"You will now turn your textbooks to page 167. Answer questions number 1 through 20 on a sheet of loose leaf paper, and then turn them in to me. Remember, if you don't finish this, it will be homework," Mrs. Levee was rambling about our next assignment. We were studying the Russian revolution, and as I pointed out, we shouldn't have to read any more mind-numbing textbooks, we could just study our normal classroom procedures. Mrs. L rules with complete military force. She keeps us up late at night working, and in class it's pretty much the same. It's not exactly heaven on earth.
I go to Halkwood Academy for Gifted Students. When they say gifted, they don't mean kids who have mothers who think that their kid is a genius but who's learning style just doesn't comply with the school system. I mean kids who are really gifted. I mean gifted as in inhuman. There are witches, there are vampires, there are centaurs, and there are even normal kids like me who possess slightly different abilities.
My friend Aria is a witch. Not in the broomstick, wart sense, but in the spells and an annoying cackle-ish laugh sense. My other good friends are a variety of creatures. There's my best friend Alexander (everybody calls him Alex), who's a vampire. He's stereotypically vampire-ish, and pretty damn hot. We've been friends for years, but never wanted to progress past the just friends stage. There's Leah, who's just a normal kid, but who has wings, and her best friend Melody who's a shape shifter; and their boyfriends Chris and John, who are twins who are super fast and strong. I'm also perfectly normal, but I can read and influence minds. I'm also telekinetic. As you can tell, we're a pretty special bunch.
I've been at Hawkwood since I was a baby. Most students were dropped off on the school steps on some dark night when they were a baby and their cries woke the teachers; basically just the cliché story you hear in books. Vampires, werewolves, and centaurs are sent here right after they're born (or created). A few witches, nymphs (elves, half eves, dwarves, etc) and humans (with crazy powers) are sent here when they're older. Alex and I came at about the same time, and we were only mildly acquainted before last year, when we had the same Geometry class. Leah, Mel, Chris and John have been here since they were toddlers. Aria came 2 years ago, when she was 12. Now I've been here 4 years, and I'm currently 14 and a ninth year (ninth grader).
My friends and I fit into the normal spots in our group. Aria is the smart, sweet, sensible one, I'm the sarcastic, cynical one who people suspect could be a criminal mastermind, Melody's the silly, crazy, super friendly one and Leah is the lovable, pretty one. Of the guys, Chris is the wild partier, John is the protective but nice older brother, Alex is the wry rocker who gets mistaken for an emo kid a lot, and Josh (Aria's boyfriend) is the funny, cocky guy next door.
More about me, you ask? (What is this, an video?). Well, I'm 14 and a ninth year at Hawkwood. I have longish, layered reddish blonde hair and hazel eyes (Alex claims they look like a mix of blue and gold, but honestly). I'm about 5'5", with an hourglass figure (she's got a body like an hourglass; it's ticking like a clock). I can read minds and I'm telekinetic. The mind reading works selectively, so when I don't want to have random thoughts streaming into my brain, I don't have to; and I can tune in to just one person's thoughts at a time. I love sarcasm, Alex, fashion design, purple, my guitar, sci-fi and fantasy novels, Paramore, All Time Low (yes I have access to a computer, and a pretty nice one at that.) and skinny jeans. I have a strong aversion to Aeropostale, Disney channel, and pale pink. I don't usually wear much makeup, just mascara, eyeliner, and lip gloss. I don't have a last name. I just showed up here when I was a baby. The nurse, Mrs. Worthington named me Juliet because she was reading Romeo and Juliet when I showed up at the school. If you're wondering how I know about pop culture and how I have a guitar, the school sets up a small fund for all of the students whose parents don't pay for them. We're allowed to go out on weekends, and Norfolk isn't too far away. They have a decent mall and some good concert venues. I don't know how they conjure up the money, but they do….
You see, Hawkwood might seem pretty crazy to a normal person, but really, it's a lot like any other school. The classrooms are in little brick buildings, making it look like a little, tiny, well-kept housing development. We have physical education, which is a lot like any other school, with uniforms and locker rooms, but instead of soccer and ultimate Frisbee, we have martial arts and horseback riding. Then there's math, which is exactly normal, with grade level classes until you reach Algebra I, and then it goes in regular increments (geometry, algebra II, pre-calc, calc, trig…). We have English (of course), foreign language (Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, Greek, Russian…), science, which is pretty normal too except with extra stuff in biology since we have to learn human anatomy as well as um, inhuman anatomy, Social studies (see above rant re Mrs. L), music (choir, orchestra), and art.
There are even cliques, except this time sort of separated by species (would you call them species?). Let's see…
The witches: the preppy ones, the girly ones. The ones who care more about fashion than academics. The pretty, sometimes ditzy, sometimes deadly ones. They aren't exactly the type you wanna hang out with, but the ones whose good side you want to be on. Trust me; these chicks have something nasty up their $400 sleeves.
The werewolves: the football players, the jocks. Not born, but created in the traditional way. Usually associated with witches. Super strong, super fast, part wolf… also the ones who get straight D's and get away with it. The ones who all the witches love, the crush worthy ones (in their opinion, not mine). They're rivaled with the vampires, and again, you wanna be on their good side. You don't want to be attacked by a werewolf. That can be kinda hard when you're best friends with a vampire, but I manage.
The vampires: the way sexy ones, the dangerous, mysterious ones. The one I'm dating (hehe). They're smart, but usually pretty shy. They aren't your stereotypical vampire in that they aren't transformed; they're born into a long bloodline of vampires. They're super strong, super fast, and immortal unless killed in battle, which basically means they can't get sick or anything. They do drink blood and, just like in twilight, their eyes change color due to what they eat. They can be sarcastic and mean, but their hard shell can crack. Their rivalry with the werewolves can be kind of annoying, and trust me, you don't want to see a vampire sucking a werewolf's blood (or anyone's, for that matter). They're the ones who, if you went to a normal school, would be classified as the emo, rocker ones. And yes, they do have fangs.
The nymphs, dwarves, elves, and half elves: the hippie, indie ones. The weird ones who are either obsessed with saving the world, finding the best paintbrush, or both. Usually nice people, but can be a little scary when their mad. They don't judge people, so usually you're fine with just extending some common courtesy towards them, but just beware the organic paintbrush.
The centaurs: the weirdoes, the freaks, the nerds. Not bad people or anything, just the ones who are gonna get made fun of. It's kind of surprising, because they have the giant hooves. Quite a few people, I'm not naming names but quite a few *cough*werewolves*cough*witches*cough* went to the infirmary with bruised and occasionally broken bones.
The humans (with weird ass powers): depends, usually on what the powers are. Usually associated with each other, although in some cases (aka my case) vampires. The ones with pretty, showy powers hang out with the witches, the ones with powers having to do with strength or speed hang with the werewolves. The ones with the artsy powers go with the nymphs, eves, dwarves etc. The ones with weird, powerful powers, for some reason, are equated with vampires.
