Part 3
"Hi Daphne!"
"Hey Daphne!"
"Looking hot today Dap!"
Choruses of his and hellos greeted Daphne from everywhere as she sauntered into the high school that morning. She hadn't seen or heard from Jason since last night. He hadn't called her this morning. What was the matter with him?
She made her way through the halls to her locker, taking time to acknowledge all who spoke to her, even the unpopular people, who glowed when she nodded, or even gave the blessing of saving high. Some of them went away as if walking on air on the rare occasions she remembered their name.
Daphne felt like she was singing inside. She didn't know why she felt so good today.
"You're happy," her friend Abi said, as they met by their lockers. Abi was short and bouncy, with rich chestnut coloured hair cascading down her back in tight curls. She was dressed in a blue halter-neck and a short blue skirt. On her feet she wore white strappy sandals.
"I'm in a very good mood today," Daphne said brightly.
"Someone got lucky last night," Beth York put in, joining them. Beth was tall, her red hair tied in a tight braid that hung down her back. She was dressed in jeans and a short sleeved top. She was the "Meredith" of this year's popular group. Abi was considered the "Bonnie" while Daphne got the privilege of being the "Elena". Being compared to those three girls was supposed to be a better honour than being crowned Prom Queen. But Daphne wasn't so sure about that. She was up for Homecoming Queen in two weeks.
"Actually, not even half," Daphne admitted. "Jason took off after we went to the movies." Her nose wrinkled slightly. "I don't know what was the matter with him."
"How come?" Abi asked, taking out the books she needed for the morning.
Daphne shrugged. "I don't know. I made him take the short cut through the old cemetery - "
"That's probably why he freaked," Beth said dismissively. "Those McCulloughs are all weird about that place."
"That's supposedly where it all happened," Abi argued. "You can't blame Bonnie for being a little weird in cemeteries, especially if you knew your best friend *died* there."
"Can we change the subject?" Daphne snapped. Her good mood seemed to have dwindled as her thoughts drifted to Jason. She didn't understand why he'd been so distant since they'd passed the ruined church.
It was almost as if he were in a daze. He kept looking back over his shoulder, looking for someone who wasn't there. Daphne frowned, remembering a brief glimpse of a face and eyes watching them from the shadows. Eyes that almost seemed to burn.
*~"...Eyes in the dark...they burned me..."~*
She shuddered as she thought of poor Vickie Bennett. The girl was a lunatic, who'd finally lost control enough to destroy herself and take her life in such a horrible way...
The town had talked about it for weeks afterwards.
"Hello, what's going on?" Abi was saying, bringing Daphne out of her reverie.
Daphne blinked, focusing on what was going on. A crowd of students were starting to head towards the front entrance by the office. Mainly boys. The three girls exchanged glances. Something was up.
Daphne and her friends made her way through the crowd to see what the commotion was. The crowd of boys parted to let them through. A new girl was finishing signing in at the office. The secretary was handing her a class schedule.
The girl was tall and slender, with hair the colour of molten gold falling down her back, shimmering like a waterfall. Her eyes were a blue darker than the sky, but not quite midnight blue, somewhere in between. They seemed wise, somehow, full of knowledge. The eyes of someone who had seen a lot. She was dressed in black leather trousers, a short sleeved top with a twisting design, and a long black duster coat. The heat was sweltering. How could she stand a coat in such hot weather? Maybe just to add to her mysterious appearance.
Her features were exquisite, so perfect she could have been a sculptor's dream. Her skin was like marble, and as smooth. There was an aura about the girl. One of...of...power. It surrounded her with a faint blue-black shine. Daphne could almost see it. She was sure she was just imagining things. But was she?
She noticed the boys all seemed entranced with her. They couldn't take their eyes off her. They muttered to each other behind their hands, glancing at the girl's long legs, her large chest, emphasised by the low cut top, how slender and supple she looked.
Daphne thought of reading in Elena's diary when Stefan Salvatore had first arrived at school. The girls had all reacted like he was something out of a dream. Sexy and new and different. And now the boys were reacting the same to this new girl.
Daphne had an unusual sense of déjà vu. She wasn't sure why she was getting the feeling. It was almost like one of history repeating itself. Did that mean she was going to die too? Die so young, like Elena?
No. No. Not going to happen to her. No way. Besides, Stefan had been a vampire. Vampires weren't real. Elena had probably just made that up. She had to have.
She turned on her heel when the bell rang, and her friends followed like good sheep.
"Daphne? Are you okay?" Abi asked, frowning.
