by Zoe Knights
“You heard me,” Simon didn’t step back, but this time his tone was uncertain. “You’re the Antichrist. Your mother’s a whore. And your father-”
But, his words were cut off in his throat for the moment that followed was one Eddie would repeat in her mind over and over that night. As… for the briefest second… she was almost certain Sam’s chocolate brown eyes had shone a dark, yet fiery rouge.
It must have been the light, she’d tell herself. And perhaps frostbite in her brain.
Simon seemed to be unsure of what he’d just seen too, and he stilled, staring at Sam with slight unease and the silent air around them prickled. “You have no idea what you’re talking about…” Sam said very quietly, his soft voice coated with warning. He stepped right into Simon’s personal space, eyes so dark they were almost black. “So shut your ugly, fat lipped mouth before I do it for you,” he spat the words with such venom even Eddie thought she felt them.
Simon briefly glanced at Linh and his friends before turning back to Sam. “Get out of my face,” he hissed at him, seeming to get some sort of resolve or courage from his entourage.
Sam smiled slowly as though this was exactly what he wanted him to say. “Make me,” he offered himself up on a silver platter, and Eddie’s eyes widened at how this had escalated.
Without further hesitation, Simon went to shove Sam violently out of his way, and Eddie’s heart jutted in her chest. But, before she had the chance to blink, Sam shifted with ease, moving out of the way of Simon’s blow like he’d already seen it coming and Simon stumbled forward.
Sam chuckled darkly, and Simon growled in anger, turning round to punch him. But Sam dodged it again, ducking under his arm to be behind him once more.
“So this is how the Antichrist fights?” hissed Simon furiously while Eddie had to stifle a sudden urge to laugh at his fumbling. “You’re a coward. Like father like-”
Sam did not hesitate. He did not waste breath. His fist flew through the air, hitting Simon directly in the chest and everyone surrounding the fray heard the breath get knocked from the larger boy’s lungs as suddenly… he was flying backward and tumbling to the ground in a heap.
Eddie stared from his wheezing form to Sam who looked almost as surprised as she felt. He looked at his fist, then down to the boy on the ground. He composed himself quickly before anyone else noticed his own shock at the outcome of his punch.
Then, he turned swiftly, walking away from the group with heavy strides. His eyes caught Eddie’s just briefly before he passed and Eddie stared after his retreating back.
It wasn’t until Quinn was grasping her sleeve and dragging her away that Eddie remembered there was anyone else around. Murmurs flew around the small faith group while Linh was helping Simon up, whispering in his ear.
“Come on,” Quinn muttered. “Let’s go…”
Eddie followed her away, but her brow was furrowed with thought.
“That was really low of Simon,” Quinn said quietly. “I mean, I’m no fan of Sam’s, but… I heard his mum died when he was born.”
“What?” Eddie whispered in shock.
Quinn glanced around before answering. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “And… his dad… no one really knows much about him. But, he certainly doesn’t take care of him, that’s for sure. He stays here over the holidays, and I’ve heard he goes to foster care for summer.”
“That’s… awful…” Eddie murmured, her brow pinching. “I can’t believe they call themselves Christians and go around behaving like that.”
“It’s mostly Simon… he’s just an asshole,” sighed Quinn. “Too zealous for his own good.”
Eddie nodded vaguely. “Hey um… can I catch up with you? I haven’t actually… thanked Sam for what he did at the Fresher’s party.”
Quinn raised her eyebrows. “You sure? I doubt he’d be in a good mood after that…”
Eddie inclined her head. “Maybe, but… I just think I should.”
“Alright…” Quinn agreed, though she still sounded uncertain. “See you in the courtyard, yeah?”
Eddie nodded in agreement, “See you there,” she said before she hurried off in the direction she’d seen Sam disappear.
He was walking around the side of the castle by this stage, a cigarette between his lips as he lit it with a hand covering the flame from his silver lighter.
“Hey,” Eddie said from behind him. He didn’t stop, just glanced back to look at her before turning away, a puff of smoking exhaling from his nostrils.
