Midcrest: Chapter 1, part 1

A Story by J. Brown

“Hey, Jess!” Lucas yelled from across the Grand Hall as I walked into the school. I remembered his wavy, golden hair from last year. As he walked towards me, I noticed that he had become more muscular over the summer. He walked in a sophisticated way, he held his broad shoulders back and his sculpted chest stuck out. His dark green eyes were shining and he was showing a big smile. I could see he was excited to tell me something.

“Another year in Hell…” I sighed.

“It’s not that bad. I mean, we are with our own kind,” he said in a husky voice. He gazed into the crowd behind me for a split second, and then focused back on me.

I turned curiously trying to see what he was looking at, “Yeah, but… That’s not necessarily a good thing.” All I could see was a blur of students rushing around.

He laughed a little, “I guess not. Well, welcome to Midcrest anyway.”

“So…” I turned back towards him, “Did you want to tell me something?”

“Oh, yeah!” his expression brightened, “I wanted to tell you about my brother. He started this semester. He’s in your grade.” I smiled, unsure of what else to do. “Look,” Lucas looked behind me again, “There he is now.” I turned to see a boy a few years older than me fighting his way towards us through the crowd. His straight, light brown hair hung in his face. He walked almost shyly with one hand in his pocket and he kept his slender body somewhat slouched. He had some muscle, but not much. His pale skin and his heavy, glacial blue eyes looked quite boring yet somewhat attractive. He smiled cheerfully when he saw Lucas and suddenly seemed a lot younger. He shifted his gazed to me when he finally got to us.

“Hey,” he held out his hand, “I’m Ben. You are…?” his voice had almost a sad tone. I wonder if he had a rough past…

I stared at him for a second. My stomach lurched and I could tell there was something different about him. I shook his hand and as I did, suddenly I could tell.

“I’m Jess.” I could feel his pulse, I could hear his heartbeat, and I could almost taste his blood. “Nice to meet you,” I said calmly, “but I’m afraid I have to go. Sorry to cut this conversation short.”

“I’ll talk to you later, Jess,” he said. As I nodded, I slowly let go of his hand and started walking towards the stairs. I slid my tongue over my teeth trying to calm my now-growing fangs. He’s a human?

“Hey, wait!” yelled a familiar, low voice.

“What now?” I turned around and suddenly I was whirling in someone’s arms. “Drake?” I laughed. He gently lowered me to the floor.

“Long time, no see, eh?” The room spun around me. I felt like I was about to fall, but maintained my balance. He looked exactly like he did last year. His short, black hair was parted neatly to one side. He had glasses that partially covered his deep, gray eyes. His face was lightly tanned. He had become thinner and looked almost willowy.

“So, you’re back too? That’s two friends,” I smiled.

“Out of what? Seven-hundred?” he raised an eyebrow and smirked. I playfully punched his shoulder. “Selene’s back too,” he looked away.

“Oh, great,” I couldn’t hide my sarcasm.

“Oh, c’mon. She’s not that bad…” he soothed.

“Not that bad!?” I yelled, but immediately lowered my voice as I realized we were getting glares, “She stole my mother’s diamond earrings. And at the Snow Ball, she ripped my dress. Not to mention the time she-”

“Okay, I get it. Geez…” he cut me off, “But she’s my sister. I gotta love her.”

“I know… sorry, Drake,” I said apologetically.

“Well,” he said, “I’ll let you get to your dorm room. I know you’ll probably want to make sure they shipped your things properly.”

“Thanks,” I smiled. I sighed and started towards the stairs agian. I guess he’s got to catch up with some old friends before he checks out his room.

I slowly made my way up two flights of stairs to the girls’ dorm room floor. The narrow, winding staircase kind of reminded me of one you would find in a castle’s tower. I found myself in a long corridor. The end split off in two directions, both leading to more rooms. Mrs. Vega told me my room number was… was… Come on! Think Jessi! Oh, 6B, that’s right. I searched the hallway and finally came across my room. I slid the tiny key into the old fashioned keyhole below the doorknob and twisted it. I heard a click then opened it quickly. A rush of lilac scented air rushed towards me. I breathed heavily taking in the beautiful smell. I walked in and looked around. The room was small and generic, but it also seemed sort of cozy. The first room you came to when you walked in was the living room. It had a sofa and a small television. There were two doors on one side of the room and one on the other. The closer of the two on the left side led to the bathroom. The next was the bedroom. It was big enough to fit a twin bed, a dresser, and a closet. Luckily, it was still easy to maneuver. The door opposite of the others was the kitchen. It held a few dishes, a microwave, and a mini refrigerator.