"I'm fine," Daphne lied as they sat down. The new girl walked into the room and took a seat at the back of the room, opposite Daphne.
"You wouldn't be a little jealous, would you?" Beth said with a raised eyebrow.
"Why should I be jealous?" Daphne snapped. To prove it, she turned around and smiled brightly at the new girl. "Hi," she said brightly. "You're new?"
The girl nodded her golden head. "Raquelle Valentina." Her accent was strange, foreign sounding.
"Where are you from?" Beth asked. "You have an accent."
"Naples, in Italy," Raquelle answered.
She answered their questions patiently, but Daphne noticed she seemed to be evasive with her answers. When the teacher came in to start the lesson she faced the front and didn't say a word the rest of the period. Daphne looked at Abi, who just shrugged helplessly. When the period was over, the girl smiled politely at them, and left the room.
"She's weird," Abi said.
"She's probably just nervous about being in a new place surrounded by new people," Beth said reasonably. "Give her a break."
Daphne didn't say anything. She thought Abi was right. The girl *was* strange. She was hiding something. Anyone who looked at her could see that. What was she hiding? Daphne frowned, wondering if she really wanted to know.
* * *
Part 4
Raquelle didn't like the feel of eyes on her as she drifted to her next class. Everywhere she turned it seemed there were people looking at her. Mainly boys, whispering to each other about how long her legs were, how good her breasts would look without the top on. The stares she got were the ones when men were mentally undressing you and wondering how good you'd be in bed. She shuddered at the thought.
She'd only been with one man her entire life, and still, Damon had proved to her that love was dangerous. She's trusted him, even enough to sleep with him, and he had bitterly betrayed her.
Ever since the discovery of that lovely little book she'd read in the library, memories of her brief relationship with Damon had been swamping her, sometimes, hurting enough to make her cry. Every time she thought of him, a small sentence kept flying through her mind *The past can't hurt you, it can kill you.*
She didn't know where the sentence came from, or what it meant. Was it something she'd heard someone say to her in the past. But as the memories overwhelmed her, so did a sense of fear that came every time she remembered that little phrase. Along with another one, too *History repeats itself*.
She didn't understand that either. Maybe coming here was a bad idea. She hated the ideas of everyone eyeing her and judging her like those girls had been in her first class. She knew they were just trying to be friendly, but she also knew they were making snap judgements of her. Apparently, the word of those girls was almost like a law. If they decided something about you, everyone else thought that too. Maybe she wanted to get into their good books. She shuddered at what they would have done to her if they ever found out the truth...
No. No. No one would ever know about her. No.
Not paying attention to where she was going Raquelle didn't see the boy she bumped into until she collided with him, dropping her books, sending papers scattering over the hall floor. She stared down in dismay, before bending hurriedly to gather them up, snapping one of her long red nails at the same time. Things were just not working out for her today. She was a bundle of nerves.
"Here, let me help," the boy said kindly, bending to help her gather her things. She looked up at him, managing a weak smile. And stared. It was the boy she'd seen in the cemetery the other night. The one who had fascinated her.
He was dressed pretty much the same as he had been the other night, jeans, T-shirt and his letterman jacket. Well, the T-shirt had changed. Their eyes met and there seemed to be something passing between them. Raquelle didn't understand it. He was looking at her, as fascinated about her, as she was about him. There was a strange tension crackling in the air between them, seeming to intensify the longer they spent looking at each other.
"Uh hi," he said with a friendly smile. "I'm Jason McCullough." His eyes were the blue of a summer sky, sparkling and cheerful.
Raquelle suddenly felt shy, like when she had first met Damon. "Raquelle Valentino."
"You're new," he said.
She nodded. "I moved here a few days ago."
He handed her the things he'd gathered, and she took them gratefully, getting to her feet. "How'd you like Fell's Church so far?"
She brightened. "I like it. It's...homely."
He smiled. "Typical small town USA."
"I don't know about that," she said. "There's...I don't know. Something...special.." She trailed off suddenly and bit her lip. What was she *saying?* He was going to think she was crazy.
But he was smiling, as if he understood. "I know what you mean," he said. "It has a certain...quality to it."
The bell rang then, signalling that they should be in class. "I guess we should get to class," he said. She nodded.
"I'll see you round," he said, heading off down the hall.
"I hope so," she muttered, once she was out of ear shot. She glanced down at her schedule realising she was in the wrong part of the building for her next class. She turned and hurried out of Jason's presence before she could melt into a puddle at his feet.
