Vampire Story

Part 1- Meeting Hunter

"Sloan! You're going to miss the bus!" my mom called to me from downstairs.

"Coming!" I yelled back, quickly brushing through my silky caramel waves. I grabbed my backpack off the ground and raced down the stairs.

"Here, have some breakfast," my mom said, handing me a piece of toast, "have a good first day of school!"

"Thanks mom," I said, taking the toast and heading out the door.

When I got onto the bus, I scanned the rows of seats for Julia. I found her sitting in the back, gazing out the window with her earphones in.

Julia and I had been best friends since kindergarten, when she and her family moved to Maryland from Illinois. She had no friends and neither did I, so we immediately became close. We did everything together.

"Hey Julia," I said loudly when I reached the back of the bus.

"Hey!" she replied, taking her earphones out.

"I can't believe that summer is over," I said with a groan.

"Me either. I've heard that junior year is the hardest year. We're going to be in for it," she said.

For the rest of the bumpy bus ride we chatted about what we did over the summer. I had gone to Europe for an entire month for a family vacation, but Julia had stayed in Maryland the entire summer since her strict parents forced her to take summer school. I showed her some of the pictures I had taken on my trip, and she gawked at them with envy.

The yellow bus pulled up next to the school, and kids started piling out. Julia and I were the last ones off the bus. As we walked up to the door, I heard a loud noise. Turning around, I saw a guy pull into one of the parking spaces on a motorcycle. I stared as he took off his helmet, revealing a boy with jet black hair that went just under his ears and piercing blue eyes hooded by his dark eyebrows. When he saw me staring, I quickly turned away.

"I haven't seen him before," I said, pushing the door open.

"He must be new," Julia said, following me inside.

"Good morning!" the man at the front desk said. We waved and kept walking.

"So do you think he's cute?" Julia asked me with curiosity, her big blue eyes widening.

"I don't know," I said, my already naturally rosy cheeks becoming even more red.

"Come on Sloan! You need a boyfriend," she said. I rolled my eyes, but there was a hint of a smirk on my face.

"Get over it," I said, putting in the combination to my locker that we had stopped at.

"Hey Sloan," I heard a familiar voice say. I opened my locker and looked over to see Aiden standing beside Julia.

"That's my cue to leave," Julia said, "see you in math class,"

Aiden and I had been best friends since we were in kindergarten too, just like Julia and I. We all became friends just after Julia had moved here, but Aiden and I had always been closer than he was with Julia.

"Hey Aiden. How was your summer?" I asked.

"Not so good. Cam went to jail," he said, looking down.

Cam was Aiden's older brother. Ever since I had known him, he was always getting into trouble. I wondered what he did this time.

"He hit someone when he was drunk driving. It was a little girl. She died," Aiden said, his eyes glossy with tears.

"I'm sorry Aiden," I said, giving him a hug. He rested his head on my shoulder.

"Thanks," he said.

I felt terrible for Aiden. I knew how close he was with Cam despite their differences in behavior. It must be really hard for him to talk about Cam being in jail.

"But anyway, how was your trip to Europe? I want to see all the incredible photos that you took!" he said eagerly, changing the subject. I smiled, ready to pull out my phone.

"Hey Aiden," someone said, interrupting our conversation.

It was Blake, Aiden's model girlfriend. She was the definition of perfection with her long blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and flawless skin. When we were little we used to be friends, until one day she started being mean to me and made the purpose of her life to make my life a living hell. Blake pushed Aiden against the locker and put her lips against his. He pulled away, clearly uncomfortable.

"Blake," he said sternly.

"Oh hey, you," she said to me, "I didn't see you there,"

"I have a name, you know," I said.

"Oh yeah, what is it again?" she asked.

"Sloan," I said, annoyed.

"We should probably go," Aiden said, ruffling his unruly head of dirty blonde curls.

"Okay, see you later Aiden," I said. The bell was going to ring in five minutes, so I rushed to my first class, which was darkroom. I was thrilled to use film and photographic paper for the first time.

I slid into my seat just as the bell rang, setting my backpack on the ground next to my desk.

"Hello everyone! I'm Ms. Evans," the young teacher announced.

She started to explain the details of the things we would be doing in darkroom. Usually I would be listening intently, curious to learn more about how I could improve as a photographer. But the new guy was sitting a few seats away from me, and I couldn't peel my eyes away from him. He didn't really seem like the type of guy who would enjoy taking pictures.

"Today, you will receive partners that you will be working with for your first photography assignment. Once you hear your name, you can move to a seat near your partner," Ms. Evans said, forcing me to zone back into class. After she called out many pairs of people, I finally heard my name.

"Sloan and Hunter," she said.

Who was Hunter? It would be really embarrassing if I had to go ask her who Hunter was. I sat there and waited in my desk, hoping he knew who I was.

Suddenly, the new guy slid into the desk next to me. My heart stopped beating for a moment.

"You're Sloan, right?" he asked me, unsure.

"Uh, yeah. You're Hunter?" I said.

"Yeah. I guess we're partners," he said.

I nodded, not knowing what to say. I hated that I was so shy, but I couldn't help it. I had been shy ever since my mom homeschooled me in 5th grade and then threw me back into public school.

"So, you like taking pictures?" I asked. It was a dumb question, but I knew I had to say something.

"I've never tried it before. It's always good to try new things right?" he laughed, a sound that made me smile, "how long have you been taking pictures?"

"Since I was ten years old. My dad used to be a photographer, so I guess I got it from him," I explained.

I wanted to tell him that my dad had died a few years ago, but I still couldn't manage to say the words. My dad had been my best friend. He would always take me on adventures and camping trips just so that we could get a good photo. He told me that I could achieve my dream of becoming a National Geographic photographer someday. Now I had no one to tell me that.

Ms. Evans started explaining how all the equipment worked and the rules. I zoned listened carefully, but every so often I treated myself with a glance at Hunter, who was focused on Ms. Evans. He was jotting some notes down in his notebook. I noticed something on the inside of his wrist as he was writing. It looked a tattoo. I tried to lean over a little more so I could see, but then the bell rang, making me jump. The class had gone by so quickly. I quickly packed up my things and slung my backpack over my shoulder.

"Nice to meet you," Hunter said to me.

"You too," I said, smiling. I headed out the door, leaving Hunter as he put his notebook in his backpack. I couldn't wait until tomorrow to see Hunter again.