Totally a Vampire Thing || ONC 2024 ||

Chapter 3. His Twin Enters the Scene

"I'm sorry, I need to pop into the nurse's office before the next class," Cruz said with a tormented smile. He pressed my scarf to his chest like he was stemming a flow of blood from a wound there.

"Me and my stupid coffee! Please, let me walk you there. I want to make sure you're alright."

"Don't worry, I'm going to be fine. It's only..." He trailed off and panicked guesses crowded my poor head. What did I inflict on the poor guy? First-degree burns? Allergy to crappy coffee? Shock?

Cruz's gaze flickered to something behind my back. "Also, your friends are coming over."

I turned to see Esha and the girls approaching, their grim faces spelling, Intervention!

"Cruz, I must go with you! Right away!" I exclaimed, whirled back to Cruz and froze with my mouth gaping.

One second ago, he was slumping in a gray plastic chair. Now he was standing three feet behind it. How did this happen? When? And why did the boys act like nothing weird was going on at their table?

"Wait! Cruz?"

He already covered a third of a distance to the exit from the cafeteria, something he shouldn't have been able to do at his leisurely walking pace. Only because I stared at him without blinking, I saw what was actually happening. He walked three steps, blurred into a glowing blue shape, then reappeared a few feet farther. What on Earth—

"Zoe, let's get going." Esha dropped the extra bag from her right shoulder and shoved it into my hands. Because it was my bag, duh.

"That's right, Chawla, get this walking disaster out of here, or we'll have no team left for the Sunday game," Aiden said, folding his arms behind his head. "First Dylan gets kicked out, now she's injured Cruz..."

I was so involved with tracking Cruz's insane progress, the insults and Aiden's flexed biceps barely registered, but Esha's eyes narrowed. "The coffee dunk was an unfortunate accident, Rosen."

Let's see... It didn't work out as planned, but eventually happened on pure accident with just a small deviation. So, technically, marginally, Esha remained righteous.

"And your Mr. 'Big Deal' Dylan is a high school drop-out. Another unfortunate statistic for the district, and nothing more." She blew her midnight-black hair out of her eyes, relieved to stand on a less shaky ground in this debate. "I don't need Tarot cards to predict this particular misfortune in your future too, if you don't move your obnoxious butt and go to class. Bye!"

Esha and the others closed the ranks so tightly, I had to struggle a little to get free. "Be right with you, I'm just going to...you know..."

I dashed toward the cafeteria's door that had just slammed shut behind Cruz. They would understand, right? And they would never run in public.

I didn't excel in athletics; my heavy bag slapped my hip as I sprinted; and that mysterious blue glow was a powerful accelerator, but Cruz should still have been going down the long hall when I burst out of the cafeteria.

Yet, as I swiveled my gaze from one group of students to another, I didn't spot his tall, dark-haired figure. At this point, a wise thing to do was to wait for my friends, space out in the afternoon classes and fill my freezer with chocolate ice-cream.

Alas, my wisdom abruptly departed when Cruz had spoken to me. "Where could he—Aha!"

The main exit was way closer than the nurse's office. He probably stepped out for a breath of fresh air to deal with his odd condition.

I stormed out of the Delys High School so fast, my sensible heels drummed on the wide concrete steps like stilettos. My yells bounced off of the building's crumbling red-brick façade. "Cruz! Triana! Wait!"