demon. YOU'RE a demon. You're a demon!'
I sat up abruptly and ran over to the mirror in my bathroom, afraid. It was an immense relief to see my familiar reflection staring back at me, with no serious changes to my appearance. If anything- apart from my freakin' tattoo thingy- my skin seemed to be more stretched over my bones, my already sharp cheekbones becoming extremely defined, as well as teeth that looked a bit more pointy- but in all I still looked like me.
When I lifted my shirt to examine the scar on my hip, I was surprised to see that it had disappeared. Shrugging, I slipped my shoes on and went in search of Dean, and some breakfast.
"Wait up!" I heard a voice call just as I was about to enter the cafeteria. I turned to find Geoffrey jogging up to me.
"Hello, Geoffrey," I said politely.
He nodded at my pleasantries and got straight to the point.
"You need to come upstairs now that you've transformed," he said bluntly. "You're not allowed down here anymore."
"Why?" I asked, more out of curiosity than anything else.
"Security reasons. Now, let's go," he said impatiently. I pushed past him, trying to see if Dean was in the cafeteria.
"Hang on, I just have to say goodbye to someone," I said firmly.
"No," Geoffrey said, grasping my arm. I glared at him and writhed in his grip, trying to escape.
"Let me go!" I protested. I couldn't leave without saying goodbye to Dean. I didn't know when I'd see him next.
Geoffrey began walking off, dragging me with him and ignoring my protests. Sighing, I gave up after a while and walked next to him.
"So you're a demon, huh?" He asked, glancing down at the arm he held with my marking swirling on it. I nodded mutely, still annoyed at him.
We reached the lift that had taken me down here three days ago. I stopped outside it, feeling suddenly afraid. My life was going to change, yet again. I had just begun to get into the swing of things here and now I'd be thrown in the deep end...
The doors opened with a ping and I didn't have another chance to think about it as Geoffrey pulled me in and pushed the button for level 6.
I glared at Geoffrey as the lift ascended, and he pointedly ignored me.
"Why do you make it so hard for me to like you?" I asked. I needed to get it out of my system. The least he could do would be understanding.
"Why do I have to get stuck with rude girls?" He said coldly, still not looking at me. I was left spluttering as the lift doors opened and he stalked off, not waiting for me.
"Hurry up!" He called roughly, and I sprinted to catch up with him. Geoffrey was counting the numbers on the doors under his breath as I slowed my pace to match his. I didn't bother trying to talk to him- his unpredictable behaviour was irritating.
Reaching room 14, he turned to me.
"Here is your room, number 14," he said. "I think you're staying with two other girls. Anyways, your stuff should be in there along with your timetable- you'll work out what to do. I have places to be, so goodbye," he said abruptly, turning and walking away. I frowned at his receding figure. Like, what?
Shaking my head, I looked nervously back to the door. I'll admit, I was a bit scared to meet the two other girls. Social skills were not something I'd ever excelled in. Grimacing to myself, I tried the door to find it unlocked. I examined the small room curiously, finding it empty, to my relief. The dorm had two bedrooms, a large bathroom and an adjoining kitchen / living room. One of the bedrooms had two singles, while the other had a double bed. Not sure what to do, I placed my duffel bag on the double bed and retrieved my suitcase from the living room. I was quite happy, actually, with the dorm. It was much larger than I anticipated, almost like a small apartment, and nothing like the dorms in boarding schools I'd read about. At least where I'd be living wasn't too shabby.
As I was raiding the fridge, two girls barged into the apartment, laughing. Noticing me crouched near the fridge, they stopped and started at me curiously. I felt embarrassed as neither of them said anything, and the silence stretched on. They exchanged glances, and the girl with black wavy hair cleared her throat.
"Hi, uh, are you our roommate?" She asked.
I smiled hesitantly.
"Yeah, my name's Ally."
The black haired girl smiled, and the tension in the room eased.