I walked to my bedroom and made sure all of my bags were in the closet. Then I gently lay on my new bed. A few minutes later, I decided to change into the school uniform which actually looked great on me. A midnight blue vest over a sky blue, button-up shirt -sleeved or short sleeved-and a khaki skirt, or slacks for guys. My wavy, red hair draped over my shoulders and onto my vest like fire onto the night sky. My dark green eyes stood out against my pale skin. A few freckles were sprinkled over my cheeks. The skirt hung short on my long legs which made me look taller than I really was. I pulled the hem down to my lower thighs, picked up my mesh bag, and put it on. Sleepily, I scuffed down the stairs, already tired, at 8:00 a.m. for the introduction speech that Mrs. Vega had given each year.

As I stepped drearily into the Grand Hall, I noticed a young girl staring at me. She had dark brown hair and blue eyes. Before I could see any more, she had disappeared into the crowd. A hush fell over everyone and we all looked to the front of the gigantic room. The room was as big as, if not bigger than, a football field. Its high ceilings extended into the second and third floors. It was painted with much detail. The colors seemed to blend together in a design that looked like something you would see in a kaleidoscope. Its windows were tall and frosted so that they were translucent. They were long and straight but came to a peak at the top. A circle of stained glass resided at the very top of all of the windows. They were made to resemble the school’s crest: a black cougar on a purple background with the words Diu Et Fortis-‘live and be strong’- printed on a horizontal scroll.

“Welcome everyone,” Mrs. Vega’s ringing voice shattered the silence. Her long, bleach blonde hair was pulled back into a tight bun. Her raven-like eyes were behind thin framed, stainless steel glasses. She was a skinny woman, but she was very beautiful. She stood tall and looked statuesque. It was as if she had no flaws.

“Welcome to Midcrest. It’s a new year, a new start… a new life. But with a new start comes new responsibility. This year your studies should be your highest priority. Pay attention and use this year to your advantage. What you learn will be necessary for life in the real world.” Yeah, I thought, this is a vampire school. You teach us things about modern life. You’re just trying to hide it from the human students. Isn’t that right, Mrs. Vega? The human students… Ben’s face flashed into my mind. In an instant my cheeks were burning and I knew I must have been bright red. Jess! What are you thinking!? I thought about him and how good his blood smelled. Simply delicious. Then I remembered his gentle touch when he took my hand. Suddenly, I felt tension in my chest, but I ignored it. You don’t even know him, Jess. You can’t like him. 1: He’s a human. 2: you’ve known him for, what? Two hours? 3: HE’S A HUMAN! I shook my head then looked back towards the front of the room. I had missed most of the speech, but I really didn’t care. It was exactly the same as last year’s. I crossed my arms and tried to endure the rest of the speech without falling asleep. “Take the rest of this day to socialize with your old friends, make new friends, and if you’ve been here for a while- seniors… show the new students around. Have a wonderful year!”

There was a short applause from some of the human freshmen that were unsure of what else to do. I stood in a corner as everyone rushed to the two staircases on either side of the Grand Hall. Mrs. Vega probably thought that they were excited to get the schedules that had been slipped under the door during the speech. Truthfully, everyone would probably rather drown in a sea of fire with lava sharks then be the last one in a room with her. In seconds, the room which was previously filled with people was empty. As I made my way to the front doors, I could hear the echo of my feet on the granite floor. Quickly, I made my way outside to the school grounds. I wandered around exploring the seemingly dull land. I found a small, wooden gazebo and sat on one of the benches. I took off my bag and set it next to me. A cool breeze passed as I pulled out my notebook. After about fifteen minutes a bird landed on the guardrail of the gazebo. I flipped to a blank page and drew a quick sketch of its outline before it flew away. I spent a few minutes adding detail. Perfect. I glanced at my work before closing the notebook and placing it gently back in my bag.

I turned back to look at the gazebo, remembering where it was. In the shady woods behind it, I caught a glimpse of the same girl from earlier. I recognized her eyes. She reminded me of Lucas in a vague way. Her uniform fit tight to her body and showed off her slender form. “Jess!” someone yelled from behind me. Quickly, I looked at where the voice came from. No… I was looking at Selene, the girl who had hated me since sixth grade. I turned back towards the forest, but the girl was gone.

Selene grabbed my shoulder and spun me towards her. I glared at her and snatched my shoulder away. The first thing I noticed was that she was wearing the earrings she had stolen from me the previous year. “Seriously?” I asked. Her blonde hair was chopped off short and had brownish-red tips. Her clear eyes matched her brother’s perfectly. Her uniform was loose on her coltish body. She was wearing a male uniform. Hand-me-downs from Drake, perhaps?

“What’s wrong?” she asked in a shrill voice, “You don’t seem too excited to see your best friend again.”

“Hah! Friend? Sure, once Hell freezes over,” I turned to leave.

She snickered as I walked away. I breathed in deeply trying calm myself. I continued towards the school and congratulated myself on not slapping her. Even the sight of her built up a pit of hatred in my stomach. I stormed up the stairs and to my room.