We live in dorms. We wake up at 7:00 AM, breakfast is at 7:30, and classes start at 8:00. We have a few hours of classes then at 11:30 we have lunch. At noon we return to classes until 3:30. From 3:30 to 7:00 PM we have free. Dinner is from 7:00 to 8:00, and then we go back to our dorms. We have to be in our dorms by 8:30, and lights out is 10:00.
"Time's up!" Mrs. L said. Shit! I thought. I hadn't finished yet, and I was already swamped with homework. I couldn't try cheating, because the good old L-Meister's power was to resist other powers. Well, that was the good thing about going to a boarding school. Endless homework time, at least until lights out. I left the classroom, and saw Alex waiting for me.
"Hey Juliet," Noticing my downcast expression, he asked "Did Mrs. L swamp you again?"
"Yup! I so love her class! Every time I go inside my plans are drowned out by the lovely promise of homework!"
We sat down under a big maple tree. The grounds at Hawkwood are huge and gorgeous. There's a stable, falconry, and just about anything you could imagine. He pecked me lightly on the cheek. "Don't worry. We can do it together. Besides, you could have read Aria's mind. She always knows the answers."
Aria did always know the answer. She was perfect, a little too perfect, though. She and I were the only people of our age in all of the advanced classes, so that forced us to be friends. She was a few inches shorter than me, and had shoulder length black hair and chocolate brown eyes. Little bit of a teacher's pet, but on the whole a good friend.
Alex and I were settled into our usual manner of work. He tuned his acoustic guitar mindlessly, and I summoned an old paperback copy of Pride and Prejudice to me. Occasionally I would stop to read him a passage, or he would ask me if a note sounded right. He finally seemed satisfied with the tone and started playing snippets of songs. Remembering Sunday, I projected into his mind. It was my favorite song, a sensitive ballad, and also a duet between a more famous Alex and Juliet, Alex Gaskarth of All Time Low and Juliet Simms of Automatic Loveletter. He started playing the chords, and singing too…
He woke up from dreaming and put on his shoes,
Started making his way past 2 in the morning,
He hasn't been sober for days,
Leaning now
Into the breeze
Remembering Sunday
He falls to his knees
They had breakfast together
But 2 eggs don't last like the feeling of what he needs…
He kept playing, singing in that sweet, mysterious, velvety voice of his, until he got to my favorite part, or, our favorite part.
The neighbors said she moved away
Funny how it rained all day
I didn't think much of it then but it's starting to all make sense
Oh I can see now
That all of these clouds
Are following me in my desperate endeavor
To find my whoever,
Wherever she may be
Then my part:
I'm not coming back,
I've done something so terrible,
I'm terrified to speak
But you'd expect that from me
I'm mixed up
I'll be blunt now the rain is just
Washing you out of my hair
And out of my mind
Keeping an eye on the world,
So many thousands of feet off the ground
I'm over you now
I'm at home in the clouds
Towering over your head
He finished the song and smiled at me. It's such a sad song, but it's so pretty, so lovely, so sweet.
"Hey, why don't we go down to the stables? It's such a nice day," I suggested.
"Good idea," he said. We walked over to the stables. There are about 300 horses at Hawkwood. I honestly don't know how they can afford it all, but I'm pretty sure they have government funding. Alex and I had chosen a horse to be ours, if you choose a horse, and you bond with it, it's pretty much yours. The groundskeepers feed it, but you're responsible for telling them what kind of feed it needs, taking care of it, and exercising it. Alex was paired with August, a gorgeous, testy black Arabian stallion (terribly cliché, I know, but fitting). I have Akira, a beautiful chestnut thoroughbred mare. She can be mean, but we get along well. I tacked her up. I ride just about every style. I've been riding since I was a first year, so I've had practice. I mounted up quickly.
"Race ya?" I asked.
"It's on!" Both of our horses were incredibly, beautifully fast, and it was a pretty even match. We did our usual race, once around the track, into the forest and to our favorite clearing. Breathless, an enormous grin on my face, I pushed Akira into the gallop. She's naturally a racehorse, and it's incredible to watch her powerful muscles working, pushing towards the clearing. The grounds at Hawkwood are totally picturesque and gorgeous, and to watch the streams, trees, perfectly green grass, and brick buildings flash by while the wind is pulling your hair back feels insane. We were getting into the forest now, and I jumped over a huge fallen tree to get ahead. Alex and I were tied, running side by side now. I pushed Akira as fast as I could, only to have Alex pull ahead in the last instant.
"Ha! Beat you this time!" he crowed. All I could do was laugh. I hopped off Akira and let her drink from the nearby stream. Alex did the same. I lay down in the grass. "Hmm… I think you should owe me something. How about a twix bar?" he asked. Luckily, I happened to have one in my pocket. My cheeks were flushed from the run, and I was out of breath. I handed it to him. He bit out of it thoughtfully, his sharp canines slicing into the cookie bar like it was butter.
"D'you ever wonder what would happen if there wasn't Hawkwood? I mean, would we just be left out there to dominate the world? Or would we still sort of live in secret?" I asked.
"I dunno…I would personally live in secret. It seems like it would be right. I just think it would be nicer if we could keep our location unknown to the general public, like it would be safer,"
We lay down next to each other
"Hey Alex, hey Juliet!" Leah called, breathless from a long flight. Melody, now in bird form, chirped at us. Leah is the hot property at school. She's tall, has long, wavy blonde hair and 10-foot white wings. She's currently dating John, who has blond hair that falls into his eyes and wears pretty wacky stuff. A little too much neon, if you ask me. He looks nothing like his twin Chris, who's currently with Melody. Chris is a little shorter, with super straight light brown hair and a near perfect tan. Mel is about an inch taller than me, but we look a lot alike even though her hair is a little shorter and her eyes are blue-green and more catlike. She was in the form of a beautiful turquoise colored bird, but immediately upon seeing us she popped into human form.
"Sup?" Alex asked. Even though we're freaks of nature and should probably be on one of those reality TV shows, we act like normal 14 and 15 year olds. We stood up, and started walking back towards the dorms. The dorms are separated by year (not grade, since year is fancier and we go to a very fancy school) and gender. There are five buildings, basically two for first through fifth years (elementary school), one for sixth through eighth years (middle school), and two more for ninth years and older. Mel, Leah, Aria, and I are all in ninth year. Chris, John, and Alex are tenth years. Each building has three floors, each separated into girls and boys wings, adjoined by a common room. Each room has 2 twin beds, 2 desks, and a small bathroom with a shower, toilet, sink, and cupboard. Mel and Leah share a dorm, and Aria and I do too. In the boy's wing, one floor up, Chris and John share a dorm. Alex shares with his friend Taylor, who's also a vamp.
"Nothing, we just went for a fly. How're you guys?" Leah responded.
