Demon Love

Chapter 1

“Honey, are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Mom knit her eyebrows in concern. “You’ll be all alone with those Xancriers just next door!”

I rolled my eyes. “Mom, I’ll be fine. Besides, you’ll only be gone for a month. Nothing’s going to happen to me, trust me.” Pan poked his head from behind the car. “You ready?” He called to mom. “Yep.” She called back. She gave me one last hug, and then jumped in the car. I watched as the old beat up Mercedes peeled out of the driveway and drove out of sight. I looked off into the distance, straining to see them until the California sun got too hot to bear. I walked back into the house, yearning for a cold glass of lemonade to quench my thirst. If I had turned a quarter of an inch further, I would have seen that the Xancrier’s lights were off except for the small, almost unnoticeable window near the roof. I might have seen that there was a boy watching me through the window very closely.

The sound of the rain pelting on the roof woke me up. I yawned and stretched. I glanced at my bedside clock and almost jumped out of my skin. “Crap!” I shouted, throwing my sheets off my bare legs. I grabbed a pair of jeans and jammed them on. I lunged for my jean jacket and threw that over my tank top. I ran out the door, picking up my backpack on the way out. I practically flew down the stairs, tripping over my shoes. I rammed them on, and grabbed a bagel. I sprinted out the door through the rain just in time to catch the bus. “About time.” The driver grunted. I gave him my apple with a smile. I turned and fell right into a seat as he gunned the bus. Just as I had seated myself properly, the bus stopped again. “Ahh, now what?” The driver swore, peering through the rain. “What the heck?” There was a sudden knocking on the door. The driver opened the door and gave him evil look. “Get on, you stupid boy.” I peeked around the seat and gasped. The most gorgeous boy had just boarded. His long black hair shaded his face in the cutest way.

The gossiping girls behind me turned and stared. “Oh my god.” The blond whispered. He turned his head and caught my eye, then smiled a pure white smile and sat down next to me. I couldn’t speak or breathe. The boy held his hand out and dazzled me again. “I’m Crish. Crish Xancrier.”

I barely heard him through my own thoughts swirling through my brain. I shook his hand and managed “Essie Nightingale. Aren’t you my neighbor?” He nodded. “I’ve seen you around before. You look really sexy in a bikini, by the way.”

I blushed, and lowered my gaze. “You observe girls when they swim?”

He chuckled. “Nah, just you.” He looked like he was enjoying my embarrassment. “What’s your homeroom?”

“Caltura. Yours?”

“Same.”

I had to do something other than stare at him. “Ummmmm… where’s your siblings?”

“Don’t go to school.”

“Oh.”

The bus screeched to a stop in front of the school. We had arrived. I grabbed my backpack and headed out. My friends, Bella and Alice were waiting for me. “OMG, you missed the party!” Alice screeched. “It was AWESOME!” Bella laughed. “Yeah, Gunderson drank a  whole bottle of vodka and was so hilarious! He was all like…” Her voice trailed off as she suddenly noticed Crish. She leaned in and whispered “Who’s the hot guy? Is he your boyfriend?” Alice was wide eyed, with her eyes flicking between us. “No!” I shouted loudly. I glanced at Crish and lowered my voice. “I mean, no, we’re just friends.” Alice gave me a side smile. “Right, Essie.” I sighed. “Crish, this is Alice and Bella. Alice and Bella, Crish. He’s my neighbor.” “’Kay, we should be going now.” Bella winked at me, and then whisked Alice off with her. I groaned, and then turned back to Crish. “Aren’t they fun?” I grimaced. He laughed. “It’s fine, honestly. I’d much rather be with you anyways.” He stepped towards me, his skin feeling warm against mine. I began hyperventilating, not sure if he was going to kiss me or not. He leaned in just as the bell rang. I began running towards the classroom, but Crish held on to my arm. I tried to pull out of his vise like grip, but he just threw me over his shoulder. I kicked him, hard, but he didn’t even flinch. “Hold on.” He advised, and then took off. I clutched at his neck when suddenly I was in my chair, grabbing at empty air. I blinked, turning my head, trying to find Crish. He was right behind me, smiling and winking at me. I shook my head, trying to clear my thoughts. I must have been really woozy from this morning, because some certainly strange things were happening. Mr. Caltura walked through the door with a strong, brisk walk. “Good morning class.” He said smoothly, closing the door behind him.

“Good morning, Mr. Caltura.” We replied, as bored as ever. Crish smiled and stood up. The entire class stared at him. No one stood up during class. We were expected to work or we got detention. He walked straight up to Mr. Caltura and shook his hand. “Good morning, Mr. Caltura.” Crish looked straight into his eyes with a dazzling smile. A sort of cloud came over Mr. Caltura’s eyes as he shook Crish’s hand. Then he turned robotically to the class. “This is Crish Xancrier. This is his first day here at Moonview High School, so I expect that you make it a good one.” The whispers began as their faces turned to shock. The girl behind me muttered “Xancrier’s are devils.”

“Jeez,” I thought. “It’s just a name!” Crish made his way back to his seat and pulled out his phone. I looked quizzically at him, wondering how he was going to do that without getting caught. He just smiled and began texting away. My phone buzzed in my pocket, so I pulled it out and almost dropped it. It was Crish, telling me to meet him after class outside.

The bell rang, and everybody filed up at the door. I started to follow, but Crish shook his head and beckoned for me to follow him. I raised my eyebrows, but my inner devil walked me forward and followed him. “I thought you might want to take a ride.” He said with a grin, leaning against a shiny red motorcycle. “How...” I started to ask, but Crish laid a finger on my lips, sealing them shut. “Let’s just say that I have connections. OK?” I nodded so hard that my headband slipped down over my eyes. I re-adjusted my headband and straddled the motorcycle. He jumped on and I slipped my arms around his waist.

“Hold on.” He advised, and then gave the motorcycle a kick start. We flew off down the road with Bella and Alice staring open-mouthed at us. I laughed happily, wondering what they could be thinking right now. To me, it didn’t matter what the thought or where we were going. I was just glad to be with Crish.