Share

Chapter 5

Author: Beth Kennedy
last update Last Updated: 2023-03-25 09:49:27

I felt all of the blood drain from my face as I stared at the screen. Someone had been in my room. Something must have gone wrong in my brain, because I soon found myself on the floor.

I decided I must be dead because there was an angel grabbing me, shaking me. Must be trying to teach me to fly. It felt wrong though, that the angel was crying, I must be doing so bad that I’ve made her job hard, I didn’t want to be a bad student.

“I’m sorry, Angel” I manage to say despite the swirling pool of unconscious grasping at my tongue. I tried to stand but the swirling only got worse. I fell into the angel's pretty auburn hair and sighed at the smell of apples.

She pulled me through the doorway with her shirt over her nose and kicked the door shut behind us.

The fog in my brain quickly began to clear. I shook my head trying to clean the rest out of it and looked into Rita’s panicked eyes.

“Was that written in blood?” Rita asked. I only blinked at her in response.

There had been no angel dragging me to safety but there had definitely been someone in my room, and there was definitely someone who had tried to hurt me.

Rita called campus police and they called the fire department. They cleaned everyone out of the building and checked for gas leaks but found nothing. They insisted that I probably just fainted, “college exhaustion” one of the guys says. Rita said that my room smelled like chemicals when she dragged me out, but when we returned, the room had been left open, and so had the window.

I felt like I needed to clean, like too many people had been in my precious space and asked Rita to leave me to it. She went to the common room to watch Drag Race but promised to check I was still breathing during commercial breaks.

I put on my rubber gloves for cleaning the bathroom and started bleaching anything I could, the rose was thrown away, the computer bleached and cleaned. I never found the source of the chemical smell but I felt like it had been taken away on purpose. Someone was trying to make me look crazy. I wasn’t going to stand for it.

Once I had finished with my room. I went to get Rita. I needed my best friend to help me figure out who could be doing this, but when I went to the common room to find her, she was underneath Sarah. The two of them were making out on the common room couch, with Drag Race on in the background, and none of the usual crew watching it.

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I was immediately glad for an excuse to look away from the happy couple and focus on something else. It was from Darren.

“Hey I’m free right now if you’re ready to tell me about that dream ;)”

I had told him that I would see him tonight. I wondered if I should cancel, if he might actually be dangerous. I decide that I can be more dangerous. I slip my stun gun into my shoulder strap as I message him asking to meet me for a run at the base of my building at 20. I put on my running shoes and stretch, knowing that if he wants to fight me, he has no idea what I’m capable of.

Related chapters

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 6

    I stood in front of the dorm building and shook my body out, hoping it looked like I was just getting ready for a run, and not trying to shake off my anxiety. My palms felt sweaty and my shoes felt too tight to my feet. I was running my finger along the inside of the shoe when the sense of calm that only accompanies one person's physical presence brings me.Darren pulls me into a hug faster than I can stop him. His chest smells beachy and warm, and the soft cotton of his shirt comforts my face. I have already forgotten everything that has happened and I wrap my arms around him too, sighing as he breathes in my hair. It feels too nice to be held by him, and he has to let go of me. I look at his running outfit and shake my head to clear out the fog that fills it everytime he smiles at me. We’re here to run and he could be a psychopath. “Last one to the dining hall has to buy lunch” I say and see a smile take over his face. He was too handsome to make things easy for me.I immediately

    Last Updated : 2023-03-26
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 7

    He reaches for my hand and grips me softly. His eyes never look away from mine as he steps closer. He leans in and I close my eyes as we finally connect.His kiss heats me up from my stomach. He curls our fingers together and he tilts his chin away from me, keeping our foreheads connected. He sighs and I place my hand on the back of his neck in a familiar way. Only it isn’t familiar to me, I have only touched a man like this in my dreams.My dream of Darren flashes to my mind and I flush, suddenly embarrassed. Darren notices my change and pulls away to look at me, holding my shoulders in place. He scans my face, worried that I’m not enjoying the kiss and sees my blush. He grins and tries to kiss me again but can’t stop smiling long enough to pucker his lips. His laugh pulls one out of me as well, and we stand close enough to kiss again, laughing at each other’s embarrassment. It doesn’t last long though, and we connect again, this kiss feels even sweeter than the first somehow, and my

    Last Updated : 2023-03-26
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 8

