save me

Point of view : DHALIA

They say high school is the best time of your life. Funny.

I call it "the prelude to hell."

I get up at 6:42 a.m., not because I'm motivated, but because I dreamed again that I was falling off a roof.

I fall a lot in my dreams. Never in real life.

In real life, I stay standing. Badly, but I stay.

I cross the half-empty room in my foster home like a shadow.

The girl I share it with snores like a tractor.

Her name's Tania or Tamia, I don't remember.

I think she hates me. Good. I hate her too.

I pull on my black hoodie, my worn-out Doc Martens, and put on my headphones. Billie Eilish. Volume at max.

Not for the music. To shut out the world.

*******

The high school is a gray building stuck in an even more depressing neighborhood,

It's raining, of course. Moonridge has its charm—if you like mold and family secrets.

I walk through the halls like I'm invisible. Spoiler: I'm not.

People stare. Not because I'm pretty or cool.

No, it's something else. An aura. A rumor.

The girl who "lost it last year." The "bipolar." The "crazy one."

I stopped correcting people. If they want to believe I'm dangerous, let them.

Keeps them away.

I was in the hallways, headphones glued to my ears, hoping no one would talk to me.

But of course, she found me. As always.

— "Dhaaaaaaliaaaa!"

It was her.

Juna.

My best friend. Or at least, that's what she says.

Straight chestnut hair, eyes almost white-green—borderline unreal—and a smile that makes you believe in light.

She's everything I'm not.

She literally shines. And it drives me crazy.

Why does she like me so much? I'm not nice to her.

I'm not nice to anyone, really.

— "I dreamed about you last night," she said, grabbing my arm.

— "Hm. Bad omen."

— "No! It was so weird! You were in a forest, there was a door on fire and a giant wolf…"

— "Stop. I'm gonna have a panic attack."

She laughed. Like my sharp answers didn't even touch her.

And maybe they don't.

We spent the day together, like always. Me, checking the clock every five minutes, her trying to make me smile.

But something was off today.

A boy, back against the wall, black hoodie, bag in hand.

He's new. I'm sure of it.

But when our eyes met… it felt like he knew me.

A shiver ran down my spine. Luna noticed.

— "You know him?"

— "No…"

And yet, my heart beats strangely. Like it recognizes something my brain refuses to admit.

3:45 p.m. End of classes.

The sky had turned violet. That end-of-the-world shade I love.

I left Juna with a simple "see you tomorrow" without looking back.

And yet, I felt something.

Like a shadow behind me.

A presence. Heavy.

I turned around several times in the street, but there was nothing. No one.

I went home. A big empty house, with a roommate I barely like.

When I opened the door, the smell hit me: freshly smoked weed and cold pizza.

My roommate, always slouched on the couch, joint in hand, gave me a hazy look.

— "Yo."

— "Classy," I muttered.

I went upstairs without saying a word.

I felt weird. Not sick, not sad.

Just… like something was about to happen.

And I was right.

It was 2 a.m. when I sat up in bed.

I'd heard a noise. Not a creak of the house.

A muffled scream.

I slipped out of the sheets, barefoot on the cold floor, and slowly went down the stairs.

Everything was dark except for a pale light coming from the living room.

And then… silence. Unnatural. Heavy.

When I turned the corner, I saw chaos.

Blood. Everywhere.

My roommate… lying on the floor. Dead. Eyes wide open. Throat torn out.

And in front of her, a girl. Stunning. Cold. A vacant, almost amused look.

Next to her, a huge creature, some kind of black wolf, misshapen, with eyes that seemed to burn.

My breath caught.

My knees trembled.

I couldn't breathe.

The girl looked up at me and smiled.

— "So this is the little thing we were supposed to find."

I didn't move.

Paralyzed. Frozen at the top of the stairs.

Fear iced every vein in my body. The wolf growled. It climbed the stairs slowly. One step. Two steps. Three.

And then, I knew: I wasn't going to survive.

I closed my eyes.

I waited.

But it wasn't death that came.

A sharp noise. A whistle. Then a violent impact.

When I opened my eyes, the wolf was thrown against the wall. And in the middle of the living room… there he was.

The boy from school.

His eyes… red. Fangs visible.

He moved too fast to be human.

He jumped on the girl, bit her neck. She didn't even have time to scream.

The wolf tried to flee. He knocked it down with a single blow, like a broken toy.

And then… silence.

I stayed frozen.

Him, standing in the middle of the carnage. Chest stained with blood. Eyes back to golden.

He looked at me.

— "Dhalia."

He whispered my name.

Calmly. Like he had carried it inside him forever.

I didn't know if I should thank him or run away.

My heart raced. My legs gave out.

He stepped closer.

— "You weren't supposed to see that."

I felt my vision blur. My ears ring.

And then… black.

I collapsed.