by Sarah Swan
Thankfully, that came on the third day. I woke up in the morning to the nurse opening the blinds and thrusting a bagged bundle into my hands.
“Your clothes,” she said brusquely, “washed and ready for you.”
My breath caught in excitement. “You mean I can finally leave?”
“Personally, I’d have you here for another week, but the doc said as long as your condition didn’t deteriorate, you could go today—that is, unless you’ve suddenly taken a turn for the worse.” She cocked an eyebrow at me. “So? How are you feeling today? Any recurring symptoms?”
“Nope!” I exclaimed happily. “Everything’s much better.”
The nurse craned her neck to one side and looked at my quizzically. “Are you sure? Maybe I should run the tests again before your discharge…”
“No, really! I’m much better,” I protested. All I could think about was finally getting a chance to look at the school and escaping this tightly cramped room. I sprang out of the bed in my robe and raised my arms triumphantly to the side. “See? No problems with dizziness, or sensitivity to light, or anything!” I assured her.
“Humph!” she grunted, crossing her arms. “I still don’t like it. But, it’s not my choice.”
“So, I can go?” I begged.
“Yes, yes. Just make sure you schedule a follow-up examination with the receptionist for a month from now.”
“Oh, thank you! Thank you!” I jumped up to her and threw my arms around her neck in an embrace. After a moment, I realized what I’d done, and backed hastily away. “Sorry,” I muttered, keeping my head down.
“Quite alright,” she said. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her straining to suppress a smile. She dug into a pocket, and emerged with a small yellow envelope. “Here,” she said, handing it to me. “Your room key and information about your assigned dorm. I was told to give it to you when you left.”
I took the package and hefted it in my hands. It was light, but I could feel a key in there—and maybe a few sheets of paper. The nurse turned to leave, but I stopped her.
“Hold on. I don’t even know where the dorms are!”
This time, a true smile definitely appeared on her face, although I wasn’t sure if it was a mocking one or not. “You’ll find yours. It’s a small school, and there’s not much chance of you getting lost.” She barked a laugh. “Anyway, there’s a little map in the envelope should you have any trouble.” With that, she turned and left, swinging the door shut behind her.
As soon as she was gone, I ran into the adjacent bathroom and took a hurried shower. Then, with my hair still dripping wet, I pulled out the clothes she had given me and inspected them. It was the outfit I had worn when I got onto the ferry. Not bothering to dig through my bags for something better, I hurriedly put the clothes on. I was anxious to get out of this room.
I grabbed my two bags, and, opening the door with my hip, rolled them out behind me as I made my way to the front desk. I felt like a wrongfully convicted prisoner finally being set free. The hallway to the front desk was long and narrow, with doors lined tightly on either side. In the back of my mind, I held out a small hope that Doctor Frame would come through one of those doors and surreptitiously bump into me. But, unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
The receptionist at the front desk was a young woman with frizzy blonde hair. She reminded me a little of my mother. She was friendly and bubbly in sharp contrast to the demeanor of nearly everyone else here. She booked my next appointment quickly, and gave me a card with the time and date written down so I wouldn’t forget. Even her elongated, wide letters reflected her cheerful manner. I asked about the dorm, and she pointed me in the right direction.
Rolling my bags behind me, I stepped outside for the first time. I was immediately struck by the sheer beauty of the place. The clinic stood on top of a small hill. A path zigzagged down from it amongst the grass. Right in front of the clinic was a luxurious rose garden, its scent tantalizing. The sun was shining brightly overhead, and there was not a single cloud in the sky. The fog had lifted, affording a crystal, clear view of the entire island and the surrounding water. To my left, a little in the distance, past the hill, I could see a pristine, untouched forest growing thickly. Straight in front of me a series of cliffs overlooked a beautiful expanse of water. Every so often, the tangy smell of the ocean air wafted up to meet me. My eyes followed the curve of the path down the hill, and then to the right. There, the grassy hills continued, and the path went over and around them. From my vantage point, I could see a small cluster of buildings over in that direction. This was exactly the location where the receptionist told me I would find my dorm. I sighed. This place was absolutely perfect.
To be sure of the way, though, I decided to consult the map that was included in my package. At that moment, a slight breeze ruffled my clothes, causing goose bumps to crawl up the back of my neck. I shivered. It was still early morning, so despite the sun shine, it was still a bit chilly. Mildew hung on the petals of the flowers around me. I could tell that it was going to be a hot day. Ripping open the envelope, I pulled out the papers and began to flip through them. There was an information package welcoming new students that I could look at later, a small calendar of opening days’ activities, a letter from the headmaster, contact information for all the various departments at the school, and, finally, a black and white printed map of the island.
I was disappointed to find that the detail on it was very much lacking. It had the general shape of the island, and the markings of a few landmarks. But past that, it was impossible to tell what was where. I guessed it was more a novelty than anything else. Thankfully, the island didn’t seem nearly big enough to get lost in—especially if I didn’t wander into the forest. Picking out the key that still lay at the bottom of the envelope, I set off toward the small cluster of buildings to my right.