    Darren topples over, clearly he hadn’t been expecting 120 pounds of semi-nude woman to fall on him. I picked up my towel before he could get the chance to see me and I’m up and at my closet door before he ever finds out what hit him. His face looks quizzical when he finally raises it, and looks sheepishly around. I can’t help but giggle at his silly response.His eyes find me and realization dawns on his face, quickly followed by concern. “Are you alright?” He asks, rising from the floor and coming towards me. I giggle again and inform him that I am the one who hurt him. He flexes his bicep and makes a silly face “Nothing can hurt me Babydoll, I’m made of steel” he flexes at me again before we both dissolve into laughter.“I have to get dressed now so you’d better head out of my room” I stick my tongue out at him. “What I don’t get to stay? Are there no boyfriend privileges?” “Boyfriend privileges are earned, now get out before I throw you out!” I suddenly remember who is in the hall

    Last Updated : 2023-03-27
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 9

    Darren and I kiss for a while longer, but he never lets me have any more than that, and promises to me that we will not until I have convinced him that I’m ready. I pout about this for much longer than should’ve been allowed, but his kisses really soften the blow. I start to get dressed and sigh at Darren, holding up my soaking panties with one finger. He flashes me a devilish smile and laughs “you broke up my matching set!” I say, fake upset. “I guess you just don’t get to wear underwear tonight then.” He says, wiggling his eyebrows in my direction. “Yeah then you have to wear those!” I tell him as I throw them at him. I pull a much less sexy pair from my drawer, and place them on.“Absolutely not.” he says with a pained face. I snicker at him and slip on a layered sundress. He groans and says “not the sundress!” He tosses his hands over his eyes “You’re too beautiful I’m going blind!” He falls over dramatically onto the bed while I shake my head at his silliness. I pull my hair in

    Last Updated : 2023-03-28
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 10

    “So how exactly are you going to show me again?” I look at him pointedly. “It’s kind of complicated.” He says. We walk down the hallway to his door. I look at him. He still doesn’t say anything else. “Okayyy.” I say, nodding my head slowly. “So it’s complicated, how about you tell me how old you really are then Drac?” He sighs and looks down as he unlocks the door. “Is that nickname going to stick?” He asks with his arms crossed. “I don’t know, are you going to hurt me, Drac?” I open my mouth to exaggerate the C sound and he turns to look at me when I’ve finished. His face looks like a kicked puppy.“Of course I would never hurt you! You’re the most important thing in my life now!” He says, his voice softening at the end. He looks at me, with all the vulnerability of a child asking for his mothers’ attention. I wonder what has happened to him to make him feel this way. The door opens and he gestures for me to go inside. A mass of black fur runs from a bedroom into Darren’s arms. Dar

    Last Updated : 2023-03-31
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 11

    My eyes close and I shake my head. “You still haven’t convinced me that vampires are real and now you want to convince me that I AM one?” My voice starts to raise. Darren looks upset at me. I do not care right now.“Don’t you feel the bond between us?” He asks the pavement. I look down as well, and feel Louise tugging at the leash to keep us moving. “This mate thing you keep talking about… is it like Jacob and Renesmee?” I asked. “I don’t know who those people are.” I laugh, “Twilight, you old man” a look passes over his face as he tries to remember which character did what, “Oh! The demon baby and the werewolf?” I laugh at his description and nod. “I don’t really know that much about Twilight,” he confesses, “I just saw that you had the poster in your room, so I tried to impress you.” I look at his face, and see all of the vulnerability I have come to love on his face. We are both blushing. I turn backwards as we walk and poke his chest softly “You had a crush on me!” I sing to him

    Last Updated : 2023-04-02
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 12

    When I come home, I find that Rita and Sarah have torn apart the common area. Before I can even ask what’s going on Rita and Sarah are asking me to pick sides in a fight that I couldn’t care less about. I go into my room and call my mom for the first time in a long time. I ask her if I can come home this weekend and the excitement that I hear in her voice promises that it’s the right decision for now.I quickly pack my things and grab my toiletries from my locker in the shared bathroom. I’m out the door and on the bus home before Rita and Sarah even realize I’ve left. I put my headphones on and try to imagine that nothing has changed since the last time I went home. I hum along to the song, and turn up the volume. When we pull into my hometown I’m sleepy and cranky again even though it only took 2 hours to get here. My mom is waiting for me at the stop with a cold water bottle and the blanket my grandma crochet when I was a little girl. I wrap myself in the smell of my parents house

