"I guess this is a time where you can say that rumors are true." Zoe gazed sympathetically at her friend. The kids sat around the table at Airiana's house after school. Airiana told her story of what had happened between Mr. Howard and her with a blanket tightly wrapped around her. Her body still felt frozen from the shock.
Mark pulled Zoe close to him with his arm. "Oh Zo, please smile for me."
"How can she?" Airiana whispered.
Zoe shook her head. "I can't believe it. We always wanted a new and better principal for our school and instead, we get the worst one."
Mark got up suddenly, leaving the room and returned with a scrabble board game. "Let's play scrabble!"
Zoe smiled, "Are you up for it, Air?"
Airiana nodded, "It will distract me at least."
"Now we're talking!" Mark exclaimed, pulling the scrabble board out of the box, the word holders and bag full of scrabble letters falling everywhere on the floor.
Airiana giggled. "Mark, you always lift my spirits." The kids played a couple rounds of intense scrabble, Zoe shrieking and occasionally play hitting Mark whenever he made a bigger and better word than her. He would tease her and tell her it is her fault she is so poor at English and Lit classes because she is too busy flirting with him instead of paying attention.
Airiana kept biting her lip in nervous anticipation. We all just pretend like nothing has even happened, like nothing has changed. Just a bunch of kids acting like everything is fine in the world when everything has changed. Thoughts of Drake proposing Airiana with becoming his or dying kept creeping around in her mind, but she forcefully ignored her thoughts, using the scrabble game to pretend it did not happen.
Zoe and Mark asked Airiana one more time if she would be alright before they left for the night.
"Ill be fine, walk home safe you guys."
Zoe and Mark nodded gravely at her before Airiana shut the door in their face. She crawled into bed, swiping a fantasy book off the bookshelf and cuddled in her soft blue blanket to read. She threw the book across the room and screamed into her blanket. She could not read, all the words blurred into one with the thoughts swimming around in her head. Tears poured down her cheeks as she remembered Drake's touch and she wanted to vomit. She cried herself into a restless sleep.
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Airiana, Zoe and Mark sat in their 1st hour class as the school morning announcements came on.
"Good morning class," Drake said cheerfully, "Please sit down as I announce this…," his voice changed, sounding sad, "Elaine Winter is dead. Her body was found butchered, then stolen from the morgue. School is canceled for the rest of the day-"
Everyone gasped, some students screamed and started wailing. "He could have left out the butchered part." the teacher mumbled.
Zoe and Mark stared at Airiana with wide eyes.
Airiana stared back. "I know…what happened…" Tears started to pour down her cheeks. "Elaine told me that Drake's a, Drake's a.... and Drake found out…" she choked on a sob, "And he, he…" Airiana vomited, Zoe rushing behind her, holding her hair up.
Zoe gave Mark a grave look.
He stood up and gave Airiana some water from his water bottle and a piece of gum.
"OKAY!" the teacher yelled over the wailing students. "Go get your stuff and go to your buses!"
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Brian smiled when he saw his daughter and her gothic friend enter the house. He wrapped his arms around her and pecked her on the cheek.
"Dad!" Airiana exclaimed excitedly, happy to see her father on such a wretched day. "What are you doing here?"
"My boss said I could have the rest of the day off. What are YOU doing here?"
"Dad... a classmate of mine died…" tears welled in Airiana's big blue eyes.
"Oh! Airiana!" Brian hugged her again. He noticed Zoe's sad face and hugged her too. "I heard the awful news of a girl murdered on the radio on the drive home. Oh, my goodness, how awful. Girls, there's cookies in the pantry if you're hungry."
"Thanks Dad."Airiana gave him a tight hug than let go. She turned to Zoe. "Let's go to my room."
Zoe nodded and followed Airiana to her room. "Do you think that Mr. Howard...?"
"I think Drake killed her,"
"Drake..." Zoe whispered, not used to saying his first name. "Air, I'm scared. What if we're next?"
"I know that he isn't intent on killing me, but what about you... or Mark?" Airiana paced back and forth in her room, pushing her hair back in frustration, "Oh God, what do I do?"
Zoe flew back on Ariana's bed and stared at the ceiling. "God, help me I have a bad idea."
Airiana stopped her pacing to look at her, "What?"
"Go talk to him. Have him admit his crime and wear a tape recorder on you. While you're at it ask him to spare your friends."
