PROLOGUE
I checked one last time in the mirror, the white wedding gown hugged my curves perfectly and it draped down from my waist into a massive frills, my flushed cheeks matched my fair complexion, my curly black hair was made into a bun and few stray strands fell, my plump lips were smeared with light red lipstick, My big chocolate brown eyes had an unusual glint to them, the tip of my long nose was red as if I was cold, for the first time in my life I liked the way I am, Wedding Barbie! I smiled at the comparison I thought.

“Are you ready…?” Mr. Blake stood elegant in his black tux. I’ll never stop being amazed by just how beautiful the Blakes are. He flashed his dazzling smile eying me. “You look stunning…”He smiled proudly eying his soon to be daughter. I smiled and took his extended hands…

He moved in perfect rhythm to the music that flowed sweetly in the background…Don’t look at the crowd…I chanted. From the corner of my eye I saw the white satins and flowers that were used to decorate the area…My eyes involuntarily took in the surroundings… everything was perfect as I was promised by Mrs. Blake. My gaze darted towards the crowd… I saw the flash of red hair in the front row…I gasped as I recognized who it was. They are here… My heart began to pound in my chest…Are they going to kill me or ruin my perfect wedding? With every doubt my heart rate increased a thousand times…I bit my lips to stop the scream that is threatening to make its way out of my mouth. Unconsciously, my hands clutched Mr. Blake’s arms tightly. He raised his other arm and squeezed my hands gently. “Everything is going to be alright…” He whispered. I nodded but still the heart beat wouldn’t slow down.

My eyes travelled towards the aisle where Alan was standing in creamy white tux. I examined how his broad shoulders were in confident posture, he turned in slow motion towards me as if he noticed my presence, and my sharp intake of breath brought a smile to his face as if he knew what I was thinking. I blushed as his hooded eyes took me in.

He extended his hands towards me, “You look…” he stammered for the right word. I smiled at him. The proceedings went on and our eyes stayed connected, lost in our own world. I could feel my flushed cheeks gain even more color as his eyes eagerly took me in. “I do…” his voice made my heart skip a beat. I looked at him and panicked to see Aaron staring down at me with his mischievous grin.

“I told you that I would come back for you…” Aaron grinned pulling me towards him. I screamed. His gentle smile was replaced with malicious laugh. I screamed and ran away from him pushing through the crowd. I could feel him following me… without any further thought I jumped down screaming.


I revved up the engine and hit 80…I’m going to be late...I checked my watch and knew that I still have 15 minutes to catch up the train… Fast…Faster...Fastest… My mind screamed at me. I was only 5miles…but these curvy roads were going to make it harder…the clock ticked raising the tension degree by degree in my mind…

“I’ll be the there in 5minutes…”I chanted. My cell reverberated jumping my skin… “Please… don’t leave…Give me a chance to say good bye…”I pleaded. “I’m almost there…” I said cutting through the u- bend.

I clicked off the phone shut and sighed…My eyes darted to the little Pooh bear doll that my little sister; Liz stuck on to the dashboard. I smiled at it. Please give me one more chance to wave goodbye to my baby sister… I prayed. I didn’t see the truck coming towards me, It’s head lights blinded my moist eyes for a second, I honked at him vigorously to make him aware of my presence but he just drove straight at me…The car tires screeched on the gravel as it got struck by the heavy vehicle… the force was so great that I hit my head and fell on the wheel, I blinked as the truck tripped my car into the lake…

My car was sinking in fast… the water forced my lungs to contract and my breath became shorter by every second…I tried to unfasten my seat belt… My eyes were blurry, I groped for the seat belt in vain… after a few frantic attempts, and I unfastened it. I tried the door but it was jammed… I cursed my stupid car for giving up on me at this time. I leaned back and tried to break the front glass with my legs, the first blow missed, my lungs burned at the lack of oxygen another blow, a spidery web formed on the glass, I gulped down the water trying to take a breath. It burnt my whole system, the blackness consumed inch by inch, making me totally limp as I sank with my car.


“Is she going to be okay…?”A smooth voice asked. “Think so…” I could hear voices but I couldn’t will my eyes to open. My throat burnt as I tasted the salt water in my mouth. “She is moving…”I heard another voice. Am I dead? The burning pain…showed that I wasn’t. Dead people don’t feel pain, right? How am I saved then? My eyelids fluttered, I couldn’t will them to open, I saw a pair of hooded eyes gazing at me through the tiny slits that I managed my eyes to open into. I was picked up by two strong arms when I gave up totally into the darkness.

“How are you feeling Miss. Rose…?” I heard a male voice as my eye lids fluttered open. I grumbled as I still my throat burn. He was staring down at me. “Ah! So you woke up at last…” a pair of brown eyes smiled. I blinked to adjust my blurry vision. I took in my surroundings they were surprisingly white, the smell of medicines conformed that I was in hospital. Why did I come here…? Images of accident that I met flashed in my mind… I remembered being saved by a person with hooded eyes.

“Where is the person that saved me?” I asked but my voice was croaked. “We didn’t know the person who admitted you…We didn’t see any person…”he said. But I clearly remember being saved me…Why did he leave me…?

“Do you have any number that you need to call…?” the doctor asked. I nodded ‘no’. He looked at me quizzically. I just shrugged. Mom would have probably left by now and there is no reason to call her and tell when she doesn’t want anything to do with me.

“When can I go…?” I asked. “I just need to do some more tests than you are good to go…”I nodded.

I hate that doctor so much, he drew so much amount of my blood for tests, I already felt weak and with blood loss I felt dizzy.

“The reports are normal…You are good to go…”he said. I nodded and my feet were wobbly when they touched the ground… but after a few tentative steps… It felt good. “Oh my god! Rose…” I heard a familiar voice shriek.

“Amy…” I frowned. She ran to me and jumped for a hug, I stumbled a bit back but she caught me. “How did you know…?” “The local news…” Amy pointed. I nodded. “Will you just drive me home…? I feel kind of sick at this place…” She laughed. “You are sick…”

Amy left me alone after hovering around me sometime and making sure a 100% that I am good. My house felt empty…no squeals of my little sis, the constant tantrums of mother and the unwanted presence of her boyfriend. Dad died when I was 11, ever since mom thought she was the only one who had to deal with it. She always threw tantrum about being left alone with a disagreeable daughter. True, I was never mom’s pet. I liked my dad very much…he was more like a friend to me. My mom on the other hand likes to rub her ideas on me which I find disagreeable. She found Luke a year later, my mom had Liz and then recently they decided to get married for the sake of Liz. They wanted to move into a city where there are better prospects to live. I denied going with them since this house held many fond memories of dad.

I got the house and small sum of money that dad left me and I had a job at the Lake view restaurant that can help me through my high school. I reserved the thoughts for future to future. I relaxed in to the couch for a while before I started on my house chores…

I found that mom had left messages for me…I called her to say that I was ok…She cried and said something like the god has punished me for being disagreeable daughter or something in that lines… I rolled my eyes…She can be so melodramatic sometimes. After a few minutes of lecture on how to drive she clicked the phone shut. Seriously…why all the class about driving…? It’s not like I’m going to get another car.

I poured some milk and munched on the cereals… I remembered that I had some unfinished homework that I had to submit this Monday…Since it’s a weekend I’m out of work so I took my time to finish the work. I fell asleep earlier than usual since I had nothing to do…I missed telling stories to Liz…

I woke up startled as the hooded eyes of my rescuer shadowed most of my dream…Who is he…? I thought. The alarm went off at the same time as my skin felt jumpy. I was not some typical fashion chick of high school; I never mind about the fashion trends…I always find jeans and a t-shirt comfortable more than anything. Who cares about the fashion or being able to fit in when we ourselves are strangers to the vast world around us…?

Amy’s car honked… “Since you had no car…I thought I should pick you up.” She said smiling. Amy is my bestie since preschool. She is a tiny framed girl, with thick brown, straight hair, big, blue eyes, tiny lips and nose. She was my version of pixie… She always wanted to be noticed like those popular girls of the school but she doesn’t have that thing in her. She is a sweetheart, and a nerd too what with her eyes always in books, she says that is the only way to forget reality…get immersed in the fictional world of the books. Silly of her but it keeps her from feeling sad about her so and so looks.