"We're good," he said. We walked into the dorm complex. The dorms are centered on a pentagonal field. They're relatively old fashioned brick buildings, very picturesque and prep school. This year, we were all in the same building. We're on the first floor; the guys are on the second. We parted ways, and I walked down the hall to mine and Aria's room. When you walk into our dorm, it's pretty evident that we're very different people. Her half was all pastel colors, with hairbrushes and back issues of seventeen magazine strewn all over. Her comforter is lavender, her walls are pale blue, and her desk lamp has a pale yellow shade. My half is painted a silvery gray, covered in tour posters of alternative bands, with a deep purple and silver striped comforter, a guitar, a dress form, and a black framed bulletin board covered in photos, ticket stubs, and sketches. I have back issues of Alternative Press magazine on my bed. Our closet is also divided evenly. My half is full of band tees, colorful skinny jeans, and studded belts, with the occasional punked up skirt or dress. She fills hers with tank tops, short shorts, various dresses and miniskirts, and a few pairs of light wash jeans.
A few minutes later, the bell rang signaling dinnertime. They have great food here, from way-rare steak for the vampires to vegetarian "delights" for the certain witches that want to maintain their figure. I met up with Alex, Leah, Mel, Chris, and John at our usual table. Aria, along with Fiona (a nymph) and Bella (also a witch), who are pretty much her disciples, sat at the table next to us; signifying that we were friends but not exactly besties. Aria is going out with a guy named Josh, who is a werewolf who absolutely adores her.
I helped myself to the homemade macaroni and cheese. What can I say? It's good. I'm not going to lose my figure because of some macaroni, am I? Melody was also eating it. Alex, being his vampire self, got some of the rarest steak imaginable, Chris and John were eating some sort of grilled cheese sandwich, and Aria was eating one of those aforementioned vegetarian delights. Somehow the conversation had turned to philosophy, ninth-grader-ified.
"Well, what if there was a purpose for life? Like, like, mmmm, like grilled cheese sandwiches?" Chris posed.
"I don't think there's a purpose in life. I think that what you do is your own fault, not that of fate. Or grilled cheese sandwiches," I added.
"I do think there is," Leah countered. "I mean, paramore wasn't formed for no reson!"
"Yeah, and it's not like hot topic was invented for no reason," Mel added. Alex smiled wryly. Leah giggled. We all have a weakness for hot topic.
"Yeah, sure, hot topic is hella awesome, but somebody probably thought "oh, let's make a store and call it hot topic and see what happens" not "oh, fate is telling me to make a store and name it hot topic and it's gonna become a great success." I'm just saying…"
"It's more subtle though. Good stuff happens because it should,"
"Yeah, but what about bad stuff? Does it just happen to get resolved?"
"Well, I hate to sound like a hopeless hippie, but it makes us stronger, and plus, if there was no bad stuff, then there wouldn't be good stuff,"
"Well, why is bad stuff bad and good stuff good? I mean, nobody said 'oh, I'm going to make a thing called music and it'll make people feel warm and fuzzy inside'. They just decided, and everybody liked it. Music wasn't made to be liked. It just happened to be one of the best things that ever happened. That's my point. Everything just happens because it happens, not for a reason," Well, maybe we're not your typical 14 year olds. Don't you talk with your 9th grade friends about philosophy? If you do, go you. You're a cool person. "Dang, you guys are deep," John said mockingly.
"Yeah, we're just that cool," Leah replied.
I went back to the dorm that night, contemplating the wonders that are philosophy. You know, maybe Confucius wasn't as much of a lifeless guy who made up some famous stuff that people decided to live by. I threw some stuff off of my bed. I could organize it later. I finished my homework, reading Aria's mind on the answers I was confused about. "CHEATER!" you may shriek, but young grasshopper, you have much to learn. I learn a lot from reading people's minds. Just search some, and you can find just about anything you need to know, not just the answer but how you get the answer. It's a very educational experience, and nobody even knows you're doing it.
I finished my homework (yes!) and got onto my computer. It's a slightly used macbook that's pretty nice considering it's been living with me for a year. I checked my email, where I had the usual newsletters and notifications, random messages from friends in other dorms, and one email that looked particularly strange. My inbox is usually pretty straightforward, full of subject lines like "New Album on Sale for Only $9.99 at Target!" or "could I borrow your textbook" but this one read "EXTREMELY URGENT! OPEN FOR YOUR SAFETY!" Of course I opened it. I love a strange joke every now and then. It stated:
"Congratulations. If you are reading this, it means you have been chosen out of a select group of individuals to help in an important mission. You have been selected for your talents and ingenuity, for your perseverance and skill. Essentially, these skills mean nothing. It is your ability and willingness to use them that counts. What is this mission, you may ask? You are to save the world; well, more than the world. You are to save the concept of existence, everything mankind has invented, from extinction. You are the saviors of everything that is anything. You see, our world as we know it is endangered by a terrible threat. This threat is known by many different names. Some see it as The Darkness, some as The Nothing, some as The Storm. This entity is not a person, nor a thing. It is an idea, forced into reality by those who feel it is right. It is slowly swallowing our being, our existence. You must stop it.
If you are interested, reply to this email. Your help is invaluable to us. Thank you,
Mr. Nubuddy"
Well, wow. Saving the world? Pretty wild, eh? I logged in to IM to see if any of my friends were online. Leah, Mel, Alex, Aria, Chris, and Josh were on. Awesomeness. (Leah=mywingsarebetterthanurs999, Mel=imn0thumanrightn0w, Aria=bubbletoiltrouble34, Alex=isuckurbloodnow432, Chris=ip0wnu, John=p0wnage2u, me=iknowwaturthinkin815) We have such original nicknames, I know.
*iknowwaturthinkin815 has logged in*
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: hi Juliet
Isuckurbloodnow432: hey
Ip0wnu: hi
P0wnage2u: sup?
Bubbletoiltrouble34: You're sitting right next to me…
Imn0thumanrightn0w: que pasa, senorita?
Iknowwaturthinkin815: MUHAHAHA saving the world
Isuckurbloodnow432: u get that email 2?
Iknowwaturthinkin815: ya. Wat u think of it??
Imn0thumanrightn0w: I AM THE DARKNESS….
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: I know. Corny movie much?
Ip0wnu: we should do it. they might have free food
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: lolz is food all u think about?
Iknowwaturthinkin815: almost…like 98% of his mind is devoted to food
P0wnage2u: lol
Isuckurbloodnow432: alarming, isn't it?
Iknowwaturthinking815: which? The world saving or the foodbrain?
Bubbletoiltrouble34: Both. Anyway, should we do it? I think we should. It'll probably get us extra credit.
Imn0thumanrightn0w: Juliet?
Iknowwaturthinkin815: ya?
Imn0thumanrightn0w: how can u stand living with her? Does she only care about extra credit?
Iknowwaturthinkin815: almost…
Bubbletoiltrouble34: ahem, SHE is right here
P0wnage2u: we kid, we kid
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: did u see the "Mr. Nubuddy" thing
Isuckurbloodnow432: nice pseudonym…well, I'm going to reply yes
Bubbletoiltrouble34: So will I
Imn0thumanrightn0w: Hell yes
Iknowwaturthinkin815: I'm in
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: sure
P0wnage2u: awesome
Ip0wnu: okay
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: in other news, what are u guys doin for the talent show? im singing...
