The Writers' Circle

These are the first two chapters of my book My Guardian. Please tell me what you think; if my characters are good, if the story flows, what you like, what you don't like. That type of stuff. Thanks for your time! :)

CHAPTER 2: Screw up

The night air was cool, almost crisp.  To my great relief, the night was also silent. The wind that had swirled in the air all day had ceased, minimizing the chill in my bones. I drew comfort from the looming moon above which acted as my guardian from utter darkness.

                Normally I wouldn't be out in the night alone. Actually, once twilight fell I never left the comfort of my own home. But this wasn't a normal day for me. Today was new and exciting. I'd had no doubt all day that today would change everything for me.

                Tonight I was going to a party and nothing was going to stop me; especially not a small fear of the darkness. I imagined confessing to Veronica that I'd skipped out on her party because I was scared to walk alone at night. Ha! I'm sure that would go over well. I would easily be pushed even farther down the food chain before I could even beg her for mercy.

                Veronica Wells. By far the most popular girl in school. Not to mention she was more than just the most beautiful girl anyone had ever laid eyes on. She was beautiful, smart, talented; everything any guy could ever wish for. And the worst part, she had the power to denote any member of the student body to whatever level she chose. And everybody would support her because they were afraid of her.

                I knew because it had happened to me.

Seventh grade, the worst year of my life, I'd been attacked by Veronica. My imagination has always been something beyond overactive, but that time it was bordering on madness. I was on my way to her, Veronica's, house. At that time we were the best of friends. We had been born on the exact same day and our parents had met in the hospital. Somehow they developed a friendship and therefore, so did me and Veronica.

                It was getting dark, but I hadn't minded. I liked the dark. But that night something hadn't felt right. There was a mustiness in the air that I knew didn't fit my surroundings and the air was too bitter. When a man was standing by the stop sign in front of Veronica's house, I knew there was something wrong. When I approached, I saw him cloaked, his hood pulled over his head to cover his face in shadow.

                I'd stopped in front of him; I couldn't help it, I was curious even though the danger of his form was apparent.

                "Who are you?" I'd asked.

                "What is important is who you are," he'd replied in a voice that chilled me to the bone.

                "Who are you?" I'd repeated in a more commanding voice.

                His shadow of a face smiled dangerously. I was prepared to use the pepper spray I kept in my purse in case he proved to be a creeper, but suddenly I couldn't see him as well anymore. Rubbing my eyes, I'd tried to repair my blurred vision but he just kept becoming less and less clear. Then I'd realized that my surroundings were just as they had been before, clear and distinctive.

I took a closer look and I gasped. Right before my eyes he was disappearing, dissolving into a cloud of black smoke that choked me. I coughed hysterically, unable to breath.

"We'll meet again," the same icy voice whispered through my head.

Letting out a scream of horror, I'd collapsed to the ground, my vision staining red as my mind went black.

To my own stupidity, I'd told Veronica what had happened. From that night on Veronica had shoved me down into the lowest stereotype imaginable; the nerds, the crazy freaks, the people who were obsessed with the paranormal. Nobody believed me and therefore I never told another soul. But it got around, of course. Secrets are never kept these days.

I sighed, trying to look past those years. This was high school now. Things were obviously different with me and Veronica. She'd invited me to this party, she'd apologized for how she acted that day, that it was seventh grade and she should have understood that I'd hit my head pretty hard on the pavement. I'd been diagnosed with a concussion, which was said to be the reasons behind my memories of the man. To everybody else it was just an effect of the concussion, but I still couldn't believe it myself.

Whatever, I thought. Tonight I will reinvent myself.

As I turned the corner to Veronica's house I couldn't help but glance around. The stop sign was just as I remembered it the last time I'd been here, but this time the space was empty; no mysteriously cloaked man, no disintegrating figure as I approached, and no musty smells. I shook my head and ran my fingers through my hair nervously.

With a deep breath, I made my way up the walkway and knocked on the door. It immediately swung open and Veronica squealed, giving me the hug I'd always known years ago. I returned the embrace easily and gave her a huge smile.

"Hey!" I exclaimed. "How's the party?"

"Complete now that you're here!" she replied, her eyes sparkling with something I knew was not mere excitement. "Come on in," she grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the mob of people.

As I followed her I took a moment to look at my surroundings. Things were basically the same as I remembered them, with the exception of a few new decorations. And I was sure the smell of alcohol was new to the place as well.

