Moonlight Rising

by Linski, Megan

  I couldn’t argue with that. While the school didn’t have the best reputation when it came to food, they did serve pretty great pizza.

  But that didn’t mean I wanted to eat it next to Camden. The guy freaked me out.

  I couldn’t meet his eyes as I approached our table with my tray in hand. Instead of sitting in my usual seat in the middle, I took the spot on the end. Lisa glanced at me in question but sat on my right side without a word.

  “So, Camden’s going to be on the basketball team this year,” Briana announced, leaning into him slightly.

  The girl tried too hard.

  I kept my gaze on my pizza and cut it into small squares with my fork, but I caught Camden throw Briana a nervous glance.

  “I said I’d try out,” he clarified. “I wasn’t on my old school’s team last year, so I may not make the team this year.”

  “Oh, don’t worry. Our school is so small everyone gets on the team,” Briana told him. “Besides, you’re really tall, so you must be good.”

  “That doesn’t mean anything,” I heard myself say.

  Wow. Where did that come from? Did I really doubt this guy’s athletic ability? Though, maybe he’d traded his soul for his supposed basketball talent and good looks. As far as I knew, demons couldn’t actually make deals like that, but a shiver ran down my spine when I considered it as a very real possibility.

  “She’s right. Height has nothing to do with it.”

  I was so surprised to hear Camden agree with me that I looked up for the first time.

  He stared at me with a smirk on his face. Briana’s jaw dropped in shock like she couldn’t believe this conversation was taking place.

  “Talent comes with hard work and dedication,” Camden said. He shot a sideways glance at Briana, but that smirk on his face remained. It was like he was inviting me to take a stab at her.

  I couldn’t resist. “Yeah, Briana. I’m sure you weren’t born with a natural talent for flirting, yet here you are.”

  Her jaw dropped even further. “I am not a flirt.”

  “Keep telling yourself that,” Austin joked from next to Camden.

  Briana rolled her eyes, and Lisa laughed from beside me.

  I caught one more glance at Camden. He ignored his uneaten food and didn’t even pretend he wasn’t looking at me.

  Briana must have noticed, too. “She’s weird with food,” she explained, glancing at the fork in my hand.

  Except I didn’t think Camden was looking at me because I ate pizza with a fork. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but the weight of his stare sent an odd sensation to settle in my gut.

  Briana approached me at my locker after lunch. “Why were you so rude at lunch today?”

  I clicked my locker shut and fell into step beside her. “I didn’t mean it. You know I was only poking fun of you.”

  “I didn’t mean about me. Everyone knows I’m a flirt. But why were you so rude to Camden?”

  “I—” I paused. I didn’t think I’d been that rude. He, at least, didn’t seem to mind.

  “It’s not just what you said,” Briana complained. “It’s what you didn’t say.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Briana dodged around a couple that had stopped in the middle of the hall. “Well, you didn’t even welcome him to the school or anything, and you hardly talked all lunch. It’s like you were avoiding him or something.”

  I couldn’t exactly avoid him when we sat at the same table, I thought, but I didn’t tell her this.

  “I didn’t know I was obligated to do any of that,” I said instead.

  “I wouldn’t say obligated, but do you, like, not like him or something?” She slowed her pace outside our fifth period classroom and turned to stare at me.

  Why does she even care? I wondered. Probably because she thinks she’s going to date him, another voice answered.

  “He’s fine,” I lied. “It’s just—”

  What was I supposed to say? It’s not like Briana knew I could see auras or would believe me if I told her Camden didn’t have one.

  “Just what?” she asked.

  I settled on the easiest explanation. “I just…don’t know him yet. You know I’m not good with strangers.”

  She nodded slowly like she didn’t buy it. “Just try to get along, okay?”

  “Yeah, sure,” I agreed before following her into the math room.

  I groaned internally when I spotted Camden in the front row. Briana slid into a seat beside him, and I knew I had no choice but to join her. I took the chair behind her, all the while dreading the sickening feeling in my stomach that told me I was going to have to get along with Camden whether I liked it or not.

