Black Light

Chapter 1

I finished reading my report to the class just as the bell rang. I grabbed my stuff and headed out the door only to have Rebecca Morgansonn in my face the second my foot was out the door.

She was one of those girls that ever one knew about and either worshipped at her feet or hated. No in between, unless you don’t care about much, which what how I am. Her long brunette hair and huge brown eyes were what made her looks, though in addition to those she was tall and skinny, but the in shape kind of skinny not the anorexic kind of skinny. She was also a cheerleader and very rich which was how she was so popular.

“I’m having a party at my house tonight. Seven O’clock sharp we wont be at my house much later that than. Be there.” She said and started to walk away.
I rolled my eyes and went to my locker before boarding the bus that would take me home.

I sat near a window and as the bus ran through town I could see glimpses of the 45 year old fence that still looked as if it had be built yesterday. On the other side of the fence there were dead trees and old rundown buildings. It was a mimic of our half of the town only spookier especially after seven.

Sighing I slumped down in the seat realizing why I had be invited to Rebecca’s party. I was a dare devil and people liked to take advantage of this, All because of a bet I made that I wouldn’t turn down a single dare and I would get $300, though if I did turn one down I would have to pay $300 to the boy who tricked me into the bet.

Adrian Forrester plopped down beside me. “Hey Sophie. He sighed. “That report was killer. I barely got it done.”
I chuckled. “That’s because you are a procrastinator.”

He glared at me and slumped down to my level. “I heard you got invited to Becca’s party tonight.” I could tell he was changing the topic as always. “What do you think they will have you do this time?”

I shrugged and looked out the window again. “I don’t know but I’m not sure if I want to go.” I looked at him and his bright blue eyes met mine. “If I’m not there they can’t dare me to do anything.”

He looked down at his boots and stayed quiet. He had been the brains behind Bobby Sureman tricking me into the bet and had felt indebted to me ever since he found out about how many people took advantage of it.

The bus stopped just on the outskirts of town, most every body had already gotten off but there were three of us that lived way out there. I stood grabbed my books and followed Adrian off the bus. As the bus driver drove away Nick Roberts grabbed my books from me.

“So…” He said obviously leading up to something. “You were invited to that party tonight. I hear its going to be big.”

I nodded and looked at him out of the corner of my eye. “Uh-huh.”

“So you will probably need someone to take you there since you got your drivers license revoked after that last dare.” He paused and looked at me then at Adrian who looked at me horrified. Most of the time I didn’t tell him about the dares. So I could spare him a little pain.

“If I go.” I said concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other so my footprints in the red dirt would be perfect.

“And since you were invited you have the right to invite anyone you want to invite.” He stopped and I could almost see him getting down on his knees and begging.

I almost said ‘No’ just to see if he would actually fulfill the image I was forming in my head. But I spared him the embarrassment and kicked a grey rock out into the road.

“Fine.” I said slowly. “You can come… But you have to stay away from me and out of my hair.”

Nick pumped his fists into the air with joy. “Yes! Thank you!” He said and ran ahead to his house leaving me and Adrian to walk the last mile to where our houses sat next to each other in the middle of no where.

We walked in silence for a while before Adrian thought up the words to say. “How come you never told me about that dare?” He said kicking up some dirt.
“Forgot.” I muttered as our houses appeared on the horizon.

“Oh.” He said and we were quiet until we reached the houses. I waved goodbye as I entered my house. It was empty except for Leon, my cat, who purred as I came in. I grabbed a pudding and ate it as I browsed the channels on TV. Nothing good was on so I wandered up stairs with a book. I was never a big reader so the second I flopped down on my bed I was asleep.

My phone buzzed. Once, Twice. And I groaned rolled over and picked it up. The screen read Nick and I thought about ignoring the call. But I answered wondering why the hell he was calling.

“What?” I said into the phone and the second I spoke I knew my voice sounded tired.

Loud music blasted into my ear and then Nick yelled and it was shut off. “Don’t tell me you were sleeping the party is in half an hour.”

I groaned not wanting to go.

“If you don’t go how do you know Bobby won’t count it as you chickening out?” Nick said reading my mind through the phone.

I groaned again and pulled myself out of bed.

“Good.” Nick said and I could hear the smile in his voice. “I’ll be there in 15 minutes. Be ready.” And the line went dead.

