Millwood Academy - First Term

by Dawson, Tanya

  “I’m aware of your relationship with him. That’s all I can say.” Clark waves his hands in front of his face and doesn’t look my way.

  “Why didn’t you tell me before?” I hold back tears. I feel betrayed by him, how could I trust him as my protector.

  “I didn’t think it was relevant.” Clark finally makes eye contact with me. “It wouldn’t help your mission.”

  “What mission? I’m here and have no idea why.” I slam my butt down in a chair and regret the force used.

  Clark walks over to my left side and drapes his arm around my shoulders. “I’m sorry.” He sits on the desk beside me, and neither of us speak.

  Time passes by, and my anger starts to dwindle. My eyes burn, and I’m emotionally exhausted. I just want to sleep and get away from everyone.

  “Let’s get something to eat.” Clark breaks the silence first. He jumps off the desk and breaks into Una’s closet. “Pizza?”

  “We need her powers.” I remind him. I slouch back in the chair as I eye my bed, unsure if I had enough energy to make it there. Clark somehow understands.

  “Come.” Clark nods his head and sweeps me up in his arms and brings me to the bed. I’m dead weight, and he falls on top of me as he lays me down.

  I can feel a rumble of a laugh in my belly, and I can’t hold it in. Soon we are both laughing on the bed and settle in, lying next to each other.

  “Why did you leave school?” The question slips out of my mouth, and I’m uncertain where it came from. When we returned that day, students were surprised to see him.

  “I was kicked out,” Clark clears his throat, and we sit there in silence again.

  I want him to tell me more, so I don’t talk. I let the awkwardness take over as my mind races on what could have gotten him kicked out of a supernatural academy – when his father is who he is.

  Clark rolls over on his side, facing me. The right side of my body against his abs. The attraction takes over, every time I’m close to him.

  “I did something I shouldn’t have.” His voice is low and his fingers inches from my arm.

  I raise my left eyebrow, now intrigued at what this goody two shoes could have done. “Like what?”

  “Something I’m not proud of. Can we leave it at that?” Clark’s eyes drift to my chest.

  “Come on spill. We all do shit we aren’t proud of.” I push back on his chest and feel his muscles move when he leans forward.

  “Maybe another time.” His eyes drift off, and I know this will be good.

  “It will take my mind off things.” I nudge his stomach. Pleased with what my hands rub up against.

  “What shit did you do, that you’re not proud of?”

  “You’re changing the subject.” I squint my eyes at him to show my displeasure, but it doesn’t work. The look on his face shows he’s off somewhere and I want him back with me. I flop my hand over my stomach and let out a large and long sigh.

  Clark moves his hand over mine, and our fingers intertwine. It feels natural, and I don’t stop him. Our hands settle in the middle of my chest. Soon his fingertips are moving gently over my blouse, teasing a button to pop out of its hole. With each gentle push, it threatens to open.

  My fantasy of being with a wolf threatens everything I’m here for. I have no self-control as the button finally pops open and he moves my hand to my stomach, and his hand travels back up to where my blouse is open. His eyes are trained on my breasts as his hand finally makes its move under the fabric.

  He’s tender with his strong hand, slowly stroking my collar bone. Inching his way down further. He slips his hand under the edge of my bra and finds my nipple. I close my eyes and push my head back into my pillow as he massages it between his fingers. His rhythm is perfect, as his thumb rubs back and forth.

  I moan in delight and rub my feet back and forth on the bed, trying to contain the urge inside of me. My hand finds his chest as I gently tug his shirt, giving him a hint that he has free reign over me.

  He understands and soon my waist is between his muscular thighs. I open my eyes, just as he takes his shirt off and his hands are reaching for more buttons. With a flick of his wrists, my blouse is fully open, and he’s working on opening the front clasp of my bra.

  As it breaks free, he pushes each cup to the side and fills his hands with my mounds of flesh. I moan as he leans forward and gently licks each nipple then settles in on one. Sucking and rubbing with his tongue. My hands pull on his hair, begging him not to stop.