  I was relieved to find I didn’t have any more classes with Camden the rest of the day. As much as I wanted to forget about the guy and put him out of my mind, I couldn’t. He was so strange, almost in an intriguing way that made me want to investigate.

  He’s probably dangerous, I told myself. And that was exactly why I shouldn’t investigate. Just because I could see auras didn’t mean I had a responsibility to somehow fix them. I slammed my locker at the end of the day, set on this decision, but when I turned around, I found myself face-to-face with icy blue eyes.

  “Holy hell!” I took a step back to keep from ramming into him for a second time.

  Camden smiled down at me. “Hi, Katie.”

  “Um, hi.” I dropped my head and stepped around him, following the flow of traffic to the front doors of the school. How did he know my name? Had I mentioned it earlier? I couldn’t remember.

  “What are you up to after school?” Camden paced beside me.

  “I’m, uh, going home,” I told him shyly.

  “Oh? So you’re not busy?”

  “Actually, I planned to work on some homework,” I lied.

  “Homework on the first day of school?”

  “Yeah. In history.”

  We stepped out into the bright sun. A warm breeze touched my skin. The auras I spotted from students around me seemed to glow brighter in the pleasant weather.

  “Well, that can’t take you all night. Do you want to hang out?”

  I whirled around so fast that Camden nearly ran into me. “What?” I bit the word sharper than I intended.

  “I asked if you wanted to hang out.”

  “Wh—but—” I stammered, taking a step back to distance myself from him. His lack of aura freaked me out enough as it was. The invitation to hang out only made him seem creepier than I initially thought. “Why?”

  Camden shrugged. “You seem cool.”

  I blinked rapidly in surprise. “I’m not.”

  Camden laughed like he thought I was kidding. I wasn’t.

  “Really,” I stated confidently, “I’m busy tonight. Maybe some other time.”

  He nodded slowly. “Okay.”

  “Yeah…um…I’ll see you.” I quickly rushed off toward my car and locked myself inside before I ever heard a response. I sat in the junker for a good five minutes. By the time I caught my breath and raised my head, nearly the whole parking lot was clear. I took a deep breath and shifted into drive, trying to shake off the strange encounter the whole ride home.

  Chapter Three

  I hadn’t lied about having history homework, but it wasn’t due until the end of the week, and I really didn’t feel like working on it now. Instead, I spread out a blanket in the back yard and read a book. I couldn’t get past the part where the vampire asked the new girl at school out. It felt too much like what had happened earlier with Camden. Sure, he was the one who was new at school, and I was pretty sure he wasn’t a vampire, but it had me second guessing the whole thing.

  I closed my eyes and rolled onto my back. The sun glowed brightly above me, warming my exposed skin. Maybe Camden is a vampire, I thought. It wasn’t like I believed in vampires, but it could explain why he didn’t have an aura with the whole soulless and undead thing. And it made more plausible sense that he wanted to hang out so he could murd
er me for my blood rather than actually being interested in my company.

  If not a vampire, then what?

  Almost instantly, another thought entered my mind, but I quickly pushed it away. I thought I was past the days of thinking I saw demons wherever I went.

  Don’t be stupid, Katie, I told myself.

  The hum of my father’s engine pulling into the driveway brought me back to the present. I sighed and stood, gathering my book and blanket from the grass.

  “How was your first day of school?” he asked when I entered the kitchen from the back door. The fridge buzzed when he opened it to deposit the gallon of milk he’d picked up on his way home. I smiled at the sight of his yellow aura.

  I shrugged. “Same old, same old. How was work?”

  He shrugged. “Same old, same old. Did you make dinner yet?”

  I shook my head and placed my book on the table. I tossed my blanket by the back door since I figured I’d probably use it again tomorrow. I wanted to enjoy as much of the warm weather as I could before autumn hit.