I took off my shirt, and pulled a new nicer one over my head, changed my jeans and pulled my hair up into a messy bun. I was fixing my make up when a car horn sounded in front of my house.

“Sophie?” Amanda, my foster mom, called from down stairs, “Nick’s outside, where are you going?”

I finished my makeup and grabbed some money stuffing it in my pocket. “We are going to dinner with some friends.” I said through my teeth and cast her a sweet smile.

“Ok.” Amanda said with a cheerful grin. “Have fun.”

So gullible I thought as I left the house and climbed into Nick’s car. “It’s at Becca’s right?” He said as he pulled away from the two houses.

“Yeah.” I said and turned towards the window. We could see Rebecca’s house lit up the second we entered the town. She was the mayor’s daughter so she lived on the top of the biggest hill in town.

Loud music spilled down the drive way as we turned in and Nick dropped me off at the door to go park the car. I stood at the door which toward over my head by about 4 feet. It opened just as Nick came up beside me.

Rebecca’s eyes met mine and she half smiled then pure disgust took over her face as she saw Nick. “Didn’t I ask for you to come alone?” she said throwing a fake smile over her features.

“Nope.” I said grabbing Nick’s arm and pushing past her into the house.

“We won’t be here for long.” She said grabbing Nick’s other arm. “Why don’t you to just stay here for a minute.” She pulled away and disappeared into the growing crowd.

“Did you see that? She grabbed my arm! I must be popular now!” Nick hissed into my ear holding his arm away from his body as if he was trying not to rub something off of it.

I rolled my eyes and leaned against the wall. Rebecca came back and clapped her hands together. “Everyone is going to get to their cars and we will be taking off. Why don’t you go get your car and then you can follow us?”

I nodded and pulled Nick out the door. I shook my head as they walked to the car, seeing as Nick was still treating his arm like a miraculous treasure. She got in her door and Nick sat in the driver’s seat and we followed the large line of cars down the hill. At first I didn’t know where we were going but as the line of cars headed towards the middle of town, and the fence, realization struck me.

Nick realized a few minutes later and a streak of fear crossed his features. “You don’t have to do this.” He said and looked at me but he still followed the line of cars. Nick’s mother had been killed by the last rouge vampire to come over the fence and he had witnessed it. That was one of the reasons he was an outcast, because he was one of the few of our generation to still fear the non existent vampires on the other side of the fence.

“I’m not scared.” I said even though I was quite nervous since I had heard all of Nick’s stories about the night his mom died.

“Sophie.” He whined and slowed down the car. “If you say you’re going to do it I am going to turn this car around right now.”

“I am going to do it.” I said sternly shaking off my fear. He slowed down more and I added. “If you turn around, you can pay Bobby the $300.” He groaned and sped back up and I grinned and patted his arm directly where Rebecca had touched him. He glared at me as we pulled up next to the fence with the rest of the cars.

“C’mon.” I said and got out of the car trying to distract Nick from his paralyzing fear of the vampires.

The other side of the fence was even creepier at night. A crow started to caw a few times but was cut off a few minutes later in the middle of his call. The dead trees and run down buildings were outlined by the moon, but every thing six feet and below was pitch black nothing could be seen. If vampires still existed over there… I shuddered and shook the thought off and stalked over to Rebecca.

“Okay.” She said and sneered at me as Bobby came up behind her and kissed her cheek, then sneered at me too. Really they make a perfect couple I thought then Rebecca started talking again. “Let’s get straight to the point. You are going to climb the fence.”

“That is so unreasonable.” Nick said having gotten out of the car and hidden partially behind me.

Bobby stepped forward and I laughed because what I thought had been a sneer was just part of his face. Oh how the darkness transforms things. I thought and he glared at me then looked at Nick. “So I guess you’re saying she’s not going to do it.”

“No he-" I started but Nick cut me off.

“Yes that is what I am saying.” He said and wrapped his arm around my waist.

I pulled away and had to hold back from slapping him. “You have no right to decide this for me.” I snapped then turned back to Bobby as he started to speak.

“I’m going to do it.” He said with a devilish grin that contorted his face to become even uglier.

“I never said I wasn’t going to.” I said irritated.

He nodded and turned back to Rebecca who had a horrified look on her face. “No! You can’t!” She said to Bobby her eyes wide with the same fear that Nick’s held.

He saw it to and he whispered to me. “We are perfect for each other!” He said but I pulled away and walked over to the fence. I stared through it as if daring the darkness to grab me.

