A Choir Of The Coldest Hearts

I've Wrote This Line A Thousand Times

The old stone castle rises in front of me, candles flickering in the windows. Ivy creeps up the sides, tendrils snaring over the loose gray stones and mortar, the sun peeking out from behind the towers. Chattering students rush past me from where I stand, staring. It's so familiar. I almost want to pretend it is last year. Before everything happened.

Taking a deep breath, I start forward, slinging my knapsack over my shoulder as I go. I can feel the stares of other students digging into my back as I walk across the green lawn toward the building, tugging my hood lower over my face. I already know what they're gonna say. I can already hear the whispers in my mind.

"I thought he was dead."

"Vic's back?"

"I heard about his brother."

"Didn't he kill—"

The thought makes hot tears spring into my eyes but I brush them away, pushing open the large wooden doors. Voices echo through the stone room as I see familiar students milling around in the grand hall. I keep my head down, knowing the gazes are following me as I push through the crowd, heading toward the flight of stone stairs stretching up the backside of the hall. At the second landing, I turn, climbing a steep winding set stone stairs leading toward the boy's dorms.

I'm out of breath by the time I reach the top of the twisting set of stairs. It would be a dark hallway, but a giant window spans the end, letting in the bright fall light. Candles flicker in their nooks, some orange, some red, some blue, kept alive by magic.

I scan the numbers, checking the slip of paper in my hand until I reach the wooden door at the end of the hall. The familiarity of it all makes my stomach churn again, it could easily be last year. Voices sound through the door and I frown, confused. No, it's definitely my room. I knock lightly on the door, waiting apprehensively before it's thrown open.

"You're back!" I hear a familiar voice shout before arms are thrown around me, hugging me.

"Hi," I say, my voice muffled by a jacket. "Nice to see you too."

Alex takes a step back, looking me over. "You're—"

"Not dead?" I let out a small laugh. "Yeah. I know."

"Okay, my turn," Jack calls before he launches himself at me, squeezing me tightly.

"Ow," I gasp, shoving him away after a few moments. "Are you trying to kill me?"

I look both of them over. It's been half a year since I've last seen them, and I have to admit, I've missed them both. Both of them seem a bit taller, or maybe I've shrunk. Alex's hair is no longer green; it's back to its normal brown and scruffier than last time. Jack is scruffy as always, his hair sticking up in inhuman ways.

"How are you?" Alex asks.

I shrug, tucking my hands into my pockets. "I'm okay," I mumble. "Right now at least."

"We're here if you need us, 'Kay?" Jack nudges me, making me smile. At least they seem to care.

~*~*~*~*~

It's too nice to stay inside the dorms, so after Jack and Alex help me set up my room, we head outside. The grounds are so familiar as we wander around them, out of the main building of the castle. Our rooms are located near the top of the eastern tower, the one closest to the sprawling woods behind the school. We're not supposed to be in the forest at night, the risk of meeting malevolent spirits and vengeful ghosts too high. But during the daytime, the spirits tend to stay away, drawn into the darkness, giving the three of us the freedom to amble through the woods. The orange leaves crunch below our sneakers as we make our way down the trails.

I skid to a halt at the edge of the lake, making Alex crash into me.

"What—" his voice trails off as he sees the view in front of me. It's beautiful. The oranges and reds of the leaves reflecting into the undisturbed surface of the water. A bird calls in the distance, the sound echoing across the mountains. Jack, of course, has no qualms about picking up a smooth gray stone off the beach, skipping it across the surface of the water. The magic of the scene is disturbed as soon as the first ripple spreads.

"Way to ruin it," Alex groans, elbowing Jack.

Jack shrugs, skipping down to the edge of the water. I exchange a glance with Alex, rolling my eyes but I can't help but laugh, following him as we chase Jack through the woods. At last, the three of us collapse on a grassy hillside, several miles from the school. My sides hurt from laughing, but it's the best I've felt in a long time, at least since the accident happened.