  “I can start on it, though,” I offered.

  “Do you want any help?” he asked.

  I laughed. “No, it’s fine. I know cooking isn’t your thing.”

  His face fell. “I know. I just thought—”

  “You can sit at the table and keep me entertained.” I smiled. “Or set the table.”

  He nodded and reached into the cupboard for three plates. He still always set out a place for Mom like he thought she might walk through the door and join us for dinner. I didn’t pretend to understand it.

  I scoured the cupboards for lasagna ingredients, feeling slightly bad about denying his help again. When Mom died, I quickly learned that Dad was a terrible cook, so I’d taken over a few years back. He seemed more than happy about it, and I rather enjoyed cooking.

  “So, tell me more about your first day at school,” Dad said, taking a seat at the table.

  “There’s not much to say.” I stretched up to retrieve the lasagna pan from one of the cabinets. “We just went over the syllabus and stuff in every class. We get to choose our lab partners in science, so Briana and I are going to be together. There’s a new guy, Camden, but he’s kind of weird.”

  “Oh?” Dad raised his eyebrows. “Weird how?”

  I continued my way around the kitchen with my back to him. What could I say to that? I didn’t talk to my dad about auras, not anymore. Mom had been the one to teach me how to read them. Dad didn’t really care at the time, but after what happened to Mom, he was scared I’d get myself into trouble. It didn’t matter how many times I reminded him that what happened to her could happen to anyone, aura reader or not. He still didn’t like the thought of me following in Mom’s footsteps, so I practiced my gift in secret.

  I blinked away the tears that formed when my mom crossed my mind. In the reflection of the stove, I noticed my dad leaning forward, still waiting for an answer about Camden.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s just weird. He asked me out earlier.”

  “Hold up,” Dad laughed. “So the new guy asked you out, and your reaction is that it’s weird? Isn’t that a good thing?”

  I turned to him, a smirk on my face. “Do you want me to date?”

  “God, no. You’re not dating until you’re thirty.”

  I laughed and turned back to the lasagna noodles. “I don’t know. Just forget I said anything.”

  “Katie.” Dad’s voice was firm, getting me to look back at him. “This guy isn’t giving you trouble, is he?”

  “No, Dad. You know I’m just weird around strangers.”

  He nodded like it all made sense.

  After today, I wasn’t sure what made sense anymore.

  ***

  After dinner, I made my way upstairs to my bathroom and climbed into the tub. The hot water and lavender scent from my bubble bath helped soothe me. For the first time all day, I was able to put Camden from my mind.

  Unfortunately, he returned to my thoughts when I made it back to my bedroom. I sighed and tossed my wet towel on the bed. After slipping on my pajamas, I pulled open the top drawer of my dresser and dug out the candle and matches I kept there. Turning to the window, I opened it a crack so Dad wouldn’t smell the candle. I dropped to the floor cross-legged and lit the wick. Sucking in a deep breath, I channeled my energy into my chest and let it all out through the exhale. The tension in my shoulders eased with every breath.

  When I felt relaxed enough, I crawled to the edge of my bed and reached beneath it. My hand fell around a leather object. I pulled the spell book out from under the bed and hugged it to my chest. I hadn’t used it much since Mom died, but I still cherished it.

  My father’s footsteps creaked in the living room, pulling my attention away from the book. The sound of his bare feet against the hardwood floor faded under me until I heard the thud of his bedroom door shut. Even though I knew he wouldn’t bother me, I tiptoed over to my door and locked it. Just to be safe.

  Returning to my spot on the floor in front of the candle, I opened the spell book and paged through it. I flipped past at least a dozen spells and incantations Mom never got a chance to teach me—because I wasn’t ready, she’d said—before I found the one I was looking for.

  The protection spell was simple. All I had to do was write the name of the person I wanted to be protected from on a piece of paper and burn it while I spoke the incantation. My purse sat next to me, so I reached into it and pulled out a pen and a scrap receipt. I tore the receipt in half and then scrawled Camden’s name on it.

