Chapter 4: Strong Coffee
The rest of the evening went by without any more incidents. Evan brought his friend Landon, and the four of us were able to have a good time. I halfheartedly agreed to get some outfits like my mom asked me to, and Brit was more than happy to join the crusade. After watching Thor: Ragnarok, I found Brit and Evan by the exit. She frowned at me as I walked up to her.
"What? Wasn't the movie good?"
She shrugged, "It was cheesy, but it was good."
I rolled my eyes, "Brit I said I'm sorry I came a little late!"
"A little? We missed the four o'clock showing and had to wait till eight-thirty!"
"At least we had time to eat between." Evan muttered.
Brit smiled, "Whatever, it's really not a big deal." She was my school's star forward, so of course whatever she thought was awesome everyone else agreed was awesome too. "So what's up with this party Friday? Is it still happening?"
My eighteenth birthday was on Saturday, the ninth, and I planned to have a party Friday night. For some reason, the entire school had picked up on it and the general consensus was that it was going to rock. I wasn't wildly popular or known for amazing parties, but usually any party at my school stirred up a fair amount of buzz. That was what happened in a suburban Seattle high school like Harley High, I supposed.
"Yeah," I said tiredly. "We just need to keep the number of guests down. My mom is going to kill me if a hundred people show up."
"Too late," Brit chimed in. "This is the first party of our senior year, so of course everyone is going to be pumped about it. The masses are growing restless. It's not like you're Leper Girl or anything. People do like you."
When we arrived at the parking lot, Brit let out a high-pitched squeal when she saw my car, my new one I got as a early birthday present.
"Ah!" she shrieked. "It is so cute! I approve."
"Thank you!" I said, beaming. "I named him Marshmallow. Isn't it perfect?"
"Oh my God, yes," She said, peeking in the driver's-side window. "Ruby wants him to be her boyfriend." She was referring to the name of her red BMW.
"You rich girls and you stupid names for your cars," Landon said, sighing as he checked it out. "500x, nice. I'll race you with my 370Z."
I laughed. "No way. I'm not going to kill myself, thanks, and why would you even bother? I'm pretty sure you'd destroy me in that thing anyways."
"Fine," he said, and turned to Brit. "Let me take on the E90."
She eyed him, grinning. "Keep dreaming."
"You ladies are wasting your cars," Evan said, examining my tires.
"It's really going to suck when we're freshmen at U-Dub and hate to leave our cars at home," Brit said, pouting.
"Did you send your application in?" I asked.
She nodded. "Yeah. Haven't you?"
I grimaced. My grades were never the issue, but I was still treading water. "Not yet."
"Well, do it quick," she said. "Spots fill up fast."
I made a mental note to start my application next week. None of them wanted to go anywhere else. But, of course I had wanted to go to Eastman or USC when I was ten, but my goals had gotten more realistic since then.
We went into Starbucks to order. I was happy not to have to worry about those strange students. At the moment, all I had to worry about was not spilling my coffee on my myself and not letting Evan get too close. He seemed to shift himself closer and closer to me as I watched him out of the corner of my eye. I wasn't claustrophobic by any means - but I soon would be if he got any closer.
Suddenly, I remembered my lit paper. I snarled at the ground. "I really need to get started on my paper."
Brit frowned. "Already?"
"Really, J," Landon said, flashing a stupid grin. "What's the point of drinking coffee at night if you're just going to go fall asleep?"
I shoved his shoulder playfully. "While your logic is flawless, it doesn't help me get to my paper done. This cappuccino will, on the other hand."
"Fine, fine," Brit said, waving her hand in a shooing motion. "You suck. Leave."
"You shouldn't tell me I suck so close to my birthday," I said with a grin.
"Happy Early Birthday!" She beamed.
"Thanks, lover." I gathered my purse and cup. I said good-bye and headed back out to my car. I glanced at my clock. It was almost nine, but the school should definitely still be open for the adult-education night classes. If it wasn't open, then at least I had a pretty good excuse to drive again. I could be optimistic when needed.
The grounds were weakly lit, and I found only two other cars parked in the student lot behind the building. The faint illumination was provided by the orangeish blotches beneath the parking lot lights, so I parked under one of them instead of in a dark patch. I figured I was less likely to get jumped here.
It was amazing how creepy this school got at night. I raced to my locker, yanked out what I needed, and stuffed it into my bag before jogging back out of the building. For some reason, outside it now seemed darker to me.