  He lifts his knee and gently pushes it between my legs, separating them. While his mouth moves to my other nipple, his hand slowly caresses my inner thigh as it moves up my leg. I push my legs as far apart as I can, and push my bottom down, to meet his hand sooner.

  He rubs my panties with his fingers, but I’ve waited long enough. I reach down and move them aside, and moan happily that he’s quick to take hints. He finds my clit quickly and begins to work it in a steady rhythm. My body shakes as I hold on to his arm to make sure he doesn’t stop.

  I feel his swollen cock against my leg and lose my breath at the thought of him fucking my brains out. He was large, and he obviously knew his way around the female body. Everything he had done to me far outweighs my previous sexual experiences.

  He pulls back his hand, and I protest as I try to put it back. He pushes himself back on the bed and pulls my panties off. I lay back relieved it’s not over. He lifts my skirt up, and his hands slide down my inner thigh, pushing them far apart.

  We make eye contact for the first time as he lowers his lips to my pussy. He thrust his tongue into my vagina, shocking me at first. My hands stay on the back of his head, to keep him from quitting. With each thrust, his thumb strokes my clit. The sensation is more than I can bear, and my moans grow louder. My legs are wet, and with each sucking noise he makes, I push into him.

  He slips one finger in my vagina, then two. Then teases a third. I push down hard on his hand, wanting it. Inch by inch he finally gives in and pushes them deep inside of me, vibrating his hand.

  I move my pussy against his strokes and can’t wait any longer. I reach for his belt and fumble with it.

  “I’ll get it.” Clark smiles at my enthusiasm. He gets off the bed and throws his belt to the side. He gently lifts my head off the bed and puts me into a sitting position at the edge.

  He watches me as he teases, slowly undoing the one button to his pants. I can’t wait and jump up to unzip his zipper, and with one pull, they are around his ankles. He’s wearing boxer briefs, and his bulge is captivating and scary.

  As I reach for my prize, the door handle jiggles. We both freeze and hope they go away. The door opens, but the chain stops them from coming in.

  “Penelope? Are you in there?” Una calls from the hallway as she tries to get the door to open.

  “Yes! Just a minute.” My eyes are wide, and I’m frozen.

  Clark shoves my clothes toward me and quickly gets dressed. Then he helps me, all while Una is trying to open the door.

  “What’s wrong with the door? Are you alright?” Una continues to push on the door.

  Clark gives me a once over and nods his head that I look fine. I rush to the door and undo the chain and hope that Una doesn’t notice anything.

  Una steps in and narrows her eyes as she looks from Clark to me. “It smells like sex in here.”

  My jaw drops and I turn to Clark, who is sitting on my bed flipping through a magazine, pretending to be deep into an article.

  “What?” Was all I could offer as my cheeks flush to a deep red. Una coming home had never entered my mind – well I was preoccupied.

  “Just kidding.” Una laughs as she walks into the room and places her bags on her bed. “I got you something. I hope you like it.” She digs in her shopping bags until she finds a red velvet dress.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” I said, quickly breathing a sigh of relief and turning my attention to her gift. “It’s beautiful.”

  “I knew it was meant
to be yours as soon as I saw it.” Una hands me the dress and returns to her loot. “There’s a ball at the end of the semester. I know its months away, but the dress would have been gone by then.”

  “I love it. I’ve never actually owned a dress.” From the corner of my eye, I could see Clark put down his magazine. His interest now on our conversation.

  “You’ll be beautiful,” Clark said, resting the magazine on his lap and staring at me. The way he looked at me was different now. He knew me differently.

  “Oh, there’s a letter for you. It was under our door when I came home this afternoon. I put it in your drawer. It looks official.” Una unpacks her bags on her bed, gushing about where she will wear this and that.

  I open my drawer and pull the envelope out. The front has my name – Penelope Jordon.

  “Wait, what’s that?” Una points to the envelope. “That wasn’t there earlier.”

  I flip the envelope over, and there’s blood on the backside.