Isuckurbloodnow432: I was gonna do something with our band, but the guys are cancelling. Juliet?
Iknowwaturthinking815: I know wat ur thinking…do we have to?
Isuckurbloodnow432: come on…ur really good!
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: what what what????
Isuckurbloodnow432: we were working on a
Iknowwaturthinkin815: no! we're not doing it
Isuckurbloodnow432: duet. U know, to that song remembering Sunday? Shes really good at it…
Imn0thumanrightn0w: DO IT!!!
Iknowwaturthinkin815: no! I won-oh, crap, curfew time
*imn0thumanrightn0w has logged out*
*p0wnage2u has logged out*
*ip0wnu has logged out*
*mywingsarebetterthanurs999 has logged out*
*bubbletoiltrouble34 has logged out*
*Isuckurbloodnow432 has logged out*
*iknowwaturthinking815 has logged out*
We all logged out. Mrs. L was on curfew duty this week, and if she found us out of bed, she would kill. I quickly shut down my computer, tossed some stuff off the bed, turned off the light, and got down under the covers. I'm pretty good at faking sleep, so I didn't have to worry. "'night!" I whispered to Aria. I was out in about 30 seconds.
The next morning I woke up, put on makeup, got dressed…the usual. After a hurried breakfast, seemingly endless classes, and a malfunctioning computer, I managed to send a reply to "Mr. Nubuddy".
"Yo, did you send your reply to that email yet?"
"Actually, I was about to ask you the same thing. I just did reply, I hope it sounded alright,"
"If people are paranoid about the fate of the world, they shouldn't mind how your reply to their urgent email sounds. It's a fact of life," I told her.
"True, but I want to set a good impression,"
"Aria, you can't spend your whole life worrying about impressions. They can change. Whatever happens is going to happen. You can't worry about it before it happens," I felt like a philosopher. Ha.
"Oh, I just got a reply back from them! Let's see..." she began the letter:
"Thank you for agreeing to help us. Your efforts will be invaluable. If you receive this message in time, you shall be escorted to our headquarters tomorrow (October 18th) to be told more of your mission. I cannot tell you anything more. Thank you,
Mr. Nubuddy"
"Weirdness…hey, let's see if everybody else got it too." We both logged on to IM.
*bubbletoiltrouble34 has logged in*
*iknowwaturthinkin815 has logged in*
Ip0wnu: hola
Imn0thumanrightn0w: heyas!!!
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: como estan?
P0wnage2u: hey
Isuckurbloodnow432: hi
Iknowwaturthinkin815: u get the reply?
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: yea…how do u think they're gonna escort us??
Imn0thumanrightn0w: by helicopter? Those things r coolio
Isuckurbloodnow432: eh most likely not government funded
P0wnage2u: teleportation?
Ip0wnunow: unlikely :/
Bubbletoiltrouble84: Most likely something inconspicuous
Iknowwaturthinkin815: maybe we can miss mrs l's class
Isuckurbloodnow432: her evil overshadows all…
Mywingsarebetterthanurs999: shit shit shit!!! Speak of the devil gtg BYE!
*mywingsarebetterthanurs999 has logged out*
P0wnage2u: im assuming that means curfew time…yup
*p0wnage2u has logged out*
Isuckurbloodnow432: bye
Iknowwaturthinkin815: cya
*isuckurbloodnow432 has logged out*
*iknowwaturthinkin815 has logged out*
"Goodnight!" Alanya called cheerfully."Night!" I whispered. I wondered what was up ahead tomorrow…
Well, it was tomorrow. I was sitting at breakfast, kind of dejectedly, kind of tiredly. Aria had the marvelous idea to wake up an hour earlier than usual so as to set a good impression (aka to spend a LOT of time hogging the mirror).
I was planning on sleeping, but I am a cursedly light sleeper and couldn't, so I decided to get ready too. Luckily, Aria was in her I'm-your-personal-stylist-who-does-whatever-you-wish-except-if-i-don't-like-it mood, so I was put into a gorgeous pink mini dress with matching grosgrain flats and makeup. Needless to say, I looked like garden party Barbie. I managed to get out of that, and now I was wearing my favorite, super comfortable, super chic, black skinny jeans, a slightly wrinkled, similar style silvery burnout tee with black doodle of a human heart on it, a silver locket necklace with a picture of me and Alex inside (he gave it to me for my birthday), some grey converse with black laces, an oversized black blazer (sounds strange but looks way awesome), my usual mascara and eyeliner, and, to please Aria, some shimmery silver-blue eye shadow. My hair was brushed out down my back. Aria wore a powder blue pleated skirt with a similar blouse, high black boots, a high ponytail, and her usual truckload of makeup. Leah wore some white super-skinny jeans and a tight black tank top with "just dance" written on it in white letters and silver converse with black laces. She had simple dark eye makeup on and looked pretty hot (from a guy's perspective, not mine!). Mel wore a pair of simple, classic wash straight leg jeans, a blue and green plaid oxford tunic, and some navy converse.
The guys looked classically nice. Alex wore some black semi-skinny jeans, a simple black and white striped tee that fit his muscled chest perfectly, a classic leather jacket and some black all stars. Chris wore dark blue jeans and a plain white shirt, while John wore a black shirt with slightly lighter jeans. They both wore gray all stars. We all looked pretty darn awesome.
"BRRRRRRRRRRRRRIING!" There went the bell. Too bad, I'd kind of wanted to miss math class. I didn't like tests, and conveniently there was a midterm today. Just then, as I was lamenting my terrible luck test-wise, zzzzzzzzzzzzzzaaaaaappp!
I sort of lost all feeling for a moment, then it felt like I was being sucked through an angry time-space vortex. Wham! I landed on a flat, hard surface. Alex was next to me. So were Mel, Leah, Aria, Chris and John. Aria's boyfriend, Josh, was there too. I opened my mouth to speak, but we were guided out of the room by a hooded figure. I couldn't tell its gender. It held a finger to its lips and led us through white glass hallways. I felt like Alice in Wonderland. It led us into a room covered in newspapers spanning many years. A silver-haired, tall man in a pinstriped suit was facing away from us in an office chair. He turned around slowly, like in all of the cliché movies.
"Thank you, Arrow. You have brought us the children," Arrow…where did I know that name from?
Could it be? Arrow had been my mentor and close friend for many years. She was four years older than me, with long red hair and green eyes. She was English, with an amazing accent. She also had the ability to read minds, and she'd taught me and helped me whenever I couldn't do something. She had reportedly died in a plane crash two years ago. I'd been devastated, but I knew that life went on. She had been my sister; no, she had been like the mother I never knew.
"A-Arrow? Is it you? My Arrow?"
"Juliet? Could it be?" She took off her hood. The same red hair and playful green eyes looked back at me. She enveloped me in a huge embrace.