“Rose…how are you…?” Eddy rushed towards us as soon as he saw Amy’s car. “Alive…” I smiled. He is a good looking guy with athletic body built; he was even in the basket ball team, which makes him popular.

“Amy…Rose…” Beck waved at us; she was practically jumping with joy.

“Guess! She had some hot news to sell…” Eddy smirked. Beck is the gossip queen, she is all about gossip, she lives to gossip. Her pony tail swayed as she leaped with joy. She is round, square cut face, high chin and almond eyes, pinched nose and thin lips, she would look better if not for her snotty fashion sense.

“I guess…you had something to say…” Eddy said. “Did you know that a new family moved into the town…? They are super rich… and their two boys are joining school today…” She said quickly. We nodded. “I heard that they are super hot…”Beck whispered. Amy’s ears perked up at the last statement. “What…? Who said that?” Amy said all enthusiastic now. Eddy left mumbling something about girls being silly.

“I heard Samantha saying it…” Beck said. Samantha is the hot chick of the school, she is not bitchy like most of the popular girls you see in movies, and she just had to have every good looking boy in the school…“Beck…you know how the little Miss Diva is…” I pointed. “Um…may be…” She mumbled.

We were cut off when a car raced off into our compound… The tires screeched to an abrupt halt in the empty space of parking lot. All eyes turned towards the black car, I noticed a blonde head getting out from the driver’s seat. I could see people gasping as his whole body came into picture…His chiseled jaw; full lips, long nose and sloppy blonde hair made him look like a Greek model. The passenger seat opened to reveal a light brown hair, his hair felt messy at the forehead and neatly combed at the rest, he was as breath taking as the other was… “I wanted to see who manufactured this…” Beck stammered.

“Beck…”I slapped her to get her attention. “Let’s go…”I said yanking them both by their arms towards the schools. People began to walk as the show was over when the hotties walked in. We got the boring languages at the first hours… I could hear most of the girls spending their boring time talking about the new guys… They were in my class… Mr. Drew asked them to introduce themselves…The blonde introduced himself as Aaron Blake and the brown head as Alan Blake.

Math’s and sciences passed soon without nothing much amiss, most of the classes I spent taking down the running notes or if bored I would draw random pictures in the book. I waved off to my friends as I headed to the lab…They got another class now… I guess I have to be alone now since my lab partner moved into another school this semester.

“Miss. Woods…”I looked up from my table to see Mr. Tom, our chemistry teacher calling. “Alan Blake will be your lab partner this semester…”he said and gestured Alan to go. I nodded and resumed scribbling down the equations… After I was done… I decided that I should get to know my lab partner. “Hi...I’m Rose…”I said extending my hands…

“Alan…”he said after a minute thought. “Here…take the notes before we start the experiment…” I said. He stared at me and I felt trapped in his gaze… his hooded eyes seemed to hold me captured. Those eyes felt very familiar….I thought.

He dropped his gaze on to the book but left me in fuzzy mind. Where did I see those eyes…? Then suddenly it hit me…he is the one who saved me… I opened my mouth to talk but Mr. Tom hushed us. As soon as the bell rang Alan hurried towards the door, I rushed after him.

“Alan…” I called. He didn’t stop…”Hey…” I called louder this time. He was oblivious to my call. I ran after him and stopped him. “Aren’t you the one that saved me…?” I asked. “I don’t know what you are talking about…”he said. “But…”he left me wide mouthed. He didn’t even listen to what I was saying…He may be drop dead gorgeous but he is no gentlemen. I cursed for even thinking that this person had saved my life…but I was sure about his eyes…

Lunch was quick today since I need to finish parts of my assignment before the break; I had it done before the bell rang… I headed to the Mathematics and dropped my assignment sheet on the table with all other assignments. “Can I sit here…?” A musical voice rang close to my ears. I raised my eyes to see Aaron standing next to me… I moved over to give him place.

I didn’t want to start the conversation since my experience with his brother wasn’t so good. “Aaron…you can call me Ron.” He said. “Rose…” I smiled.

“Does Mr. Wilson snort all the time…?” Ron asked surprising me. “Yeah!” I said smiling. “Why do you always answer in one word…?”He asked smiling. “No…” He smiled as if I proved his point. “It’s just you’re asking questions that have one word answers…” I said. “Witty…” he grinned.
“How did you cope up with the accident…?”He asked after a while. I frowned. “Oh! You don’t know…” he shrugged. “It’s true than…” I said. “I remember seeing a pair of hooded eyes, I asked Alan if it was him and he acted like he didn’t know anything…” I said. “Oh! My brother doesn’t brag about the good deeds he had done…” “He doesn’t even talk…” I pointed. “He is kind of introvert…”he said smiling. “Thanks…” I said. “What for…?” “Saving me…” I pointed. He nodded smiling.

These two brothers weird, Aaron is quite different from Alan; Ron is easy going and fun while Alan is reserved like his brother stated or jerk in my language. I walked back home quickly… I freshened up quickly and packed my bag with homework books that I need to finish… The diner is far away from here, if I had to go there I certainly need to use dad’s car. I turned the whole house upside down for the keys but the keys were left in the garage itself. I never used his car…It brought too many memories but now I guess I had no choice…


“Rose…We were worried about you when we heard about the accident…” Mrs. Simpson said as soon as I entered the diner. “Sorry…I should have called you…”I said. “You are safe that’s all it matters…”Mr. Simpson said coming out of the kitchen. They are elderly couples and owners of this diner. I worked for them partly to help the old couple and partly to get money… besides me a grumpy middle aged woman, Anna worked as a cook and a junior of mine, Tabby worked. Tabby is a friendly girl who minded more about grades than anything else…

We took the orders of the day as people came in… I helped Tabby with her work in the midst, if there was none in the diner. Tabby is a chubby teenager whose intelligent eyes are covered behind the black hair that fell over her eyes all the time. Mr. Simpson’s, Tabby, me and Anna eat in the diner before we left on Simpson’s request. We were like a good old family eating their dinner, Anna though had bad temper still she has a soft side to her that craves for an understanding family like us.

“You shouldn’t live all alone in that big house…”Mrs. Simpson remarked. Others nodded agreeing with her; Tabby’s eyes were glued to her book even when she was eating… “No...It’s fine. Most of the time I stay at school and then here…”I pointed. “Tabby…It’s not healthy to read while eating…” Mrs. Simpson closed her book all mother like. Tabby pouted but soon concentrated on food. “Anna…The food is as usual delicious…” Mr. Simpson remarked with a mouthful. “You are the best cook…”I said. She smiled at us and served us some more. “No…not anymore…” I said keeping my hands over the plate and nodding ‘no’. “You should eat…no dieting…”she said huskily. “Please…Anna…I’m full. “I said catching my throat to show that I was full up to neck. “You are dramatic…” Tabby said smiling. “I guess I got those genes from my mom…” I said. Everyone burst into laughter.

Alan watched Rose from the shadows of the tree, she is a simple girl with simple life style…what did they want from her…? He thought. He heard her ringing laughter and noticed that they were all laughing… She looked more beautiful when she is laughing with her dimple being so prominent.


I woke up yet startled by those hooded eyes that always stalked her…I better stop thinking about him…

“Why don’t you just move into my house…?” Amy asked for the hundredth time. I sighed and nodded ‘no’. “I get it…its just mom is worried about you being all alone in that house…” Amy said. Amy’s mom treated me as her own daughter…she was dad’s friend and she took it as her responsibility to look after me since dad passed away.

Classes were a blur today…I don’t know how the time works…Sometimes it’s like a one hour drags on and on… but sometimes it’s like…What….When did an hour pass by? Today it’s like the later…At lunch I promised to sit with the guys the whole hour since I left earlier yesterday without a word to them.

“Amy…You should stop sleeping in the classes…”Beck complained. I raised my eye brows questioningly… “Amy here slept the whole history period…Mrs. Tingle walked over to her and shouted at her…” Amy slapped her mouthing her to stop. Eddy joined us, “What did she say…?” We asked. Amy bent her head on the table and curled her arms tightly over hiding her face… “Go on…Beck…You’re here to defame me…”Amy said. “She said…” She paused to wait for the expected reaction to take place in our faces…”She said…” Eddy was all ears… “Mom…please…let me sleep one more hour…” Beck burst out laughing. “What…?” We burst out laughing.