“So I see you survived your hypothermia,” he quipped, and Eddie had to jog to catch up with him.
She frowned when he didn’t look at her and merely kept smoking as they walked. He looked nice, wearing dark jeans and a fitted grey and white jacket with a bright purple knit shirt beneath. Eddie had noticed when he wore free-dress, he had impeccable style and always added a splash of bright colour. Not everyone could pull it off so effortlessly as he did. If he weren’t smoking Eddie nearly would have admitted to finding him attractive.
“Simon was being a real jerk back there,” she said quietly. “Does he do that a lot?”
Sam exhaled a long, slow plume of smoke. “He’s not worth your breath…” he stated bluntly. “Is that really why you followed me?”
Eddie blushed, biting her tongue. “No,” she sighed. “I wanted to say thank you. For the other night. You… got to me awfully fast.”
Sam must have heard the lingering question behind her last words, but he chose to ignore them. “Are you here to offer me some kind of reward for my chivalrous behaviour?” he quipped with a lewd grin, his dark brown eyes taunting her as he took another drag.
Eddie narrowed her eyes immediately. “Oh. That’s why you did it, is it?” she snipped. “Thought I might reconsider your offer?”
Sam looked at her with an annoying smirk. “Well, of course,” he said. “You’re far too cute to just let drown. And all the other idiots were floundering around taking their shoes off. They were going to take too long.”
Eddie continued to glare at him, beating smoke out of her face with her hand. “I saw you by the woods,” she said bluntly. “And I saw your insanely huge dog again.”
Sam frowned, looking at her as though he was concerned. “Popping pills along with the alcohol were we?” he asked her.
Eddie grit her teeth. “No one saw you at the party, Sam. Where were you if you weren’t where I saw?” she demanded.
“Snogging, of course,” crooned Sam immediately. “In private, behind the tree near the jetty.”
Eddie stared in surprise at his quick answer. “With who?” she continued to question.
Sam gave her a disapproving shake of the head. “Come now, Eden,” he said between a puff of his cigarette. “I’m not one to kiss and tell.”
Eddie just looked at him flatly. “I’m not trying to get you in trouble,” she told him after a moment. “Not that I could, seeing as apparently, you can do whatever the hell you want,” Sam chuckled at this, but Eddie continued. “I wouldn’t tell anyone, is all,” she said simply. “I just… well, I want to make sure I’m not… going crazy.”
Sam sighed slightly, observing her with guarded eyes before he dropped his cigarette to the ground and crushed it with his shoe. “I’d say you just had a few drinks and the darkness played tricks with your eyes,” he said dully. “There’s nothing more to it than that. Now,” he looked her up and down. “You should go back to the castle. You’re not… built for this weather. You’ll freeze your little nose off.”
Eddie’s glare was back. “I’m quite alright, thank you very much. And fine – don’t tell me,” she snapped at him. “I’ll just figure it out myself.”
She went to turn away, but Sam caught her by the arm.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he told her very quietly, and a small thrill shot down Eddie’s spine.
She ignored it, turning her head back to look pointedly from his grip to his face.
He let her go.
“I don’t like being told what I should or shouldn’t do,” she said to him tersely.
Sam raised his eyebrows at her. “We have that in common,” he said quietly. “I’m not telling you to do anything. I’m offering you advice.”
Eddie narrowed her eyes. “You think I want advice from the boy who thinks he’s so hard-core he rolls cigarettes in class just because he can?”
Sam chuckled darkly. “Just because he can are the most important words you said there. Would you not want to take advice from one who can get away with what he likes?”
Eddie shook her head in irritation. “Something else that seriously bothers me,” she told him bluntly. “I’ll get to the bottom of your… youness. Just you wait.”
Sam gave her a strange look, “Right well… you have fun with that. Do tell me what you find – I could use something to laugh at.”
Eddie clenched her jaw, her green eyes narrowing.
