by Jaymin Eve
My parents had been a bit on the helicopter parenting side. Michael and Sara were the complete opposite. They believed in freedom, making your own mistakes and learning from them. Plus they seemed to trust me completely. I had no curfew. No rules at all, really. Just make good choices, as they always said to me. When they took off, they had promised to be back in time to drive me to school on Monday, but since it was Sunday evening and there was still no sign of them, I wasn’t holding out hope. I would be okay, though. I always was.
Except for the food situation. It was running low, and I wasn’t sure I was up to braving the town on my own again. I had one bowl of cereal left for dinner or breakfast. I needed to make a choice now. My stomach rumbled at me – loudly – and no amount of shooshing or filling it with water was helping. Caving, I ditched my knitting needles in the basket of wool and got up to eat my Fruit Loops. Just as I was finishing, lights shone through the open blinds, and out of habit I pressed myself against the wall and crept to the window. Peering around the corner, I wasn’t surprised to see a car going back into the royal abode, as I called it now. I mean, their hedges were pruned into shapes. Who else but royalty did that?
As weirded out as I had been the other day, I also found myself strangely obsessed with spying on the rich side of Daelight Crescent. And since the royal abode was the only one I could easily see from the front window, it got most of my attention. After some careful and selective stalking, I had learned some interesting things. First, definitely more than one person lived there. Multiple cars emerged, often at the same time. So far there was a white Range Rover, a black Porsche, and the sleek fancy purple one – which looked a lot like an Aston Martin. Despite his general academic ways, my father had been a secret car buff. He’d even had an old Ford Mustang in the garage that he tinkered with on weekends. So I knew a little about make and model of cars from him. Enough to know that all of the vehicles that went in and out were expensive – like feed a small country for the cost of their tires expensive.
Other cars did drive up and down the street, all of them expensive and darkly tinted, but they went into the other estates. I guessed there were about ten mansions on the rich side, and twenty cottages on our side, all squished together. I almost never saw any of the people who lived in the cottages, just the occasional old beater in their driveways.
The mystery of this place was slowly driving me crazy. Multiple security people roaming around, mansions, fancy cars. A token side of poor people to even them out. What the heck?
As night fell, the pretty streetlamps lit up along both sides of the road. I wasn’t really that tired – what with my big day of knitting and creeping around like a peeping Tom – but I still decided to go to bed early so I’d be well rested for school the next day. Of course, my rock bed, teamed with nerves, had me tossing and turning all night, which meant the next morning I was not only hungry but a tired, red-eyed mess.
It took one hot shower, twenty minutes of grooming, and a failed braid before I threw down my hairbrush and called it a day. This was as good as I was getting today. Time to get dressed and get this first day out of the way. Surely it would be the hardest day, trying to learn all the ins and outs of a new school.
Surprisingly, the sun was shining, so I opted for denim shorts, my Converse, and a black long-sleeved fitted top. No need to wear anything fancy. Starslight Prep had a uniform, which I’d receive when I got there. I grabbed the funky vintage leather schoolbag I’d found while shopping in a second-hand store with Sara. Inside were pens, some notepads, and a few other essentials. I was as ready as I’d ever be.
My scholarship included textbooks, materials for class, and some food. Apparently I would find out all the details when I enrolled properly this morning. At least I had a bit of money to cover me if it didn’t, but I would have to be careful what I spent.
The only thing I did already know was my schedule. You could enroll online for that part, and Michael had done it for me before he left. But since there was still plenty I needed to do before class, I threw my wallet, security card, and door key into my bag and hurried out of the house.
It was early, the birds chirping as they flittered about the rose bushes and manicured gardens of our street. Despite the sun, it was still cool out, and I wished I’d grabbed a jacket. I should have known better, having already learned about this state’s fickle weather. Sun did not equal warmth here.