  Chapter 11

  I rip open the envelope and pull out the paper inside. It’s blank. I flip it over, and nothing is on the backside either. Then a light glow forms on the paper and words start to appear, but they don’t make sense. – Help. Trust. Vampires. No one. Mission. Then nothing else...

  “What’s it say?” Una cocks her head from her bed but doesn’t put down any of the items in her hand.

  Clark comes over to me and grabs the paper. He scratches his head, “There’s nothing here. This does look like dried blood though.”

  I rip the paper from his hands. The words are still there, he just can’t see them. “Must be a prank on the new girl.” I laugh it off and throw the paper in my garbage bin. I’ll take it out later when I’m alone.

  “Boys are the worst.” Una throws Clark an eye roll as she folds up her new clothes and organizes them on her bed.

  “I’ve gotta roll.” Clark grabs his jacket and hightails it to the door after he exchanges an odd glance with me.

  I look back to the garbage bin, wanting to grab the letter to see if any more words appear, but I’d wait it out. Was Clark leaving so fast, a clue he really had noticed the words as well? Trust no one.

  I watch Una as she rambles on about all the deals she found, a way to justify the mound of merchandise she unveils. I hesitate and wonder if the letter was a warning not to trust her. And I couldn’t forget the word vampires.

  I slump back on my bed, my playtime with Clark seeming like a million years ago. I drown Una’s voice out and focus on the garbage can. I held back showing more interest in the letter, just in case.

  “Penelope?” Una stands in front of me with her hands on her hips, “You’re not even listening to me.”

  “I’m sorry. I’m tired, and it’s been hard to adjust here.” I flop over on my side and hug my pillow hard. Of all the people that could be on my mind – I can’t stop thinking about Hazen. I want nothing more than to hate him.

  Una sits on the edge of my bed, “I heard what happened in class today.”

  Can she read my mind? “Um, you did?”

  “The whole school is talking about it. Ivor coming to your aide. It would be romantic really if he weren’t a vampire.” Una’s voice trails off on the last word.

  “You know I’m part vampire too. I’m glad Ivor was there.” I keep my eyes on the ground, avoiding the glare I knew Una would be giving me right now. As much as I like her, and Clark and the Stanton boys – I didn’t know them like I knew Hazen. I needed to talk to him alone, when he wasn’t acting how he thought people would want him too.

  Maybe he had no choice, like me right now, in this school. Perhaps he’s being forced to work on this mission. There had to be something. He couldn’t just turn his back on what we had.

  “Maybe you should tell that to, Clark.” Una stands up and bangs her heels each step she took to her side of the room.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I sprang up to a seated position. Whether I like it or not, she was getting some heat meant for Hazen.

  “I gave you hints. You should have told me you were interested in him.” Una picks up her neatly folded clothes and drops them on the floor. “You could have warned me.”

  “You like Clark?” My anger softens to regret. I’d never had a close girlfriend before, sure she talked about him, but never mentioned her feelings.

  “He’s clearly into you.” Una runs her arm along the bed and clears the last of her new things to the floor.

  I hang my head and take a deep breath in. I wasn’t good at stuff like this. Not that I didn’t want to be, but I kept to myself because it was easier. Then there was Hazen. He was the first person I let in. Shared my secrets with. I shake my head, still not understanding his betrayal. Not one thing before that night tipped me off to what he was capable of.

  “Look, I’m lousy at relationships. I’ve only ever gotten close to a few people.” I stop myself before I sound like a blubbering idiot. I had a soft spot for Una, when I imagine having a sister from now on, I’d picture her.

  “Hazen?” Her voice was softer.

  “Yes.” I didn’t want to discuss him with her. She wouldn’t understand, and I couldn’t tell her everything that I wanted too.

  “He’s not worth your time. It’s easy to tell he hurt you.” Una picks up her purse and rummages through it. “Here it is.” She holds her hand out to me and lowers her fingers to reveal a pink ceramic flower. “It was my Gramma’s, and now it’s yours.”

  “No, I couldn’t.” I flinch and push myself back on the bed, to get away from her offering.