"B-but you died! I went to the funeral and everything!" I exclaimed. I was confused…The man in the suit spoke up. He had startlingly blue eyes and an alarmingly straight nose. His mouth was curled in a slight, disapproving smile. He looked disturbingly normal, except for a small tattoo in the shape of a compass rose on his left earlobe.
"It looks like we have some catching up to do. I am Mr. Nubuddy. You must be Aria, Alexander, Leah, Melody, Juliet, Jonathan, Joshua, and Christopher. I have selected you for this mission, and I hope you live up to all you promise to be," he said. I checked his mind. Yup, he was thinking pretty much the same thing. Strange… he seemed to be one with more…devious ideas, per se.
Arrow smiled at me, probably understanding the way I felt. I had so many questions…why was Arrow here? What was up with this Nubuddy character? Where were we? Why?
Alex's mental whisper broke me away from my endless string of questions. He's about to start a speech. Don't crack up, it seems important, he "said". Arrow grinned wryly. I have an uncanny tendency to crack up during speeches. I checked out the rest. They were seated in office chairs around the table, listening intently. Alex and I did the same, while Arrow remained standing.
"This Darkness that we are talking about is not a joke. It is destruction, death, doom, and worse. You have been chosen since you are especially talented, and we would like to have you help us," More like use us Mel projected into my mind."Your special talents could save the world from a terrible fate. Since you have all consented, I am sure you are all in agreement. Now, so as to further test your advantages and disadvantages, we will put you through a series of tests. I assure you they will be painless and harmless. Is that alright with you?"
"Sure"
"Yeah"
"Okay"
"Sounds fine"
"No problem"
"I'm good with it"
"I'll stay"
"I'm in"
Eight replies were voiced. I personally wasn't sure, but I didn't really care. It just seemed a little suspicious. Well, what would you expect when saving the world and beyond?
"Excellent. These tests are both mental and physical. We shall split up the boys and girls," he paused, then called, "SOCRATES!" A male hooded figure appeared. "Yes, sir?"
"You are to take these subjects into the examination room," Subjects? Seriously?
The male figure left with Alex, Chris, John, and Josh. "Arrow, take these to their examination room. I will see you later."
We left the room. Arrow guided us through more winding corridors, telling me her story through her mind. I received an email similar to yours. I jumped on the opportunity, and became one of Mr. Nubuddy's servants. Now he is looking for an army of children to help defeat the darkness, to put it bluntly. It's…odd, but true. Oh, we're here. We reached a room with a silver plaque on the door reading "Dr. Valencia, MD". She pushed open the door. A kind but strict looking woman was sitting at a desk with an extremely high-tech computer. She was relatively young looking, with vaguely Mediterranean looks.
"These must be the new subjects. They look healthy enough," she said without looking up. "Thank you, Arrow,"
"No problem, doc," she replied and left the room.
"Hello, girls. I'm Dr. Valencia, but you can call me Katarina. I'm the doctor around here, and if you need anything I'll be here. Today I'll simply be giving you some necessary shots and a basic physical." At the mention of shots, Aria and Leah tensed up. "Melody, would you like to go first?"
"Alright," Melody left the room. She was gone about twenty minutes. Aria went next, then Leah. They both left with horrified expressions. It was my turn now. I must admit, I was a little scared. I went in and sat on the antiseptic-smelling gurney-ish thing.
"You have one interesting group of friends. Anything different about you?"
"Well, I can read and influence minds, and I'm telekinetic." To demonstrate, I picked up a newspaper off her desk and summoned it to me. She barely looked surprised. I suppose when you've seen kids who can shape shift, fly, and cast spells, you're ready for anything. I felt sorry for whoever was with the guys.
She looked at my heartbeat, tested my reflexes (pretty fast, if you've spent you're life learning martial arts) and asked if she could do an MRI of my brain. I didn't really care, so I let her. Have you ever had an MRI before? If so, you know it's a little strange. Too much metal and nuclear energy. I donned a hospital gown, and she instructed me on the rest. I finally got out of the weird ass metal tube, and looked at the x-ray. She showed it compared to an average human's brain, and you could see why I was so…different. It wasn't all pink swirly mush. There was a thin membrane of bluish serum that seemed to surround my brain. "Wow…this is incredible," she gasped. "Oh! You should get back to your friends. I changed back into my regular clothes, feeling just a little strange changing in front of a stranger. Eh, she was a doctor. She probably had seen it many times. I walked out. Aria, Leah and Mel were waiting. Arrow came up.
"Time for the physical tests. Don't worry; they have showers and changing rooms." We went down more white glass hallways until we hit some big double doors. "Change over there," she pointed to a smaller door. "They have exercise clothes in there, but we had to guess on sizes. The guys will meet you in the gym. Just go through the big doors when you're changed. I'll see you later."
We went and got changed. There were oversized jersey shirts, sports bras (meh), simple black soccer shorts, and plain mesh sneakers. We were used to doing the through-the-shirt change to avoid any awkwardness, and we got out of the room (a lot like any other locker room but no lockers) quickly. We walked through the double doors not knowing what to expect. What I saw was a huge obstacle course. It was gigantic, bigger than a dorm building back at Hawkwood. Geez, it felt like so long since I'd been there. The guys were waiting inside, as was another hooded "assistant".
"Hey," called Alex.
"Hey," I replied and smiled wryly. "Did you guys get the OMG you're soooo special treatment?"
"Unfortunately, yes," he answered.
"Hehem," the assistant guy cleared his throat. "You are to complete the obstacle course. You have unlimited time, and we will monitor your progress. Your time starts…now!"
We all just sort of walked over to the start of the course. It was…duh duh duh duh… Monkey Bars! How exciting! I did them lazily, swinging back and forth easily. Then running a mile, then getting past an angry robotic dummy, then archery…pretty simple. Kind of fun, even, if you look at it that way. Of course Chris and John finished first, then Leah, Alex, myself, Mel, and Aria. As if they could read my mind (hehe) the hooded servant said,
"You will now be escorted into the cafeteria, where you will be given food. We shall examine and process your results while you eat," At that moment Arrow came in and took us through even more winding passages until we reached another set of double doors. They took us to a large cafeteria-esque room. All this white was giving me a headache. I shut my eyes and tried to clear my head. If you've ever been super jet lagged, you know how I felt.
"So, what do you think of the fabulous institution? Has the white gotten to your brain yet?" Arrow started up the conversation.
"Only too much…hey, is there any windows in here? I need some fresh air, like, pronto," Melody asked in her "I'm-a-preppy-bitch" falsetto. We were served some stuff that could be mildly related to food. It looked like werewolf vomit (not a sight you want to see, trust me).