“Beck… Are you done yet…?” Amy growled. We burst into laughter again. “I’ll get you one day for this…”Amy snarled at Beck. “Are you still watching late night movies…?” I asked Amy. “Yesterday… Nick brought a new D.V.D.” she sulked. “You should have waited until weekend…See the result of watching a late night movie…”Beck pointed. We agreed…”You would do the same thing…if you knew what movie it was…” “Enlighten us…” Beck said. “Breaking dawn…” Amy said. “Really…? You should allow me to borrow it…” Beck said eager like a child.

“Why don’t you just come over this weekend...?” Amy asked eying us all. “What all of us…?” Eddy asked. “Sure…”We replied.

I waved off my friends and I started to walk back to my class, I walked as I checked for my assignment sheets in books, I hit hard against something solid and all my books scattered over the ground…I would have landed on the ground too if not for that someone to catch me…I opened my eyes to see the same pair of hooded eyes staring intently at me… If I have a boat I could easily swim in those deep eyes…I thought. He cleared his throat awkwardly and helped me to stand turning his eyes away from me…

“Don’t you watch where you are going…?” I shouted at him and brushed past off him collecting my books… I know it was my fault but I wanted to fill the awkwardness… I’m such a bad girl.

“Hey…” Aaron waved at me as he walked to empty space beside me. “Hi…”I said…talking to him reminded me about afternoon’s incident and with that my mind flogged with the images of those haunting eyes… Aaron waved his hands in front of me…”To earth…” He grinned. I shrugged smiling.

“I was just thinking about the math’s assignment…I was having some doubts…” I said flipping through the pages of the book. “I will help you…”he said. “Um...What…?” “I will help you with the problems…”he said. “Okay…”I nodded.

Mr. Wilson yelled at a girl who was caught playing with her hair so the whole class went off by his yelling at her and lecturing us about how important mathematics is in our life… “How did you manage a whole semester without going mad…?” Aaron asked fiddling with the pen. “Welcome to the maniac club…” I smirked. He grinned. God! How cute can he be? His smile grew wide as if he knew what I was thinking.

“Hey…Rose…” Aaron ran after me. “Where do we go…?” I frowned. “Math’s…assignment…” He said eying the books in my hand. “Oh!” I was thinking hard to say something when a car honked bringing me out of my thoughts. “Get in…” he said opening the passenger door. “Um…”

“Get in…I’ll drive you home…We can finish that work off for today than we’ll have the whole weekend free…”he said pulling me inside. He was not even giving me time to talk…he sped up through the roads and I was at my home in few seconds… “You drive like a maniac…” I said smiling. He grinned. I had no choice but to invite him in.
“Don’t you feel bad about being all alone in this house…?” Aaron said eying the house…” Hey...how do you know… wait are you stalking me…?” I asked him smiling… “Yes…I could probably pounce on you with a knife now…” he laughed.

“You can be alone even if you have a person around you…that’s how I felt when my mom was here so I guess I was pretty used to being alone…” I said handing him coffee mug. “Thanks…” he said sipping the hot coffee.

We worked on the assignment and finished it sooner than I expected…Aaron is really pretty good…he will be some serious competition to me…I thought. “Do you miss your dad…?” His question caught me off guard.

“I don’t know…” tears trickled in my eyes as I lied. “Don’t you think Mr. Wilson should find love…It certainly will help his mood…” Aaron said suddenly changing the topic. I frowned. “I think love will change that man…” he said eyes distant. “What…?” I asked dumbfounded. He grinned. The wall clock struck 6. “Hey…I have to go work…” I said gathering all the stuff that we spread on the floor to work on the assignment, he helped me pick up…I ran into my room to freshen up.

“Didn’t you go…?’I asked as I saw Ron staring at our family portrait. I ran into the kitchen and picked up the keys hurrying outside…Ron stood by my car. “What are you planning to do this weekend…?” He asked. “Nothing…” I said. “Well, I have a surprise for you then…” he winked.

The work at diner was tiring some today… I slept like a rock as soon as I reached home.

“Did you think of a plan…?”Aaron said grabbing a chair and sitting beside me with his food plate set on the table…All my friends abruptly stopped whatever they were talking and stared at Aaron. He waved his hands in front of my face. “Have you seen a ghost…?”He smirked.

“Nope…just wondering what you are doing here?” I said. “Am I not welcome in your group…?” He said trying to sound hurt. “You are more than welcome…it’s just…um…we didn’t expect you to sit here…” Amy babbled.

I introduced Aaron to the group...It’s not like that they don’t know who is he but I wanted to give a formal intro…He corrected me when I said Aaron…”It’s Ron…”he kept saying. “Hey, Al…”He waved to his brother who was scanning the crowd probably for him. He walked towards us throwing wary glances at me…I shrugged.

“Did you think of a plan…?” Ron asked as Alan squeezed conveniently into our group. “What plan…?” I asked. “We thought that we should find Mr. Wilson’s love…” Ron grinned. “What…?” Amy stared at us.

“That was not even my idea…” I said to her… “Mr. Wilson in love…that isn’t going to happen…Aaron…” Beck said. “Ron…”he grumbled. I giggled at his dislike at his name. “Every person deserves to be happy in his life…”Ron pointed.

“What do you propose to do…?” I asked. He shrugged…I laughed and was awarded a glare from him. “You are a man full of thoughts but no ideas to implement them…” I said. “Al…What do you think we should do…?” Ron asked. Why would Ron ask him, he would sure ignore considering us as crazy, young teenagers.

“Letters…?” Alan thought out loud… “Good one…bro…”he said patting his back…”Whose name should we mention in those letters…?” Beck asked. “Mrs. Tingle…I have seen her trying to flirt with him sometimes…” Eddy supplied…This is ridiculous… I have never thought our group as crazy teenagers but maybe I haven’t seen this side of them…They were all bouncing with joy as Ron told them his plan… “We all are crazy…”I said. Ron grinned widely.

“Who is going to write the letter…?” Amy asked. Amy and Beck’s gaze flickered towards me…”Hey… I have no idea of how to write a love letter…” “Al…Will write...” Ron said. Alan nodded.

“Do you have any idea of what you are doing…?”I asked as we walked back to our classes. Everyone face held a sheepish grin as they thought about the plan…” I told you everyone needs to enjoy their life…” Ron winked. I nodded my head in disbelief.

Ron stayed surprisingly quiet throughout the class…I’m sure that crazy brain of his is concocting more plans… other classes passed by soon and I found myself walking home alone…

“Rose…” Ron honked. “Get in…”He said unlocking the back seat door. “Oh! No…I don’t want to be victim of your mad driving…”I said. “Come on… I’ll drive slowly if you want…”he said. I wasn’t surprised to see Alan sitting in the car. True to his words…he drove slowly.

“Aren’t you going to invite us in…?” Ron said already in the house…”Should I…? You aren’t the one to care about formalities…”I smiled. He dragged Al with him but he seemed uncomfortable… I gave them coffee… Al took his mug tentatively and his finger tips brushed my skin and tickles ran all over my body, our eyes met and I found myself drowning in those eyes of his yet again.

“Rose…” Ron’s voice shook me from my reverie. “Do you want to see the letters…perhaps you may find anything to change…” He said. Al took out a red color envelope from his pockets…

His cologne scent lingered on the paper he wrote… It really felt good… I shook my head and started to read the contents of the letter. It’s not poetic yet poignant in expressing feelings…”You write well…”I said. “My brother is sort of into writing…” Ron smiled. “Just try to use small words…It’ll suit Mr. Wilson’s style and Mrs. Tingle likes to boast about her vocabulary…so…better use big words…”I said.

“Impressive…”Ron winked. They left as soon as the clock struck 6 p.m. I woke up startled as my phone rang continuously. Who would be at this time…? “Rose…?” “Ron…what the hell…?” I shrieked. I could hear his laughter ringing on the other end. “I will pick you up today…at 7.30…”He said. “What…7.30…I don’t think even school doors will be opened at that time…”I said. “I know it…We can’t do these things in front of everyone…”he said. “Get ready…”he said and clicked the phone off. I fell asleep on the bed.

“Rose…wake up…”Ron yelled at me. “What are you doing here…?” I shrieked. “I told you to get ready by 7.30…” he growled. “Fine…Go down…I’ll be there in five minutes…” I said. He nodded and left…

“You are insane…you know that…” I shrieked at him as I saw him waiting by his car. He grinned mischievously. “I don’t know why I’m even coming with you…” I sulked as I sat in the car.