“Oh, but in case you’re getting your hopes up,” Sam continued in that same infuriatingly condescending voice. “I don’t want to drink your blood. And the full moon doesn’t bother me either.”
Eddie felt a furious bristle of anger course through her at his tone. “I’m more expecting to find several definitions of ‘asshole’ that fit you actually,” she snapped vehemently before swinging around abruptly, one of her thick curls nearly flicking him in the face as she strode away.
God’s Sense of Humour
6
Eddie remained annoyed with Sam, but she could not stop her mind from lingering over the strange things she kept seeing around him. The mysterious dog… which sounded ridiculous even to say. The way he’d hit Simon… seemingly surprised by his own strength. And his eyes in that moment… not to mention his absurd influence over the entire teaching staff.
She shook her head abruptly, clearing it of such thoughts and instead focused on her emails. She opened the newest one from her mother, but a frown stole her brow at a few small comments. She tried not to read into them, but her heart pounded a little heavier.
Hi Mum,
What are you talking about? Toast is real food.
No Mum. Of course, I’m eating other things. Sometimes I have honey instead of jam.
Classes are fine – the kids are different here – they talk to the teachers differently. More respect I think. Or maybe that’s just because it’s a ‘fancy school’.
Why did you stop your art class? I thought you were loving it?
Seriously though – I eat loads. They have everything from roasts to curries.
Love you
Eddie
Eddie sent off her email to her mother when she was happy it sounded perfectly normal. She then hurried on to her brother’s email.
Alex,
Is mum still using her schedule? You know how important that is. She said she stopped her art class and she sounds…low. Did the doctor change her medication??
I’m sure I’m overreacting but please just reassure me anyway.
In answer to your questions: the ‘Antichrist’s’ name is Samael. But, I’m starting to feel a little bad for saying that. This religious group at school calls him that and… they’re not very nice. I don’t like to be a part of it. Though, Sam is still seriously weird. It seems all he has to do is turn those puppy dog brown eyes on someone, and they’re putty in his hands. You should see it in action – I’m thinking mind control. Maybe hypnotism.
The work is fine, really not much different in layout to home. And there’s plenty of time to study because it’s too cold to do anything outside.
Oh, and did I mention Sam is in nearly all of my classes? I have to sit next to him in history and tomorrow we have a social studies excursion to interview a bunch of shop owners. And guess who my partner is? Honestly – if there were a God I’d feel like He is just toying with me. That or the teachers have a sick sense of humour.
I’ll fill you in on how it goes. Please get back to me about Mum ASAP.
Love,
Eddie
Eddie sat back in her chair, minimising her email tab to open her study plan for the semester, trying to ignore her over-anxious heart.
“You know, you’re a weirdly organised person for someone who is late all the time,” Quinn said from beside her as she also worked at their desk in their room.
Eddie snorted. “Well I have to be otherwise I’d drown,” she said seriously. “I actually really don’t like school work.”
Quinn raised an eyebrow. “And here I thought you must have got a scholarship or something. Guess not.”
Eddie blanched, glancing at Quinn guiltily.
“Oh my God you did, didn’t you?!”
Eddie sighed. “Yeah…”
“I knew that minimalist shit was garbage,” Quinn laughed. “Why’d you lie about it? That’s something to actually legit be proud of.”
Eddie shook her head. “I’m already the ‘poor girl’ and the ‘new girl’… I just didn’t want more labels on me…”
Quinn inclined her head. “I get that,” she nodded in understanding. “But then… if you hate school work how the hell did you get the scholarship?”
“Well… that took a lot of work,” Eddie sighed. “And discipline…”
Quinn frowned curiously. “What do you want to do after school then?” she asked. “If you had enough motivation to study like that?”
Eddie hesitated, frowning slightly. “I… actually don’t know,” she said quietly. “Something I enjoy is writing, but… that’s not reliable. I’m doing this to keep my options open.”
Quinn seemed sceptical. “Getting a scholarship to this school on just wanting to ‘keep your options open’?” she said in disbelief.
