*2016*
Lightning cracked across the sky. Rain hammered down on the heads of anyone unfortunate enough to be outside. The buildings shook with thunder. People ran for cover.
I sat bundled up in a blanket in my dorm room, on the seventh floor of the Starlight Boarding School Dorm Building, watching the lightning bounce around in the clouds. I shivered as the wind threw open a window.
I ran to close it, struggling against the strong wind. I slammed the glass shut and bolted it. I ran my fingers through my curly blonde hair, trying to tame it from the damage the wind had done. I was about to sit back down and try to read my book, when an angry pounding sound came from outside.
"Cleodora Williams!" A male voice shouted. I flinched at the use of my full name. Most people knew me as Cleo. Few people knew my full name, and they only used it when they were mad.
"Open this door!" He shouted again, rattling the locked handle.
"Or what?" I asked, grabbing my book, preparing to defend myself.
The pounding stopped.
"Or I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll-" I opened the door before he could finish. Leaning against the door frame was my best friend Micah Reynolds. Just seeing his features took my breath away as they did every time I saw him. His tousled blonde hair flopped perfectly over his sea-green eyes, which were perfectly set within his tan face. If there was a picture for "handsome" in the dictionary, Micah would be it. The only one handsomer than Micah was Austin Edwards, but enough about that. What confused me, though, was the fact that he was wearing a black long-sleeved shirt, and when he smiled, vampire teeth.
"You'll huff and you'll puff?" I asked with a giggle.
"Oh, shut up. I came to check on you," he said, grinning, as he walked in my dorm.
"Why?" I asked, closing the door. I grabbed a soda from the mini-fridge I kept in the tiny "kitchen."
"The entire building's electricity is out," he said. Just to defy him, the lights stubbornly stayed lit.
"Well, clearly not the entire building's," I said, popping open the aluminum top of a Sprite.
"How the heck is your electricity still on?" Micah asked, grabbing the soda from my hand.
"Hey!" I shouted, as he held the can above my head. I was tempted to jump for it like a little kid, but it was a moot point. He was six foot two and I was barely five foot one….
"Science experiment. I've been running on my own electricity all year," I said, jumping anyway. Micah laughed.
"No wonder your Avalon's favorite student," he said, taking a swig from the can.
"That's not why you're here, is it?" I said, giving up on my last can of Sprite.
"You're not able to fall for anything, are you?" He answered with a sigh. From a brown bag I hadn't noticed was in his hand, he pulled a long, deep blue dress.
"We've been fighting about this for weeks! Not even you, my best friend, can convince me to go to a party. Especially not a party thrown at-" I shuddered. "Absolutely not."
Micah laughed, ignoring my complaining.
"You are going to that party, and you will wear this," he said, and a chillingly cruel smile grew over his features. "Even if I have to force you to."
"You wouldn't," I said, backing up slowly.
"Don't make me," Micah said, throwing the bag at me. I groaned and stumbled into the bathroom, taking off my sneakers as I went. I threw the first one as hard as I could at his head.
I locked the bathroom door and slumped dejectedly against the cold metal. The bathroom was small, and scarcely lit, with white walls, and a separate room leading to the "facilities," as my roommate called them. She left back for England to visit her sister a few days ago, so I had the dorm to myself.
Thunder boomed outside and the lights flickered. I sighed and pulled out the dress. It was a floor length, royal blue gown. I slipped it over my head and almost had a heart attack. It had an open back, and a slit in the skirt that revealed far too much for my sanity. Pearls were inlaid in the bodice, and flowed down the skirt like waves. I looked in the bag and found a blue mask.
I almost dropped the mask. It had a rippling texture, like the ocean. The fabric was so smooth, it felt like actual water. I tied the mask around my head, and adjusted my curls.
I took a deep breath and looked in the mirror. The girl staring back was a beautiful stranger. I smiled and slipped on the heels I kept hidden underneath the sink.
I slowly unlocked the door and walked back towards Micah. He smiled, and laughed.
"I take it you're going to Gabriella's party?" He asked, throwing back one of my sneakers. I caught it and laughed.
"Sure. After all, we only get one senior Halloween dance. Even if it is at the old McGregor Mansion," I said, walking back to my bedroom. "There's just one thing I need."
I unlocked a box that my mother had given to me when she died. I took out the contents and almost started to cry.
It was the tiara she had worn at her Halloween dance.
I slipped it in the mess of curls, and I quickly ran a brush through them, taming the frizzy mass to a gentle curl. I stepped outside and grabbed a cloak. Micah held the door out for me.
"After you, Princess," he chuckled, a diabolical gleam in his eyes.
"Thank you, Vampire," I said, and Micah laughed. I swirled the cloak around my shoulders and pulled the hood up.
We walked down seven flights of stairs. The elevators were out of order and by the time I got to the bottom, I had tripped about thirty times.
I looked up at the clouds in the parking lot. The rain had stopped, but lightning was still arching around in the clouds.
Micah whistled to get my attention. My gaze snapped to a red Porsche. My eyes widened.
"Your dad let you borrow one of his Porsches?" I asked, shocked at the car in front of me.
"Actually, this one's mine," he said, his ears turning bright pink. Micah's dad was one of those uber rich billionaires, but Micah was embarrassed, so he often tried to play it down. It didn't work though. With his looks and inheritance, he was one of the most sought after boys in Starlight Boarding School.
"Well? You going to let me drive?" I asked, crossing my arms. I had just gotten my license, but I was still fifteen. I had skipped a few grades when I was younger and was the youngest senior in the state.
"Nope. I've seen how you drive," he said, opening the driver side door. I sighed and slid into the passenger seat, careful not to wrinkle the silk skirt. I pulled tight the cloak I had grabbed, swirling in the wind. A bit of moisture clung to my eyelashes as I removed my hood. The wind shut my door as I was about to reach for the handle. Micah looked at my startled expression and laughed. I am pretty sure that I blushed.
Micah started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. I clenched the bottom of the passenger seat. If you ever meet him, don't ever let him drive.
The wind whistled through the trees as we drove down the highway. Micah swerved a bit as he hit some ice, and I had to resist the urge to scream.
"So, I've been meaning to ask," I finally said when I could talk without screaming.
"How did the tryouts go for football?" Micah looked at me, and light reflected off of his fake teeth as he smiled.
"I'm up against Austin for quarterback," He said, and I could hear the happiness in his voice.
"Congratulations! I knew you could do it," I said, although my tone said the opposite as Micah swerved through the driveway to the McGregor Mansion. Micah winced.
"Sorry," he said, as he pulled into a makeshift parking lot next to the house. About a hundred other cars were there, which meant that about everyone in the school was there. I felt panic rise in my stomach.
"I changed my mind. Take me home," I said, begging Micah in fear.
"No. We're here now, and I'm not driving thirty miles back to the dorm just to drop you off," Micah said, opening the door and getting out of the car. I sighed, and did the same. I pulled the hood of my cloak back over my hair and started the walk to the mansion.
I looked at the looming spires and thought about the last time I had visited the mansion, on a dark night that would live in infamy…