It felt like childish to do such things…Why can’t I just say ‘no’ but if I had just said it I would have missed all the fun that happened that day. The college was almost empty…it felt weird to see it empty…something different that I see from everyday…To my utter surprise Alan joined us in this crazy mission. “Where do you think is Mr. Wilson’s locker is?” he asked eying all the lockers in the staff room. “I think it’s that one over there…”I pointed to a locker on the fourth row, painted yellow. He picked the locker and placed the letter neatly in his math’s text book. They hid another blue envelope with a red rose in Mrs. Tingle’s locker… We hurried outside into the courtyard.

“Did you see Mrs. Tingle today…?” Amy asked us as she set her plate down…I frowned. “She was so much fun today…We liked her class. She was jubilant and strange thing is that she pinned a red rose into her hair.” “What…?”I shrieked. She frowned at us…”Does it have something to do with our plan…?” Beck asked. I nodded.

“Mission accomplished…” Ron stated. “What…?” He waved us to follow him. We threw our plates into the bin and followed him. He hushed us as we passed by the staff room…We opened the back door window and silently peeked in… I was surprised to see Mr. Wilson holding Mrs. Tingle’s hands… She was blushing so hard when he spoke…

“What is he talking…?” Eddy asked pressing his ears hard to the window. “Why don’t you just go and ask him…?” Ron laughed. “Hey…It’s not good to pry on love birds…”I said closing the windows…

“It was the first time I saw him smile and you know… um… there is strange feeling when I saw them happy together…like…”I tried hard to explain what I was feeling. “You are happy that you made someone happy…” Alan said in almost a whisper. I stared at him.

“Thanks… Though I felt it is crazy…I think I understand why you did it…”I said to the Blake brothers. Ron grinned and Alan flashed his secretive smile. “She is right...man. It felt really good to see him laughing after all this time…” Eddy said. “I always knew that they had something going in between them…”Beck said. “Oh! Really…?”Amy asked raising her eye brows in question. “It’s funny that it just took a simple letter to get them together…”Amy said smiling.

“Sometimes simple things are what we need to make us happy…”Ron said. She nodded. His very words had an unusual effect on me…they stuck to my mind throughout the day.

Mr. Wilson was cheerful in the class. Everyone was surprised to see him smiling all through the class and when he saw someone yawning in the class, he asked him to go and wash his face. Ron laughed at me as my mouth dropped open.

“How…?” I asked. “Everyone has something in life that keeps him sane and happy…you need to find that one thing…Mr. Wilson smile faded away with the death of his wife and returned when he found someone to fill her place…” Ron said.


I should have listened to him when he said something for my own good…I could feel the night creeping up on me…the comfort of being inside my dad’s car stared to wear off as my car crawled into the night space… the hooting of owl and the whimper of the wolves didn’t help my cramped up nerves…I took deep breaths…once I’m home…I’ll be safe in the confines of the wall…I chanted.

“Home is far away…”My mind smirked. I revved up the engine and hit max speed… The fog made it unclear…It’s like driving a car blindfolded. I promise I’ll listen here after anything he says…please let me be home safe… I said.

A heard huge thud and my car screeched under the impact of the huge object…It swerved and cut into the nearby mountain wall, The scream barely escaped my lips when I heard a loud growl erupt…I didn’t dare see what it was because I knew it had followed me here… and then I heard a crack on my windshield, I peeped at the thing in fear…It’s jaws unclenched making a deep rumble sound, saliva dripping through its canines, blood red tongue slopping sideward’s as it started its prey…It raised its huge paw preparing for another impact on the windshield. The wind shield broke and my cry tore through the silent night sky…

The beast reached out for me…I jumped out the car and made a mad dash into the night…My feet and legs hurt from all the running yet I didn’t lose the beast…It’s paw tore through my skin on the back…Fear gripped my heart, the claws tore through the skin deeper…I fell screaming in pain… the silhouette of the beast loomed towards me as I lay on the floor paralyzed by fear…

“Take her home…” I heard the familiar voice of Alan… I raised my head to see Alan standing between me and the beast… He stole a glance towards me and his concerned gaze melt my heart… his eyes told many things to me of which I could make out one thing particularly; he was really sorry for letting this happen to me.

“Rose…” Aaron’s warm breath brushed against my skin… He scooped me up gently in his arms as I screamed in pain when he touched my wounded skin…he shifted me and held me close trying to avoid contact with the wounded skin… “You’ll be okay…” he murmured.

“Alan…We need to help him…That beast would kill him…”I squeaked. “He will be fine…” he mumbled giving me a soft kiss on the forehead… “Help him…” I fell unconscious as the last ounce of my strength faded away.

“Um..Rose…” Alan said tentatively…I turned towards him ignoring the notes that I have been taking…”Can I ask you a favor…?” he asked. “Sure…Do you need my notes…?” “What are you doing tonight…?” he asked tentatively…. Is he asking me for a date? Why would he…? A mischievous grin spread through my face… “Don’t go out anywhere at night today…it’s not safe…”He finished hurriedly as if he knew what I’m thinking and wanted to crash all my misunderstanding towards him. I shrugged and resumed scribbling in my notes.

It was replaced by another vision from the previous day… I was driving towards the Simpson’s diner as the music blared in my system…The phone vibrated in my pocket…I turned off the music… “Rose…where are you…?” Ron shouted. “I’m heading towards the diner…” “Turn back to home…now…” His voice was hoarse with anger. “Since when are you demanding me something to do…” I cut him off and clicked the phone shut. What’s with these brothers today…? Have they gone mad…?

My thoughts were cut off by a loud growl that erupted somewhere near by my side… I saw a huge dog running towards my car… as it closed the distance…I saw how huge it was really…It let out a ear piercing howl as it jumped and landed on my bonnet. It fisted it’s paw on my windshield…It’s canines grinding and fixing it’s eyes on me…My heart began to pound at my chest as I saw the unnaturally huge dog sitting on my bonnet and trying to kill me…I jolted the car into a start and swayed through the roads hoping the beast would slide off the bonnet but it pinned it’s nails into my car getting a good grip without falling… I swerved past the roads and hit something solid knocking the beast off the car by its sudden impact… taking my chance I back tracked and drove back…

My vision blurred as the remnants of the vision faded off. It still gave me goose bumps to remember last night events… “Is she conscious…?” Alan’s voice was firm. My eyes flicked open as I heard his familiar voice comforting my internal turmoil.

“Alan…”I jumped into him for a hug… “I’m alive and you’re alive…” I replied eyes wide with surprise and joy… “Yes…You are…” Ron smirked. Alan wiggled away from me uncomfortably… I fell back embarrassed… My skin stung as I moved and pain shot through my back...I screamed in pain… “Rose…” Tears trickled through my eyes as the pain kicked in… “Mom….”Ron ran outside the room.

An elderly woman walked in time to see me screaming in bed… As the medicine kicked in… my aching back eased off a bit… “Don’t let her sleep on her back…”her motherly soft voice said. Ron held me close preventing me from falling and hurting my back… The elderly came in at regular intervals cleaning my wounds and giving me medicines…

“Ron…I think you should rest a while…I’ll take care of her…” Alan said eying his brother who is holding the fragile girl in his hands… “It’s okay…Al…”he said. “No… You need to rest too…” the women said sternly… Ron gave up and tentatively let Rose go…She curled up into a ball and flinched as the wounds stung a bit…

Alan held her…she cuddled closer to him… her innocent face held a sweet smile now… Ron and his mother left them alone. “Alan…”Rose whispered in her dream. Alan stared at her… her flushed cheeks and her smile allured him more than anything…How can a mere human be so captivating…? He thought. He kissed her gently on the forehead and cursed as soon as he did it…Ron likes her…He chanted.

It was really weird the hooded eyes that seemed to haunt all her dreams were the only thing that kept her sane and comfortable in this hectic time of hers…

“You are awake…”A pair of blue eyes stared at her… She took in the women who nursed her all these time… Ron helped me sit up in the bed. “How are you feeling…?” She asked checking my temperature. I checked my back…it didn’t even sting “Surprisingly better…” I didn’t even know her name… “My mother…Jane…” Ron said smiling.

“Thanks for everything…um...Mrs. Blake…” I said smiling…”Call me, Jane, dear.” She replied.