"Sloppy Joe with energy boost. Delicious, isn't it? Oh, and there's a balcony on the top floor. They'll probably let you up there soon enough. Next you have the intellectual tests, then you'll probably be just about free,"
"Intellectual tests? Damn, that's gonna go great!" Josh said (sarcastically. Werewolves aren't the sharpest tacks in the box…)
"Aww, don't worry! You'll do fine!" Aria comforted him. I leaned my head on Alex's shoulder. Chris had his arm around Melody, and Leah and John were holding ands under the table. Arrow looked at her watch. I hadn't realized she'd been wearing one until now. Knowing where we were and our "mission", I figured it could probably do some stuff other than tell time. I wanted some cool gadgets too! Well, this was kind of relaxing, just getting to sit down and be quiet…
"Well, I'm afraid it's time for the tests of the mind," she said, and waggled her fingers mysteriously. "Don't worry, it's just a basic IQ test with some additions added to it." Well, this would be easy. I had an IQ of approximately 150. I wasn't too worried.
We walked more and more, up stairs and through passages, all blindingly white. Arrow showed us into a small room with eight desks. She passed around some packets which were probably the test. I felt déjà vu (all over again). Tests annoyed me. They were simple and easy, but so tedious. Who wants to sit in a classroom writing stuff down? Well, I might as well make the most of it. I grabbed a pencil and started the test. There were average IQ quiz questions like the "How many triangles do you see?" and stuff, but then it progressed into different stuff. Theoretical, philosophical stuff. It was actually kind of interesting. I love to write, so it came pretty easily. I figured there were a few more pages worth of questions, just to "make our time worthwhile" but I was done (first, of course). I got up and handed Arrow the test packet. Seeing her expression, I figured I was supposed to wait until the rest were done. Alex finished next (he's a vampire. Kiss my sass), then Aria, Leah, Mel, Chris, John and finally Josh.
"Okay! Now, I think I'm supposed to take you back to Mr. Nubuddy, and let him do what he will. You'll most likely get some time to rest. He's not that merciless," she took us through some corridors that were starting to look familiar. She took us down a few lights of stairs and we came to the door of the newspaper room. I smiled at how much we probably looked like a normal troop of high schoolers touring a future college.
"Thank you Arrow. You can escort them to their rooms. They will stay in the dormitories on the top floor. Give them a tour around, too," he told us. Arrow pulled us back out. "Well, this is his main conference room. The gym can be used whenever you want it, as can the cafeteria. Don't worry, they have better food. Your dorms are on the top floor. The elevator's here, you go up 16 floors and once you get out you hang a left, take your next right, and the dorms are in that hallway. I've got the keys for you," she took us into a very large glass elevator, up 17 floors (!!) and out. The top floor was a whole new world. It was one large room, surrounded on all four sides by huge glass walls and balconies.
"This is the top floor. The city you're looking out on is Washington DC. You're free to hang out up here as much as you want. Well, really you can do anything so long as you don't go into the offices. Now, just go down one level," we all went into the elevator. I pressed the down button and we got off one floor later. We were shown down a hallway with four doors.
"You guys will have to share rooms. I hope that's alright with you," Arrow told us. Leah and Mel jumped together. Chris and John automatically went together. That left Aria, Josh, Alex, and I. Aria and I would naturally be together, but Alex and Josh kind of hated each other. I didn't particularly want any blood or guts tonight. I mentally asked Aria "Do you think you can keep it G-Rated if we split up? I'm not in the mood to clean up any messes…"
"Sure. I think it'll work out," she said (thought? What's the right word for that?). I quickly ran it by Alex. He was fine with it. He spoke up first, saying, "I'll go with Juliet, I guess,"
Arrow said, "I guess that leaves Josh and Aria. Here are your keys, and I have to go. Everything you need should be in there. Keep it PG, kids!" and with that she was off. I unlocked the first door on the left. It was nice, a lot like a hotel room, with two double beds and a fully stocked bathroom. There was a huge window with a small balcony, and there were clothes already in the closet. They weren't exactly my style, but they were the right size. I hadn't realized it, having been inside all day, that it was already pretty late at night. I went into the bathroom and changed. I brushed my teeth using one of the two toothbrushes, yanked a brush through my tangled hair, wiped off my smudged makeup. It felt great to put on the cheer shorts and one of the tank tops that they'd provided me and throw myself onto one of the fluffy double beds. The cool sheets felt like heaven. Alex came out of the bathroom. He was a shirtless sleeper, and his perfectly muscled chest was wonderful. Ugh! We were just friends. He smiled at me.
"You know, that didn't go as terribly as I'd thought it might," he said, sitting down next to me on the bed. I ran my fingers along the pale white contours of his back, softly glinting in the city lights. I smiled back, my tangled hair in my face.
"So, saving the world…what do you think?"
That set us both off into envisioning pictures of the world, in tumult, in chaos, or perfectly fine. What was it going to come down to? Would there be an apocalypse, or would entropy slowly pull the world into sleep? What would happen…?
I fell asleep to thoughts like this. My sleep was peaceful, and I could have slept for days if it hadn't been for Alex's soft footsteps on the hardwood floor. I'm a cursedly light sleeper, and even the slightest footsteps can wake me up.
I sat up in the bed. It took me a moment for me to get my bearings.
"You're awake," Alex said. Alex, unlike some varieties of vampires, did sleep. He'd probably just woken up, or else I'd have woken up a while ago. I got up and walked over to the mirror, realizing what a hopeless mess I was. My hair had poofed up in a ratty bird's nest. My makeup from yesterday was smeared all over my face. The shirt I'd somehow procured was on backwards and inside out. Well, I'd better start from the bottom up. I searched the small closet for anything wearable. The prospects were pretty dim, but I found some leggings and a guy's button down shirt. I took the shirt, which was way too big, and tied it at the waist with a ribbon I'd found on the flower vase. I pulled on the leggings and fixed my makeup, so I looked relatively decent. Now all that was left was my hair, and that was a fine mess indeed. It took me around a half hour to get the tangles out, and then another fifteen to style it right. Finally, an hour later, in my makeshift shirtdress and still slightly poofy hair, I was presentable.
"You look nice," Alex told me.
"As do you," I replied. Really, Alex would look hot in anything. He was wearing a plain jersey tee and a pair of jeans.
"Anybody else awake yet?" He asked as I opened the curtains. I was light out…probably about 9:00 AM. I scanned around for anybody's thoughts."Aria and Chris and Mel are up. Jeez, I'm hungry. I wonder if there's any food," I was really hungry. That energy boosted sloppy joe was not quite a satisfactory meal. My stomach growled. Alex perked his super-keen ears. "Was that you stomach?" he asked, "We really do need to get you some food," he told me.
"Oh, everyone else is awake. Let's go get some chow," I said and pulled him toward the door. I grabbed the keys and tried to drag him out the door. The trouble with vampires is, though, they're really strong. I had about ten times more energy than I had yesterday, and he wouldn't move still.
"I see you're yourself again," he teased with my favorite teasing half-grin. "Hour-long bathroom stays and all,"
I imperceptibly twitched my hand and the flower vase picked itself and dumped its contents on his head. He threw his leather jacket at me, I lunged out blindly, and the war was on. We wrestled until I was rolling on the floor, breathless with laughing, tears in my eyes, and smiling a little too hugely to be considered attractive. I felt awesome. Sure, we're very mature and talk about philosophy, but we're still just 14. Have some pity! We stayed on the floor laughing until I heard a furious knock on the door.