Surprisingly, the way there took longer than expected. The path was well maintained, and curved down to run by the side of the cliffs overlooking the ocean, so there was no trouble rolling my bags. But from outside the clinic, the cluster of buildings looked to be maybe ten, fifteen minutes away. Instead, it took me a good half hour before I reached the main part of campus.
But it wasn’t like I was complaining. The walk over was lovely, and even if the island seemed a little abandoned (I didn’t see a single person along the way), it was still beautiful. Every few yards, I would stop to inhale deeply. The fresh, clean scent of the greenery was tinged slightly by the saltiness of the ocean. The water today was calm. But, once in a while, I could still hear a larger wave crash into the side of the cliffs. One day soon, I promised myself, I’d get around to exploring the bottom of those cliffs, if for no other reason than to see what was there. First, of course, I’d have to get settled into life on the habitable part of the island.
I finally reached the cluster of buildings, and for the first time, I saw life on the island. There weren’t many people around, but enough to notice. Mostly, they were older professors and staff members walking along the streets from one building to the next. There definitely didn’t seem to be anyone my age around yet.
The path I was on shifted to cobblestone as I came closer. There were buildings all around me. Little streets and alleys ran alongside each one. The odd thing, I noticed, was that the style of nearly every building was completely different from the last. All were very well maintained and looked sparkling new, but the styles differed so greatly it would have been jarring in any other context. There was a building to my left built in a Mexican style, and right beside it stood another made of red brick. Some were Gothic, while others were Georgian, and others still some type of mish-mash in between. Yet somehow, all of them blended together seamlessly, so that no single building looked out of place.
The path led into the heart of this part of campus where a wide, open area had been left undeveloped. Various buildings rimmed the empty space, which I took to be a type of town square on the island. In the middle was a large, flow
ing fountain with replicas of Greek statues elevated from the base in its center. I smiled. This place had a very homey feel to it.
I had to cross behind the main row of buildings and walk for another ten or fifteen minutes before I saw the dormitories. They were tucked away to one side, in a little space of their own. And they looked lovely. A set of four stood around a private courtyard, the windows to the rooms tall and wide. The four dorms were the only set of matching buildings I’d seen on campus. Each was built in a Georgian style, with red bricks and tall arches framing the main points of the structures. Picking up my pace, I hurried over to the second one from the right. From what I knew, Oliver Academy housed students by their grade level, and if the arrangement went left-to-right, then all the juniors would be in that dorm.
I checked through the papers given to me to figure out which room I had. Not finding anything about a room assignment in any of the sheets, I frowned in confusion. Then I remembered the key. Picking it out of my pocket, I turned it over in my hand and found the inscription on the base: Room 34.
I hoped my room looked out toward the courtyard. It looked like the rooms rimmed the outside of each building, meaning that half the rooms would be overlooking the area behind the courtyard. There didn’t look to be much there except some forested hills.
Well, there was really not much point in wondering about such things when I could find the answer shortly. Grabbing my two bags, I started toward the third building, excited to finally really be starting my new life.
I had a bit of trouble hauling my bags up the six steps that led to the wide stone porch. Still, after only a little bit of a struggle, I managed to get everything up to the front door. I looked around, noting again how quiet everything was over here, and put my hand on the main door to pull it open.
It didn’t budge.
I frowned and tried again, pulling with more force. Nothing happened.
Maybe it was locked? I looked around for a keyhole, conscious of the fact that I had only been given the single key, presumably to my room. But maybe it unlocked the front door to the building as well? That, at least, would make some sense—if there had been a keyhole anywhere! I looked up and down the entire face of the door, and the frame as well, and, not finding anything, repeated the examination. Again, I didn’t spot a keyhole. An uncomfortable feeling blossomed in the pit of my stomach. Maybe the dorms weren’t open yet? I hoped that wasn’t the case. But, if the other students weren’t due to arrive until tomorrow…
Suddenly, the door burst open, nearly smacking me square in the face. Only the fact that I had already started turning away saved me from a return trip to the clinic. In the doorway stood a boy about my age, looking at me in surprise. I stared back, equally unnerved. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here yet.
“Having trouble with the door?” His quick smile erased the look of surprise on his face.
“Uh… yeah,” I managed, trying to regain my composure. The boy in front of me wasn’t particularly good looking. A clump of dark hair perched atop his head. His nose was too small for his slanted face. But, there was something very disarming about his smile. It made me feel welcome; at ease, even. I smiled back at him, and at the same time ran a hand self-consciously through my tousled hair. “I was trying to figure it out before you burst out of there.”
“I know,” he said, “I saw you through the camera.”
“Camera? What are you talking about?”
He pointed up to a darkened corner, and I realized there was a small security camera aimed right at the door. But how did he have access to it?
