Dark Moonlight: Lunar Rising

by N. M. Williams

  “Come on,” Roxy said as she took Skye’s hand. “Let’s grab our duffle bags and head back to your house. They’re turning the stadium lights off already.”

  Skye let out a slight chuckle. “You’re right. It’s going to be a great night just like it always is.”

  The girls picked up their belongings and started to make their way to Skye’s house. She checked her phone one last time, only to see the same thing: no notifications of any kind from Jason.

  Roxy and Skye were three blocks away from Skye’s house when they heard a loud howl. Skye and Roxy looked at each other, slightly confused. Coyotes were known to live in Vermont, but hearing them was rare; especially if you do not live near a wood line.

  “Let’s just get home,” Skye said as she and Roxy picked up pace. It was a full moon, making the animals more active tonight.

  Skye opened her front door. The howling was still going strong, but the girls were now inside safe and sound.

  “How funny would it be if that were a werewolf?” Skye joked as she dropped her duffle bag in her bedroom. “I mean, it is a full moon and all.”

  “Oh yeah, because that’s all we would need,” Roxy laughed back, as she began to undo her hair.

  Skye and Roxy changed into their pajamas and made their way downstairs for their movie night. Skye felt it would be best to just leave her phone in her bedroom. If Jason had not tried to talk to her now, he was not going to talk to her the rest of the night. Right now, that was the least of Skye’s concerns.

  Chapter 16

  Skye had not heard from Jason since school on Friday. Part of her was worried something had happened to him. The other part did not seem to care so much. He ignored her on one of the most important nights of her life. Sure, she did not win the crown, but being on homecoming court was still a big deal to Skye.

  Skye and Roxy grabbed their books from their lockers and made their way to anatomy.

  “I know you’re upset over Jason, but he is in this class. Maybe he’ll have an explanation?”

  “I don’t even care. He can tell me all he wants. He didn’t talk to me at all Saturday or Sunday so why should today be any different?” Skye said rounding the bend to their room. If she was upset she would not show it. Skye never let her real feelings be known to the world. She was too proud.

  “I guess you’re right,” Roxy replied as they took their seats in anatomy.

  Jason walked in the room as the late bell was ringing. He looked at Skye and smiled. Skye just looked at him. Her eyes did not show any kind of forgiveness. She just looked cold.

  “I have graded your bone test and I must say I am impressed!” Mr. Valentine beamed as he began to hand out the exams.

  “Hey, so sorry about this weekend,” Jason began, hoping Skye would at least look at him. She did not.

  Jason continued, “I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you and I’m sorry I wasn’t at the game. I heard you didn’t win, but being on court is an amazing accomplishment, too.”

  Mr. Valentine handed Skye back her exam. She passed the exam with flying colors.

  “Rox, I got a 100%! I’m sure you did, too if I did!”

  Jason sat there dumbfounded. Skye was not giving him any kind of attention. She was hurt. Instead of telling him how she felt she just thought it best to ignore him, like he did her.

  Mr. Valentine handed Roxy her exam back.

  “100% for me, too!”

  Roxy looked over at Jason, “What about you?”

  “95%, I messed up the skull.”

  Mr. Valentine finished handing out the exams and went up to his podium to begin the next lesson. “Since you all did very well on the skeletal system, it’s time we move on to the muscular system.”

  Skye, Roxy, along with the rest of the class, opened their notebooks to begin taking notes. Just like the skeletal system, it will be a lot of memorizing. It made Skye a little happy, though. Memorizing things about the human body means she gets to break out her colorful markers and pens again to label the different muscles.

  Skye felt her phone vibrate. She looked down to see she had a text from Jason.

  Jason: Will you please talk to me?

  `Instead of pulling out her phone and replying like she always does, she ignored it and continued with her notes. If Jason was going to make anything up to her he was going to have to try harder than that.

  Chapter 17

  Mr. Valentine had finished his PowerPoint presentation of the muscular system as the dismissal bell rang. Skye packed up her notebook with hopes Roxy would move along, too, so Jason would not have a chance to try to talk to her.

  Skye was almost out the door when she felt a hand on her shoulder pull her over to the wall.

  “Skye will you please listen to me?” Jason pleaded.

  Skye just continued to look at him with her stone-cold eyes.

  “Alright, don’t talk that’s fine, but look, about Friday,” Jason rolled up his hoodie sleeves to show Skye the scratch marks he had down his arms. Skye’s emotion changed as she saw them.

  “Jason, what? How? What?” Skye couldn’t seem to make words.

  Jason’s arms had scratch marks that looked like claw marks. They were deep and still red.

  “I was attacked Friday night before the game. I didn’t have my phone. I didn’t have any way to contact you.”

  “What happened?” Skye asked, concerned now for Jason.

  “It’s a long story but I really can’t tell you. At least not here. It’s something we need to talk about without other people around.”

  “Okay, sure. Why not just text me what happened? No one can hear our conversation then.”

  “No. I need to tell you in person. Just please know that the last thing I wanted to do was miss homecoming night. I know how much that meant to you.”

  Skye understood. “We need to get to class.”