"Refreshments?" she offered, motioning to the large table of drinks.

"I'd love one," I accepted the plastic cup she offered me. With a sip, I knew exactly what it was. And it explained the glossy look in Veronica's eyes.

Ah, what the hell, I thought, taking another swig of the vodka-filled smoothie. The tang was enough to make me grimace.

"Come on," Veronica grabbed my attention again, setting the smoothie back down on the table. "There's someone I want you to meet."

"Uh, Veronica," I began to argue, but she was already in action, striding across the room. I sighed and followed her out the door.

"This is Max," she nearly thrust me into him. "Max, this is Skyla. I told you about her, remember? You said you like girls with black hair."

"Veronica," I hissed, giving her a strange look.

"Don't throw a fit," she snarled. "Just have fun. Get a little tipsy," she said, swaying her hips a little in demonstration. She snatched another smoothie from a tray one of the waitresses was carrying and handed it to me. She gave me a look that said 'do as I say' before prancing off.

I bit my lip as I watched her go. Not knowing what to do, I took a long gulp of my drink.

"You might want to slow down on that stuff," the boy, I didn't remember his name, said. "Each of those has at least two shots of vodka in them."

I almost spit the contents of my stomach back up. "Two shots?" I repeated.

"At least," he clarified. "You must not drink very often."

"Uh, yeah, I guess," I said, flushing red.

He chuckled. "It's okay. Neither do I."

"Oh, uh, that's good," I replied. I didn't know why I was treating this guy like he was my son, praising him for refraining from alcohol. This was high school. Parties were a must and alcohol came with them.

"I'm Max," he said, taking my hand. "I didn't really get a chance to personally introduce myself."

"I'm Skyla," I said. I was thankful that he'd been kind enough to remind me since I'd already forgotten his name.

"I know," he smiled.

What was there to say? I felt beyond awkward just standing here, no doubt boring Max out of his mind. It's not like I was a master in social skills. It's not like I even needed any social skills the past few years.

"I'm sorry," I said with sincerity. "I'm not great with people. I don't want to bore you. I think I'm just gonna go."

"No," Max replied, restraining me as I turned to leave. I raised an eyebrow at him. "How old are you?"

"I'll be sixteen tomorrow," I answered.

"Tomorrow, really? Cool. How long have you lived here?"

"All my life," I replied, narrowing my eyes.

"Oh, I don't think I've noticed you before," he cocked his head.

"Yeah, well most people don't," I replied, rolling my eyes and shaking him off.

I found myself heading back into the house to grab another smoothie. The last thing I needed right now was alcohol but I reached for it anyway.

"Hey!" Veronica said when she noticed me, pulling away from a drunk, flirtatious guy. "Where's Max? He's great isn't he?"

"I'm not good with guys," I replied.

"Well, that's why I chose him," Veronica said, scolding me with her eyes. "He likes shy girls and he always holds up the conversation."

I shook my head. "Guys aren't my thing," I said firmly.

"Skyla! Give it a chance for once. He might actually like you," she pleaded.

"Nicka, thanks for the suggestion, but it's just not me," I shrugged.

"That's the point, honey," she said, exasperated. "If you're you nobody will like you. That's how you get to the top."

My heart dropped. "But I want to be me. Don't people say that people should like you for you are?"

"No, people should like you for who you make yourself," she corrected. "That's how the world works."

"Not my world," I shook my head, trying to make sense of something, anything. But  my head was too fuzzy and my thought process didn't seem to be working.

 You know what your problem is?"

"I don't want to know what my problem is," I responded with too much fierceness as I turned on my heel and headed toward the exit, deciding I should get out of here before I created a bigger problem; or got too drunk.

"Your problem is that you're afraid of people! And you can't understand that sometimes people make mistakes."

"Like you?" I asked dryly.

She stopped and narrowed her eyes at me. "Yes. I made a mistake in trying to be your friend again. I thought I could make you into something."

I couldn't help but gasp as her words pierced my heart. She stomped past me to open the door for me. "Leave," she said. "And don't expect another chance."

Without a word I marched out the door. The sound of it slamming shut behind me was like a seal destroying all hopes of opening that door again. Something inside of me broke and I sprinted down the street to the comforts of my own home.

Maybe someone would want me there.


CHAPTER 2: Life isn't fair

The night air seemed to be growing colder with every step I took. Goose bumps were rising on my arms and legs, sending little shivers through my body; like I didn't already have enough to worry about without running the risk of a cold.