  For a moment, I simply stared down at the writing. I didn’t really need to do this. It’s not like Camden was a danger to me or anything. Yet I still couldn’t get past the strange feeling I got when I met him today. A lump formed in my throat when I thought about it.

  “Better to be safe than sorry,” I told myself in a whisper.

  Then I held out the paper to the flame and chanted the incantation under my breath. When the paper reduced to nothing but ash, a sense of confidence overcame me. I blew out the candle and placed my supplies back in their proper spots. I crawled into bed and stared up at the ceiling, feeling slightly guilty about using the spell book on one of my classmates.

  Chapter Four

  Over the next few days, it became clear to me that the protection spell worked. I kept my distance from Camden, and he didn’t try to talk to me either. He even went off campus for lunch with Austin, so I didn’t have to sit by him. Briana became frustrated with sitting in the front row for math because Mrs. Taylor always called on her, so we moved to the back while Camden stayed in the front. I counted it a blessing.

  All my efforts to avoid him appeared useless on Friday after school. When I shut my locker and turned to head to my car at the end of the day, I found Camden blocking my path. I instantly took a step back.

  “You have got to stop doing that,” I said a bit too harshly.

  “I’m sorry,” he said with a kind smile. For some reason, it made me want to hurl. I just couldn’t read the guy.

  I stepped around him, but I couldn’t seem to hurry out of the school fast enough. Students fled from the halls so quickly that there was no longer much of a crowd to hide myself in. I could sense the heat of Camden’s body next to mine, but his soul energy seemed non-existent.

  “I’m sorry,” he repeated. “I didn’t see Briana or Austin, so I was just wondering if you knew about their plans for tonight.”

  “Wh—what plans?” I stammered.

  Damn my friends. I should have realized they’d invite Camden to our fire tonight. Briana still had her dibs on him, and he and Austin had apparently become good friends. I couldn’t exactly skip out since it was our first fire of the school year, and we wouldn’t have many left before the weather got too cold. I’d just have to avoid Camden like usual. That couldn’t be too hard.

  “Austin said you guys have campfires every weekend at the lake?” It was more a question than a statement.

&
nbsp; “Yeah, we do,” I told him stupidly as we pushed through the doors into the sun.

  “I didn’t get the address. Do you have it?”

  I almost had the urge to tell him to ask someone else. Clearly, I wasn’t interested in being friends, and he could have easily texted Austin or Briana for it. But I didn’t want to be rude either.

  I squinted up at him, the sun nearly blinding me. “Um, if you just head out on Lake Drive, it’s the second house on the right past the bait shop. It’s the white one with blue shutters. You can’t miss it.”

  “Okay. Thanks,” he said. “I’ll see you tonight, then?”

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  Camden gave a slight wave and then turned to head to the parking lot. I decided to give him a minute so I wouldn’t have to walk beside him. As I stared after him, I thought I saw a glimpse of something.

  No, I told myself. I squinted harder, but he was too far away now. Yet I swore I saw some sort of dark aura around him, only it seemed off center. It must be my eyes playing tricks on me from the sun, I figured. But if it had been real, having a dark aura was better than having no aura at all, wasn’t it? As I headed to my car, I knew I didn’t have an answer to that.

  “How do I look?” Briana greeted me at the bottom of the stairs when I entered her house. She spun in a circle for show.

  “Isn’t it a little…short?” I didn’t know how else to break it to her.

  Briana smoothed down the pink mini dress. “When there are boys involved, nothing’s too short.” She eyed me up and down, scrutinizing my long jeans and zip-up hoodie.

  “You’re going to get cold,” I pointed out. I really wished she would change. I knew she wore the dress to get Camden’s attention, but I worried about her. I could only cast a protection spell for myself, but I still didn’t want her getting involved with someone who didn’t have a soul.

  “Relax,” she said. “I have plenty of clothes upstairs I can change into if I get cold.”