  “Penelope Jordon. I want you to take this.” Una steps forward and practically shoves it in my face. “It will protect you. Keep the wrong people away.”

  I look from her concerned face back to the pin, “But she gave it to you.”

  “And I am giving it to you.” Una grabs my hand and places the pin in it.

  It’s heavier than you would think from looking at it. Its petals painted in a bright pink enamel with emerald green leaves. I turn it over, and there is a Latin word on the back “malum.” “What does it mean?” I hold the pin up to her.

  “Something about keeping the troubled ones away from you.” Una waves her hand in the air and bends down to pick up her clothes off the floor.

  “Thank you,” I mutter, amused at the carvings and delicate painting. I’d never owned anything as beautiful as this pin.

  “It was meant to be with you.” Una smiles, then dumps all the clothes in her dresser, smashing them down to make them all fit. “I always regret it, when it comes time to put it all away.”

  “Let me help.” I jump off the bed and help her refold all her clothes, while she rifles through her drawer and picks out things to donate.

  After what seems like at least an hour, being only twenty minutes, her drawer is closable. Una slams it shut as a final test and jumps over to hug me. “I’m so happy you’re my roomie.”

  “Me too. Now, Clark.” I hate to bring the topic up, I was attracted to him in a fuck friend kind of way. Nothing serious and I doubted he was even a one-woman man. “He’s off-limits to me.” I hold my right hand over my heart, and my left hand over my head.

  “Oh, P!” Una jumps and screams as she comes toward me. She wraps her thin arms around my neck, while her feet jump up and down on the floor.

  “I’m not sure he’s ready to be true...to one person,” I said. I couldn’t bear having to hear her cry over him, yet it was inevitable. I’ll keep a good brandy on hand for that day – and ice cream.

  “He hasn’t seen the full charm of, Una, yet.” Una twirls around, her dress taking wind with each turn. “I’ll teach you. How to use your charms.”

  “I’m good.” I hold up my hand to her and back away. Her sunshine was a little too bright for me.

  “I could help you in another way?” Una said, biting her lip.

  “What way.” I had no idea what she was offering, yet I was intrigued.

  Una opens up her book bag and p
ulls out a notebook. The name Alexandra Stanton is written in red ink on the front cover. “Una!” I step back from her and the book, afraid Alexandra would show up at our door any minute. “That’s a death wish.”

  “She’s only a vampire.” Una’s crazy grin worries me, and the fact that she’s not afraid.

  “And not a very friendly one.” I grab the notebook with every intent on returning it – anonymously. But the temptation to peek inside is greater. I flip it open before I talk myself out of it. Una is eager to see, as well. “Did you read it?”

  “I waited for you.” Una’s eyes are wide as she grabs the notebook from me, “It’s in some sort of code.” She hands the book back to me to look at.

  I place it on my desk and flip through. The entire thing is full of symbols. “Could it be for class?”

  “Nope.” Una flips a few more pages. She drops the book as her hand flies over her mouth. She fumbles backward and hits into her armoire, winning the best actor award for the drama queen. “That’s his name.” She stutters.

  I try to find the page she had flipped to, “Whose name?”

  “The kid. The last one murdered.” Una’s voice trembles as she holds on to the bedpost.

  “Maybe she was reporting on it? She could have written it after.” I flip through the book frantically, trying to find other names from the symbols. “Who else? Was murdered?” I wave my hand to her to tell me quickly as I read each line.

  “Uh...Uh...Marty Sampson. He was the first.” Una rubs her temple as if it’s hard for her to remember.

  “Who else?” I look up from the book, and Una’s eyes are twitching. “Are you alright?”

  She sits on the chair at her desk, “I found him. Coming home from a date last spring. I remember the smell of mud. The smell of his blood was masked by it.”

  “I didn’t know.” I reach my hand over and place it on hers, it’s cold and clammy. I start to feel drowsy, and when I close my eyes, I see him too. He’s struggling and knows the person trying to kill him.

  Una yanks her hand away from mine as she stands up, “I’d rather not talk about this.”