“How long do we have to be over there?” I asked getting the specifics.

“Five minutes.” Rebecca spat

“Fifteen.” Bobby said as he joined me at the fence.

I looked at him with a cool expression on my face. “Let’s do it then.” I grabbed the fence and hoisted my self up a few feet. Nobody said anything as Bobby and I scaled the fence.

I reached the top before him and climbed down a little ways and froze. Whispers sounded from the ground. Small quiet laughter and hissing joined the whispering and I felt a breeze blow cold fingers down my spine.

It smelled like decaying flesh and another odor I couldn’t describe and the smell got stronger as the whispers and noises got louder.

Bobby got to the top and sat there for a second before swing his legs over to the vampire side of the fence. He was obviously oblivious to the growing noises and stench. He jumped down and motioned up at me. As soon as his feet hit the ground the voices hushed but the scent lingered.
I jumped the rest of the way down and that’s when all hell broke loose.

Wicked screams and high pitched laughter filled the night and the stench grew till it was almost unbearable. People on the other side of the fence grew figity and stepped back a few got in their cars and tore away from the fence while others like Rebecca and Nick stood rooted to the spot.

“s***!” Bobby cussed and turned back to the fence as if to escape. A hand reached out and grabbed his leg. Flesh clung to the bone barely and the skin was grey and black as if it had been burnt once or twice. Bobby screamed and tried to shake the hand off but a few more joined it and he was pulled off the fence and into the darkness. He let out a last tortured scream that was cut off as if some one had shoved a gag into his mouth.

I knew if I tried to climb the fence I was screwed like Bobby had been so while they were distracted with Bobby, I ran.

I sprinted away from the group of vampires, which now as my eyes had adjusted to the darkness, I could see. More vampires joined the group and blood pooled at my feet.

I was about to scream when a hand clamped over my mouth. “Shhh.” A voice said in my ear. I could tell it was male from the way he held his hand over my mouth. I mumbled something into his hand and he leaned forward and I could feel and smell his breath on my cheek. “Which part of Shhh did you not understand?” He said and I bit back a start aleck response.

His hand slipped and I couldn’t hold it back any more. “The S. I think.” I said.

He chuckled then stopped himself. “Did I not say to be quiet?” he turned me so that I could look at him.

“Technically i heard you say ‘shhh.’ That is different than be quiet.” I said and the boys eyes flashed. I couldn’t make out any of his other features in the darkness, but he seemed about my height.

“There is no difference!” He said a little to loudly and froze. I glanced over my shoulder to see the vampires approaching slowly. “Run.” The boy said and turned faster than I could respond.

I ran basically on his heel as he cut through alley ways and through run down back yards, but no matter how we turned and how fast we went the vampires remained close. Clearing fences with ease and hopping from building top to building top like Spiderman.

A few vampires must have passed us because suddenly a group came towards us fast from the front, and the boy I was following skid to a stop making me bump into him.

“s***.” He said and glanced around but we were now surrounded.

A strong voice resounded from somewhere in the crowd. “The boy is off limits.” The voice was raspy and the exact opposite from the boys that stood beside me that it confirmed my suspisions that he was not a vampire.

“You bet he is!” Another voice came from the rooftops where a dark form stood looming over the group. A few of the vampires hissed and fled but others stood their ground obviously they really wanted me for food.

I stepped closer to the boy and looked around at the vampires. He looked at me then up at the shadow on the building. There was a pause as the vampires and the shadow on the building stared at each other then the shadow on the roof added. “The girl is too.”

The vampires hissed and began to protest but the shadow on the roof disappeared and reappeared beside the boy who I was standing behind. “So you want to play it that way?” he said and faster than lightning he grabbed a near by vampire. There was a loud cracking noise and a headless body fell to the ground, the head rolling a few feet away. “They are both mine so you better back off.” The shadow from the roof hissed and even more vampires scattered, but some of the more stubborn ones stayed and glared him down.

“SSSShe issssn’t bitten yet.” The main vampire who remained said and I shuddered. “SSSShe just barely came acrosssss the fensssce. I watched her.”
“Well I claim her.” The shadow from the roof said and kicked the bodiless head over to the vampire who had spoken. He sniffed the air and then turned back to him. “Sounds like your food is being eaten. You better get back there before he’s all gone.”

