Thank you, dear reader, for giving my story a look. My apologizes if it seems a bit slow at first, but I promise there is a steamy and somewhat lengthy love scene at the end. This is the first of (hopefully) many chapters, so I wished to attempt creating some depth in the main protagonist.
The usual disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. All characters involved in erotic scenes are over 18, even when not explicitly stated.
Additional disclaimer: There is a short scene that deals with a very heavy, very dark subject matter. If you are bothered by such things please read with caution.
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THE FALLEN
CHAPTER 1: DISCOVERY
The taxi I'm seated in pulls up to the open, wrought-iron gates of my new home. The driver parks with the car's back end just past the intricate metalwork of the pretentious and formidable portal. I peer out the vehicle's side window and inspect the tall walls of red brick.
To both sides of the gate are large metal signs secured to the stone. The words "Bay Ridge Academy" are emblazoned on their shiny surfaces, the words sparkling in the late morning sunlight. I can't help but feel intimidated at the daunting sight. The cold steel, brick, and concrete of the gate and walls doesn't feel welcoming at all. I feel as though I'm in front of a reclusive billionaire's property, not a private boarding school. It's as if I'm about to enter an inhospitable and alien landscape.
I exit the taxi, my eyes still taking in the grand walls and gate, and the driver gets out to open his trunk. He lifts out my four suitcases and carry-on bag and sets them on the ground. I'm peering with trepidation through the property's entrance as he rattles off what I owe him. I hand him some money, including a decent tip.
"Keep the change," I say quietly without meeting his eyes.
He looks at the payment and smiles, saying, "Thank you, miss. You take care."
"Um, thanks," I mutter uncomfortably.
He gets back in his taxi and pulls away, leaving me alone at the entrance to the school. My twin brother Christopher was supposed to meet me here to help me get registered and settled in, but he's a no-show. I dig my cell phone from the duffel bag at my feet and check the time. I'm a few minutes late, but not enough he should have abandoned me already. I drop the phone back inside the bag and zip it shut.
I sigh heavily, not knowing how I was going to lug around four big suitcases and a medium-sized duffel all by myself. Maybe my brother forgot. Maybe he didn't care enough to remember. Maybe he came here earlier, didn't see me, and left because he had better things to do.
I sit down on one of my suitcases and resolve myself to waiting. Even though Fall hasn't hit full force, the late morning air is still a touch chilly. I pull my gray knit sweater a bit tighter around me to ward off the cold.
I have a habit of twirling strands of my long, black hair around a finger when I'm bored or nervous, and I catch myself doing so. I suppose I'm feeling a little of both emotions. Without much else to do I gaze through the open gate at the impressive and sizable grounds within.
I can smell freshly cut grass from the expansive greenery of the quad. There are old, towering trees scattered around it's area. Many of them are evergreens, but the leaves of the deciduous ones have yet to turn yellow and tumble to the ground. It's green upon green upon green in there, with only the brown tree trunks, red brick buildings, and gray sidewalks present to break up the verdant sea.
The huge, multi-story school buildings ring around the perimeter of the park-like quad. There are so many they block my view of the rest of the grounds. The outside walls extend in the distance beyond the area I'm viewing, so I know I'm not seeing everything. Not to mention all the pamphlets I read told of a whole bunch of things that aren't visible from where I sit.
There's supposed to be a student union, a boy's and girl's dorm, an "impressive" library (their words), an Olympic-sized indoor swimming pool, a mechanic and machine shop, two football fields, a baseball diamond, four tennis courts, and a partridge in a pear tree. And that's only the stuff I can remember off the top of my head. Bay Ridge Academy resembles a college campus more than a high school, but for sixty thousand a year I expect it should.
I lean back and watch the clouds for a bit to pass the time, but this waiting is getting tedious.
I sigh heavily...again.
I'm about to say 'to hell with it', grab as much luggage as I can manage, and start walking when I notice a boy in the distance running across the quad toward me. He's wearing tennis shoes, black track shorts, a white t-shirt, and a blue baseball cap. I can see blond hair peeking from under his hat. His t-shirt is spotted with sweat around the neck and armpits. Judging by the outfit it looks like he just came from PE class.
He waves from a distance as he sees me. This must be Christopher, but I thought he had black hair like me? Hair color, maybe? Nice of him to keep me waiting, but better late than never I guess. I stand up, letting my long black hair fall around my visage like a shield.