Eddie met her gaze, feeling a little nervous. “Well…” she said slowly, before sighing slightly. “Fine,” she admitted. “It’s for my brother.”
“Huh?” Quinn seemed even more confused. “Why in the hell-”
“My brother was the one who has always been there for me,” she cut in. “Especially when it seemed my parents couldn’t…” she shook her head. “He really wanted this for me and pushed me to get here. It means a lot to him. So I’ll do this.”
Quinn’s brow furrowed, but to Eddie’s relief, she did not push the subject. “Well,” she said quietly, “don’t forget about your own dreams too…”
Eddie smiled slightly. “You sound like my mum,” she said. “But,” she added with a sigh. “As romantic as the starving artist life sounds – in reality, when you have to ask for your twelve-year-old’s pocket money back just to put food on the table – the stable job starts to look pretty bloody good,” she mumbled wearily. “And seeing as I’m good at school when I put my effort into it… logic dictates…” she pointed to the school books beside her old laptop. “That I study my ass off.”
Quinn smiled a little sadly. “Well I envy your discipline,” she offered meekly. “I’ve been reading fan-fiction this whole time you’ve been studying.”
Eddie laughed. “Ugh, don’t tempt me…” she moaned, and instead opened up her history assignment.
Quinn chuckled, but she let her keep working while she returned to reading.
Goodbye, Old life
7
The next morning, a light, but steady downpour of rain gently pattered the cobbled road when Eddie stepped out of the school bus, grey water running down the gutter between the road and the path. She hurried to the cover of the closest little shop and waited for Sam to get off. He was last, which wasn’t a surprise, and he loped off the bus, not concerned about the water, letting it soak his dark and wavy locks, dripping rather nicely down his golden skin.
Eddie cast that thought aside. “Hi,” she said stiffly, while subconsciously straightening her woollen blue knit school jumper.
Sam smiled charmingly, that edge of arrogance present as usual. “Don’t sound so disheartened, Eden,” he quipped lightly, his dark brown eyes glinting. “Clearly the universe wants us together. You should stop denying it.�
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Eddie rolled her eyes to the sky. “Apparently,” she sighed. “So I take it this is where you leave me to do all the work, and you’re going to ‘sod off’ and mess around with the next shiny human you like the look of?”
Sam laughed this time. “Well, that’s cute. You’ve noticed my hobbies.”
Eddie narrowed her eyes. “You have problems,” she told him starkly. “Go away, then. I’ve got a list of store owners to interview.”
Sam snorted, following her as she began to walk briskly away. “Actually, I’ve nothing better to do today. So lead on, sweet Eden.”
Eddie felt a vein twitch in her neck. “Don’t call me that,” she said waspishly, looking down at her questionnaire. “Right… well, I think we should start-”
“Oh, you are such a killjoy. Always straight to the work.”
Eddie gave him a look. “We’re on a school excursion to do work! What else are you expecting?!”
Sam raised his eyebrows at her. “Not everything is about work you know. Do you even know how to have fun?”
Eddie spluttered in indignation. “Yes!” she hissed feeling a competitive surge of anger. “I can have a lot of fun actually!”
“Really,” Sam said flatly. “The rule-abiding poor girl who only cares about her studies. Just saying that sentence nearly put me to sleep.”
Eddie narrowed her eyes, “You just wouldn’t understand the type of real fun a person can have.”
“Oh really?” Sam was amused this time, but his tone was disbelieving. “I’m afraid I just can’t imagine it.”
Eddie was ready to burst with the irritation welling inside her. Her sharp green eyes caught sight of a small and dingy looking costume shop across the street, and an idea sprung to mind. “You probably aren’t up to it,” she taunted.
Sam laughed almost darkly. “I think you’ll find I’m up for more than your average human.”
“That so?” quipped Eddie slyly. “Accept a dare from me then?”
Sam’s eyebrows went up his forehead slowly, and he glanced at her. “Fine. I can’t imagine you could come up with anything I’d be concerned about.”