Airiana's eyes almost popped out of her head. "I'm TERRIFIED of him!" She slowly sat down next to Zoe, "But if Elaine is dead how many others? I have to do something if I can help it."
Zoe put her hand on Airiana's shoulder, "We all will be indebted to you,"
Airiana nodded and took a deep breath, putting her hand over Zoe's. "I'll do it,"
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"Macy," Airiana shyly stepped in the office.
"Yes Air?" The receptionist gave her a small smile. The school was still trying to get over the shock of the brutal murder of its student.
"Is Mr. Howard in his office?"
"Last I checked he is."
"Can I see him?"
Macy nodded and left to knock on his door. "He's ready to see you Air," She said while walking back to her desk.
Airiana took a deep breath and walked toward his office door. She had a small voice recorder in her jeans that Zoe had bought online, and the wire was super glued to the inside of her shirt, the mic just below her neckline. She knocked softly on his door, "Drake?"
"Air, come on in," Drake waved to the empty chair as she cautiously stepped inside. "Please, take a seat."
Airiana sat down while Drake studied her with his dark eyes. "I think we need to talk..."
"Anytime Air I am all yours,"
Airiana hated that he used her nickname. It was too familiar, too formal. But she had a bigger mission at hand to worry about such a trivial thing. "Drake Howard... what date is it today?"
He frowned, "October 15th... Air is says the date right here on this big calendar on my desk." he chuckled, "I'm sure you came to discuss more than what day it is."
Airiana only asked for the voice recording. She did not know much about court other than what she had watched on television but figured confirming the date was important. Law will be the next thing I study. "So, it's been two weeks since Elaine died."
Drake leaned forward crossing his fingers together, laying his chin on them studying Airiana. "Is that what you want to discuss? You're grief over Elaine?"
Airiana decided not to beat around the bush, "You killed her." She stated.
"I killed alot of people."
Airiana held her breath. "Who? I mean, how many?"
Drake stood up and walked around the desk so fast Airiana was sure it was his supernatural power that gave him such speed. He grabbed her neck forcing her to stand and reached in her pants pocket, pulling out the voice recorder so fast the wires unglued from her shirt, tearing it a little at the neckline. "I'm not fucking dumb Airiana Spark." he growled, his breath hot against her ear and neck.
Airiana pushed at him trying to gasp for air as his hand was still tightly wrapped around her throat.
"If you think you can double cross me, I should kill you right now." he inhaled, smelling her neck. "I'm sure your blood will taste the sweetest. Such a waste of a smart girl. I guess you're not that smart after all."
"Please." Airiana whimpered.
He loosened his grip on her neck and put his hand on her hip, pushing her against him and sunk his teeth into her neck.
Airiana gave a small cry. She was afraid to cry out too loudly in case he did kill her just for being too loud or for crying for help.
Drake retracted his fangs than turned Airiana towards him, gazing into her blue eyes pressing his forehead against hers. "You see how easy it is for me to kill you?"
Airiana nodded, his breath smelt coppery like blood.
Drake leaned in, taking Airiana's lips in his. He gave her a seductive kiss and dragged his teeth along her lower lip when he pulled back.
Airiana pursed her lips trying not to throw up on him.
"What should I do Air? I was willing to wait until you were ready to be mine but now, I think I should just take you."
"Please Drake... I'm young... I made a mistake..."
Drake laughed, "Yes young you are and I'm centuries older than you and smarter than you, remember that." He walked back to his desk and grabbed the recorder in his palm. He kept eye contact with her, smiling and crushed it by simply squeezing it, the pieces falling all over his desk.
Airiana took a step towards the door.
He still smiled at her.
She took another step.
He did not move.
Then she ran out of the office. She ran past Macy before she could ask any questions and ran straight down the hall to the library. She looked up books on the computer that had the subject vampires and searched the books out by their author names. She grabbed the first book that she could find and curled up in the corner of the library on the window seat.
The book contained the usual information. Vampires sleep by day which obviously was not true, repulsed by garlic and feeds on blood. Airiana closed the book and hugged it to herself. She almost died not even an hour ago. She felt bitter and defeated. She was smart but she was not that smart. Shit, I should be a kid right now enjoying life, not thinking about how to defeat an age-old vampire who's obviously way quicker, smarter and stronger than me. Tears poured down her cheeks silently. She touched her lips where Drake had kissed her. She felt so violated, so small. All she wanted to do was hide.