The vampires remaining hissed and scented the air. The took one last glare at the shadow from the building and disappeared.

The shadow from the roof turned slowly and menacingly and I stepped farther back behind the boy I had followed. “How many times have I told you not to run? They live for the chase and now they are going to keep trying to get to that chick who you risked your life to save!” The shadow grabbed my arm and pulled me out into the moonlight which was now moving very quickly behind the trees. “Im sorry.” He said and then everything went black.


I gasped and woke up. The sun had appeared over the horizon and was gleaming in through a window near the bed where I lay. At fist I thought I had just dreamed last night but I looked around and I realized that I didn’t know where I was. I stood and opened the door and stepped out into the hall.

A few doors remained before I would reach the stairs and I thought about running for it. But a door right next to mine opened and a dark haired guy stepped out and watched me. “Come with me.” He said and started down the hall and I remembered the voice from the night before. “Sleeping Beauty is awake!” He called as he practically floated down the stairs.

I followed carefully because the stairs looked rotted and as if they would break at any amount of weight put on them. We reached the bottom and I practically sighed in relief.

The boy from last night bounded out of a room where a few voices floated out of. “Oh hey!” He said quietly. “I’m Bridger.” He held out his hand and then added. “And you are?”

I almost shook his hand but then remembered where I was and stood still. The shadow from the roof answered for me. “Her name is Sleeping Beauty or Deadmeat, since that’s what she will be when those vampires decide that the boy she came across the fence with wasn’t enough food.”

“Serj!” A female voice said quickly and stepped out of the room behind Bridger. Dark hair like The shadow’s cascaded down her back. She had dark eyes that stood out against her pale skin along with maroon red lips. “She will not be eaten because you can save her.”

The shadow, or Serj, looked angry and then said. “No. We have already talked about this. I refuse to bite her.”

“If you don’t bite her, you will turn into something like them!” The girl exclaimed and pointed outside her bell-like voice growing more high pitched as she talked.

“And it wouldn’t just be biting!” Bridger threw in. “You would use her all the time!”

“No!” Serj all but screamed at the two.

“Excuse me!” I added quickly hating that they were talking about me like I wasn’t there and the fact that they were talking about something that I didn’t know about.

Serj whirled on me. “This doesn’t concern you.”

“Unless there is some other ‘her’ that you are talking about, then yes it does.” I said and glared at him. His eyes were dark but had flecks of gold intertwined into them like smoldering coals.

“Okay!” A new voice said as another guy came into the room. “If Serj doesn’t want to use her, well then he can go die and I’m pretty sure that Sleeping Beauty would appreciate his concern for her well being.” His face was pale and he had dark hair just like Serj and the girl who was now glaring at him.

Serj muttered something and turned and accended the stairs, quickly returning to his room.

“Why are we talking about me like I am not here again?” I said quickly and suddenly all eyes in the room were on me.

“What are we going to do with her?” The new guy said leaning over to the only other girl in the room.

“I guess if Serj won’t have her we have two options, well three.” The girl responded basically whispering but for some reason my ears picked up every word that was said. “Keep her and try to convince Serj to take from her, throw her to the rest of the vampires waiting around town, or devise a plan to get her back over the fence.”

“Again!” I said quickly and went to the door. I was about to turn the handle when suddenly Bridger was in front of me guarding the door. “There are two reasons you do not want to do that.” He said with a dangerous look in his eyes that made me step back. “One,” He pointed to the guy and girl who had been talking but now froze and had retreated back into some shadows. “Those two over there would fry. And two, all the vampires outside would smell where you are at and come eat you in the middle of the night.”

I paused. And he caught my hand in the hesitation, pulling me back up the stairs. “I say we go with number one or three.” He said to the two who were watching me with an awkward caution. “I think Hannah might have something you could borrow so you can get out of those dirty clothes.” He pulled me along up the stairs, but as we passed the room Serj had disappeared into there was a loud crash and Bridger stopped, and threw open the door.

The window was broken out and the sheet that had been covering it was gone. He ran into the room and looked around. “Well the window was broken out, so Serj must have went on an adventure.” He muttered mostly to himself but I got the feeling that he was saying it to someone who was not with in hearing distance. He then came over to me and closed the door tightly behind him. “Sorry about that. Serj is a little different.”

“You are all very different.” I said and he just smiled at me.