I saw no one as I hurried to the security gates. I didn’t have to check in and out now; I was allowed to wave my card in front of the magic black box and the barriers would open. Passing the booth, I saw a familiar face.
Ace winked at me. “Well, hello, Miss Emma. Long time no see. Where have you been hiding out?”
I’d finally found the courage to ask him how he knew my name, and he told me it was logged in the computer. So at least I didn’t have to worry about the guards having a mind reading ability or something, which is what the Finnegans would have guessed.
Smiling at him, even feeling a little confident, I said, “Not hiding, preparing myself for today. School.”
Ace shuddered. “I hated school. Almost failed out my senior year. Luckily I knew someone who worked for Daelight and they had this opening. It’s been a great job. Pay is fantastic, and as long as I don’t ask too many questions, everyone leaves me alone.”
Why did they keep referring to the street name like that? Like it was a real person or something. Cara had done it too.
“Well,” I said, noticing the bus in the distance. “I better get going. Apparently I have to take two buses to get to this exclusive little school.”
Ace winked at me again. He was fond of winking, that was for sure. With one last wave I took off at a run, managing to flag down the bus in time. Breathing heavily, I pulled out a map from my bag and examined the route I needed to get to Starslight. I was pretty sure I knew where to go, but I’d double-check with the driver on my way out.
It was a slower journey than last time. A lot more people were heading toward the main street, and the bus had to make multiple stops. Finally I reached the change-over point, and the driver confirmed that the first of a few school buses would be along shortly.
I need a car. I missed my little yellow VW Bug that had burnt up in our garage. The insurance only covered the house debt. There was nothing left for new cars, so I would have to get used to this crazy trek twice a day. At least it was only for a year, then I was done, off to college hopefully, if I could keep my grades up and snag a scholarship. I was determined to do everything I could to get into a decent school. Even with this fabled Starlight pull, I’d probably still have to join some groups, get involved in extracurricular activities. Apparently, extracurriculars was the one college application area where I was underqualified. Seriously … how could the fact that I wasn’t very social affect me getting a scholarship? Never made sense to me.
But, as always, I didn’t make the rules.
A few kids were wandering closer to me now, all of them in uniform. A very fancy, expensive looking uniform, black and white, tailored. The girls wore short, black, pleated skirts and black tights, the boys slacks. I had expected I would be the only one in regular clothes. A seamstress would fit it all properly at the school or something – but still … it was frustrating to stand out already. Pretty much a beacon advertising I was the new kid. Or that I was poor. I was guessing only scholarship kids had to have their uniforms tailored by the school. Everyone else probably had tailors living in their servant house with the rest of the hired help.
More than one glance was thrown my way; the uniformed kids all looked younger than me. At a school like this, most seniors would have cars. A large white bus roared around the corner then, and unlike the town bus this one was sleek and darkly tinted, the school name and emblem printed on the side. I hadn’t seen the symbol before; it had a circle, which almost looked like a shadowy Earth, and another much larger circular world right above it. The second circle had a ring around it, and there was a striki
ng symbol bisecting both.
The driver called out to me and I realized I’d been standing there staring at the side of the bus like a crazy idiot. Everyone else was already on board, waiting for me. Heat blazed in my cheeks as I scurried up the steps, striding past the driver to take a seat about halfway along. Everyone was silent as the bus started up again, and while I didn’t want to draw attention to myself, I couldn’t stop from glancing around. Most of the kids were on their phones, no one looking at me, which was a huge relief.
With a sigh, I turned back to stare out the window. The bus slowly filled as we got closer to the school. I felt someone drop down in the chair next to mine and turned to find Cara. She was decked out in the uniform, hair up in a high ponytail, makeup subtler than the first time we met, her eyes a chocolate brown now. Again, I had no idea if this was her real color or not.
“Hi, Emma!” she said, all cheerful-like. “I was hoping I’d run into you on here, even though you live on Daelight. I sensed you might be a scholarship kid like me, riding the bus.”