“The security guard asked me to keep watch while he went off to lunch,” the boy explained as if reading my mind. “He said he was expecting someone, but I didn’t think it’d be a girl as pretty as you.” His eyes went wide, and color crept into his cheeks. He broke eye contact with me and stared at the floor. “I mean… err… sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”
“Don’t worry,” I laughed, “that’s the nicest thing anyone’s said to me since I got here.”
“Really?” he sneaked a glance up, and then looked back down. He was still blushing wildly.
“Really,” I said, and laughed. “Thank you, in fact. I haven’t heard anyone say something like that for… well, let’s just say it’s been a long time.” I stuck my hand out. “My name’s Tracy.”
He looked up again, and, seeing that I was being sincere, quickly smiled and took my hand. “I’m Chris,” he said. “I take it you’re new here?”
“How’d you know?” I asked coyly.
“Well, the luggage was a dead giveaway. Anyone who’s been here before has learned to store most of their things in the basements over the summer. And, of course, the whole fiasco with the door didn’t help.”
“Very observant,” I deadpanned. He laughed, and instantly the color in his cheeks was gone.
“That’s okay,” he said. “I was new here once, too.”
“I’d bet.”
“Anyway, the reason you couldn’t open the door was because you didn’t use your student card.”
I frowned “Student card?”
“You mean you don’t have one yet?”
“I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Hmm. Well, no worries. We can fix that later. Everyone here has a student card. It’s the only way to get around. There’s a small chip in the back of it that interfaces with all the buildings on campus. It’s some type of new technology they put in a few years ago. Anyway, at the front of every building is a wireless scanner that picks up on the chip in your card, and unlocks the door for you.”
“Automatically?” I asked.
“Yeah. Exactly,” he said cheerfully. “ It’s pretty cool, actually. You just walk up to a set of doors and they open for you, each time. That way, you never have to fumble around for a set of keys or anything like that. Really helpful when we get into storm season over here.”
“Storm season? What’s that?” I asked, puzzled.
Chris’s eyes widened again. But this time, he made no effort to look away. In fact, he looked to be completely surprised. “You mean you don’t know?”
“Know what?” I asked again. “About ‘storm season?’ No, I have no idea. I’ve never even heard of it.”
He whistled through his teeth. “Wow! You’re a long way from home, aren’t you?”
“It’s not my fault,” I defended stubbornly. “It’s not like anyone’s given me a tour of the place yet.”
“A tour! That’s a great idea. I’d totally be happy to show you around.” He gave me that disarming smile.
“Well, I’ve got to get unpacked first…” I began, but he quickly broke in.
“Of course! Here, I’ll help you get your things.” Running around behind me, he grabbed both of my bags in his hands. “What floor are you on?”
“My key says 34…”
“Third floor. Got it. Follow me.”
Chris went inside the building, and I trailed after him. As soon as I crossed the doorway, I stared wide-eyed at the lobby. It was ridiculously extravagant. Everything I could see was polished marble. The floor tiles made a crisscross pattern of dark and light colors across the room. In the middle, a few lounge-like sofas had been arranged, each one of them a rich black leather. Looking around, I realized I had been right earlier: the actual rooms of the dorm all rimmed the outer wall of the rectangular building. Which meant that in the middle of the building was a completely open space. From where I stood, you could look up and see the balusters running along the hallways of each floor, and the doors leading into the individual rooms as well, something like a hotel. High above me, in the roof of the building, were three spectacular skylights. They were all made of clear glass, and gave a perfect view into the sky above.
“Are you coming?” Chris called from across the atrium. Already, he had started lugging my bags up a flight of stairs. Quickening my pace, I ran up to him and tried to take one of the bags, but he pulled it away.
“I got them,” he told me.
I rolled my eyes. He was clearly struggling carrying both of them up the stairs at once. Yet, obviously, he didn’t want me to notice. “It’ll be faster if I help,” I said.
“No way,” he grunted. Each step he took up, the suitcases banged loudly against each other. “I got it.”
“No, you don’t,” I interjected, and before he could protest again, pulled one of the bags out of his hand. Just for good measure, I took a couple steps up, carrying the heavy bag behind me, to show him I was just fine handling one of them. Glancing back, I saw that he had started moving faster. I increased my own pace, and raced to the top. I heard him moving right behind me, trying to match my speed. But, I had the advantage of a head start. I got to the top, and flashed a triumphant smile as he came up beside me.
“Told you,” I said with a wink. “There’s no point protesting when I’m clearly in the right.”
“We’ll see about that…” Chris said, trailing off before he could finish the empty threat. He smiled at me again, though. “You’re tougher than you look.”
“You should have seen what I went through to get here,” I said, thinking back to the disaster with Vlad’s small boat.
To my surprise, Chris barked a laugh. “I take it you’ve met Vlad, then.”
“How did you know?”