“I will explain that later. For now,” He said and opened a door to a bright looking room. “Pick something to wear and come back down stairs.” He shut the door behind me and I paused staring around the room.

It was basically all white giving it a bright feeling even though the only window was a small circle near the ceiling and it was covered with a dark blue sheet. The bed had white blankets on it and a single wardrobe sat in the corner made of dark wood.

I went over to it slowly and pulled out a black shirt that didn’t feel like it fit in the room and some jeans. As I turned around I saw myself for the first time in a while. A little bit of blood stained my white shirt and the bottom of my jeans. My blonde hair was a mess and all over the place, and my make up was smeared and all over.

I sighed and changed clothes. Then I tried to straighten out my hair and face before I went back down stairs.
“…, don’t know if I should explain to her or not.” Bridgers voice was the first that I heard resounding from a room off to the left after I came back down the stairs.

“She doesn’t need to know if we are just going to try and put her over the fence again.” A new voice that I had heard before said and was joined by a few more agreeing.

“But what if Serj chooses her?” Bridger asked trying desperately to prove a point. There was creaking noise at the point and few hisses followed soon after.

“I don’t appreciate you talking about me.” Serj’s voice was deeper than a few of the others that had just spoken. “Especially when I am not here.”

“Don’t just open window like that!” Another new voice said angrily. “You could kill someone!”

“Whatever.” Serj said and suddenly he was right in front of me. He was wearing a dark hood and his eyes were even darker than they were before. He watched me for a second before blowing past me and up the stairs to his room, where he hissed lightly before entering and closing the door behind him.

“He can’t just be going out like that, if he would just pick a human to feed off of he wouldn’t do that anymore and he wouldn’t put himself or any of the rest of us in danger!”

I glanced back up at Serj’s room for a minute then decided maybe he would tell me what this was all about. I jogged up the stairs, they were strangly quiet for how old they seemed. I knocked on the door, and was greeting by a grunt which I took as a come in. So I opened the door and looked around.

“Oh. Its just you.” Serj said from some where behind me.

I whirled around to see him standing on what looked like a loft in a barn only there were no stairs that I could see to get up there.

“Will you tell me what they have been talking about this whole time?” I asked even though I kept it in my voice to sound more like a demand.
“Sure.” He said with a grin the disappeared and reappeared coming out of his closet. “Mostly every one in this house is a vampire.” He said and I almost laughed at the obviousness of it.

“I sort of guessed that.” I said. “Everyone with dark hair, dark eyes, pale skin, and red lips is a vampire.” We learned that in school, as a precaution so if we ever came across one we could identify the threat, as they said.

“I’m still explaining.” He snapped at me then came a little bit closer. “They want me to bite you, because they think that then I won’t be going crazy anymore. They think that your blood will help me.”

I couldn’t help a be a bit frightened and that threw off my whole know-it-all attitude. “But if you bite me won’t that make me a vampire?”

He laughed and I could see the answer forming on his lips but then the door swung open and he jerked back alarmed. Bridger stood there in the door way he seemed shocked, then smiled at me and Serj.

Serj shook his head. “Not what you are thinking. She had a few questions that’s all.” I turned back to look at him to find that he had disappeared back up into his loft like thing.

Bridger’s face fell then he perked up a bit. “What questions did you have?”

I sighed. “I was asking him what you were talking about down stairs.”

“Oh.” Bridger said quietly. “Come with me. I’ll explain it.”

I followed him down stairs and into the kitchen where he got two glasses of water and sat down at the table. I followed his example and sat across from him.
“You see.” He began and I could tell this was going to be a long conversation so I pulled the glass closer and took a sip of the water. It tasted crystal clear. Even better than the water that came out of the tap on the human side of the fence I noted. “Hannah, Serj, Lonnie, the guy who you met earlier, and _________, are all vampires. Except for most of the vampires, like the ones who attacked us last night can’t control themselves so when they get around fresh blood, they attack it and drink it all. But others like the ones that live here can control themselves because they only use on human to drink from, which is why Dion, __________, and myself are here.”

“So why don’t you turn into vampires when they drink from you?” I said. What he was telling me went against everything I had learned in school about vampires and I couldn’t help but question him.







“Run along my little nightmare you can’t stay here its far to bright for you. If they attack you just play dead dear, its your only hope of pulling through. Go run along my little nightmare, your job here is done. You’ve scared them all to death. If they revive them just sit there and smile dear. Make them thankful for every breath.”