Marked

Chapter Two: Jessica's Point of Veiw

A girl with long blonde hair shoved herself into the seat beside me just as the bell for our last class of the day, English, rang. Even before our teacher, Ms. Kish, took attendance, I knew her name was Ariel. 

"Good afternoon, class," Ms. Kish said. "Now, for our very first project, like every year, you will write an essay about your name." 

Ariel leaned over to me and whispered in my ear. "This sounds so fun!" 

I shushed her so she straightened up in her seat and rolled her eyes. 

"You have to talk about what your name means, the origin of your name, and, if you know it, why it's your name. Begin!" Ms. Kish finished. 

Toward the end of class, a note landed on Ariel's desk. She didn't show it to me, but I knew it read "Just so you know, Ms. Kish is a total pain in the butt. You've been warned. Don't worry, though. You'll get used to her... maybe. ~Tyler". 

Ariel smiled, and before I could stop myself I said, "I never got used to her." 

Ariel shot me a very puzzled, and mildly horrified, expression, so I tried to explain myself. "Your note, from Tyler. It says you'll get used to the teacher. I didn't." 

Luckily, the bell rang right then, so I packed up my stuff as nonchalantly as possible and hoped Ariel didn't think I was a giant freak. 

I stepped out of the classroom into the hall. That's when I heard a loud slam. I turned around to see a thin boy being pinned against a locker. 

A thin boy that just happened to be one of my best friends. 

"Hello Carl," the bully. 

"Hi?" Carl replied. 

"Hipster is out," said the bully as he ripped off Carl's glasses and threw them down to the ground. 

"But I need those to see!" Carl pleaded. The bully didn't care, though, and stomped the glasses into a million pieces. 

That was it. 

I walked up behind the bully and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and glared right at me. 

"What do you want?" he asked me. 

"I was just wondering if you could let go of Carl," I said, trying to sound as sweet, ditzy, and innocent as possible. 

"Yea, right," he replied, proceeding to shove me away. 

With that, I lifted the bully off the ground without ever touching him. I have skills like that. Then I flung him down the hall and picked up Carl's glasses, intact, and slid them on his nose. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tyler escort Ariel down the hall. 

I remembered what Gladys said as I pulled Carl with me to the front steps of the school. 

"Hey!" he said. "You're going to rip my arm off!" 

"Trust me," I said to Carl. "If I wanted to, I would have by now." 

Gladys was waiting for us out side. "They're going to Starbucks," she told me. "They just got in a cab and left." 

"We'll never get there in time on foot," pointed out Carl. 

"It's good we won't have to go on foot, then," I told Carl. He slumped his shoulders in response. 

"Fine," he finally replied, and jumped into wolf form. Gladys and I climbed on his back. 

"Mush!" we said in unison. 

Then we held on tight.

----

I flew open the door to Starbucks and Gladys and I ran inside. Carl had just burst through the window and had proceeded to fling Ariel on the ground. The rest of the people in the Starbucks then ran screaming out of the building. 

"I don't know why you're here," Tyler yelled to us. "She's marked!" 

"You don't say," Gladys replied. 

I ran over to Ariel, who was lying on the floor where Carl threw her. I lifted up her right arm. 

"How long have you had those dots?" I asked her, and pointed to the two brown freckle-like dots on her arm. 

"I don't know." 

"Okay," I stood her up. "Just go into a bathroom stall and don't come out until Gladys or I come get you." Ariel nodded, and ran into the bathroom hall. 

I saw Gladys snap a leg of a chair and hold it up as Tyler walked over to her. 

"Do you seriously think I am afraid of you?" Tyler asked her. "I'm-- what? --one hundred times older, stronger, and smarter?" 

Gladys began to stab Tyler, but he grabbed her arm and effortlessly flung her to the ground. Carl then lunged at him, but he step out of the way just in time to send Carl flying back out of the window. 

He then walked over to me. 

"What are you going to do to me?" I asked. 

"I'm not really sure, yet. Do you have any suggestions? 

"You know what would be terrible? If you went outside and brought Carl back in here. Then you could take the wooden spike on the ground and stab yourself with it. After, Carl could tear you to shreds. I'd really hate that." 

Tyler laughed, then walked around me and leaned his head on my right shoulder. 

"You know, I would, but I think the guilt of killing your own..." 

I then saw Amber lean forward, obviously watching Tyler and I, and trip over her heels. She flew forward and landed face first on the ground. Tyler took this opportunity to race over to Amber's side. 

"Sleep like the dead," he said, and bit Amber right on the marks on her wrist.