* * *
"Hi Daphne!"
"Hey Daphne!"
"Looking hot today Dap!"
Choruses of his and hellos greeted Daphne from everywhere as she sauntered into the high school that morning. She hadn't seen or heard from Jason since last night. He hadn't called her this morning. What was the matter with him?
She made her way through the halls to her locker, taking time to acknowledge all who spoke to her, even the unpopular people, who glowed when she nodded, or even gave the blessing of saving high. Some of them went away as if walking on air on the rare occasions she remembered their name.
Daphne felt like she was singing inside. She didn't know why she felt so good today.
"You're happy," her friend Abi said, as they met by their lockers. Abi was short and bouncy, with rich chestnut coloured hair cascading down her back in tight curls. She was dressed in a blue halter-neck and a short blue skirt. On her feet she wore white strappy sandals.
"I'm in a very good mood today," Daphne said brightly.
"Someone got lucky last night," Beth York put in, joining them. Beth was tall, her red hair tied in a tight braid that hung down her back. She was dressed in jeans and a short sleeved top. She was the "Meredith" of this year's popular group. Abi was considered the "Bonnie" while Daphne got the privilege of being the "Elena". Being compared to those three girls was supposed to be a better honour than being crowned Prom Queen. But Daphne wasn't so sure about that. She was up for Homecoming Queen in two weeks.
"Actually, not even half," Daphne admitted. "Jason took off after we went to the movies." Her nose wrinkled slightly. "I don't know what was the matter with him."
"How come?" Abi asked, taking out the books she needed for the morning.
Daphne shrugged. "I don't know. I made him take the short cut through the old cemetery - "
"That's probably why he freaked," Beth said dismissively. "Those McCulloughs are all weird about that place."
"That's supposedly where it all happened," Abi argued. "You can't blame Bonnie for being a little weird in cemeteries, especially if you knew your best friend *died* there."
"Can we change the subject?" Daphne snapped. Her good mood seemed to have dwindled as her thoughts drifted to Jason. She didn't understand why he'd been so distant since they'd passed the ruined church.
It was almost as if he were in a daze. He kept looking back over his shoulder, looking for someone who wasn't there. Daphne frowned, remembering a brief glimpse of a face and eyes watching them from the shadows. Eyes that almost seemed to burn.
*~"...Eyes in the dark...they burned me..."~*
She shuddered as she thought of poor Vickie Bennett. The girl was a lunatic, who'd finally lost control enough to destroy herself and take her life in such a horrible way...
The town had talked about it for weeks afterwards.
"Hello, what's going on?" Abi was saying, bringing Daphne out of her reverie.
Daphne blinked, focusing on what was going on. A crowd of students were starting to head towards the front entrance by the office. Mainly boys. The three girls exchanged glances. Something was up.
Daphne and her friends made her way through the crowd to see what the commotion was. The crowd of boys parted to let them through. A new girl was finishing signing in at the office. The secretary was handing her a class schedule.
The girl was tall and slender, with hair the colour of molten gold falling down her back, shimmering like a waterfall. Her eyes were a blue darker than the sky, but not quite midnight blue, somewhere in between. They seemed wise, somehow, full of knowledge. The eyes of someone who had seen a lot. She was dressed in black leather trousers, a short sleeved top with a twisting design, and a long black duster coat. The heat was sweltering. How could she stand a coat in such hot weather? Maybe just to add to her mysterious appearance.
Her features were exquisite, so perfect she could have been a sculptor's dream. Her skin was like marble, and as smooth. There was an aura about the girl. One of...of...power. It surrounded her with a faint blue-black shine. Daphne could almost see it. She was sure she was just imagining things. But was she?
She noticed the boys all seemed entranced with her. They couldn't take their eyes off her. They muttered to each other behind their hands, glancing at the girl's long legs, her large chest, emphasised by the low cut top, how slender and supple she looked.
Daphne thought of reading in Elena's diary when Stefan Salvatore had first arrived at school. The girls had all reacted like he was something out of a dream. Sexy and new and different. And now the boys were reacting the same to this new girl.
Daphne had an unusual sense of déjà vu. She wasn't sure why she was getting the feeling. It was almost like one of history repeating itself. Did that mean she was going to die too? Die so young, like Elena?
No. No. Not going to happen to her. No way. Besides, Stefan had been a vampire. Vampires weren't real. Elena had probably just made that up. She had to have.
She turned on her heel when the bell rang, and her friends followed like good sheep.
"Daphne? Are you okay?" Abi asked, frowning.