    Last Updated : 2023-04-04
  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 13

    I wake up to the smell of bacon cooking. When I make my way into the kitchen, my mom is stirring pancake batter with a very old whisk. It scrapes against the bottom of the bowl in a familiar pattern. “Good Morning, sleepyhead!” my mom greets me happily, but with a pointed look at the clock, it’s 11:00. “Did you get some good sleep in your old bed?” I nod and grab a mug from the cabinet. I pour myself a large cup of hot coffee and ask “Do you need my help with anything this morning?” I offer her the milk as I add it to my cup, she's already mixed all the milk she needs into her batter. “I’m good on both, you just sit at the bar and look pretty.” I sit down and start fluttering my eyelashes at her. “Pretty enough?” I ask, flipping invisible hair over my shoulder. “Always!” She says without turning around.Before I finish my coffee, she’s finished the food. Everything she made was wonderful, and Bailey got a few pieces of my mom's bacon for ‘helping her out’. I stirred the syrup around

    Last Updated : 2023-04-07

Latest chapter

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 16 Darren

    I couldn't believe it. Cassie had finally told me that she loved me back. It was like a dream come true.As I drove her home in my trusty Subaru, I couldn't stop smiling. I was so happy to finally know that Cassie felt the same way about me that I did about her. We pulled up to her apartment building, and I walked her to the door. As we said our goodbyes, I leaned in to kiss her, and she met me halfway. I felt a pull deep in my stomach, the same pull I always felt when she kissed me so softly. As she pulled away her eyes looked dreamy, and she bit her lip. I laughed at her, “Am I that good of a kisser?” I teased. She grinned and so did I. “Goodbye, baby.” I said, pulling her into a hug. “I love you!” She whispers to my chest. “I love you too! But I’m a little afraid of Rita, so this is where I leave you.” She giggles and agrees with me that Rita can be pretty scary. She goes inside and I nearly float back to my car.As I drive home I think of my last enco

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 15

    I sat on the bus, lost in thought as it made its way back to my dorm. My mind was still reeling from the conversation I had with my mother about my parents' love story and my father's slow decline into death. It was a lot to process, but her words stuck with me: "Love doesn't make your choices for you, but baby, I hope you always choose love."As the bus bumped along the road, I found myself thinking about Darren. Despite the risks and challenges that came with being involved with him, I couldn't deny the intense feelings I had for him.I knew that Darren was different from anyone I had ever met before. He was so silly and sweet, nothing like what I would expect from a vampire. But he also had a dangerous edge that both scared and excited me. Even as I sat on the bus, staring blankly out the window, I knew that I couldn't resist him any longer.So, I made a choice. I chose love.I knew that loving Darren would come with its own set of challenges and risks. He was a vampire, after all

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 14

    “I was different after that night, honey, I couldn't focus in class, I kept having panic attacks… about a month later I dropped out of school. Your father followed me a few months later into a tiny apartment. Neither of our parents approved but it didn't matter, I loved him and he loved me. We didn't have any money to spare but there was so much love and happiness in that little apartment, it was always full. Your father was patient with me, it took a long time before I could stand for him to touch me, and when he did, I never regretted it again.”“Good people will be gentle with your heart, can even heal the worst aches on it. But you have to want them, you have to want to be better. I promise you that the genuine and the gentle way of being is worth the struggle to get there. Love can smooth even the roughest scars when applied gently and patiently.”“Work and life kept turning around us as your father and I, your father and I wanted to get married, but no one in our family would co

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 13

    I wake up to the smell of bacon cooking. When I make my way into the kitchen, my mom is stirring pancake batter with a very old whisk. It scrapes against the bottom of the bowl in a familiar pattern. “Good Morning, sleepyhead!” my mom greets me happily, but with a pointed look at the clock, it’s 11:00. “Did you get some good sleep in your old bed?” I nod and grab a mug from the cabinet. I pour myself a large cup of hot coffee and ask “Do you need my help with anything this morning?” I offer her the milk as I add it to my cup, she's already mixed all the milk she needs into her batter. “I’m good on both, you just sit at the bar and look pretty.” I sit down and start fluttering my eyelashes at her. “Pretty enough?” I ask, flipping invisible hair over my shoulder. “Always!” She says without turning around.Before I finish my coffee, she’s finished the food. Everything she made was wonderful, and Bailey got a few pieces of my mom's bacon for ‘helping her out’. I stirred the syrup around