She was chatting away normally, like her freaked out reaction over me living on Daelight Crescent had never happened. I decided to go with it.
“Yeah, I’m on scholarship. I have to pick up my uniform this morning.”
Cara nodded a few times. She was chewing gum; it flashed as she talked. “I’ll go with you. They usually assign someone to the new students, help them get adjusted for the first few days. I’m your girl. I know how to survive in this hellhole when you aren’t one of the chosen few.”
Okay, that was it. I’d had enough of this town’s strangeness, of the millions of questions I had bubbling around my brain, and before I could filter myself I leaned closer, lowered my voice, and said, “I’m going to need you to explain to me exactly what the deal is with this town. With Daelight Crescent and all the weirdness there. Who are the chosen ones at the school?”
Cara’s ran her eyes across me and I thought she seemed surprised. I wondered which part shocked her. Before I could ask, she started talking, her voice barely above a whisper: “I’m astonished you haven’t run into any of them yet. I don’t know a lot, but I will definitely tell you what I do know. Just not right now. We’ll talk more later.”
Ominous. But at least she said she would tell me later, so I’d have to hold on to that. For the rest of the trip, Cara chatted about everything and nothing. She was one of those people who could talk underwater, requiring very little response from me. Still, I found myself drawn to her, finding true warmth under her flighty personality.
“My boyfriend, Mitch, goes to Astoria High, the other school in this area,” Cara was saying. “Do you have a boyfriend? Leave anyone behind? What do your parents do? There aren’t many jobs in the area, so they were lucky to find something.”
I sucked in a low, deep breath, quiet enough I wasn’t sure she noticed the strangeness of my response. Such an innocent question, and it had literally stolen my breath. After a few more ragged inhales, I managed to reply like a normal person.
“I moved here with my guardians. They have an online business, so we can live anywhere. My parents … uh, they died eight months ago. I used to live in California, and no boyfriend. I left no one important.”
I skimmed quickly over my parents’ death, hoping she would just give me the usual “Sorry to hear that” and then move on. It was when people pushed harder, asked how they died, that I usually lost it.
There were a few moments of silence, enough that it was almost uncomfortable when she said, “I’m really sorry to hear about your parents, girl. I can’t even imagine how hard that was to live through. My parents are selfish douches at times, especially Dad, but I would never want to live without them.”
Yeah, dead did kind of outweigh douche, but I appreciated her acknowledgement that she couldn’t imagine. Unless you’d lived through something like that, stood beside a pile of black ash knowing your parents had burned to death while you had somehow managed to get out … well, there was no understanding.
Things might have traveled right into awkwardville then, except Starslight came into view and I leaned forward for my first glimpse of my new school. I knew my eyes were wide, mouth probably hanging open as I stared. Cara laughed at me.
“Honestly, I’ve been going here for four years now and it still takes me by surprise. My theory is that this is an experiment, like some secret government facility, but instead of guinea pigs they’re using teenagers. Socialization experiment on the segregation of teenagers. Rich versus poor.”
That’s exactly what it looked like. Very government, CIA, NSA, space-center like. Huge, shiny, with lots of gleaming windows. There seemed to be an enormous round building in the center with many connections spanning off that led into smaller buildings. Almost like an octopus, but one that was extremely expensive and luminous, made up from a multitude of different metals.
Cara went straight into tour guide mode. “So, the entire school is indoors. Everything is connected via moving walkway corridors.” Her hands were jabbing rapidly as she pointed out things through our bus windows. “The only outdoor parts are the sports fields, and they’re way out the back. Even the track field is inside. Olympic size pool is also inside, and state-of-the-art gymnastics arena. Anything you can imagine a school needs, Stars has five of them. It’s overkill, but what can you do? This is the home of the elite, and they like to cater to a few of us poorer folk. Gives them good PR.”