"I'm fine," Daphne lied as they sat down. The new girl walked into the room and took a seat at the back of the room, opposite Daphne.
"You wouldn't be a little jealous, would you?" Beth said with a raised eyebrow.
"Why should I be jealous?" Daphne snapped. To prove it, she turned around and smiled brightly at the new girl. "Hi," she said brightly. "You're new?"
The girl nodded her golden head. "Raquelle Valentina." Her accent was strange, foreign sounding.
"Where are you from?" Beth asked. "You have an accent."
"Naples, in Italy," Raquelle answered.
She answered their questions patiently, but Daphne noticed she seemed to be evasive with her answers. When the teacher came in to start the lesson she faced the front and didn't say a word the rest of the period. Daphne looked at Abi, who just shrugged helplessly. When the period was over, the girl smiled politely at them, and left the room.
"She's weird," Abi said.
"She's probably just nervous about being in a new place surrounded by new people," Beth said reasonably. "Give her a break."
Daphne didn't say anything. She thought Abi was right. The girl *was* strange. She was hiding something. Anyone who looked at her could see that. What was she hiding? Daphne frowned, wondering if she really wanted to know.
* * *
Part 4
Raquelle didn't like the feel of eyes on her as she drifted to her next class. Everywhere she turned it seemed there were people looking at her. Mainly boys, whispering to each other about how long her legs were, how good her breasts would look without the top on. The stares she got were the ones when men were mentally undressing you and wondering how good you'd be in bed. She shuddered at the thought.
She'd only been with one man her entire life, and still, Damon had proved to her that love was dangerous. She's trusted him, even enough to sleep with him, and he had bitterly betrayed her.
Ever since the discovery of that lovely little book she'd read in the library, memories of her brief relationship with Damon had been swamping her, sometimes, hurting enough to make her cry. Every time she thought of him, a small sentence kept flying through her mind *The past can't hurt you, it can kill you.*
She didn't know where the sentence came from, or what it meant. Was it something she'd heard someone say to her in the past. But as the memories overwhelmed her, so did a sense of fear that came every time she remembered that little phrase. Along with another one, too *History repeats itself*.
She didn't understand that either. Maybe coming here was a bad idea. She hated the ideas of everyone eyeing her and judging her like those girls had been in her first class. She knew they were just trying to be friendly, but she also knew they were making snap judgements of her. Apparently, the word of those girls was almost like a law. If they decided something about you, everyone else thought that too. Maybe she wanted to get into their good books. She shuddered at what they would have done to her if they ever found out the truth...
No. No. No one would ever know about her. No.
Not paying attention to where she was going Raquelle didn't see the boy she bumped into until she collided with him, dropping her books, sending papers scattering over the hall floor. She stared down in dismay, before bending hurriedly to gather them up, snapping one of her long red nails at the same time. Things were just not working out for her today. She was a bundle of nerves.
"Here, let me help," the boy said kindly, bending to help her gather her things. She looked up at him, managing a weak smile. And stared. It was the boy she'd seen in the cemetery the other night. The one who had fascinated her.
He was dressed pretty much the same as he had been the other night, jeans, T-shirt and his letterman jacket. Well, the T-shirt had changed. Their eyes met and there seemed to be something passing between them. Raquelle didn't understand it. He was looking at her, as fascinated about her, as she was about him. There was a strange tension crackling in the air between them, seeming to intensify the longer they spent looking at each other.
"Uh hi," he said with a friendly smile. "I'm Jason McCullough." His eyes were the blue of a summer sky, sparkling and cheerful.
Raquelle suddenly felt shy, like when she had first met Damon. "Raquelle Valentino."
"You're new," he said.
She nodded. "I moved here a few days ago."
He handed her the things he'd gathered, and she took them gratefully, getting to her feet. "How'd you like Fell's Church so far?"
She brightened. "I like it. It's...homely."
He smiled. "Typical small town USA."
"I don't know about that," she said. "There's...I don't know. Something...special.." She trailed off suddenly and bit her lip. What was she *saying?* He was going to think she was crazy.
But he was smiling, as if he understood. "I know what you mean," he said. "It has a certain...quality to it."
The bell rang then, signalling that they should be in class. "I guess we should get to class," he said. She nodded.
"I'll see you round," he said, heading off down the hall.
"I hope so," she muttered, once she was out of ear shot. She glanced down at her schedule realising she was in the wrong part of the building for her next class. She turned and hurried out of Jason's presence before she could melt into a puddle at his feet.
* * *