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 12

    When I come home, I find that Rita and Sarah have torn apart the common area. Before I can even ask what’s going on Rita and Sarah are asking me to pick sides in a fight that I couldn’t care less about. I go into my room and call my mom for the first time in a long time. I ask her if I can come home this weekend and the excitement that I hear in her voice promises that it’s the right decision for now.I quickly pack my things and grab my toiletries from my locker in the shared bathroom. I’m out the door and on the bus home before Rita and Sarah even realize I’ve left. I put my headphones on and try to imagine that nothing has changed since the last time I went home. I hum along to the song, and turn up the volume. When we pull into my hometown I’m sleepy and cranky again even though it only took 2 hours to get here. My mom is waiting for me at the stop with a cold water bottle and the blanket my grandma crochet when I was a little girl. I wrap myself in the smell of my parents house

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 11

    My eyes close and I shake my head. “You still haven’t convinced me that vampires are real and now you want to convince me that I AM one?” My voice starts to raise. Darren looks upset at me. I do not care right now.“Don’t you feel the bond between us?” He asks the pavement. I look down as well, and feel Louise tugging at the leash to keep us moving. “This mate thing you keep talking about… is it like Jacob and Renesmee?” I asked. “I don’t know who those people are.” I laugh, “Twilight, you old man” a look passes over his face as he tries to remember which character did what, “Oh! The demon baby and the werewolf?” I laugh at his description and nod. “I don’t really know that much about Twilight,” he confesses, “I just saw that you had the poster in your room, so I tried to impress you.” I look at his face, and see all of the vulnerability I have come to love on his face. We are both blushing. I turn backwards as we walk and poke his chest softly “You had a crush on me!” I sing to him

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 10

    “So how exactly are you going to show me again?” I look at him pointedly. “It’s kind of complicated.” He says. We walk down the hallway to his door. I look at him. He still doesn’t say anything else. “Okayyy.” I say, nodding my head slowly. “So it’s complicated, how about you tell me how old you really are then Drac?” He sighs and looks down as he unlocks the door. “Is that nickname going to stick?” He asks with his arms crossed. “I don’t know, are you going to hurt me, Drac?” I open my mouth to exaggerate the C sound and he turns to look at me when I’ve finished. His face looks like a kicked puppy.“Of course I would never hurt you! You’re the most important thing in my life now!” He says, his voice softening at the end. He looks at me, with all the vulnerability of a child asking for his mothers’ attention. I wonder what has happened to him to make him feel this way. The door opens and he gestures for me to go inside. A mass of black fur runs from a bedroom into Darren’s arms. Dar

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 9

    Darren and I kiss for a while longer, but he never lets me have any more than that, and promises to me that we will not until I have convinced him that I’m ready. I pout about this for much longer than should’ve been allowed, but his kisses really soften the blow. I start to get dressed and sigh at Darren, holding up my soaking panties with one finger. He flashes me a devilish smile and laughs “you broke up my matching set!” I say, fake upset. “I guess you just don’t get to wear underwear tonight then.” He says, wiggling his eyebrows in my direction. “Yeah then you have to wear those!” I tell him as I throw them at him. I pull a much less sexy pair from my drawer, and place them on.“Absolutely not.” he says with a pained face. I snicker at him and slip on a layered sundress. He groans and says “not the sundress!” He tosses his hands over his eyes “You’re too beautiful I’m going blind!” He falls over dramatically onto the bed while I shake my head at his silliness. I pull my hair in

  • The Lovely Ones   Chapter 8

    Darren topples over, clearly he hadn’t been expecting 120 pounds of semi-nude woman to fall on him. I picked up my towel before he could get the chance to see me and I’m up and at my closet door before he ever finds out what hit him. His face looks quizzical when he finally raises it, and looks sheepishly around. I can’t help but giggle at his silly response.His eyes find me and realization dawns on his face, quickly followed by concern. “Are you alright?” He asks, rising from the floor and coming towards me. I giggle again and inform him that I am the one who hurt him. He flexes his bicep and makes a silly face “Nothing can hurt me Babydoll, I’m made of steel” he flexes at me again before we both dissolve into laughter.“I have to get dressed now so you’d better head out of my room” I stick my tongue out at him. “What I don’t get to stay? Are there no boyfriend privileges?” “Boyfriend privileges are earned, now get out before I throw you out!” I suddenly remember who is in the hall

Scan code to read on App
DMCA.com Protection Status