The Beautiful Monster

Melina lifted an eyebrow slightly at his tone, but she shrugged it off. He was just being nice.

"Love you," she said before hanging up and setting her phone in her lap with a sigh. She probably only burned around ten minutes. Today was going to be a long day stuck in her room.

She was used to spending hours in her room studying, but she could leave at any time to take a quick walk or grab something to eat from the cafeteria.

It sucked being stuck here, but she didn't want to be attacked on her to the cafeteria or anything. Maybe they would find some clues about what happened.

Gossip had to be spreading around school like wildfire. The students here knew how to talk, even if they didn't even know anything.

Blair was usually at the center of it too. Melina wondered if she had heard anything about last night. She picked up her phone and typed a text message.

Melina: Hey! How are you feeling?

Melina sent that message first, figuring that Blair was feeling the effects from last night. Thankfully, Melina only felt a slight ache in her head, but she was sure that Blair was worse off. She waited a few minutes before Blair texted her back.

Blair: Bored as hell in my room.

Melina cracked a hint of a smile at that, feeling the same way. She wanted to take a walk and get some breakfast, but she had to wait for someone to drop it off at her door first. For now, she was going to stay in bed until she got her tea to rouse her some more.

Melina: Me too. Do you know anything about last night? It was so terrible

Melina sent the message, hoping that Blair could pass along some information. Even if Melina didn't want to be involved in anything related to the attack, she still couldn't help but be curious about the details.

Maybe if she knew a little more, she could look out for herself better so that she wasn't attacked.

Blair : Not really. Some girl at the wrong place at the wrong time

Melina frowned slightly. That was a bit of a harsh way to put it. She felt bad for the girl, who was probably just looking for some water or food for the party. That could've easily been Melina if the timing was different. She definitely kept that part from her dad.

Melina: Oh okay. Want to call?

Melina replied, figuring they could keep each other entertained until breakfast came. It would be nice to talk to someone about last night too. Blair had seen the aftermath, but Melina heard what happened. Sort of.

All she heard was the girl screaming, which was all anyone else heard too. There was no clue or sign about whoever attacked her, which was strange.

Blair: Can't right now but ttyl!

Melina read over Blair's reply, frowning a hint. She guessed that Blair was busy with something else, even if she claimed to be bored. Before she could think too much about it, she heard a knock on her door.

"Breakfast!" a voice outside shouted.

Melina hopped out of bed, unlocking and opening her door to see a white paper bag and a paper cup of tea at her feet.

She grabbed her breakfast and slipped back into her room, locking the door behind her. She walked over to her desk, gradually taking things out of the paper bag to see what she had to eat this morning.

She pulled out an apple, a container of scrambled eggs, two slices of toast wrapped in foil, and a blueberry muffin.

She took a sip of her herbal tea, humming at the earthy taste. A lot of people would turn their nose up at such a taste, but she didn't mind it. She appreciated it and its natural qualities. Maybe it was a witch thing.

Melina ate her breakfast in silence, not hearing a peep from outside. It was strange. Usually, she could hear people talking and walking out in the hallway when she was in her room.

Now, she nearly felt like she was the only one in the building because it was too quiet. It made her uneasy. A building this huge full of so many people shouldn't be this quiet.

After she ate and gathered her clothes for a bath, she paused by the door when she heard voices outside.

They either belonged to school officials or security, who were muscular, stern men and women with tactical clothing and stun guns that put any witch or vampire onto the ground.

"These events are random but calculated," one voice murmured outside of her room.

"That makes no sense. None of this makes sense! Why is the school being attacked like this? There haven't been any threatening letters or notes left behind. No one is asking us for money," another voice replied, sounding exasperated.

"All we can do is wait and see. We don't know who's doing this. They leave behind no trace," the other voice said in a calmer tone.

Melina listened to the voices fade away as the people went farther down the hallway. She felt a tremor of nervousness shudder through her, but she shook her head.

Things were going to be okay. She just had to look out for herself and try not to end up anywhere alone. For now, she was safe in her room. Tomorrow, she had to watch her back, or she would end up bloody on the floor.

******

Lockdown was lifted the next day, letting classes resume. Melina was happy to get out of her room so that she could properly stretch her legs.

She could hardly even take ten steps in her room without running into something. She pulled on her black skirt, tucking her dark green button down into the waist of it.

She longed to wear her lounge shorts and a t-shirt, but uniforms were required.

Melina slipped on her black blazer after adjusting her black tie, making sure it was tucked beneath her collar.

She did a few turns in the mirror in her bathroom, making sure that she looked okay before grabbing her bag. She didn't know what to expect from today, but she was ready to get back out there.

The moment she threw open her door and stepped out, she nearly collided with a body. She jumped back, her heart leaping into her throat as she stared up at a tall, built man with short, dirty blonde hair and a jaw that could cut glass.

She stared up at him for a second, reeling from how handsome he was. He looked around her age, maybe a little older, but she had never seen him before.

"Um… hi," she managed to say when he didn't ditch her. In fact, he was looking at her with curiosity for some reason. It was odd being looked at so intently by a stranger.

The man stuck his hand out to her.

"Tyler," he introduced himself.

Melina stared at his hand in confusion before shaking it to be polite. She had no idea what was going on. He hardly looked like a student.. He was built like someone from security, but he wore the uniform.