There Will Be Blood

Where Our Story Begins.

Now that you've heard my little disclaimer, I guess we can start the story.

This little tale started on the first day of my junior year in high school. I walked into my first period class, geometry, a few seconds late. The teacher glared at me as I sat down in the desk closest to the door. She sighed and turned back to her computer. 

 I looked around the room. The geometry room was also the science lab, since Mrs. Frank taught both. Half of the room has desks, and the other is occupied by six long lab tables. 

A minute after our little "encounter," Mrs. Frank stood up and walked to the whiteboard. "Hello, class," she started. "I'm Mrs. Frank. And I'm going to be frank with you. Get it?" She paused to chuckle at her stupid pun. "Anyway, I'm going to tell you this upfront: no lateness will be accepted. Today is the first day, so it is an exception, but from now on there will be consequences." Her pupils shot daggers at mine, and I looked down to avert her gaze.

The door opened and almost everyone in the class turned around. I didn't, since I thought I had gotten in enough trouble for one period. 

"Sorry I'm late," a deep voice said. I couldn't help but look over my shoulder to see who just walked in. A tall, thin boy who couldn't be much older than twenty-five. He definitely couldn't be sixteen like the rest of us.

"Mr. Lockwood, don't worry about it. You're my assistant, not one of my students," Mrs. Frank replied. "Class, this is Mr. Lockwood. He will be helping me teach you and he will also be able to help you out with your work."

This "Mr. Lockwood" guy flashed a bright white smile, which matched his plain button-down shirt, and took a seat at the desk next to me. He pulled a pen out of the pocket of his leather jacket and placed the clipboard he was holding on the desk. Some sort of note sheet was clipped on it. I thought maybe he could be studying to be a teacher, and was doing observations to learn how to teach stuff. I shrugged it off and turned back to Mrs. Frank. 

The period was spent- more like wasted- by Mrs. Frank giving a lecture on the Pythagorean Theorem, which I recalled learning in eighth grade. Since I was familiar with the concept, I zoned out for most of it, doodling in the margins of my notebook. I idly guided my pencil around the page and the only time I looked up was when I heard Mrs. Thomas call my name.

"Miss Matthews, if side A is 36 centimeters and side B is 27 centimeters, then how long is side C?" she asked me.

"I'm... not sure. Sorry."

"Well, maybe if you had payed attention you would know how to do the problem. Perhaps you'd like to come by during a study hall?"

I knew it was less of a question than a demand. So I nodded, and when my third period study hall rolled around, I had no choice but to return to the geometry room. 

As I approached the door, I heard chatter coming from inside. I peeked my head through the doorway  and saw Mrs. Frank making small talk with Mr. Lockwood, who was emptying the contents of his dark green backpack, putting some stuff on the desk he was sitting in first period and leaving the rest in the bag. I took a breath and stepped inside just as Mr. Lockwood pulled a bottle out of his backpack and placed it on the floor. 

"Hi, Mrs. Thomas. Mr. Lockwood."

Mr. Lockwood sharply lifted his head at the sound of my voice. The bottle he had just put down caught my eye. It was full of dark red liquid. My eyelids floated upward, making it feel like my eyes were bulging out of my head. As a vampire, I can sense when a "dark red liquid" is blood.