Chapter 1: Awake
The air within the room was still and dark. Through darkened blinds, small slivers of morning's light shined through. A mass moved underneath the covers, rustling and flopping. The mass was a boy by the name of Lucc Konstantine. Lucc rose up slowly, the covers sliding off and falling back to the bed. Rubbing his eyes, he looked at his iPod. Seven o'clock was flashing on the screen. He rose from the bed and as he did so, it came to his attention that he was still in the jeans from the day before. They were torn and faded, obviously a few years old, but they fit so he didn't really care. He grabbed a t-shirt from the pile of clothes on his floor, or the hamper, as he liked to call it. It smelled clean enough, so he threw it on. He walked to the bathroom and brushed his teeth. His hair was long, as he preferred. For the most part it was straight, save for the slight curl at the end. It was a dark brown with just the slightest hint of blonde at the tip. People would often assume he had dyed his hair, but it wasn't true. He took his left side bangs and braided them into a small warriors braid, the stepped out of the bathroom. He stopped at the hallway mirror and looked himself over.
As far as 18-year-old males go, he wasn't bad looking. He stood roughly 6 feet tall, not short but not really tall either. He had an average build, a sign of his active lifestyle. He had rather tan skin, a natural bronze he inherited from his fathers side of the family. His hair cascaded over his shoulders with his warriors braid hanging on the left side by his ear. His eyes were dark brown, a gold ring adorning each iris. He smiled, and then went about his way. When he stepped into the living room, he spotted a note stuck to the TV. It read, "Got called in for the long shift. I won't get home till late tonight so make yourself something to eat when you get home. Love, Mom". He heaved a heavy sigh. This was the third time this week he Mom was stuck with the long shift at the lumber mill. He hated how hard his Mom had to work to provide for them. He tossed the note in the trash and gathered up his things for school. He glanced at the clock to make sure he was on schedule. "Eight o'clock, right on time" he said to himself. He put on his boots and grabbed his jacket off of the coat rack. The jacket was a given to him by his mother, something she had when Lucc's father was alive. It was the only thing of his fathers that he owned and he loved it dearly. He slung his backpack over is left shoulder, and walked out the door.
It was bright and sunny out. The sound of a sparrow echoed in the distance. He took in a deep breath through his nose. The air was clean and crisp, a perfect September day. It wasn't very cold outside, but he always wore his jacket so it didn't really matter either way. He walked down the steps, picked an apple from his mother's apple tree, the headed down a gravel path to the gate. He spun around and leaned on his old but sturdy picket fence. He took a bite of his apple and looked over his home with pride. His yard wasn't too large, an acre or two, and the trailer sat in the middle. To be honest it was a shaggy looking little single wide, but it was home. Most of the yard was garden, a quick elimination of mowing. His whole yard was fenced in by the picket fence, and was surrounded by neighbors in other trailers with plots of land to call their own. After finishing the apple, he tossed the core and hopped over his gate.
He walked down his driveway and headed down the dirt road that led to the bus stop. He strode along the dirt road, lost in his thoughts. "I wonder how Mom is doing at work," he said to himself. When he came back to his senses, he saw the bus stop just a few yards away. He stopped and took a seat on a nearby rock. All roads from the surrounding homes met at this road. Lucc's road was the only one with more than one family that lived down it. Naturally, this road became the neighborhood stop. There were only a couple of kids who lived around him, so not too many people were there. He watched as the bus pulled up and opened its doors. Four kids walked on and the doors closed behind them. He stood and watched it drive off and disappear into the distance. In the eyes of other people, this is a misfortune...but not to Lucc. A mischievous smile crossed his lips. He looked around to make sure nobody was around, then stood and brushed the dirt from the seat of his pants. He slid off the rock and walked to the tree line that ran parallel to the road. He took a few steps inside, and took a final look around. He was alone. Being alone was what he was used to.
For as long as he could remember, he had kept himself apart from the social world. He was a loner by nature, but that wasn't all he was. He had a heart of gold and morals to go along with it. He always kept a journal in a small pocket in his jacket. There, he wrote all his thoughts or feelings. He tightened his grip on his backpack strap, and then began to run through the woods. His speed increased as he went on. He bounded through the woods, tearing up ground as he ran. He reached speeds that were unheard of for a human. He was different than others, and he accepted that. He never knew where this power came from, but he knew it was incredible. He kept a distance from everyone for they're own safety. He never really knew what he might do to somebody, but he wasn't going to risk it. He leapt into the air and swung from a branch over a hole. He landed with a thud, and took off running again. He saw the school in the distance, as the forest became a clearing. He hid down behind a rock as he came out of the woods. He took a look around to see if anyone was near the coast clear, he walked out towards the school.
As this was his normal routine, he had an average time of arrival. His school was large. It had several buildings that stood behind one large main building. The sun was high in the sky as the bell rang for the start of the school day. He walked past the other students and up the steps of the main building. As he came close to the doors, he paused. He felt something...different. He took a look around. Then, he saw her. She was a tiny thing...not very tall and rather skinny. She wore a blue skirt with a black t-shirt. Her boots were black and about mid-calf high. The clothes suited her; they went well with her pale skin and fair complexion. She carried a notebook with both arms close to her chest and a blue shoulder bag on her left shoulder. She had blonde hair with a red streak on the right side. Her eyes were a glacier blue that she complimented with a dark blue eye shadow and black mascara. She blushed when their eyes met. He glared slightly, his usual instant reaction to eye contact, causing her to break away and hurry to get to her class. He turned and walked inside the building without a word. He walked to his first period and sat in his desk. This was the start of a very long day.
He slept through his first three classes, though not without some odd dreams, and barely made it through his last three. During fourth period, he really considered jumping out the window and running away. He hated being pent up so being in school was always a struggle for him. He often found ways to sneak off, but for some strange reason he stayed today. The final bell rang and a flood of high school kids ran for their busses or cars; Lucc was the last student out of the school's front doors. He walked and looked up at the sky. He stared at the clouds with great interest. He was thinking about his mom and wondered if work was going ok. His mom and he were close and he worried about her often. She did the same for him. Lost in his world, he wasn't watching where he was going. A small squeak and "ouch!" snapped him back to reality.
"What in the hell is wrong with you"? Lucc bellowed from the ground. He stood up quickly and turned to face his new problem. He started to yell, but stopped in shock. "Can't you watch where..." He stared at whom he had fallen over. It was the girl from earlier! She looked up at him with those blue eyes. He just stood there, lost in her beauty, something that has never happened to Lucc before. "I...I'm sorry" she said softly. She seemed scared, and for the first time this got to Lucc. A person being scared of him was something he'd gotten used to, but this time it was different. His expression went from one of rage, to one of compassion and embarrassment. Unsure of what to say, he quickly grabbed his things and walked away. With a quick pace he hurried back to the tree line, and disappeared in the woods.