Midnight Eclipse

Prolouge

February 3, 2017- 3:30 P.M.

Ashton smiled as he looked at Carly, her soft chestnut hair was pulled into a messy bun, a few stray pieces falling softly around her face. Her blue eyes greatly contrasted against her dark hair, seeming to be unnatural compared to her other family members eyes. She was currently speaking on the phone with Hannah, one of their close friends.

"Yes, I know." Carly said, her tone sounding annoyed at the fact that Hannah had warned her again. She shook her head at him, rolling her eyes and letting out a deep sigh as Hannah continued to speak.

"I just want you to be safe, Carly." Hannah muttered, the worried facial expression almost apparent through the phone speaker. Ashton quietly scoffed, resisting the urge to reply. Carly smiled at him, moving her hand to gently rest on the inner thigh of his jeans, moving her thumb in small circles over his leg.

"I know that. We will be fine." Ashton replied while moving his hand over Carly's, and intertwining their fingers while Carly said her goodbyes to Hannah. "Are you ready?"

Carly had ended the call, shoving her phone in her back pocket as she rose to her feet, her small frame stretching to its full length as she held out her hand for me to grasp.

"Yeah, can we go to El Chile?" Carly was obsessed with El Chile Poblano and repeatedly asked to eat there. "And get the fried ice cream?" The sound of the sweet treat, that was surrounded by a freshly baked shell with drizzles of chocolate over it all, made Ashton's mouth water.

"Of course, but I need to go home first." Ashton had left the majority of his money at home, which would prove to be a problem if he was expected to pay for Carly's meal. "Unless you would rather run, get out to the car." He playfully shoved her towards the main glass doors of the school.

With a smirk, he sprinted ahead of Carly, running down the ramp with arms out at his sides.

"Come on!" Carly called, a slight chuckle escaping as she waited for the jeep doors to be unlocked. As she glanced around, the absence of other students gave her an eerie feeling, almost as if she was being watched. "Seriously! Come on!" The playful tone in her voice was gone, as was Ashton.

"CARLY!" Ashton's voice boomed across the empty parking lot, a pained sound in his voice.

"Ashton?" Carly called, her voice shaking due to her rising pulse and the fearful thoughts penetrating her thoughts.

Carly's pale blue eyes were beginning to swell with tears, on the verge of escaping her thick lashes and streaming down her cheeks.

Suddenly, he appeared, "Take the keys and get out of here." His voice was urgent and he kept looking behind him as if something were chasing him. "Hurry!" When he fully faced her, she noticed the massive wound directly under his ribs. The surrounding skin was black and looked to be dying, though fresh blood was still steadily leaving his body, he was conscious and seemed to be in good shape.

Ashton had thrown the keys across the pavement, and they stopped when they hit the toe of Carly's black and white converse. Her mouth was open, her eyes wide as she watched her boyfriend struggle in front of her.

"N-no! Hurry up." Tears were now streaming down her cheeks, her eyes were red and she looked truly petrified. "I can't leave you." She reached out her hand, pushing her left foot forward in order to reach Ashton.

As if on cue, a 'MISSING' poster blew under Carly's foot, the white paper slowly curling around her foot as the harsh wind began to pick up speed. As she reached down for it, she kept looking at the darkening sky, intrigued by the way it began to have an orange haze.

"Racheal?" Carly called out, the poster now flapping in her hand. Before she could get a reply, she sprinted into Ashton's arms, trying to find comfort. As she ran, she could see the fear in Ashton's eyes as he pointed at something behind her. His mouth moved as if he was trying to tell her something, but she couldn't hear him.

Just Carly reached him, jumping into his arms, she fell to the ground. Ashton was gone, just like he was never there. As she rose to her feet, she took a deep breath, turning back to the jeep. She had the keys, she might as well leave.

However, it wasn't there. The electric blue jeep was gone, along with the keys. Carly's eyes were wide again, confused as to where it went.

"Hello?" She called, figuring that someone just stole the jeep. "Ashton?" It could have been Ashton, maybe he had moved towards the jeep but hadn't noticed. But then, why would he leave her here?

And then, there was a loud high pitched scream.

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