Maybe it was a stupid thing to do; leaving the party. Or maybe it was just stupid to have gone in the first place. Who was I to think I ever really had a chance at gaining a good reputation? It was becoming obvious that such a thing was impossible for someone like me. I always found a way to say and do the wrong thing in a situation anybody else would have excelled at.

I sighed. I felt like hell, and I no doubt looked like it too. What did it matter anyway? It's not like my hair could ruin something I'd already destroyed myself.

Shutting out the rest of my thoughts, I bent down to rip the heels off of my feet and tossed them with all the force I had into someone's lawn. With an exasperated cry I let myself fall to the pavement below and curled into myself for warmth and comfort.

Life is impossible, I thought morosely. Only the lucky can achieve the good parts; the pretty, the smart, the rich.

But I knew that wasn't fair of me to say. It wasn't Veronica's fault that she was all of those things. It was nobody's fault. The best line I've ever heard is "Life isn't fair." How true those three words could prove to be.

I was so lost in my own mind that I didn't pay attention to anything else around me. That must've been why I never really heard the footsteps approaching; slow, heavy footsteps. And I didn't smell it until it was so pungent that I had to look up. And, yes, there it was. There was my nightmare, the reason I didn't go out at night anymore.

The moment I saw him, I jumped to my feet and backed as far away from him as I could before he spoke.

"Didn't I tell you we'd meet again?" the icy, bone-chilling voice said. "Tonight is the night."

"Th-the ni-night for wh-wh-what?" I asked, shivering again.

The musty smell that filled my nose gagged me. I almost hurled over right there, but my muscles wouldn't let me move, even to throw up.

"You don't need to be afraid," he assured me. I almost thought he sounded sympathetic. Almost.

"I don't?" I asked, letting my doubt color my tone.

"Not yet," he said, turning dark and scary again.

"Who the hell are you!" I shouted the familiar words.

"Oh trust me," he purred, "you'll one day grow to appreciate my arrival here."

"That doesn't answer my question!" I said, my voice rising both with fear and desperation.

"Get used to it," he sneered back.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked in a voice that was now barely audible.

A wicked smile played at the corners of the man's lips, summoning adrenaline to my veins. Such a smile chilled my very bones and sent me into a moment of sheer and utter panic.

"I'll show you exactly what I mean," he finally replied. Suddenly he reached out a hand to me; a suspicious, gloved hand.

I have to get out of here. Now, I thought, desperately trying to find a way to escape. But the only thing I could do was run. And, considering I was in a dress, that was hardly an option.

"What are the chances of you just letting me go home now?" The look he gave me confirmed that it was a ridiculous question.

What the heck? I thought. It was worth a shot.

With that, I took off. I ran with no real destination. There was no way I was leading him back to my house. I turned around every corner that I could, in a vain attempt to lose him. Finally, I couldn't run any farther. I turned in every direction in search of him. But there was nothing but empty streets and dark houses.

Struggling for breath, I clutched at the pain in my side. When had I become so out of shape? My heart thumped relentlessly as I counted out my breaths. Adrenaline still pumped violently through my veins, making it almost impossbile for me to calm myself.

He'll be back, the more logical part of me warned. There was no other side to argue. There was no doubt in my mind that he would be back. Apparently he would, since he'd waited three years to come back.

With one last deep breath, I turned back the direction I'd come. It wasn't going to be easy to find my way home int he dark.

Everything around me went dark in less than a second. I felt as if I were walking through a cloud of dust. The smell choked me, nauseated me. Then I froze.

Black cloud. Odd smell. No, musty smell. Oh my god.

I screamed, apparently to the amusement of the mystery man. I could hear a chuckle form from all around me before the darkness disappeared and a body was formed as the smoke seeped together.

With a gulp, I spoke, "There's really no escaping is there?"

"You can't escape any more than I can," he said in a voice that sounded almost sad.

"So do what you have to." I offered him my hand. He took it quickly.

"Skyla," my name rolled off his tongue in a way that made me want to throw up. "You can't escape the Impossible. It is... impossible, as is everything."

"The Impossible?" I inquired, interrupting his speech. "What's that?"

His eyes closed briefly before flashing back to mine. "You can't escape." He held my hand tighter and stepped closer to me to place two fingers on my forehead. "You're doomed. Forever. Now you are cursed."