chapter 7

The next morning I wake to find a black chest in front of my bed. It has some beautiful carvings. They look like symbols, ancient symbols. Lines form loops, waves, and circles. The chest is big, almost like one of my chest drawers. On the lid, there are some more symbols, or runes, I think. I can't be sure. I touch them and I feel a low bolt of electricity. I yank my hand away. This is too strange. But having the chest there or not, I have to get to class.

"Hey, I heard your birthday was yesterday. Did you celebrate? Did you do anything worth telling? Anything...special?" Megan practically screams from behind me. Her clique of friends is staring and laughing at me. Their perfect faces with menacing perfect sneers. 

I feel a rush of anger. "Shut your mouth, Megan. No one cares about what you think." The rest of the people that were in the hallway staring at me blankly. It's the first time I have paid attention to what Megan says to me. I can see her cheeks getting cherry red as she walks by me bumping her shoulder to mine. I turn around to go after her when Dean takes a hold of my arm. "Hey, slow down there woman. What's has gotten into you?"

"I don't know. Let's just get to class." I shrug Dean's hand off of my arm. The new rage still spreading around my body. Sweet dark rage filling my bones.

"What's wrong with your eyes?"

"What about them?" I look down nervously.

"I thought I saw them go red." A little nervous laugh escapes my lips. "You must be seeing things." He doesn't say anything else as we walk to class.

***

We got dismissed from our Astronomy class. Heading to the door I feel William grab my hand. I look down at his hand and he quickly lets me go. The heat of his hand still lingers on my skin. Warmth spreads through my body. I swallow hard and look back to his face. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure..." I walk with him towards his desk. My heart is pounding so hard in my chest. What if he hears it? He leans on the edge of his desk. He looks so sexy and handsome. His gray suit looks perfect on his body. He smiles warmly.

"I just wanted to ask you if you had a nice birthday." His eyes sparkle with a foreign emotion. What is he thinking?

"Umm...yes I did. Thank you, and thanks again for the book. It's really interesting." I look away from him since his eyes are making me a little breathless. Green eyes burn into my face searching for more of me.

"Oh, you started reading it? You like it?" He sounds so young. So carefree. I forget he's just twenty-one.

"Yes, I do." I look back at him again. His eyes are shining with something that I don't recognize. Happiness? Relief...something else?

"Well, you deserve it, Alice." He passes a hand through his brown wavy hair. "Well, I just wanted to say that you are doing a great job in my class and that you'll be smart to think about doing your BA in Astronomy since you are so talented in it. If you have any doubts or questions I'll be here."

"Thanks," I whisper.

"Well, that'll be all." He stands and for a moment he looks down to my eyes. I feel my heart skip a beat. He's just amazingly hypnotizing. I see his brow crease. He's looking intently at my eyes. Crap! I must have changed color again. He leans down and kisses my cheek...close to the corner of my mouth. I give him half a smile and walk out of the classroom. I don't know what is happening here. I can feel where his lips touched my skin. But I can't think about that now. I need to focus on my school work and in what I seem to be. I try to have a normal day for the rest of today. 

Another sleepless night. I turn and turn in my bed, but my thoughts don't let me sleep. Thoughts of darkness. Thoughts of William. His so near mouth kiss. Absentminded, I touch the corner of my mouth. I still feel his soft lips on the spot. I turn and my eyes drop to the black chest. The black chest on the end of my bed doesn't open. I have tried everything. Pulling the lid with my hands, scissors, and knife. It just doesn't give in. 

My thoughts go back to William. I turn in the bed. What happened? Why that out-of-nowhere kiss? Even though it was on my cheek, it felt so intimate and meaningful. I'm so overthinking this. Not having experience with boys makes these questions more difficult. Even more so, I don't have experiences with hot teachers hitting on me. Maybe I should ask Penelope. It's too late to go to her dorm. I'll ask her tomorrow.

My outburst to Megan today comes to the surface next. What was that? It could be that I've grown tired of her constant nagging and bitchiness, or could be the dark that Mia saw in me. What else could it be, if not that? Dean said my eyes were red. Yet again I don't know what else I have in me. My darkness. Dark thoughts cloud my mind.

I see red. Pools of red liquid. It smells good. Smells appetizing. But somehow I'm not afraid of it. Instead, I'm drawn to it. Why?

I go downstairs not being able to sleep. There's no one in the room. I walk around and sit on the couch and turn on the TV.

"Good night, Wisconsin. We have breaking news! The police have found more bodies near the mall. We haven't heard yet of the body count, but we know its grave. From the condition of the bodies that have been found, the police think it is the same killer. Are we having a serial killer in our hands? Stay tuned for more news on the bloody murders. This is Stacy Clinton reporting live." Commercials fill the screen.

What's going on out there? The bodies were found in the mall. I was just there yesterday. Gosh! I turn off the TV and stay there in silence. I hug my knees and place my head on top of them. Slowly the air around me starts to change. It gets crisp. No smoother. It feels like silk on my skin. The sounds are different. Clearer. I hear distant voices. Girl voices. They come from the dorms. I can hear girls talking, whispering; probably on their phones. The smells, I can smell the food in the kitchen. Apples, granola bars, juice, milk. Oh, that isn't that fresh. My senses are sharper. I like it. I walk around the room touching everything. Feeling the softness of the couch. The sharpness of the wood on the floor. Everything is new. Then I feel a sharp pain in my throat. It's dry, so dry. Like I haven't drunk water in weeks. I walk to the kitchen area and grab a glass of water. Gulping it down, the dryness doesn't vanish. I'm still thirsty. I go up to my room. I know I've had an orange glass up there from earlier today. Opening the door I see a faint glimmer of white light. I glance around and see that it's coming from the black chest. It's open.

I kneel in front of it and slowly open the lid. The light grows brighter and I see a note along with a black bag, a red pendant, among other things. I hold the note and the bag in my hand. The bag smells sweet, like maybe chocolate syrup. It's intoxicating. Reminds me of my thoughts. Thoughts of darkness. I look at the note and quickly know it's from Mia. It's in her handwriting.

"Alice, I know that you have been overwhelmed by all the changes you are going through and everything I have told you. Honestly, I think you have been holding on pretty well. The bag that you found inside the chest is what you might start craving. I wrapped in the black bag because I knew that when you see what it is you'll freak out. I finally figured out what this darkness around you is. That will require the contents of the bag from time to time. I know you'll learn to control the urges. You are a new kind of Blessed, Alice. For that, you'll be hunted. Since I know that's going to happen I added a red pendant with protection properties, and also there are other things, like the pocket knife. Carry both on you always. We'll talk more later."

Att. Mia

I open the bag and remove another from inside. It's transparent and it has a red liquid in it. I turn the bag around. "AB+" What?! This is what is smelling sweet and intoxicatedly delicious? Why my thoughts have been driven into the red pool of liquid that I desire desperately? I put it on the ground in front of me and hug my legs. This can't be possible.

My hand goes up to my throat no longer able to ignore the drying pain. I take it and make a little hole with my fingernail on a corner. Hesitantly I draw it near my mouth. As soon as the blood touches my lips I let go of everything. The world starts spinning around me. It's like I'm flying, but I'm not. I'm up in the sky, but I'm on earth. It's sweet, delightful, and perfect. I put the bag back down. The thirst is gone. There's no uncomfortable pain anymore. The thoughts cloud my mind once more. Darkness. Beautiful inviting darkness. I know what that part of me is. I know what more I am: Vampire.