"What are you doing in there? We're hungry! We have to eat someday, you know!" Aria shouted through the door. Well, I was hungry.
"Coming! Just a second!" I told her. I smoothed out my hair and dress and threw some stuff in a purse that happened to be sitting on the mantle. I managed to smooth out Alex's hair and I pulled him out the door.
"Okay! Now, where's the food?" Oh, yeah. I was supposed to remember stuff. I had a slight idea of how to get back to the cafeteria we'd eaten in yesterday. It seemed so long ago…well, that was the issue with being the smart one. People expected you to know stuff.
"Umm, I think we go down the elevator, turn left twice, then go right and take the double doors on the right," I spoke slowly and hesitantly, not wanting to get lost in this miniature, white, modern metropolis. I hated that there was a huge, gorgeous city right below us that we couldn't walk about in. Or maybe we could…ugh! Stop thinking bad thoughts, I told myself. We're trying to save the world here! Ha. I'm so evil for thinking about going out…and eating real food…and shopping…
"Wow you're a genius!" we'd followed my directions and were standing in front of some similar double doors to the one's we'd seen yesterday. "So why don't we go in?" I asked.
"Umm, let me think. Because it's locked!" she exclaimed. Jeez, people can sure get worked up over food. "Did you try knocking?" I asked. I hadn't been paying much attention. "Well duh I tried knocking! Why else would we be out here?" huffy much?
"Well, does anyone have a bobby pin? I can pick the lock," she said. Leah pulled one out of her hair and tossed it to me. I began working furiously at the lock.
"Ha. We're in," I told them as the door clicked open. We walked into the room. The lights were off. Alex has the best night vision, and as he scanned it out, I felt for a light switch.
"Um, this isn't the cafeteria," he said. "What do you mean it's not?" Aria demanded. "You mean Juliet picked that lock for nothing?"
"Not necessarily for nothing," he said. "Here, Juliet. Turn on the light. The switch is about three inches to the right of where your hand is." I followed his instruction and flipped on the light. We all gasped. In here was a system of maybe fifty super modern computers working in sync, downloading information and gathering data.
"Wow," Aria said softly. "I wonder how much information they store here. I wonder what sort of information. So much knowledge is probably held here,"
"Ha…you sound like such a nerd," Josh teased her. She cursed him (literally. She's a witch, remember?), and he all of a sudden tripped on the flat tile floor. We all laughed quietly. He glared at us. I briefly considered hacking into one of them and just seeing what was stored there.
"If you really want to know, I bet you could convince your friend to hack," Chris said. "Oh, so now I'm just 'her friend'?" I asked and stuck out my tongue at him very maturely.
"I do wonder…" Alex trailed off. "Come on, Juliet! You should!" Leah told me. "Fine. But if we get caught, it's your fault!"
I sat at one of the normal computers (as opposed to the supercomputers) and went into my mode. About fifteen minutes later, we were in.
"Well, we're in. What do you want to know?"
"Hmm…just look for anything related to Hawkwood. See what they know,"
Hawkwood Academy I typed. Many results came up, each labeled with a different name. I scrolled through the thousands of names. Alexander Draculus, Arrow Pentsemmon, Aria Tercera, Christopher Rowlant, Jonathan Rowlant, Joshua Hartford, Juliet Thorn, Leah Heather, Melody Carson, . "Oh my god… it stores information about all of us, about all of the students, past and present at Hawkwood. I wonder what we could find out about ourselves from here," Aria wondered.
"Um, our last names, our real birthdates, our parents, our birthplaces, just about everything," John answered. I clicked on Alex's name. He'd been sent here, as had all of the others of his bloodline, so he knew his birthday and all, as did Aria and Josh. It probably told us all of our personal information. I clicked on Chris'.
Born: November 17th, 1995, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Powers: Superhuman strength and speed
Father: Jack Rowlant, Deceased
Mother: Cynthia Cariss, 43
Hair: Blonde
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'9"
Weight: 128 lbs
"Wow," he breathed. I clicked out of his. John's was about the same. I went to mine, not sure what to expect.
Born: August 31st, 1996, San Francisco, California
Powers: Telekinesis and telepathy
Father: Henry Thorn, Deceased
Mother: Alexandra Pullet, Deceased
Hair: Strawberry blonde
Eyes: Hazel
Height: 5'5"
Weight: 111 lbs
Then Leah…
Born: February 19th, 1996, Albany, New York
Powers: Flight
Father: Nathaniel Heather, 50
Mother: Jennifer Hale, Deceased
Hair: Dirty Blonde
Eyes: Green
Height: 5'7"
Weight: 110 lbs
Finally Mel…
Born: October 9th, 1996, Boston, Massachusetts
Powers: Shapeshifting
Father: Harris Carson, Deceased
Mother: Isabelle Longarte
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 112 lbs
"Wow…how do they know all this? Why?" Alex asked. "It doesn't seem right that they should monitor us this closely…Here, click on mine," he told me. I clicked.
Born: December 13th, 1995, Chicago, Illinois
Powers: Strength, intelligence, speed, immortality
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 129 lbs
"Look at mine. I weighed myself this morning, and I want to know how accurate it is," Aria said
Born: March 16th, 1996, Newark, New Jersey
Powers: Spell-casting
Hair: Dark brown
Eyes: Brown
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 109 lbs
"Oh my god…that's exactly accurate. This place scares me!" she said. "Understatement much?" I asked. You should have seen inside of her mind.
"Well, I'm hungry. And bored," Josh spoke up. He and Aria were kind of similar in their love of food. "Yeah, what can we do about that?" I asked. "Specifically, what are you gonna do about it. I personally find this interesting. I'll contact Arrow and see if she can help you," I had a short string of patience with werewolves. Perhaps it comes from hanging out with vampires too much. Well, I was kind of hungry. Actually, I was starving. I didn't want to get caught, though. "Okay. I'm going to log off and get out of here, then I'll contact Arrow. I'm pretty sure we weren't supposed to see that," I got off the computer and managed to erase all evidence of our being there. I pushed in the chair and walked out, followed by everyone else. We got pretty far away from there, and I was pretty sure I could contact Arrow. Hey Arrow? I asked tentatively. Hey! What's up? Hmmm…how to phrase it? Well, we're hungry. But we're lost. We need he-el-el- the sound started fizzing out, like cell phone reception in a tunnel. The lights were crackling out.
"Uh, what's happening?" Chris asked. Everything was all of a sudden pitch black. Not just dark like in a bedroom at night. I mean like backs-of-your-eyelids black, like brand new eyeliner black.
"Um, everything is turning black. I can't exactly see anything," I replied.
"Okay, guys! Let's stay under control, not panic. It's probably just a thunderstorm or something," Aria was adopting her 'fearless leader' thing. Now I was getting really agitated.
