Attending a Vampire School

Chapter 24: Carson Gray's Lips

❝A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous.❞ | Ingrid Bergman

♕ SAIGE ♕

My heart was still beating, but did that mean I was still alive?

It was odd for me to be feeling lonely. The house was completely empty, the hallways were echoing and groaning with only the slightest of noises. Every step I took was like a loud thump against the wood floors, the sound amplified from the quietness.

Maybe it was the fact that it was an older home made almost entirely of decaying wood, or maybe it was due to my mother's sudden absent. Maybe I had become too accustomed to the shifting of papers and occasional dropping of small objects.

My mother had tricks up her sleeves to make the silence vanish. She was always finding ways to start conversations, even if they tended to be somewhat awkward. I wasn't sure if I should laugh at the embarrassing memories of my mother looking flustered or cry because I was missing her too much that it was definitely unhealthy.

Oscar had been following me around the house ever since I returned home from school. His wet nose would gently touch the palm of my hand, indicating to me that he was also missing my mother. Even if he couldn't speak his sadness to me, I could still see the emotion in his eyes.

I sighed and stood up from the wooden chair in my room. Multiple papers were scattered across the top of the desk, most of it uncompleted. I was distracted. Deciding to give up on my homework, I kicked my book bag aside, frustrated at the short attention span I had.

I'll just complete the rest of it during Chemistry tomorrow, I tried to convince myself. Though, we all know I'll be too tired to actually do it. For a vampire academy, the classes were most certainly harder than my last school. My human school.

"Bedtime, Oscar," I called out to my lab that was already snoring heavily at the foot of my bed.

A small smile made it's way onto my face as I watched his body stir at the mention of his name. I glanced out my bedroom window and knew by the blackened night sky that it was way past my own bedtime. Nighttime was like a hidden beauty, appearing when the sun disappears.

Recently though, I hadn't kept a good sleeping schedule. With everything going on, the stress has been getting to me. My eyes looked so dull and don't get me started on my skin. I could kiss my acne free face goodbye! It was nice while it lasted.

In a quick motion, my hands reached for the light switch and flicked them off. The room was instantly enveloped in a pitch black darkness. My eyes adjusted well enough so I could see the shadows and different outlines of furniture.

With a tired sigh, I collapsed backward onto my bed. My fingers grasped the soft duvet and wrapped it around only part of my body. The curtains of my window were pulled apart, exposing the starry sky to my bedroom. Turning my body, I faced my window.

"Hmm..." I hummed to myself, trying to clear my mind of all its thoughts.

Which was rather difficult, but my brain was starting to ease into unconsciousness. The twinkling of the tiny lights urged my eyelids to close, the world around me becoming completely dark. My fingers lightly gripped the ends of the closest pillowcase to me.

It might have been my imagination, but a light knock stirred my consciousness again. A creaking sound dragged throughout the room and my eyes fluttered open to see my window open completely. Slowly, I lifted my exhausted body from its sleeping position.

Instinctively, I pulled the warm duvet closer to my body. My eyes wandered around the room, searching for an explanation as to why my window was suddenly open. The cold air came in, sending me into a slight shiver. Winter was near.