The light on the pole beside my car flicked and hummed. Something tugged on my body, and a hazy veil covered my vision. I had trouble stepping forward, and I looked down at my arms to see what was holding me back. The world - not just the air, but everything solid - stretched and melted away as if I were moving through a gelatinous wall. One more step, and I was suddenly free as burst of black smoke would around my limbs and cleared away, leaving the world normal again.
Halfway across the lot, I heard a distinct - and all too familiar - rumble.
The first thing I thought was that a bear was close by. But how? The whole campus was surrounded by a gate as tall as a light pole. But, there was that one time when a zebra from the zoo got loose. Maybe another animal found their way out of their cage too.
"Oh God," I whispered, halting in fear. After two excruciatingly long seconds I heard another growl rolling through the darkness.
I bolted, digging my hands frantically into my pockets for my keys. I pressed Unlock fifty times before I crashed into my car door.
A giant, dark shape flashed in the corner of my vision, and I screamed and ducked just as an enormous paw raked its talons across the front fender of my brand-new car.
I hit the ground, spilled my coffee and my bags, and looked up to face my attacker: I didn't know what it was!
As big as an Audi, loomed over me with one paw on the hood of my car. It looked down on me, covering me completely in its shadow, blocking out the streetlight, its chest heaving with every breath.
"I have found you, Bellator," the creature said in a deep, husky, but oddly feminine voice. "And now you are mine."
She grinned a mouthful of fangs and snapped at me. I screamed and threw my arms over my head. The THING laughed, her hot breath strangling me.
A shadow zipped behind it and suddenly she was sent flying over the Fiat. She landed and skidded across the pavement, digging her claws into the pavement and leaving white streaks behind.
I lowered my arms and looked up to find Peter standing over me. His skin beneath the tattoo on his collarbone glowed brightly in the streetlight.
"Are you hurt?" he asked, offering his free hand.
I took it, staring at him dazedly, and he helped me up. "The cappuccino... It must be the caffeine..."
His body stiffened, but something in my gut told me that it wasn't because of the chilly air.
I turned my head to follow his gaze, but I saw nothing in the street ahead. A breeze scattered a handful of already fallen leaves. I smelled something strange, like eggs and black smoke. "D-Do you smell that?"
He stepped around me to put himself between me and wherever he was staring. "Her magic is strong here."
"Her what?" I peeked over his shoulder. I thought I saw the shadow again, but when I blinked, nothing was there. It was too dark.
His gaze was fixed on something in the blackness. "It's not time! Stand down. I don't care what he orders you, unless you're prepared for the consequences."
He was clearly not talking to me. I was suddenly very aware that though I knew his name, I had no idea who he was. He and those two girls could have been playing with me. Somehow put something in my coffee and making fun of me while I'm drugged or high.
Another growl came, and then very heavy footsteps - like T. rex-shaking-the-water-cup Jurassic Park-style heavy footsteps.
"What is that?" I asked, trembling, my eyes searching the darkness.
"Come here," Peter said slowly, reaching back for me without taking a step. The look of worry on his face that I'd noticed earlier had deepened. Now he looked afraid, and that scared me a thousand times more.
"No way!" I cried, reeling away from him. His fear spun into frustration as I pulled away.
"Don't scream. You'll make her attack." Panic set in.
"Get away!" I shrieked, and tried to run, but Peter grabbed my arm. I twisted and pulled, but his grip was amazingly strong. It was like trying to drag an eighteen-wheeler; I couldn't get him to give even an inch. How could anyone be that strong? I started to pry at his fingers, but they were like solid rock.
And then I saw the monster: something vaguely resembling a huge dog covered in thick, black fur loomed over us, standing easily five feet tall at the shoulder. It lumbered over on all fours with a snout full of gnarled, vicious-looking teeth in the jaws of a heavy, oversize head. Its paws were the size of elephant's feet and ended in talons that looked like they could tear a man in half.
The beast leaped toward me, claws outstretched, and took a swipe with one of its front paws, but Starfire appeared between us.
She smacked the beast's forelimb with a blade and kicked full force into its chest, sending it flying back, shattering my school's statue of Harley Windsor into countless little chunks of stone and brick.
"Now!" she roared.
It thrashed like a giant pit bull and broke free. Quicker than my heart could pound, someone else was in view and shoving his fiery fist into its soft throat and straight through the top of its skull.
The creature's legs buckled as its fur shimmered oddly before exploding in flames. It happened very quickly. Fire devoured it, swallowing it in red light, consuming it until finally the head disappeared, leaving nothing but empty space and falling ashes where a monster had just been.
Then the shadows closed in around me.