  The late bell began to ring. Skye left Jason standing there as she made her way to Spanish. Hopefully Roxy grabbed my book for me.

  Skye made it to her Spanish class as the late bell finished ringing. She sat at her desk next to Roxy and waited for Señora Velasquez to begin.

  “Did you talk to Jason?” Roxy whispered over to Skye while Señora Velasquez wrote on the board.

  “I did. I forgive him.”

  Roxy looked relieved. She knew Skye would not be mad at Jason forever. As much as she hated to admit it, they did make a cute couple.

  The remainder of the school day went as normal as ever. The only thing on Skye’s mind was what happened to her boyfriend. Only an animal could have made marks like that. Without a wood line near by it would be odd for a bear or a coyote to wander into their area.

  Skye: Are you sure you’re alright? Did you get your scratches checked by a doctor?

  Jason: I’m fine, really. It looks worse than it feels.

  Skye: What attacked you?

  Jason: Skye we really aren’t going to talk about this right now. I promise I’ll tell you the story when it’s time. Right now isn’t it.

  Skye was too irritated to reply. She wanted answers and she wanted them now. What is he hiding from me?

  It was a nice fifty three degree, sunny day after school so Roxy and Skye decided to walk back to Roxy’s house to work on their statistics homework.

  “Rox, you should’ve seen his arms. They almost looked mutilated!”

  “Skye I think you’re overreacting. He may have just been attacked by a neighbor’s dog.”

  Skye stopped walking. Roxy stopped to look at her. Skye had this look of concern on her face, trying to picture one of the community’s dogs doing something like that.

  “I don’t know, Rox, I just don’t know. I don’t know what animal could have been strong enough to do something like that. It’s not like Jason’s a scrawny guy. He would’ve put up a fight or at least held the dog down, if that’s what it was that attacked him.”

  The girls started walking again. They were three blocks away from Roxy’s house.

&n
bsp; “I just wish he would tell me what happened.”

  “He will, Skye,” Roxy said as she opened the front door.

  Roxy could see the look of pain in Skye’s eyes. She may be good at fooling everyone else about how she feels, but she cannot fool Roxy.

  “Look, he really likes you. I’m sure there’s a good reason as to why he hasn’t told you yet. He’ll come around.”

  Roxy gave her friend a hug and the two of them plopped their backpacks down at the dining room table.

  Skye has not heard from Jason since they left school. If he wanted to get a hold of her then he will. She was not about to chase after a guy. Besides, she was hungry. The only important thing on her mind was what Diana was making for dinner.

  Chapter 18

  Jason has been acting very different the last couple weeks. He would text Skye for a day and then disappear again altogether. He would be social in class one day and not talk to anyone the next. It was almost as if he was two different people sharing the same body.

  Skye began to notice these changes in him almost immediately after their talk the Monday after homecoming. He apologized for not being there, but his actions are sometimes showing otherwise. If this is what being in a relationship was like, Skye wanted none of it.

  Roxy began to notice Jason’s behavior changes, too. She and Skye would often comment on them. When he was his normal self, or at least the normal Jason they have come to known, he was into Skye. He wanted everything to do with her. When he would become more anti-social, he blocked everyone out. He went to the last two football games and he played like normal. He would hit so hard that some of the kids could not play anymore that night. His football did not change. If anything, he has gotten better.

  It was now the Monday before senior night. It was the final week Skye would cheer on the sidelines at home. She was already having mixed emotions about it. On one hand, she was excited to have her parents on the field with her as she is introduced. On the other hand, it was their final home game. She knew that night would come, but did not expect it to arrive so quickly. Not to mention, the last important night of her life Jason did not even show up or talk to her. He is a senior, too, so he does not have much of a choice but to be there.

  Skye laid on her bed looking up at her white ceiling. She had just gotten home from school and all her thoughts about senior night were staying in her head. Instead of going back to Roxy’s that evening, she just wanted to be alone.

  Everything between Jason and school were causing her to stress. She needed a me-day. Skye thought it best to leave her phone on her bed and go draw up a bath. She picked out a pumpkin spice Victoria’s Secret PINK bath bomb. She felt it appropriate being that it was coming up on Halloween weekend.

  She grabbed her pink, plush robe and fuzzy slippers and made her way into the bathroom. She started the water and plopped her bath bomb right under the faucet. You could see the water begin to turn a sunset shade of orange, and the bathroom was smelling amazing. She pulled her hair up into a loose bun, turned the water off, and sunk right in.

  The warm water on her skin made her feel relaxed. It has been a while since she has had a day to just do nothing and get her head back. Her parents were out to dinner with friends, so she had the house to herself for a while. She laid there listening to the wind blowing outside. She was even more thankful she was in a hot bath and not out in the chilly fall air.

  Peace. That was all Skye felt for. She was at peace for the first time in weeks.

  She stayed in the tub until the water began to cool. She stood up, pulled the drain, and began to dry herself off. The bathroom felt chilly compared to the warm water she was in. She was thankful that she grabbed her robe.

  She made her way back to her bedroom and checked her phone for any missed notifications. She had a couple texts from Maddie and Krista, a SnapChat from Roxy, and a voicemail from Jason. What does he want now?

