Hi, my name is Sebastian Gray. You probably know me by now—surely you do. And if you don't… well, I'm not sure why you're here, reading my thoughts. But anyway.
I'm 16 years old—or, well, 14. Wait, no, 15? Ugh, let's try this again. Officially, I am 14 years old physically, but mentally, I'm 16. Why, you ask? Surely you know by now, right?
I'm a vampire.
Do you believe me? Probably not. Honestly, I wouldn't either, so don't worry—you're not offending me. In fact, it's good. Keep it up!
I've been a vampire for 1 year and 10 months now. And yes, I'm counting. Don't ask me why. It's just what I do. Time feels… relative now, considering I'm stuck in this form forever. Immortality and all that.
Depressing? Yeah, maybe. But that's a problem for future me. For now, I'm just your average Sebastian Gray. Well, as average as a vampire can be.
Life hasn't changed much—aside from my wardrobe. Hood up, umbrella always on hand, and I'm good to go. A lot of people ask me why I suddenly started wearing my hood all the time. I just tell them I've developed a rare form of skin cancer. It's not like they can see it. And hey, fewer people bother me now because they think it's contagious.
(For the record, kids: skin cancer isn't transferable. But hey, whatever keeps them at a distance.)
The real reason, of course, is that sunlight is my enemy now. Human me would've loved a sunny day, soaking up Vitamin D and napping in its warmth. But vampire me? Yeah, no thanks. My pain tolerance is about as low as my grades—I can't handle being burned. So, I layer up. Jacket, long pants, long socks. Even a turtleneck under my uniform. I don't take chances.
And let's not forget my trusty umbrella. Windproof, sunproof, vampire-proof. It's my lifeline.
Honestly, though? Being a vampire isn't all bad. Sure, there are some cons, like the hunger for blood. But the pros? Oh, baby, the pros. I'm stronger than I've ever been. I don't need to eat, sleep, or even use the bathroom anymore. And most importantly, I can stay up all night gaming without getting tired. The only challenge is avoiding my mom's wrath when she catches me awake at ungodly hours.
Now, about the blood thing. Yes, vampires need blood. No, I don't drink from humans. I'm not a murderer. When I was first turned, though, the hunger was unbearable. My senses were heightened—sight, smell, hearing—and the hunger was constant. I locked myself in my room for days, telling my mom I was sick. I didn't trust myself around my family.
Strangely, I found that sleeping helped. Vampires don't need sleep, but we still can sleep. And somehow, when I woke up after a long nap, the hunger was gone. I have no idea how that works, and I've never met another vampire to ask. Googling it doesn't help either—there isn't exactly a WikiHow on being a vampire.
But enough about that. Let's talk about immortality for a second.
Yes, I have a family—a dad, a mom, and a cool older sister who's in a band. And yes, I know I'll outlive them all. But that's a thought for another day. For now, I'm just a teenager trying to survive high school.
Who says I can't pretend to be human, anyway?
—
I perked up as soon as I felt Kath slide into the seat beside me, a shit-eating grin plastered across her face. I turned toward her, already brimming with excitement. That look—that look—always meant one thing: gossip. And Kath was barely holding it in.
"What is it?" I asked eagerly, practically vibrating in my seat. School gossip never failed to entertain me, whether it was some blonde girl fighting over a jock or that one weird nerd who got caught selling feet pics online—by his homeroom teacher, no less. That one was equal parts gross and hilarious. Seriously though, who's into feet? Weirdos. Definitely weirdos.
Kath leaned in conspiratorially, her grin widening. "I heard…" she trailed off, clearly trying to build suspense. I rolled my eyes, grabbing her wrist and shaking it in mock desperation.
"Spill it, woman!" I whisper-shouted, my voice still loud enough to startle a group of students chatting in front of us. They turned to glare at me, but I quickly flashed an apologetic smile.
Oops. Didn't mean to yell that loud. But seriously, Kath was dragging it out.
"Okay, okay," she said, laughing as she wiped a tear from her eye. "I heard there's a new student. Word is he's from Scotland, and…" She leaned in closer, her grin bordering on maniacal. "He's really, really handsome."
I blinked. A new student? That's it? That's the big gossip? I slumped back in my seat, unimpressed.
"A new student." I deadpanned. "That's all? Some guy from Scotland? Wow, Katherine Cruz, you've really outdone yourself this time," I said sarcastically, folding my arms.
Kath pouted, pinching my cheek lightly. "Oh, come on! You're not even a little curious? He's in our grade, you know. Don't you want to meet him?" She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, and I sighed, leaning back in my chair.
"Why would I care about some random guy I don't even know?" I muttered, shooting her my best "I'm not impressed" glare. She just laughed it off, sending me a sheepish smile.
"We have to talk to him," Kath insisted. "Miss Herta is totally going to bring him in for first period and introduce him to the class." Her tone was so excited that it immediately made me suspicious.
I squinted at her. "You've already seen him, haven't you? Let me guess—you've got a crush already."
Kath gasped, feigning offense, but the blush creeping up her cheeks gave her away. Typical. She fell in love with a different guy every week, and by the following Monday, she'd already have her sights on someone else. Honestly, it was almost impressive how consistent she was.
I opened my mouth, ready to tease her, but the classroom door suddenly swung open. Miss Herta strode in, her heels clicking against the floor, and behind her, someone followed.
I blinked, my words dying in my throat as the new student walked in.
His hair was blonde—no, not just blonde. It was almost platinum, catching the fluorescent light in a way that made it gleam. But it wasn't his hair that caught my attention. No, it was his eyes.
They were yellow. Not just yellow—golden. Like they were glowing, otherworldly. He wore an easygoing smile, but his uniform set him apart. While the rest of us were still in summer uniforms, he was already sporting the school's spring uniform.
"Class, we have a transfer student from Scotland," Miss Herta announced with a smile. "His name is Silas Gael. Silas? Would you like to introduce yourself?"
The boy nodded politely, pulling his hands out of his pockets before giving us a small wave.
"Good morning," he said, his voice smooth and calm. "I'm Silas Gael. I just transferred here from Scotland, and I hope we'll all get along." He ended with a warm smile that was, frankly, almost too bright.
For a second, I couldn't look away. He was like the embodiment of the sun—so blindingly radiant that I half-expected to combust into ashes if I stared too long.
Around me, I could hear the girls swooning audibly, and the boys letting out low, envious sighs. I turned to Kath, whose hands were clasped together like she was praying or something. She had this dreamy look on her face, her lips curved into the smallest of smiles.
Great. She was already smitten.
At least it wasn't just me who was affected by his presence.
But then, he said something I absolutely did not expect.
"I'm a High-Class Mage," Silas announced casually, as if it were the most normal thing in the world to declare on a Monday morning. "And I'm here to find a pure-blooded vampire named Minerva Marlowe."
The classroom fell into stunned silence. My jaw might have dropped, but I wasn't sure if it was that or the pencil slipping from my hand and clattering to the floor that drew everyone's attention.
Silas's golden eyes flicked to me, locking onto mine.
I gulped. "Uh…" was all I managed to squeak out.
He smiled—a closed-eyed, almost mischievous smile—and waved at me like we were old friends. But when he opened his eyes again, they were sharp, piercing. Like he knew.
Oh, crap.