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"Pass it here, Mark!" yelled Tyler.
Mark passed the basketball and Tyler made a shot.
"Yeah!" the basketball team shrieked.
"Why does Tyler and Mark have to be on the same team?" the other basketball team members muttered.
"Okay." Mrs. Leemrey, the gym teacher, said, "Now let us have four basketball teams. Two on one side of the gym, two on the other. I will need another basketball. Can someone please get it?"
Mark smiled. "I will."
"Thank you, Mark. You are such an angel." Mrs. Leemrey gave him the keys.
Mark walked up to the locked gym storage door which was located across the hall from the gymnasium. He unlocked it and walked in making sure the door was left wide open. The lights were dim and the fan was humming softly. The fan was starting to hum louder and louder the deeper Mark walked into the storage room. Mark was all the way inside, looking through the gym equipment in the back of the storage room. The fan was humming so loud he plugged his ears. O-ow! He stopped his search and frowned at the fan. The fan almost sounded like it was breathing... that same familiar raspy breathing noise. Mark ran to the door to exit the room, but the door slammed shut in his face.
"What the fuck?!" Mark saw a big hole appear in the brick wall to the right that was partially hidden by stuff. Mark saw two red eyes stare back at him from the hole.
Mark started pounding on the exit door screaming, "Help! Help me! Please!"
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Airiana and Zoe were walking down the hallway because they decided to skip math. Airiana was not usually down for these types of activities but today she could not concentrate on her schoolwork. Math was her weakness anyways. Airiana was not sure she could ever concentrate on her schoolwork ever again.
Zoe frowned. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Airiana asked.
"Help…help me…please!" came a voice from down the hall.
Zoe and Airiana looked at each other with wide eyes. "Mark!" they shrieked. They ran down the hallway following his voice.
"In here!" Zoe shouted. She opened the door to the storage room.
Mark tumbled out the door. "Help…" he breathed.
"Mark what's wrong?" Airiana asked in a panicked voice.
"The storage room..." he gasped for breath, "There was that breathing and eyes... there's a hole in the wall!"
Airiana leaned into the room and looked around. "I don't see anything out of the ordinary Mark."
Mark grabbed Airiana's shoulder, pulling her out of the room and slammed the door shut behind her. "Never go in there alone!"
"Okay, okay!" Airiana threw her hands up, "Come with me to the library. I have an idea." Mark and Zoe followed her to the Library and sat down at a table and Airiana produced some paper and pens from her book bag and started drawing on it. "Look at my map."
Zoe and Mark leaned forward to look at her drawings.
"The front bathrooms are scarier because they are right next to the gym storage." She pointed at her map with her pen. "Now, the back bathrooms are not." She pointed again. "That's why we don't hear thumping in there. I say that we check out the front gym storage first, since Mark has already been in the back school one."
Mark shivered.
"That also explains why the locker rooms are scary." Zoe stated.
Airiana nodded. "Let's check it out." she packed up her materials back in her book bag and the kids walked into the front gym which was usually empty during the day and approached the gym storage room.
"Isn't the door locked?" Zoe asked.
"I don't know, let's see." Airiana tried to open the gym storage door. "It's locked. We need to pick it." Zoe gave Airiana her bobby pin and Airiana moved it around a couple times until the door opened. The kids entered the room.
"Looks normal to me," Mark stated than grabbed Zoe's hand.
Zoe smiled and squeezed his hand.
The door slammed shut behind them. The kids ran to the door trying to open it.
"It's locked!" Mark shrieked.
"Mark please! Settle down, we'll be okay." Airiana said.
"Easy for you to say, I just got out of a locked creepy room." Mark rolled his eyes.
The rooms lighting turned into an eerie red glow.
"Oh… creepy." Zoe shivered and hugged Mark. Mark held her close, practically suffocating her. "Mark… I can't breathe."
"Oh, sorry." he loosened his grip on her.
Airiana looked around the room. The fan was humming again. That stupid retarded fan,
A tall gray stone altar appeared as if a veil of a normal gym storage room had been lifted revealing what was truly in the room. On the altar lay Elaine, butchered and barely recognizable. Blood dripped off the sides. Most of Elaine's body was sucked dry of blood.
Airiana started hyperventilating, gasping for breath.