"Awesome. I'm Rachel, and this is Chloe," she said, gesturing to the tall blonde standing next to her. They were opposites in their looks. Rachel was all dark, with olive skin, emerald eyes and that black hair. Chloe on the other hand, was all light- pale, pale, blonde hair and steely grey eyes that watched me thoughtfully.
"I wasn't sure which bedroom to take..." I said, gesturing to the rooms.
"It's okay, we'll take the one with the singles." Chloe spoke up, turning and flinging her backpack onto the couch. Rachel moved to collect her suitcase from the corner where their stuff remained. I'd seen it, but not bothered investigating.
"Will there be a chance to buy food?" I asked, remembering how the fridge had been empty.
"On the weekends students are allowed to drive into town and stuff," Chloe replied. "We'll be able to buy... Supplies then."
I gave her a wary look.
"Supplies?"
"Yeah," Rachel laughed, having stashed her suitcase away. "Like alcohol."
"How old are you guys?" I asked, feeling uneasy at the mention of alcohol. Being only sixteen and the social introvert I was, I hadn't had much experience with drinking.
"Seventeen," Chloe shrugged. "But the teachers don't need to know. What they don't know won't hurt them."
Seeing my apprehensive expression, Rachel assured me:
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to, Ally."
I smiled, feeling relived, although I tried not to show it. I didn't want them thinking I was a total loser right away.
Sprawling onto the carpet, I noticed an oceanic-looking mark on the side of Rachel's neck as she folded herself onto the floor next to me. Chloe had a similar one on her thigh. I supposed I wouldn't have been put with another type of Baeing to be roommates with, so I guess it naturally follows that they would be demons as well.
"So where are you from?" Rachel asked curiously. I got the feeling that she was the most socially polished of the two- nice, friendly and quiet. I was still feeling out what Chloe was like, though.
"Southern California. How far is the Academy from there?" I wondered out loud.
"Not really sure. I think it might be a two hour drive," Chloe said. That sounded about right.
"What about you guys? Where are you from?" I asked, mainly to keep the conversation going.
"Nevada, both of us. We grew up together," Rachel explained.
"Lucky," I said wistfully. "I wish I had a close friend that I would have had to talk to while transforming."
"It isn't always the best," laughed Rachel. "Chloe was the biggest wimp in history and I had to put up with it."
Chloe mock gasped and reached over to pinch Rachel. I laughed with them. They both seemed genuinely nice, unlike the girls back at my normal school who were only nice if they got something out of it. Rachel sighed and exchanged glances with Chloe. The mood in the room had suddenly become uncomfortable, though I didn't know why.
"Uh, there's something you should know, like before we become friends, okay?" Chloe said, wariness dancing across her face.
I nodded, confused. What would they possibly need to tell me immediately?
"Well..." Chloe draw patterns in the carpet with her finger as she spoke. "A while ago I realised that I don't like guys- in that way." She looked up at me suddenly, as if daring me to judge her. I stared for a moment, my mouth in a wide O, and then shrugged.
"That's cool. I mean, if it's what you're like than that's just a part of you," I said, meaning it. Chloe smiled, visibly relived. Rachel laughed, and the tension in the room was gone.
"You don't know how hard it is for me to find someone decent for her. Ah, the struggle," Rachel teased.
Looking around the living room, I'd noticed a few sheets of paper stacked on the small coffee table. I shuffled through them, realising they were our timetables.
"Hey guys, here's our timetables for when classes start," I said, throwing them their copies.
"When do classes start anyway?" Chloe asked.
"Tomorrow," groaned Rachel. I felt my insides clench, anxiety already taking hold of me. The prospect of having to start classes with a group of other Baeings was a daunting one.
"We'll be fine," Rachel assured me. I smiled tightly, hoping she was right. How bad could it really be, anyways?
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Hey guys!
Sorry for the late update, I've been reading too many pewdiecry fanfics lately xD
Hopefully you all enjoy this chapter! I'm still editing things as I go, so if something doesn't quite make sense, that's the reason why.
Please vote and comment your thoughts! As always, your support means everything >.<
Love,
Emma xx