Vampire Haven

Chapter 1: It all begins with a girl

Jake walked down the hallway of his school early that morning. He watched as leaves fell outside through the windows along the one wall. Even the large pear tree that his class planted and raised over the years was finished for the season. He liked autumn. It was a beautiful time of year.

He could see his reflection in the windows as he passed. His hair was short and brown while his eyes were a crystal blue. A pair of eyes that perfectly matched his mother’s.

There is a saying that a person's eyes are the windows to their soul. In Jake's case, this saying was true. Many told him how, when he was curious, his eyes seemed to gleam softly. This was easy to learn, seeing as young Jake was always curious.

He opened the door to his math class, where students were laughing, talking, and just being teenagers. Jake wasn’t like most his age. He was fourteen, but he had an innocence that made him seem much younger. He was kind and friendly, and he enjoyed learning.

He was also especially good with people. He only had to look at a person and he could tell what kind of person they were or how they were feeling. This was a trait Jake carried from his grandmother, who was a lot like him. She too could see into the hearts of those around her.

Jake sat at his desk as the teacher walked in. She smiled kindly at her class, “Good morning, everyone. Please settle down.” Everyone obediently got to their seats. The teacher looked down at a paper she'd brought with her, “Alright, everyone. We have a new student joining our class." She turned to the door with a kind smile, "Come right in, dear."

That's when she walked in. She strolled in without a care in the world. Her dark skin, her short black hair with flipped-up ends, and her eyes of an almond brown made her quite pretty to those who looked upon her petite, curvy figure. Jake, however, could tell right away she was trouble. Just the look in her eyes, the way she didn't seem to care what anyone thought or felt, and even the way she dressed told him that. She looked the class over with sharp eyes, as if scanning the many faces for something of interest to her.

The teacher spoke once the new student stood at her side, “Welcome. It says here your name is Regina Forman, correct?”

The girl looked at the teacher, clearly very bored of her, “You can read, can't you? Of course that's my name. It's the name I gave, isn't it?”

That earned a sharp look from the teacher, but she continued, “Very well, Miss Forman. Why don’t you tell the class about yourself?”

Regina rolled her eyes, “Fine.” She then turned to the class with a grin, “I’m Regina Forman, but you'd all better learn to just call me Viper. I’m also sixteen, and totally single.” Most of the class snickered, finding the new girl amusing.

She glanced at the teacher, who looked annoyed with her, “Was that enough, teacher, or do you expect to waste more of my time?”

The teacher sighed defeatedly, “Yes, that will do. Take a seat next to Mister Jake Fare." She muttered under breath, "Maybe his good behavior might rub off on you.” Regina smirked as she took a seat beside Jake.

She was about to hang her bag on the back of her chair, but Jake spoke up, “You might not want to do that. Some of the guys here like to steal out of everyone's bags that way.”

Regina only grinned, “If they’re smart, they’ll keep their hands to themselves.” She sat in her chair, ignoring the looks from the boys in the class. The teacher could only sigh as she began the lesson; this was going to be one of those semesters.

Jake was at his table eating lunch when he saw Regina walk into the lunchroom, grab a tray, and cut to the front of the line. A couple girls who she cut in front of started to complain, but Regina gave them a look that silenced them. She grinned at their reaction and continued on her way.

When she noticed the chocolate milks were gone, Regina looked around the tables and grinned. Her sharp eyes had landed on a table full of jocks. She walked over with a sly smile that Jake knew spelled trouble.

She put a gentle hand on the largest jock, “Hey there.”

The boy looked and was immediately enchanted, “Hi there. What can I do for you?”

Regina gave an innocent, but alluring smile, “I couldn’t get any chocolate milk, and I saw you hadn’t opened yours. I love chocolate milk. It's kinda is like the window to a girl’s heart.” Jake couldn't help being a bit impressed as she smiled, “I was just wondering…”

The jock smiled, “Say no more.” He not only put his milk on her tray, but even grabbed the chocolate milks his buddies had and gave them to her.

Regina smiled, “Thanks, boys.”

Before she could go, the jock smiled, “Maybe you could give me a little kiss for my heroism?”

Regina scoffed with a mean grin, “Heroism? Oh please. More like gullible idiocy.” With that, she walked off. The jock was confused as his buddies laughed, knowing he was played by the new girl.

Regina continued over to a table full of cheerleaders. She went up to the table with a grin, “Hey there, ladies.” The girls there smiled, having no clue what they were in for. Jake watched to see what she would pull next.

The leader of the crew, a pretty girl with a smile full of braces, smiled up at Regina, “Hi! You’re the new girl, right?”

Regina gave her sweetest smile, “Yeah, just call me Viper.”

The girl smiled bigger and held out her hand, “I’m Harriet Pine. Nice to meet you!” She had to take her hand back when Regina didn't shake it.

One of the girls smiled, “Why do you call yourself Viper?”

Regina grinned, “You sure you wanna know?” The girls nodded. Jake sighed; he knew this was not going to end well.

Regina spoke softly so only those girls could hear. As they listened, their faces turned from excited, to confused, to shocked, to utterly terrified. They finally screamed and ran for it. Regina only laughed as she sat at the cleared table and she started on her lunch.

Jake’s eyes gave their curious gleam as he wondered what she had told those girls. Though, they were the kind of girls who screamed over broken nails, so it didn’t have to be anything that awful, but something told Jake it was probably pretty awful anyway. Jake simply finished his lunch, and headed out for his next class.

He was just going to have to keep his distance from this new girl. She was trouble. Sadly, unbeknownst to even Jake, she was more trouble than he gave her credit for.

The final school bell rang and Jake closed his books to get ready to head home. Though, as he packed his bag, he noticed someone stop in front of his desk. He looked up to see Regina grinning down at him. Jake knew it couldn't be anything good, but he spoke as he stood up, “Can I help you, Regina?”

Regina grinned as she looked him over carefully, “You’re Jake Fare, right?”

Jake nodded, “Yeah, that’s me.”

She smiled, “Listen, I’m new around here and I suck at school. I’ve heard you're quite a wiz. Maybe you could tutor me?"

“I guess. When and where is all I need. We could even meet by the pear tree outside if that’s easier.”

“Nah. My place, about nine. I live in the old mansion a couple blocks from here. I’m sure you know where that is.”

“Yeah, I know where.”

“Great. See you then, Jake.” She winked at him before heading out of the classroom.

Jake watched her leave in silence, I hope she won’t be a jerk while her parents are around. I hope they’ll be home. With that, Jake grabbed his bag and headed for home.