Black Crown

I

The hardest part of my life is deciding if I should attend lecture or not. Today, especially, as the rising sun shines into my room. I hate the sun.

With a groan, I get up, knowing that I have to go. I don't pay this much money a year to sleep. Glaring at my window, I march over and close the shades. I swear the sun has it out for me and my body feels immediate relief once it's gone.

Halle is still asleep in her bed, and I feel an immense about of jealousy at the fact she doesn't have to wake up until noon. I'm so stupid for taking morning classes. 

Quietly, I maneuver around the room getting dressed in leggings and a cream colored sweater. Once the rest of my morning routine is done, I slip my backpack on and leave the room, making sure that my door is locked. 

The dorm hallway is quiet, I am one of the only people crazy enough to wake up this early for a class I don't even want to be in. As I walk down the long corridor, the cold air brushes my skin, giving me goosebumps. I turn my head backwards, feeling as if I was not alone in the hallway. But it is just as empty as it was before, the only addition is the small bumps on my skin. However, I can't help but to feel an additional presence. Stupid ghost stories, I'm never letting Halle tell me one before bed again.

Rolling my eyes at my naiveness to fiction, I continue on my way to my dreaded Mystical Creatures class. If I didn't need the class credit, there is no way I would be awake.

When I finally make it to the classroom, I'm fifteen minutes early which, unfortunately, is normal for me. There's three other people in the room so far- our professor, our TA and a man I've never seen before. I attend a very small school, and in this class there are only eight people, so this man stands out. Blonde hair, tall, doesn't quiet look like he should fit in the desk he's shoved his body into.

As I take my seat, my eyes still on him, it is as if he could sense me staring. He turns his head towards my direction and my blue eyes meet his green ones. I quickly look away, not wanting to look like the creep I am. From the corner of my eye, I see him smirk and nod his head before turning back towards the front of the room. Scrunching my eyebrows together, I turn around to see who he nodded to, but we are still the only ones in the room.

I am officially creeped out by him, attractive or not. I pull my cellphone out of my pocket and open FaceBook, trying to distract myself from the strange man in the room.

"Hope, could I speak with you for a moment?" My professor asks, standing by the door of the classroom and motioning me to step out with him. I stand up and follow him out, trying to not be aware of the man's eyes on me.

"How are you today?" My professor asks, closing the door behind us.

"Honestly, very tired, but I'm surviving, how are you?" I question back, trying my best to wear an early morning smile that doesn't look like I rather be anywhere else but here.

"I am doing well, thank you for asking. As you probably noticed, we have a new face in class. His name is Eli and he is a possible transfer student. He is majoring in Mythology and wanted to shadow a class. Since you are my best student, I figured you could help him out today," he says. He almost makes it sound like a question, but I can tell he is not asking but telling.

"Of course! I would be happy to help," I tell him. He gives me his thanks before we head back into the classroom. It was almost like Eli was watching me through the wall because as soon as I walk in, his eyes are on me again, as if they never left. I gather my belongings from the second row of seats and bring them with me to the seat next to Eli.

"Hi, my name is Hope. I'm a junior nursing major and I am in this class because I have to be," I say as I sit and hold my hand out for him to shake. He doesn't seem to think I'm very funny though, and just looks at my hand without taking it.

Okay then, creepy and rude.

"I'm Eli, I'm here because I heard this school had the best female selection," he smirks and wink at me. I try not to look too disgusted, but he makes it very hard. I guess I'm not doing a good job because he grows a smile and begins to laugh at me.

"Oh my god, I'm sorry I just had to see your face. My name is actually Eli, but I'm here because my school cut their mythology program," he says, offering his hand to me. I'm skeptical, but I reach out for his hand anyways.

"Where do you go to school now?" I ask.

"Oh, a really small private school near my hometown, you wouldn't know it," he tells me, then changes the subject before I can question him further, "where are you from?"

We throw some casual conversation back and forth for a while before class starts and we both fall quiet. The 120 minutes flies by unusually quick and at the end of class I say goodbye to Eli and wish him luck. He's out of the room before I am and as I'm leaving, I see him talking to someone in the corner of the hallway.

Mystery man's back is turned towards me, but from what I can see, he is not someone I would mess with. Taller than Eli, more built than him, dark hair, and dark clothes.

Focusing on them standing in the corner, I can hear mumbled words strung together is long sentences. They both sound pretty serious, but occasionally the bigger one's shoulders shake with what looks like laughter. I pull out my phone, pretending to be interested in it as I stand there and listen to their conversation. I'm a nosey person but even for me this is borderline creepy-stalker. I need to get a life.

Looking up at the pair again, I notice that they've stopped talking. Eli is staring straight at me and the bigger one now holds a tense stance, his head turned slightly in my direction but not enough for me to see his face. My eyes widen and I immediately look back down.

I turn away from them and head towards my next class. As I turn the corner to the next hallway, I walk right into a chest. I almost wipe out, but an arm reaches out and snatches mine aggressively. Before I can thank him for catching me and apologize for bulldozing into him, he tugs my arm, causing a small pain to shoot all the way through to my shoulder blade.

When I get the chance to look at him, I become confused because his back looks a lot like the one that was talking to Eli. I turn around and see Eli in the corner watching us but no one else seems to notice my kidnapping.

"Hey, who are you? Let go of my arm!" I exclaim, trying to wiggle out of his grasp.

My heart rate begins to pick up as I struggle to get my arm away from him. I pull as hard as I can which causes him to halt and turn towards me. Taking this as my opportunity, I send my first into his diaphram and my knee into his groin. He doubles over and groans and the moment he lets go of my arm everyone around us begins to notice what is happening. Eli's eyes widen but I don't stick around to see any of the aftermath. I take off in the opposite direction, back towards my dorm room.

My heart pumps in my chest as I walk briskly through the halls, and it's almost like I'm seeing the pair at every corner I pass. In case they're following me, I decide to go to my next lecture instead of back to my room because at least there will be people there to witness.

As I take my seat in the classroom, I peer out of the window the leads into the hallway. Chills go down my back when I see a tall shadow walk past. It could be anyone, but somehow I know it's him. 

***

Authors Note: Please let me know what you think so far!