"I think we should just try to get out of here ASAP. If we don't panic, I think I remember where we are. We should just get out," I tried to put things into perspective. A thunderstorm wouldn't do this it had to me something more. It had to be…
"The darkness," Alex murmured. Oh yeah, the mysterious enemy to all that was mankind. Great. Just marvelous. Exactly what I need on a Friday morning when I'm half starved. Suddenly a staticky intercom came on.
We are under attack by the darkness. Please do not panic and evacuate the building as soon as possible. Remember, if you are captured, do not surrender or panic. There is no time to lose. Thank you.
It crackled out, leaving us with its cryptic message. "Well, let's leave then. What are we waiting for?" Leah asked, her voice a little high from alarm. I felt my way through hallways. Since I had never actually entered this building through a door, I didn't exactly know where to go, but I remembered the way to the elevator. We got in and Melody pressed what seemed to be the down button. The elevator kept going down, and we got out when the doors clicked open.
I felt something pull at my hair, and whirled around. Just blackness. I kept searching around, but no one was there. I was thinking it was the wind or something when I felt a kick at my shin. Someone or something was attacking me, hidden in the shadows. Aria shrieked, and soon after Leah and Mel. Even more wonderful! Being attacked in the utter pitch darkness! I lunged out quickly, jackknifing my leg into where his ribs should be. Nothing was there, and I momentarily lost my balance. While I was regaining it, something leaped on me. I was pinned to the ground. I managed to knee it in the soft spot, hoping it would be male. I heard a pained gasp. One down, innumerable quantities to go. I couldn't see a thing, and I hoped everyone was alright.
I leaped on what appeared to be a blur of air. It turned out to be a solid humanoid form. I bashed what seemed like its head into the floor. I got another with the classic hand to nose, and one with a roundhouse to the ribs. It felt good to actually exercise myself without having to worry about hurting anyone. I paused for a moment, just then realizing how breathless I was. I was in pain, too. Oh well; I'd deal with the pain later. For now, I had to fight. I could hear muffled gasps of pain, but I ignored them, hoping they were those of the enemy. I charged at another. This one seemed stronger, but I was winning. I tripped over a body. I really hoped it wasn't one of us. My opponent took advantage of this and threw me into the air. I was unconscious before I hit the ground.
I blinked back into consciousness. My head and chest ached, and I felt a sharp pain in my right leg. I was in another bright white room, in some sort of bed. I tried to stand, but was assaulted by a wave of dizziness.
"Don't stand up. You hit your head pretty hard," I recognized Alex's soft, comforting voice.
"Where are we? What happened? Where's everyone else? Is everybody alright?"
"Shh. Everyone's fine. We're in Nubuddy's building. That Darkness stuff just came, attacked and left, leaving us here. John and Aria and you got hurt, but it's nothing serious. Nubuddy said he's explain more when you all were fully recovered,"
"What happened to them? Are you alright? Am I alright?"
"John cracked his skull somehow and some ribs, Aria broke her arm, and you broke your ankle and a few ribs. I'm fine, just a scratch on my arm," he proceeded to take off his leather jacket. There was a pretty big gash running down the side of his left arm. I gasped. "Are you kidding me? That's not good! You probably need stitches or something!" he smiled wryly.
"It's alright! I'll be fine. You should stop worrying. I'll be fine by tomorrow. You should rest up,"
"But seriously! That looks really bad!"
"Juliet, you worry too much. I'm gonna get you some food then you're going to go back to sleep and heal," He left the room, giving me a playfully disapproving look. I scanned the room. It was relatively small, with one bed (which I was in) and a few chairs. I threw off the thick blankets. My ankle was splinted and wrapped in ace bandages, and my ribs had been taped up. I checked Aria's mind. I couldn't tell where she was, but she clearly was in pain. It seemed like she kind of liked the attention, though. Through seeing into the other's minds, I learned that Leah had pulled a muscle, Mel was scratched up but otherwise fine, Josh had 'owned' everyone, and Chris had a huge gash that was 'nothing'.
"I got you some food," Alex told me when he returned. 'Some' was an understatement. He had brought a tray full of food. Damn it's nice to have a best friend who knows you well. From the macaroni and cheese to the king-sized snickers bar, he had all of my favorites. I dug in.
"You'd think you hadn't eaten in months," he teased. I glared at him. "For all I know, I haven't. How long was I out, anyway?"
"Only a day or so. Hell, you should've seen how much Josh ate. That guy's a pig,"
"I know!" I said with my mouth full. "I don't see how Aria can stand to date him. He's an ass," I know, I know, gossiping is mean, but I kind of had to vent it out before I started dissing him to his face.
Alex sighed. "You've been hanging around with vampires too much. We've influenced your silly little all-knowing mind," I rolled my eyes.
"So-o, how long to I have to stay here? I'm already bored,"
"Not too long. They should let you out tomorrow. Your ankle won't heal for a few weeks, but they should let you out on crutches," well, great. I was stuck in a giant office building with nothing to do for a month. Maybe I could convince them to let us out and let us shop…
"Have you discovered anything more? Did you go back into that computer room?"
"Nope, we haven't had time. Plus, you're the only one who can hack into the computers," He glanced at the wall, where a white classroom-style clock was hanging. "Ugh, it's late. You should get some rest,"
I opened my mouth to protest, but realized I was really tired. I yawned. "Fine; make me go to sleep. Overprotective fool," I muttered the last bit.
"Good girl. I'll get Dr. Valencia to give you some sleeping pill, but I doubt you'll need it," he said, noting my drooping eyelids. He smiled at me and left. I fell asleep before he was out the door.
The next morning I awoke feeling about ten times better. Sure, my ankle and ribs still hurt, but it was easily ignorable. Alex was sitting in the chair again with his acoustic guitar, softly singing a song. I recognized it (I Swear This Time I Mean it-Mayday Parade)
Oh Florida, please be still tonight
Don't disturb this love of mine
Look how she's so serene
You've got to help me out
And count the stars to form the lines
And find the words we'll sing in time
It's my one wish
I won't forget this
He noticed me watching him and stopped singing. "Emo lullabies?" I asked. He smiled guiltily. What can I say? Mayday Parade is the sort of emo band that can only be considered a guilty pleasure. At least it was a sweet song.
"Well, you're allowed out of bed today. You haven't died of boredom yet, have you?"
"Last time I checked, I was alive. Do we get to know what the hell is going on today?" I had to admit, I was anxious to know. I didn't know Mr. Nubuddy well enough to read his mind, and Arrow didn't seem to know either.
"I think so. Dr. Valencia found some crutches for you, so you can get some breakfast and go see what the rest are up to," Quite honestly, I'd never broken a single bone, so I'd never used crutches before. I'd seen it done enough, though, so I wasn't too scared. He got up and grabbed them, then helped me out of the bed.
"Geez, I feel like a little old lady," I laughed. I managed to get onto the crutches and get into the rhythm of them. I followed Alex down the hallway towards where the cafeteria actually was. He opened the double doors for me,
"After you, ma'am!" I scowled at him