As the boy gets closer I see his smiling face is rather handsome, his blue eyes sparkling as he comes to a stop in front of me. I mentally upgrade him from "boy" to "man", but I realize at the same time he's not Christopher. Even though I've never seen my brother in person I have a recent picture of him in my phone, and this guy isn't him.
"Hi!" he pants lightly. "You must be...Chris' sister...Erykah."
I freeze up. I've never been good around cute guys, especially strangers, and this one is
hot
. He looks a hair over six feet tall, and he's got a lean and muscular runner's body.
"Are you...okay?" he asks.
His question snaps me out of my building unease. I better say something, or he's gonna think I'm a total tool.
"Where's Christopher?"
I think about how rude and terse I just sounded, but instead of apologizing I stand there like a dummy. The guy doesn't seem to take offense, though. He looks at me and, of all things, gives me a friendly sort of smile.
He's recovering his wind quickly, but still pants lightly as he explains, "Sorry if I made you wait. We had to take Chris to the infirmary. They think he sprained his wrist so he asked me to come get you."
"Oh," I enunciate slowly. "That sucks."
I'm mortified when I realize that could be taken totally wrong, as if I meant it sucked that
he
was standing here in front of me. I berate myself. Open mouth, insert foot you stupid girl.
"I...um...I didn't...uh..."
He laughs lightly in amusement, but it isn't a mean sound. He looks at me with a broad grin that flashes his straight and sparkling teeth.
"Don't worry. I know what you meant, and don't worry about your bro, either. He'll be fine. It's nothing serious. I'm Chris' friend Thomas, by the way. It's nice to meet you," he says, that gorgeous grin still pasted to his face.
He sticks out a hand to offer me a handshake. I'm a little taken aback, but I muster my courage and reach out to take Thomas' hand. His smile broadens even more as he gives me a grip that is neither too tight nor too sloppy.
"Chris was right when he said you're pretty," Thomas compliments me with that warm smile of his.
I blush and practically jerk my hand back as my heart skips a beat.
"Oh crap, I'm sorry," Thomas laughs softly. "I wasn't hitting on you, I swear. It just that Chris hasn't shut up about you for the last week. He really is sorry he couldn't be here to meet you himself."
"It's okay," I mutter quietly, looking away to the ground and letting my long hair shadow my face and my bashful expression.
"Anyway, let me help you with those suitcases," Thomas offers, motioning to my luggage.
I nod and step back. Thomas slings the strap of my carry on duffel over his neck and one shoulder before lifting two of my suitcases. I grab the remaining two pieces of luggage, and my eyes roam over Thomas' arms and the way his muscles tense and bulge under the weight of my suitcases. The masculine sight makes my heart flutter a bit faster.
"You need the admin building first, right?" he asks, noticing me checking him out.
I look away nervously again.
"Yeah," I reply in a voice so low it's almost a whisper.
"Alright. Follow me."
I remain silent as we walk through the open gate and across the quad. Except for multitudes of chattering birds, the grounds are strangely deserted. If not for Thomas walking beside me the lack of other people would be incredibly eerie. He points out and describes each building as we pass it, performing as an impromptu tour guide. His voice is animated and happy as he does, and it makes me feel a little more at ease as we approach my destination.
Thomas is acting as if I'm merely some normal girl he's been saddled with and not a total social klutz. He doesn't strike me as a dim bulb who wouldn't notice how awkward I'm being, so I can only assume he's trying to be nice. The latter would make more sense since he's one of my brother's friends. Is that the reason, or is he a genuinely nice guy?
Or is he only pretending? I know some guys play nice to get into a girl's pants, but later on you find out what a jerk wad they are. Not that I know from personal experience, I swear. I've always had too much self-respect to give up the goods without falling in love first. I regret to report the love thing hasn't happened yet.
Not even close.
"Well, what do you think so far?" he asks as we reach the front door of the administration building.
I shrug noncommittally and mutter, "It's okay."
"It's a little intimidating at first, I admit," he nods, his assessment summing up my feelings exactly, "but you'll learn your way around. Don't worry. The place grows on you."
Thomas sets down one suitcase and opens the door for me, holding it with his foot and grabbing the luggage again.
"Thanks," I say quietly as I step through.
Thomas leads me to the admissions office. We set down our burdens, and I fetch my transfer paperwork from the duffel bag. It's a boring fifteen minutes as I fill out more paper work. The secretary keeps glancing over to where Thomas loiters nearby and eventually speaks to him.
"Shouldn't you be getting back to class, Thomas?" the secretary asks.
"Sure," he nods with a smile, tapping one of my suitcases with his foot, "just be careful of this one. It's a little heavy."