“Mommy…”A little girl about Liz’s age padded in… “You aren’t sleeping…” Her eyes went wide with surprise as she saw me. Ron helped her up as she tried to get into my bed. “My little sister, Katie…” Ron said smiling. “Kat…”she corrected him. “Yeah! Kat…” Ron mumbled. Even this little had a problem with her name…I laughed as I remembered how Ron used to correct us.

Her smile grew as she saw me laugh. “Alan…Is he hurt too…” I asked remembering for the first how I was saved. “No…he is really good. I frowned how he could take down such a beast without even a scratch. “He shot the wolf…” Ron said. I nodded.

“How many days was I out…?” I asked. “Just the weekend…” Ron said. “I should probably go home, now…”I said. “No…You are staying here, dear…”Mrs. Blake said sternly.

“Can we play, mommy…” Kat asked enveloping her hand in mine. A silent exchange passed between Mrs. Blake and Ron. “Kat…Big Al has a surprise for you…” Ron said. “Lion…?” she asked jumping into his open hands. Ron chuckled as he carried her away.

“She is a cute little girl…so like my little sister…” Mrs. Blake smiled. “They are just scars now…”Mr. Blake said, unwrapping the bandages on my back. She gave a smooth linen white shirt. The shirt had the faint smell of cologne…

I curled up myself on the bed as the sun rays sank low… “Stay home…”Alan’s voice taunted me in my dreams…I woke up unable to sleep. He didn’t mention something like it on that day too…It was like he knew something was going to happen. How…? I pulled the quilt closer to me and walked cautiously out of the room…I didn’t know where I was planning to go but my feet dragged me on their own accord… Blake’s house was lavishly decorated… The wooden floor creaked slightly under my weight, there are many famous painting hung against the walls, I walked past them and I flinched as If I felt their gaze on me.

A mellow light spread from the corner room…I made my way slowly towards it…What would I say if someone saw me sneaking at nights…I better go up but my heart longed to see what was hidden behind those doors. I stood tentatively at the door weighing my options…

“Don’t stand there…you’ll get cold feet…” Ron chuckled. Ron and Alan were sitting on the huge couch watching sports… “I couldn’t sleep…”I stammered.

“Come…” Ron gestured slapping on the couch beside him. I walked towards him tentatively… I sat there awkwardly thinking how I should ask…“What is it…?” Alan asked. “What…?” I frowned. “You feel like asking something…”Alan said. How did he know that? “On that day…you told something about the night being not safe…How…?” I stammered.

“I didn’t say anything like that…” He quickly replied. “No…you did.” I pouted. “What’s happening…?” Ron asked budging in between us. “Al…Did you…?” Ron’s eyes were stern and it looked as if he is scrutinizing him.

“I did…I thought it would be better if we warn her…” he said. Ron looked at his brother with a grim expression… At times like this I get to know Ron is the elder of the two…

“Al…you shouldn’t have done that…you’re putting our plan in jeopardy…”Ron said.”Hey…What plan..?” I asked. The two brothers stared at each other for a while and finally Ron nodded. “Hey…You two just talk…It’s insane to stare at others without talking…” I shouted.

“We are sort of here to protect you…” Ron said. “Protect me…? Why would I need protection?” I asked. Alan shrugged his shoulders… “We don’t know…We were just told to protect you…” “The better question would be from what we are protecting you…”Ron said. He looked suddenly grim, his boyish face turned into a serious looking young man.

“What are you protecting from?”I dreaded his answer because part of me knew that the answer is not good. “Things like that you encountered three nights ago…”Ron said. I remembered huge thing tearing my skin with its claws… I flinched at that memory. Ron squeezed my hands… “It won’t happen again…”Ron said. Alan nodded. “What was that thing…?” I shivered as I spoke… “It’s werewolf…”

“A…?” I asked wide mouthed. “You are kidding…”I said but part of me knew that he was telling me the truth. “If that’s a werewolf… you are what a vampire…?” I humored the disgust on their face clearly said they are not. “We are not vampires…”Ron said the word vampires with disgust. I raised my eyebrows questioningly.

“We are the eternals…” he said squaring his shoulders….I burst into laugh… “I’m sorry…It’s just the name sounded so cheesy…”I said. “What…maybe you like the dark knights better…” he scoffed. “Tad better…” I laughed.

“You are laughing instead of worrying about all this…” Alan asked. “I have heard the tales from my granma…she believed that they existed so may be part of me believed in her too. I found it shocking for a while to actually meet one in flesh but I guess that didn’t freak me out…”

“Wow! You certainly are something…”Ron smiled. “What cool powers do you have…?”I asked. “Strength, Vision, Faster pace and telepathy…” he said… “That explains your silent conversations…”I said thoughtful.

“Why wasn’t your name ever mentioned when there are myths about all other creatures…?” I asked. “It’s because we are successfully able to keep ourselves hidden all these years…” “You really are more humanish apart from your dazzling beauty…”I said. Ron grinned mischievously. “We live like humans in every way except for our age factor…” “Age factor…?” I asked.

“We live forever…” “What…?” I shouted. “You heard it right…” Alan said. “You mean for…ever…” I asked wide mouthed.

“Boy…You have long life ahead…” I said laughing. “It’s cool…” I said. “It’s not at all cool…”Alan said nodding his head ‘no’ “Why…?” I asked. “Believe me… after living for hundred years…you would say the same thing…” Alan said.

“I thought you are 17…” I smirked. “We are in human terms but… in our terms we are like 135 or something around…” Alan said. “What…?” I stammered. “Oh my god!” I said snapping my head with the back of my hand.

Ron chuckled. “Do you have a problem to date with a hundred year old man…?”Ron chuckled. “You don’t look like a year over 17 so it’s not a problem…” I chuckled. “Thanks…”he said. “Wait…Are you really asking…” I asked. “Hey…don’t say no now…You have already said ‘yes’…” Ron chuckled.

“Ron…” Alan made a silent conversation with him through mind link… Ron walked me to my room.

“Ron…I think she is hiding something from us…”Alan said rubbing his chin in deep thought. “Don’t you think she took it too well about all this…?” Alan asked. “She said the reason and I think it is perfect.

“Ron…I have a feeling that she is hiding something… I tried to reach into her mind and it’s blank… I think she knew about the magical world even before us…?” Alan asked.

“That might explain why she took it so well without freaking out…” Ron said rubbing his chin in deep thought. “But…how did she know…?” Ron thought out loud. “I think this has something to do with the reason why we are sent here…”Alan said.


I thought knowing their secret would make Alan open up but He was as cold as he used to be. He never spoke until he was spoken to even then his replies were curt.

“Where were you this weekend…You promised to come home…” Amy sulked. “I was ill and had to take rest…” I replied. Amy knew that Rose was lying…She had Nick sent over to her house to check on her. “What could she possibly be hiding from me? It’s not like her to keep secrets from me. Well, may be she would tell me later when we are alone…”Amy thought.

Beck declared cold war against me for bailing out on them. It’s no use trying to patch up with her…I know that she would be back to normal in no time… It turned out that Eddy was sick and he didn’t go too. I left them taking the excuse of submitting assignment.

“Hey…Where were you at lunch?” I asked Ron as he settled beside for Math’s hour… “Mom… wants me to check the school grounds…She sensed something wrong…” He said.

“What do you mean by sense…? “I frowned. “The females of our kind had powers to sense things when something goes wrong…”he smiled. “Wow! Guess they are more powerful than the males…” I said.

“No…That is the only power they have… they are as normal as humans…That’s why they are an easier target if anyone wanted to kill us…”

That doesn’t make any sense… I thought a while about the statement when he answered for me seeing me confused.

“We Dark knights are invincible… we couldn’t be killed by silver or a wooden stake…The only way to kill us is killing our mate… We make a special bond when we love a person that kind of bond leaves a strong impression on both…It’s like she is our other half…Whatever I feel she can feel the same…she can sense me and feel all the emotions that I feel… Kind of soul mate stuff… the thing when they kill our mate, we become more like zombies…” He said.

“If it is the female that needs more protection then why are they powerless….?” I thought out loud. “We don’t decide anything…It just happens…”Ron chuckled.

“Did Alan lost his mate…?” I blurted out. “Do you think he looks like a zombie…?” Ron chuckled. “He is always cold and void of any emotions…” I said. “No…there is another reason for him to be like that…” Ron said.

