It was only my first day at the House of Night and I was already skipping. My name is Sapphire and I'm sixteen. The House of Night was huge and had many places to explore. But I was afraid I would get caught. So instead I made my way to the stables on the grounds that I'd been shown earlier. I liked horses. My parents owned some. My horses name was Stardust. He was an old boy now. So being around horses was like home. It felt safe.
But when I walked into the stables, all thoughts of horses were gone. A cute boy stood in the middle of the room, pulling his shirt over his head. He had a bow and arrows sprawled on the barn floor with targets sitting out all around the area. He noticed me when he threw his shirt to the side and met my eyes. I blushed and took a step back getting flustered. He must have thought I was watching him!
"Oh, erm, I'm sorry!" I stuttered. "I didn't realize anyone was in here! I came to see the horses!" I took another step back.
The boy threw his hand toward me. "Watch out!" He shouted as I began to tumble backwards. I wasn't quite sure what I'd tripped over but it was probably my own feet. He caught my wrist and tugged me back so roughly that I now crashed face first into his chest. "Careful!" He said in a scolding voice. "Shouldn't you be in class?" He snapped down at me.
I tried to pull myself free, as I was pressed up against his body, but he didn't release his tight grip on my wrist and waist. "I should ask you the same thing." I muttered my cheeks growing red.
"Touche." He said his grim expression spreading into a cocky grin. "I'm Stark."
"Well, Stark, you can let me go now." He released me and I began to tumble back again. He snagged my waist and helped me stand straight. "I'm Sapphire." I grumbled.
"Well, Sapphire," he grinned, mimicking my tone, "you should be more careful. You may be a vampyre and all, but you aren't indestructible."
I felt my cheeks get hot. "I'm used to it. I've always been a klutz."
He poked my forehead and I tilted slightly but didn't fall. "Maybe you should work on balance."
"Maybe you should work on shutting-the-hell-up." I growled.
He began to laugh loudly and I pouted. My response was meant to scare him, not amuse him. "So, you think you're scary do you?" I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. He chuckled. "Silent treatment? Really? So you are going to ignore me until I find you scary?" I didn't say anything. He wiped a towel across his damp chest and lifted his water bottle from the ground. "You'll be waiting a while then." He smiled.
He put his water bottle back down on the ground and observed me for a second. He walked back to me and crossed his hands over his chest and mimicked my expression. I couldn't help but smile as I let my hands drop to my sides. "Feel free to stay and watch me train. You'll probably get an excellent view of my abs." He winked. I giggled and rolled my eyes.
I sat down on the floor crossing my legs. "Don't be all conceded. It's unhealthy."
"Hey, I'm not conceded. Just stating facts. And how is that unhealthy?"
"It just is. I'm not sure of the reason now, but I probably will later."
"Unhealthy." He scoffed. "Me, unhealthy? PLEASE! Do you see this?" He gestured to his chest. "Pure muscle! That's healthy!"
"Yeah, it's hard to miss." I said raising an eyebrow at him.
"Hey," he said covering himself with a childish face, "don't look! I'm naked!"
"You aren't, you goof!"
"You only wish I was." He said puffing put his chest, placing his hands on his hips. He was attempting to look heroic.
"And you only wished that I wished you were naked!" I laughed.
"That made absolutely no sense!" He laughed throwing his hands up.
We were both laughing loudly now, trying to catch our breaths. "Ha ha! I know!" He sat down beside me and then he lie back in the hay on the floor. He layed his arms spread out as he stared at the ceiling. "So, what were you in here for?" I asked as it grew silent. I could hear the sound of us breathing in tune with one another and it was freaking me out.
He looked up at me with a light smile. "Oh, right. I almost forgot. I was practicing my archery."
I lie down next to him and stared into his eyes. "You probably can't even hit the target."
He raised his eyebrows at me. "Oh, really? Wanna bet?"
"Okay, fine! What are we betting?"
He rolled onto his stomach and propped himself up on his elbows. "Lost has to kiss the winner." I saw a mischevious glint flare through his eyes.
"Deal." I said sitting up to shake his hand.
He stood up and stared down at me. "Better get those lips ready, honey."
"Yeah, we'll see. You can talk the talk. But can you walk the walk?"
He lifted his bow and arrows from the ground, loaded his bow and shot the arrow smack in the middle of the target closest to him. "I don't know, you tell me." He smirked.
My jaw dropped but I relaxed and looked unsatisfied. "Lucky shot. Plus, it's too close. That doesn't count."
He loaded another arrow and turned to the target fathest from us and he fired. I jumped up in shock as the arrow found it's home right in the middle of the target again. "You were saying?" He said making kissy faces at me.
"No way! You cheater!" I squealed.
"Hey, you're the one who didn't think I was good! You owe me a kiss, loser!"
"I don't give kisses to stinking cheaters!"
"We shook on it!" He smiled and ran toward me.
I squealed and turned to run, but he grabbed me and spun me around. He pounced forward and we tumbled to the ground with him on top of me. He had my wrists forced down to the ground, trapping me. "Pinned yah!" I struggled and we rolled only to find myself under him again. "Pinned yah, again!" He laughed.
He leaned down and kissed my cheek. "Loser."
I rolled us so I was on top of him. I kissed him right on the lips and we both smiled. "Nah, I didn't lost all that much." I blushed.
"And I'm still….I'm…WINNING!" He yelled.
We laughed again and he pulled me down to give me another sweet kiss.
Maybe I wouldn't mind living here all so much.