I wondered if that was the reason for the poor side of Daelight Crescent, to garner some positive public relations. Pressing my face closer to the window, I was hit immediately with the knowledge that I didn’t belong here. I was going to stick out like crazy, but Astoria High’s scholarship program had not been as extensive. College applications were important too, and according to all of the online forums – and Ace – Starslight was the school you wanted to graduate from.
I repeated this to myself multiple times as I followed the other silent kids from the bus. Cara stayed right at my back as we stepped down to the curb. In front was a huge circular entrance, the American flag high in the center. A second flag on a pole nearby had the same dissected double circle symbol as the bus. It was black and white, the bisecting strike a deep red. Just behind this was an extravagant water fountain. In the center was a hand-carved stone depiction of four huge men standing above a bunch of smaller “student” looking people.
“Those are the four founding fathers of this school,” Cara said when I paused before it. “It’s been over a hundred years, but we still have to see this ugly-ass fountain every day.”
Interesting. More students were pushing past us now. The large clock above the main entrance was telling me it was five after eight, which meant the first bell would be going off in about fifteen minutes. I was running out of time. As Cara linked her arm through mine, starting to lead me toward the entrance, a loud purring roar caught my attention. I spun around to look at the parking lot, situated just behind the bus stop.
“No freaking way,” I whispered as the cars came into sight. Well, at least one good thing might come from being at this school. I was finally going to discover who lived across the road from me. There were just two of their cars: the purple Aston and white Range Rover, following each other into the lot, both of them pulling into spaces near the front.
“You know how you were asking me about the chosen ones … the elite. Well, here's the main group of assholes that run this school,” Cara said quickly under her breath, almost like she was worried they could hear us all the way over here. “The Darken boys.”
I was about to answer her when the doors to the purple beast opened and two males emerged. A third joined them right after.
What in all holy hell?
“Are they real?” I finally said, wrenching my eyes from the view and turning to Cara.
She wore a knowing smirk. “I’ve touched them once or twice, accidentally on purpose. They’re definitely real.”
I had to turn back. I had to s
ee them one more time just to make sure they hadn’t been figments of my imagination. “They’re so freakin’ tall,” I finally stuttered out. They weren’t just unnaturally tall, but they also had this intense, dark, dangerous vibe going on. Their hair and aura matched their name.
Cara chuckled, apparently enjoying my astonishment. I just couldn’t believe these were the guys I had been spying on for days – I hadn’t expected them to be teenagers like me. It made me feel uneasy, and kinda intrigued at the same time.
She leaned in closer. “I don’t know much about them. No one does. All I’ve gotten from the rumor mill is that they’re all the same age. They’re family but not triplets. Top guess is that they’re cousins or adopted. Either way, they all have the Darken name. The one in the middle is Lexen. He doesn’t talk much, and…” She shuddered. “He might be sexy, but he is dead-set scary as shit. His reputation…” She swallowed hard. “Just stay out of his way as much as you can. He’s their muscle. If anyone causes shit, he steps in and sorts it out. He frankly scares the hell out of everyone here, and I would never want to find myself in a dark alley with him.”
I let my eyes linger on him. He was bigger than his brothers both in height and breadth. His muscles were defined under the dress shirt molded deliciously to his body, and I found myself breathing deeper as I ran my eyes across him. His hair was black as night, messily styled on one side, shaved shorter on the other, and it almost looked like there were symbols etched into the shaved side. His eyes appeared to be very dark from here, but I was too far away to really tell. His features were broad and well-honed, with a roman brow, sexy lips, and chiseled jaw. He was distractingly gorgeous, in a rugged way. His brother – cousins – whatever – fell somewhere between rugged and almost pretty for a dude.
“The other two are Marsil and Jero,” Cara said. “I can’t tell them apart most of the time, even though they aren’t twins. All I know about them is that they like the ladies. Jero, at least, has probably gone through half the school. Or so the rumors say. I’ve never hung with the elite group, so I have no actual empirical evidence of this.”