“What would that be…?” I smirked. “There is a story about our beginnings… People say that our fore fathers bargained their soul for greater powers and immortality… Alan believes in all that crap… He thinks he is soulless and dark creatures like all other creatures of night…”

“I don’t think you are… You never drink blood of people or turn into a beast at nights…” I said a bit too loud. Mr. Wilson gestured us to be silent. Ron smiled.

“You don’t know half the things we can do…”Ron said his face grim… “Whatever… I still believe you are good…” I said determined.

“Rose…I think you should move to my house…We are not sure if that place is going to be safe for you anymore…” Ron said eyes on the blackboard.

“I really would like too but I need to go home…” I said. “No…You are not being alone from now onwards…” He hissed.

“I will be safe in my house…I have my house well protected…” I said with a stern look. Ron looked dubious… “I know that they wouldn’t attack me at least for a while since they saw you with me…”I replied quickly…

I knew Ron isn’t convinced…My stupid, big mouth…I should be more careful around them when I talk…I can’t let them into my secret until I know them for sure.

“Ron…I know you are here…” I said out loud into the night sky as I finished up my duty and walked to the car… I thought I managed to convince Ron from leaving me alone but I felt his presence all the time…

“I’m sorry I couldn’t leave you alone…”Ron said emerging from the trees… “Are you a full time stalker…?” I humored. He shrugged his shoulders…”I guess I can’t get rid of you…” He smiled knowing that I had given up completely fighting gor my freedom.

“I’ll drive you home…”he said snatching the keys away from my hand. “No…”I said. He was in the car starting the engine before I could say anything… I cursed him while padded to the passenger seat.

“Do you ever try to listen to what I say?” I huffed. He mischievously grinned. “Drop that devilish grin…”I snapped him.

“Does that trouble your heart so much…?” He smirked. “I don’t think that you have that charm in you…” He acted as if his feelings were hurt.

“When do you want to go out…? I mean on date…”Ron asked as he tried the keys in. “What for…? It’s not like you need a date to be with me…” I said.

“Are you going to stay for the night…?”I asked. “You can’t get rid of me that easily…” he smiled. “You can use dad’s room…” I pointed to his room and made my way to my room upstairs…

“I’m fine in your room…” Ron said smiling sitting on my bed. “But…I’m not fine…” I said shoving him out of the room.

I woke up to see slightly snoring in my couch by the bed. “Ron…”I shrieked at him. “What are you doing here…?”

“There is no TV. I got bored and I came in to see you… You looked so beautiful when sleeping … I just stayed here watching you sleep…” He said.

“You are driving me crazy…” I said biting back the smile that escaped my lips… I sort of liked his sweet talk…

“I have to be ready for school…Can you please leave now…” I said.

I smelled something delicious as I walked into the kitchen… “Mom…sent us breakfast…”Ron said grinning. Alan set a glass of juice in front me… “ Good morning…”I greeted him. He nodded his head and left.

“What are they doing here…?”Amy asked as she eyed us all three coming out of my home. “They just dropped in to get my notes…”I lied.

She looked at me dubiously… I drove with Amy so that I wouldn’t hurt her feelings… “Who is it…?” Amy asked me as she drove…”What…?” I asked confused.

“Don’t act smart…you know what I’m asking…”Amy looked at me expectant…”Let me guess…It’s Alan…” She said.

I frowned at her…”It’s just he seems like your type of guy and he watches over you all the times with so much love and passion…”

It’s so like her to see love and passion in those eyes which are void of any feeling… I laughed. “It’s Ron…”I said.

“I thought so…Alan couldn’t be off your type…” I laughed out loud and she slapped me.

Alan and Ron stood by the car… Ron was tapping his foot impatiently… “What…?” He eyed Amy nervously. “I’ll meet you at lunch…” she said with wary glances at both brothers…

“Get in…” He pushed me into the car.... “Hey…” He was behind the wheel in his abnormal speed racing off the road in seconds. “Where are we going? It’s a school day…”I shouted.

“What…?” My heart began to raise as painful memories of that night flooded…It was really bad experience… I shivered at the thought of meeting another one again.
“What about others…?” I croaked. “It’s you it is after… Alan is staying at school; he’ll make sure that everyone is safe…” He assured.

“I don’t really get why these people are after you…” Ron hit the wheel in frustration… May be… I stopped abruptly knowing that Ron could hear my thoughts.


“Hello…Mrs. Blake…” Mrs. Blake enveloped me in her arms. “Good to see you again…” she smiled. “You came to play…?” Kat padded towards me, hugging my legs. I scooped her up and pecked her. She reminded so much of my little sister; I blinked back the tears that threatened to come out at the fond memories of her.

“Did you find the wolf?” A middle aged man walked in… he looked so much like Alan. “Alan is watching over…” Ron replied.

“This beautiful young lady must be her…” Mr. Blake said casting his alluring smile. I blushed at his flattery.

“Don’t go anywhere…I’ll be back soon…”Ron disappeared outside. “Let’s play…” Kat squealed. She showed me to her room which is as big as any other room in this house. She showed me all her dolls, Time passed away soon as little Kat played with her doll house…She let me sit and watch… I laughed at her wild imagination. She is very clever for a girl of her age but she is not a human either.

“Kat kept you company, huh?” Ron said leaning on to the door. I nodded smiling. “Big Al…”She scurried towards Alan and he scooped her up, “Rose played with me…” She squeaked. Alan smiled as she told him all the stories that she told me before…It surprises how she can repeat everything without missing any bit. Alan smiled genuinely for her little pranks… he is totally different with her. I watched them for a while when I heard Ron clear his throat.

“Alan is quiet different when he is with her…” I observed. Ron nodded.
“Did you find the werewolf…?” I asked. “No… He is masked by the scent of other creatures…” He said passing his hands through his hair. “You mean there are more of them…?” I was appalled by this latest information.

“Yes…” He was about to say something when Mrs. Blake called us for dinner.
“I think I should go home now…”I said as the darkness covered the skies. “You should stay here, dear. It’ll be safe for you…” Mrs. Blake protested. “But… “The stern look I received from her gave me no choice.


“Rose…What was your father’s name…?” Mr. Blake appeared suddenly out of nowhere. He grabbed a chair opposite to me and sat. “Evan woods…” I said with mouthfuls. “What did he do for living…?” he asked. I know where this will lead but can I lie as easily as I did with others. “He is history professor, sir…” He was known to the world as a professor so I didn’t really lie about it.

His eyes studied me for a while and he shrugged his shoulders and resumed eating…I’m sure he caught my lie… I dropped gaze desperately trying to avoid his probing eyes… dinner was really uncomfortable for me. I sighed as soon as Mr. Blake left to attend a call.

“Ron…Show her room…” She said. Ron walked me to the same room where I was treated previously. “Thanks…I think you won’t come barging into my room since you have TV…” I smirked. “I’m still going to school tomorrow. I can’t lose my attendance…” I said and shut the door on him. I know it’s rude but I needed to think alone…

“I still don’t think it’s a good idea, honey…” Mrs. Blake fussed. “I have to go Mrs. Blake…I lack attendance and y grades will be down too...” I pleaded. “Don’t you let her go alone anywhere. One of you always stays with her…”She said with grim expression. “Oh! You don’t have to worry about that Mrs. Blake, Ron likes to annoy me all the time with his presence…” I humored.

True to their words one of the boys all watched over me with their eagle like eyes…Ron took every opportunity to sit by me and annoy me with his over protectiveness.

“Ron…I don’t think you are welcome in a girl’s room…” I said as he followed me unwary of where I was going… He blushed deep red as he saw where I going to.

“I’ll wait here…If you have any problem… just give a shout…” He said. I nodded. “Where were you, yesterday?” Amy glared as I set my plate on the table. “I forgot assignment papers at home, so I rushed home in the lunch hour…”I lied. Day by day it became easier to lie to her… I felt guilty of keeping her ignorant of a major part of my life but it is something I should do for her own good.

“Is Eddy alright… He is been absent for over a week…” I said the empty chair where Eddy usually sat. “I tried calling him but he wouldn’t pick up… I hope he is okay…” Amy said picking at her food. Amy had a secret crush on Eddy ever since he knew him. This was a little secret that’s just between us.

Beck dropped her plate making louder noise…She sighed as she sat beside me. “Is everything okay…?” I asked. “Nothing…. Is okay…”she screamed. “What happened?” I asked.

