The Birth of the Black Rose

Chapter 3

Jenny jumped a foot in the air. Which, come to think of it, is hard to do with someone on top of you. "What the hell happened?!" She almost shouted, reaching for it. I guided her hand away. "I... uh, hurt it working out." I said unconvincingly. She raised an eyebrow at me but said nothing else. Good. Didn't feel like being called crazy or a liar. "Well," I stretched. "I gotta get going. Got a lotta homework to do." I kissed her gently. "Love you." She pouted. "Awwww... ok. i love you too." I walked out and got in the jeep, wanting to get home as soon as possible.

On the way home, I started remembering the boy and the girl. What was her name? Savannah? Never heard the guy's name. I didn't recognize either of them, so they couldn't go to Etowah. But, man. I would have liked to know the girl. Very pretty. Ah, well. I thought as I turned in the driveway. I walked inside and immediately noticed a sensation of... emptiness. Strange. I'm usually home alone after school for a bit, but I never felt like the house was this devoid of life. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a Powerade. I love sports drinks. They always cool me down. My eyes widened as I swung around. Were those footsteps? I thought nervously, eyes wandering around the room. I picked up a knife and walked into the living room, glancing around to make sure I was alone...

And was glad to say I was wrong about the footsteps. No one else was around. I breathed a sigh of relief and went into my room. Now, it wasn't the cleanest around, but it was a really cozy place. Got the whole thing moved around perfectly: Bed to one side, TV to the other, and my laptop on a desk in the corner of the room. I opened the door, plopped down in my favorite chair, and turned on my laptop to find a new message. I opened it up. I didn't recognize the address, which made it even MORE creepy when i read the words on the screen:

Look behind you.

Didn't want to, but since this isn't The Birth of the Normal Kid Who Lived a Normal Life, you can probably guess what happened. Who else do i see but the girl from Etowah, Savannah? I jumped straight out of my chair while she giggled. "That was worth the wait. Had to almost force Austin to send you that email." She managed to get out as she got off my bed. "I don't know whether to ask you what you're doing here or how long you've been there." I shook my head and stood up. "Damn near gave me a heart attack!" She smiled and I was struck again at how gorgeous she was. Ugh. I couldn't stay mad at her. "Just popped in to check on your shoulder." She said, pulling my shirt down so the bandage showed. "And you couldn't have, oh, i dunno, KNOCKED?!" I asked in exasperation. She smirked in response. "Awww... Did i scare the big, tough, ROTC man?" She stuck her tongue out at me. God, she's evil.

But hot. Oh, shut up! Didn't ask you. Anyway, she took off my shirt and unwrapped the bandage, gasping in shock at what she saw. "It... It's gone!" She exclaimed, "It should take WEEKS for a human to recover from that!" She looked up at me. "Who ARE you?" I raised an eyebrow at her. "Just a high school student." She shook her head. "No, you're not. A high school student would be DEAD." She stared a little longer then handed me back my shirt. "Come on, big guy. You're coming with me." She said as another flash of light appeared. "Uh.... where are we going?" She grinned. "To the Realm of the Angels."