A girl I could only assume was Amari was stretched out on the couch, her feet propped up on the armrest and her phone so close to her face it was reflecting in her blood red eyes. She looked the part of a vampire to me, dangerous ethereal beauty and all, but instead of immediately threatening me like I had almost expected, she didn't even look up. Her full red-painted lips were moving quickly as she typed something out on her phone, as if she was reading it out loud under her breath.
I waited for Amari to say something, or at least acknowledge my presence, but finally realized it wasn't going to happen. I thought about just ignoring her, too, but decided it would be wise to at least try to get started on a good footing. "Uh, hi," I said, clearing my throat. "I'm your new roommate?"
Amari finally set her phone down, but she didn't get up. She stared at me like she couldn't believe I had interrupted whatever it was she was doing. "If you were assigned to block 408, then yes," she said, giving me a judgmental once-over even though we were wearing the same uniforms. Hers had obviously been tailored to be more form-fitting, though, and her skirt looked like it had been rolled up a few inches. "I'm Amari Hillsinger. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said in a polite but not particularly friendly tone.
"I'm Bells," I answered, offering my hand to shake hers. "Nice to meet you, too."
I was surprised she knew her last name. Maybe I was the only one who'd been scrubbed that thoroughly. That was a concerning thought. I looked around the room, taking in the large surroundings that had already been completely decorated. "I like what you've done with the place."
Amari raised her sculpted eyebrows. "Bells," she echoed. "That's an interesting name." She eyed my hand like it was contaminated and didn't take me up on the handshake. She seemed satisfied by the compliment, though, and her tense, cold demeanor seemed to shift a little. She finally stood up, smoothing out her pleated skirt. "Yes. We're allowed to decorate."
"That's cool. Uh, which bunk is yours?" I asked, deciding to play nice as long as she was willing to. I was still unnerved about the idea of sharing a room with a vampire, but there wasn't much I could do about it, and I didn't exactly have room to talk being...whatever I was.
"The bottom bunk is mine," Amari replied. With that, she went back to her text conversation and zoned out to me completely as I finished packing.
Something told me we weren’t going to be BFFs.
Chapter 2
Bells
I sleptokay my first night at the Academy, considering I was sleeping just above a blood drinking predator. Amari was gone by the time I woke up, so I changed into my uniform and went to grab breakfast in the cafeteria.
There were hardly any people there, so I assumed I was late to the game. The limited buffet selection confirmed it. I picked up a tray and some cereal, even though my stomach was twisted into too many knots to have anything resembling an appetite.
I found a table where only a couple of other people were sitting, but before I could take an empty seat near the end, they both got up and shot me pointed dirty looks before abandoning their half-eaten food. Guess word had gotten out about the new transfer.
As I ate my cereal, I decided to use the time to study the other students. They glanced at me occasionally, and the fact that none of them waved or smiled was proof that Maddie was an anomaly. A lot of them had made some form of alteration to their uniforms, but I guessed that was to be expected, considering it was a reform school.
I was beginning to notice a pattern that made it easier to identify the other species, or at least the vampires, even though none looked particularly inhuman at first glance. The vampires were all absurdly gorgeous, and when they laughed or smiled, their sharp fangs peeked over their bottom lips.
I still hadn't figured out the others, save for the intimidating angels stationed around the room with stun guns at their hips. As my gaze traveled across the tables, I froze at the sight of the burly guy across the room. He was staring straight at me, and of all the icy looks I'd received since I'd set foot in the school, his was by far the most intimidating.
The moment I made eye contact with the other student, he stood with his tray and came over to my table, his piercing green eyes locked on me even as he sat down. He wasn't uncannily beautiful like the vampires, but he was pretty damn close, with a strong, angular jaw and handsome yet boyish features.
He ran a hand through his bone white hair and gave me a lopsided, almost bashful grin. I noted the mark on his arm wasn't one I had seen before. It resembled a letter R with an extra strike through the base. "Hey," he said hoarsely. He cleared his throat, and when he spoke again, his voice didn't sound quite as strained. "I, uh, saw you sitting alone and thought I'd join you. I'm Dean--Dean Blackmoor."
I was surprised he just came over, but then again, he didn't seem like the kind of guy who'd be shy about doing what he wanted. He was fricking huge. Immediately, I wondered if he was part angel or something.
"Hi," I said, shrugging. "You're welcome to sit, but fair warning, it's probably not going to make you very popular."
"That ship's already sailed for me," he said with a weary laugh. "Actually, it's you who probably shouldn't be seen with me."
"Why is that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I couldn't help but look at his mark again, wondering if it meant he was a crazy serial killer or something like that. At least he was willing to talk to me. Sure, that could have meant I was his next victim, but something about him felt familiar. Safe.
It was a strange feeling, considering I'd never felt that around any of the people I'd met before.
Realization dawned on his features. "You mean you can't tell? Wow, they must've really fucked up your brain," he said, surprised. "I'm something people don't really like. What that something is... well, that's for you to figure out. I'm not gonna spill, not if you don't know. I want a fair chance at getting to know you."
I tilted my head, wondering what he meant. At first, I thought he was just screwing with me, but something in his tone sounded sincere. "Wouldn't be the first time I'd heard that," I sighed, thinking back to what Maddie said. Whatever I'd done was clearly deserving of a mega mind wipe. Something else she'd said came back to me, too. "Wait, are you a werewolf?"
Dean stared at me for a moment, then sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Yeah, you got me," he said with a dry laugh. "How'd you figure that one out so fast?"
"Just something a shifter said," I admitted. That definitely made sense. He certainly looked like what I might picture a werewolf would look like. "I'm not exactly in a position to judge," I said, glancing down at my mark.
"A shifter, huh? Yeah, we don't really get along." He leaned forward to get a look at my mark, frowning. "I'd heard the new transfer had a mark no one had seen before, but I wasn't sure I believed it until now."
I rubbed the mark, somehow bothered by its existence even though I couldn't feel it. Maybe because it had been a sort of bullseye ever since I'd woken up. "They won't tell me what it means, so everyone is pretty much assuming I'm evil," I said flatly. "What about yours?" He seemed too nice to have done anything too awful, but looks could be deceiving. For some reason, I hoped they weren't in his case.