“Can you believe it? I was the only in the class without a date for the upcoming party…” She said waving her hands in melodramatic posture.

“I think you should ask, Ron…” I snickered. “Are you trying to set me up…” Ron’s voice hissed in my mind… I stared at him schocked. “Don’t look so shocked…” He said. “You sound better with your mouth shut….” I said.

“Ron…”Back turned eagerly towards him. “You are the one lectuting about making people happy…” I said smugly. “I guess I’ll go with you…” he said directing a spiteful glance towards me. “Do you have a date…?” I asked directing my question towards Amy…

“Don’t think of hooking her up with Alan…He’ll personally kill you…If he knows of your plan…”he replied in my mind. I shrugged him off.

“I haven’t thought about it…may be I’ll ask Nick but I know he wants to go with you…” She said picking at her food. “Well…we can always ask Alan…Nick will go with me…” I said.
“You are dead…” Ron hissed at me. Alan walked just in time to hear the conversation….”What do you think Alan…?” I asked. “I’m okay with it…” Ron’s mouth dropped open. “What…?”Alan scowled.

Last two days were totally busy with people preparing for the big party… “Rose…Will you come home…? We can…”Amy was cut off when Ron appeared beside me all of a sudden.

“Are we going…?” Ron asked eying us. “I’m sorry… I got to go…” I said with a pleading look hoping she would understand me…she sighed and left. It hurt me so much… unseen barriers falling between us seperating our closely knitted relationship. I should do something before it completely falls apart…

“Hey… I need to get some things…will you drive by my home…” Ron was thinking hard… “I don’t know…” I cut him off. “I gave up my job and freedom in my life…I’m losing my friends… all because of you… yet yo can’t do a simple thing that I ask you off?” I shrieked at him. He was surprised at my sudden outburst.

He drove me home and waiting tapping his shoes impatiently as I collected necessary items… I rushed into my room and closed the door and windows carefully after making sure I was completely alone… I crouched down the bed… I scattered away all the old things that I left under the bed… I groped for the latch…since there was no light under here… I pulled open and found the neatly wrapped thing… I grabbed it…

The light caught shimmery red cloth and it shimmered… I felt it with my trembling hands… “I’ll keep it safe…”I promised. I shoved it into my backpack and hurried downstairs before Ron gets dubious…

“I’m ready…” He stared at me and walked over to me…Did he…? I supressed my thoughts… “You have some dust on your hair…”he said.

Mrs. Blake was scurrying across the hall impatiently when I walked in…”Where were you…I was getting worried…” She scolded. “We stopped by to get some things…”I said.

Mr. Blake walked just in time with a curious smile plastered across his face…his eyes travelled to my backpack and it looked as if he was scanning the contents of it. His smile grew wide…

“Let’s go…” Mrs. Blake said. I took one last glance at Mr. Blake as I reached the last step, his gaze still fixed on my backpack… Maybe I did wrong in bringing it here… What should I do…? I paced nervously in the washroom.

“Honey… are you finished? It’s almost time…” Mrs. Blake voice echoed. I quickly bathed myself as I came to a decision about what to do…

I shuffled through the clothes I brought…I’m an idiot all the time I was thinking about the thing and forgot to bring some party costume with me...

“I brought something for you…”Mrs. Blake said walking with a cover in her hands…. It’s blue evenig gown…not too dazzling. “Thanks…Mrs. Blake…” she waved her hands in dismissal of my thanks…

“I think you are done…”she said after fixing my hair…She pulled me into a deep hug after taking a good look at me… “I hope one of my boys is good enough for you…”she said a small tear escaping her eyes.

“They are waiting downstairs…let’s go…” she said blinking back her tears…I have never felt mothers love may be this is how it felt…

“I’ll be back in a second…”I said hurrying upstairs into my room. I placed the keepsafe safely in my wallet and ran downstairs…

Ron and Alan were waiting in the living room looking all hero like in their tuxedos… My eyes unconsciously darted towards Alan…his well carved body fir perfectly into the tuxedos…his eyes glinted with more mystery to them… It’s weird how his eyes still held me captive in real and dreams… his eyes made contact with mine and I could see something all together different from his usual expression. Was that love or awe I see? I wish Amy was here to tell me what was that. He broke the eye contact and stared down at the ground…

“You are gorgeous…” Ron said with a wide and mischevious grin… Kat padded in and tugged at the hem of my dress and extended her hands gesturing me to scoop her up. I did and she kissed me smiling.

“I wish I could do that…”Ron said in my mind… “you do that and I’ll beat the crap out of you…”I scolded. He laughed merrily.

“Let’s go…”Alan said awkwardly. “Do we need to pick the girls…?” Ron asked whistling lazily. “Drive by Amy’s house…” I said.

Ron honked as we approached Amy’s house… Mrs. Jones opened the door for us…her eyes went wide with surprise…She pulled me into hug…” It’s so good to see you…”She cried in joy.

“Luce…let her in…”Mr. Jones voice boomed. “It is you…” He said winking and giving me a quick hug… “Ron…Alan…come on in…”I said.

“It’s okay…we’ll stay here…”Ron said eying Mrs. Jones carefully. “Is someone out there, dear?” Mr. Jones asked. “My friends…we came to pick up Amy and Nick…” I said.

“Come…” his voice dropped in mid sentence as he saw who it was… “Come in…”He said tentatively… Mrs. Jone tugged him throwing wary glances towards him… I observed all the weird silent gestures going on between them.

“Hey…” Nick rushed towards me and picked me up off the ground swirling me. Nick and I were good friends… “Put me down…”I shrieked as my mind swirled. He giggled as he let me down. He grew up a good 5 inches above me…his houlders became broad and well defined muscles were apparent under the white translucent shirt…he put on some tan that made him look even hot. “You have grown so much…”I said.

“You too… you look even more beautiful than the last time…”he smiled. He went rigid as soon as he saw Alan and Ron in the car…

“What are they doing here…?” He asked as if he knew them well. “I told you about them…”Amy said with a look that I knew too well…It always said to keep your mouth shut…

“What the hell is going on here…?” I thought. “Let’s go before we are thrown out for being late…”I said faking a smile…Seriously… there is something going on here which everyone knew except me… I thought I was the only one having secrets… I guess even Amy had something she should confess to me.


Beck practically dragged Ron to the dance floor, There is none in the party whom she didn’t talk about Ron being her boyfriend. Ron threw spiteful glances at me, mouthing rare curses at me. I laughed; it’s his chance to be annoyed rather annoy someone. Nick was caught up in a conversation with one of his old friend….

“Hey…” Eddy stood tall at our table… “Eddy…” Amy and I shrieked in joy. We practically pounced on him in joy. “How are you…? We missed you…” We showered our questions at him.

“I was taken ill with fever… I’m good…” he said. “Do you want to dance…?” his question was directed to me… I glanced at Alan he sniffing the air nervously… he won’t mind…it’s not like I’m going away…I’ll stay in his vicinity…

He grew so tall almost towered me… his eyes were sharp, his muscles as he moved to the rhythm…he changed a lot in two weeks… It wasn’t a bad change like usually the people who get ill does… in fact it was just the opposite…I never saw him so much alive…

“You changed a lot…” I mumbled. “Yes…Guess that happens a lot to me…” he smiled. Even his smile was different…It was cute and innocent before and now it’s full of confidence and pride…

We swayed to the beat for a while and headed back to our table for a drink… my wallet was placed on the table close to Alan’s rested arm…I rushed towards it… How can I be so careless? I felt inside the wallet for the familiar material. Relief washed me as my fingers felt the cold object… Eddy was still holding my hand… his grip tightened all of a sudden…

“Aw! That hurts…” I said shaking my fingers… He looked shaken… His eyes flicked with unnatural speed between me and Amy, sweat dripped across his face… His face contorted with pain…

“Eddy, is everything okay…?”Amy asked eying him. He shook us and ran away… “Go after him…I think he is ill… I’ll get someone for help…” I called already dashing to Alan who was stading with a group of our classmates…

“Alan…” He rushed towards me… he ust have sent a message to Ron, he appeared suddenly out of nowhere beside me. “Eddy…he is really ill. He ran away…” I said. “I think he needs us… I sent Amy with him…” “What…?” Alan rushed with unnatural speed out into the school grounds… Ron chased after him.