  Skye opened up her voicemail to listen.

  “Skye, it’s me. Look, I know I’ve been acting strange. I know you’re not stupid and I’m sure you’ve figured it out. It’s part of what I need to tell you. I can’t tell you just yet, you have to believe me. Just know that you aren’t doing anything and that it’s something I need to figure out. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

  Well, at least he knows how stupid he’s being. Skye replied to her texts from Maddie and Krista and replied to Roxy’s SnapChat. It was just another normal night for her.

  Skye was laying on her bed listening to music when she heard the front door open. Her parents were walking in from their dinner. Cathy came up to Skye’s room to let her know they were home.

  “How was it?”

  “It was nice. We brought you back some chocolate lava cake.”

  Skye’s face beamed when her mom told her that. Chocolate lava cake was her favorite dessert.

  “You’re the best! I’ll have it for breakfast tomorrow.”

  Cathy left Skye in her room and headed back downstairs. Not even a minute later Skye’s phone began to ring. She looked at it and saw Roxy FaceTiming her.

  “Hey Rox, what’s up?”

  “So I know this is going to sound strange,” Roxy was hiding either under a blanket or all the lights were off. It was hard to see her other than what the phone light was showing, “but I swear I saw a werewolf outside my room.”

  “Roxy, a werewolf? Really? It was probably just some kid in a costume. This Saturday is Halloween. Besides, it’s not even a full moon until Friday,” Skye said as she laughed.

  “I’m serious, Skye! If it was a costume it was a pretty good one!”

  Skye sat there fighting back laughs looking at her friend. Halloween always spooks Roxy out so this is nothing new for them. Every year she sees something or someone outside her window. Last year she was convinced vampires were real. She needs to stop watching Fear Fest.

  “You’re alright, Rox. And if I see a werewolf I’ll be sure to shoot him with a silver bullet for you. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

  Skye ended the FaceTime call. She could not help herself but laugh a little. How odd though for homecoming and senior night to both be around a full moons this year. Well, the true full moon is Monday, but still.

  Skye turned out her light and climbed into bed. She still had school the rest of the week so she needed to make sure she got plenty of rest.

  Chapter 19

  All week the school has done nothing but recognize seniors. The game was not until tomorrow, but Skye could not help but feel appreciative. She was being congratulated by underclassman as she walked through the halls. It was nice to hear their kind words.

  Skye was getting ready to leave school for the day when she ran into Jason outside the main entrance.

  “I was waiting for you.”

  “I can see that. What’s up?”

  “I was wondering if you would like to go out on Saturday? We could go grab a bite to eat. I hear Olive Garden is your favorite restaurant. We can go there if you want.”

  Jason felt a little uneasy. He and Skye were still officially a couple, but he knew his behavior the last few weeks has not been up to Skye’s standards.

  “Yeah, that would be nice. You can pick me up around six.”

  Jason and Skye smiled at each other, telling them that they were okay after all.

  “Yeah, so Saturday,” Jason said with a slight chuckle. “I’m looking forward to it.”

  Skye met up with Roxy and they both began to walk home.

  “I have a date with Jason on Saturday,” Skye said smiling to herself.

  “That’s good. So you two are okay then?”

  “Yeah, we are.”

  Skye walked in silence thinking about Jason. He still had not told her what happened to him that night. She wanted answers and was hoping to have them on Saturday.

  They arrived at Skye’s house as the rain began to pour. They threw their backpacks on the floor in the dining room and began to look for food.

  “We have
pasta, roast, and it looks like BBQ chicken. Anything sounding good to you? It’s leftover night,” Skye yelled from the refrigerator.

  “Pasta sounds good, Skye,” Roxy yelled back from the living room.

  Skye heated up the leftover pasta for them to eat before beginning their psychology homework.

  “I think it’s rather rude of Ms. Brandy to have us review an article and do a paper on it the day before senior night. Doesn’t she know what that means to us?” Skye asked, slightly irritated at the thought of their assignment.

  “Well, better to have it be due tomorrow and not Monday. We have all weekend to hang out and do nothing but relax.”

  “Yeah, okay, that’s a good point.”

  The girls sat at the table eating their dinner and reading the article Ms. Brandy assigned to them. It was all about how your parents traits and interests are also passed down to their offspring and why children share similar interests in their parents. The article itself was interesting, but that did not mean Skye wanted to write about it.

  It was ten o’clock by the time they had finished their papers. Roxy decided to just spend the night at Skye’s. Her whole werewolf kick still has her spooked from the other night. Walking back to her house in the dark was a no-go.

  Skye turned off her bedroom light as she and Roxy laid down for bed. Tomorrow was senior night. Tomorrow was their last home game as a cheerleader. Tomorrow was going to have a lot of mixed emotions.

  Chapter 20

  It was officially senior night! Skye was sitting in her English class waiting for Mr. Vance to announce the cheerleaders, football players, and marching band members to report to the gymnasium for the pep rally.

  It was the last pep rally Skye would ever attend. It was the last pep rally Skye would ever cheer at. She was already beginning to tear up but refused to cry in front of the whole school. She was going to make the most of it and take in every sight, every smell, every sound, every detail that she could.