I ran as fast as I could… As I neared the school grounds… I heard huge growls… I shivered as I recognized the source of the growls… It’s here again… Amy and Eddy are out there…I hope it won’t get to them… I urged my legs to run even faster…

Alan and Ron are fighting with a wolf while Amy was trying to get in between the fight… “Amy..get back…” I pulled her away...She jerked me away and started running towards the Wolf… “Amy…” I rushed after her.

“Don’t hurt him…”she shouted… “Don’t go any closer…it’ll hurt you…” I shouted still trying to pry her away from the fight. “Rose…go inside…” Alan shrieked at me… All I could think was about Amy… “It’s Eddy…he won’t harm us…tell them to back away…” Amy cried… “What are you talking…?” I shouted. “I don’t have time to explain…ask them to go back…”Amy pleas grew more urgent as the wolf howled in pain as Alan attacked it.

“Eddy is a werewolf…I have seen him shift… He is not going to hurt us…” Eddy is werewolf…My world reeled… he is the one who attacked me…how could he? I thought we were good friends but I never realized that it was all pretense to get to me… Rational part wanted him to die for hurting my feelings which hurt more than those scratches he made on my back…
A series of howls suddenly shattered the calm night… I could feel the chill enveloped in the night air...we were suddenly surrounded by a pack of wolves…It’s a trap…my mind shrieked… My heart beat rose listening to the snarls that filled the air… “Ron…Take Rose inside…” Alan commanded. “No…I can’t leave you alone… You can’t handle them alone…”his voice was stern.

Ron took the wolves at a time and Alan attacked the other two wolves… One of them left the fight and pounced on to me… I fell on the ground ready to feel the familiar pain of the claws tearing through the skin… one of the wolf got in thw way og the huge paws…It whelped in pain as the claws tore through it’s skin. “Eddy…”Amy rushed towards the fallen wolf.

Eddy didn’t betray me after all…he was still my friend whatever he might be… The wolf gave a quick galnce over Amy and lunged at her… “Amy…”I shrieked. Amy glanced just in time…she raised her hands in one swift movement, blinding, blue, lightining shot through her hands and the wolf fell back whelping… What happened just now? I am sure that the light shot right through her fingers… I was so lost in thoughts that I didn’t notice the other wolves being pried away from me by Ron and Alan.

A wolf fell on the ground and it quickly staggered to it’s feet. It lunged at me knowing that the other two were immersed in a fight… I cluctched my wallet tightly to my heart… Dad… I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise… I whispered to the sky and closed my eyes tightly shut…

Seconds ticked away but I didn’t feel the impact…I peeped to see Nick standing right before me…He was shooting light at the the wolves that came dangerously close to me…

There was another ear peircing howl and the wolves retreated back into the woods and the night sky fell silent… I staggered to my feet as Alan rushed to me… I could see the blood pools formed around me… there are about 4 heads of wolves seperated from their bodies…the gore scene made me puke… I fell unconscious holding to the wallet tightly with enough strength.

I felt someone tugging something away from my hands… I shooed them away shifting to the other side… parts of the dream flooded back to my memory…Wolves fighting…blood and gore…me falling unconscious with wallet I my hands… Wallet…? I woke up starteld and the wallet is still safe in my hands…

Amy’s big blue eyes stared down at me… “Amy…?” I croaked. “Thank god! I thought you would go mad after seeing the fight…”she laughed. “Fight…?”that’s when everything came back to me…

“At the yard… I saw you doing something weird with your hands…” I said tentatively… “I guess…It’s time you know what really I am…” she said eying me… “Our ancestors had the power to tame the energy that’s all around us… that light thing you say from my hands is a wave of energy that I used to hit the wolf…”

“You are a witch…?” I asked. “No… we don’t work on magic…we are called telekin…”she said smiling… “Your names are so weird…”I laughed. “Where are the others…?” I asked observing that I’m in Blake’s house…

“Mrs. Jane is treating Eddy’s wounds… and the others left to take care of the mess of the battle…”she said. “Can you give me a minute… I feel like…” I made a disgusting face… She smiled.

Amy is really not what I thought she is…Eddy is a werewolf…? I guess Beck is also something supernatural… We all were perfectly normal… when did this all change?We are not normal any longer, we are some sort of supernatural bunch… I guess it’s time I let them into my little secret…

I quickly showered, brushed and got into pajamas that I brought from home… Kat was sitting and talking to Amy by the time I finished. Amy was laughing at something that Kat said.

“She is an excellent girl…”she remarked as she Mrs. Blake entering in. She smiled. “Eddy is awake…He wants to see you…” she said. Amy rushed away… “how are you feeling...?” Mrs. Blake asked. “Better…I wanted to talk to you all…” I mumbled. “I guess boys will be back soon…” she said smiling. “Will Mr. Blake be there too?” I asked. “If you want him…” I feel that Mr. Blake knew about it all the while and I feel like he must be there.

I walked into the living room waiting for them to come… I shot up and ran towards the door as I heard the familiar voice of Alan...

Alan and Ron walked in smiling giving me and Nick some time to talk… “I’m sorry… I had to keep it from you…” he said. “I guess…it’s okay… everybody has a secret here…” I smiled and walked him in.

Amy walked just in time…Eddy’s arms were enveloped around her waist drawing her closer. Nick stared for a while and let it go with a shake of his head. How did it happen…? I’ll ask Amy later about it for now I have my own secret to be revealed.

“I have something to show you all…” I said and carefully untied the strings of the red silk pocuh… I pulled open the rare black diamond…encrusted in a moon shaped locket with a silver chain… Mr. Blake’s eyes twinkled. Alan and Ron gasped… “Honey…Is this what I think…?” Mrs. Blake gingerly touched the locket.

“The heart of Lenora…”Alan and Ron gasped. “A what…?” I asked dumbly. “We will tell you what that is but tell me first where did you get it…” Ron demanded. “My father gave it to me…he said that I am the keeper for it...”I said… I could hear sharp intake of breath from everyone… “What…?” I scowled. “Honey… do you know what it is…?” Mrs. Blake said.

“No…My dad said it was a very powerful thing and I should never let anyone know that I have it in my possession…” I said. “Why did you reveal it now…?”Mr. Blake asked looking curiously.

“I thought…um… this has something to do with all the attacks…” I mumbled. “Clever girl…” Mr. Blake chuckled. “I think we should inform the illuminate about it…” Ron said eying his father.

“No… Do you think they would let her live and worst they would even kill us for helping her and risking the exposal of our clan…”he said. “But father… they are the one who sent us here to protect us…”Ron protested.

“I have something to confess…” Mr. Blake said smiling mischeviously… I think ron got that smile from his dad… We looked expectant at him. “The illuminate doesn’t even know that we are here…” He was cut off when Ron asked. “Why…? How…?”

“I promised my friend Evan to keep his daughter safe…” He said eying me… “You knew my father…?” I asked dumbfound. “Your father would be really proud of you…”he left smiling.

Everyone was beyond shock with one or other thing… “ I knew it that there is something you’re hiding…” Ron grumbled. “I’m sorry. I made a promise…” I said. “Do you know how easy it could be for us…if we knew what we are fighting for…” he stomped away into his room. “Ron…please…” I went after him but he shut the door on me.

“I think we should leave now…” Nick, Amy and Eddy left. I sat on the steps sighing… “Don’t worry, he’ll come around… He is just mad that you kept secrets from him…” Alan said squeezing my hands gently…I rested my head on his shoulders, sighing… I glanced at the weird looking diamond in my hands…

“What is it anyway?” I mumbled. “It’s the heart of Lenora…Lenora was the mother witch…She was a powerful woman, it’s her locket…It is believed that on her death bed she transferred all her power into this locket which in turn changed the red ruby into black color…this locket was passed down to her ancestors… You must be her ancestor…that’s why you became it’s keeper…”

“What do they want from a old witches locket…?” I frowned. “Lenora…is not just a witch she is most powerful than any other witch of the century… It is foretold that an ancestor of her will unlock the power inside the locket… If that happens the person who unlocked the power will be invincible….”


What if she is the true heir of Lenora...?That will change many things... If she is indeed her heir it'll be so hard to protect her...we can't protect her from herself...Alan thought about all the possibilities... whatever her future is, he sworn to protect her with his life...

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 16.12.2011

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To all my bookrix friends. In the darkest of hours, a light shines in your path- eternals