Blood of Ash

Chapter 1: Bellalyse POV

It was dark. My internal clock said it was 4 in the morning. I rolled over to look at my alarm clock and groaned. I was right. It was time to get up.

I sat up and looked around my room. Yes, it was dark outside, but it was darker inside due to the pitch black paint on my walls. Across from my queen sized bed with blood red silk and satin sheets was my closet. It was overflowing with clothes I had never worn that I still needed to bag up for donations. To my left was my nightstand full of books by authors like Sarah J. Maas and Kierra Cass. A little farther away was my bookshelf (yes I am an avid reader) and my beautiful hand carved oak dresser. Then there was my bedroom and to the right of my door was my full length mirror that was almost completely covered in pictures. It was also partially covered by my jeans for the day. The wall to my right and my ceiling were covered in posters and song lyrics. I called it my song wall. And of course there was my little window that provided access to my balcony.

We lived in a 3 story house and my room was the attic. I loved it. It was easily the biggest room in the house and my siblings hated coming up here so I was never bothered. I climbed out of bed and crossed my room to the closet. Rummaging through my clothes, I pulled out my favorite shirt and jacket combo. It was a short sleeved shirt with a cute kitten on it and a Falling in Reverse leather band jacket. I quickly put them on with my favorite dark grey jeans and zip up ankle boots before crossing to the mirror.

Sighing, I looked at myself. I was pale and definitely tired. My crazy hair didn't make it any better. I dyed it constantly out of boredom, so today you could see my natural golden blonde hair as it faded to hot pink which them faded to a lovely shade of violet in an ombre effect. I had a weird shade of eye color that was considered hazel, but it was blue and green instead of shades of brown. My lips were a soft pink with the bottom lip being fuller than the top. I wasn't tall. I was pretty average for my height, about 5'4" and I was really skinny. Not the "I puke after every meal or just don't eat" skinny, but the natural pretty skinny.

Brushing my hair out, I thought to myself, "I really need to eat today" I shook my head and sighed before pulling my hair into a loose ponytail, grabbing my generic black backpack and climbing through the window. I jumped down from the balcony and landed with a soft thump sound. Pausing to listen I knew mom was in the shower, the twins were still asleep, and Jason was already at work.

Smiling, I glanced at the house and took off through the forest that was right behind the house. It was about 5 miles from my house to the school and I ran those miles in seconds. I smiled as I saw a figure in the rec area near the school leaning against a lonely oak tree. I knew instantly that it was Asher. I was still too far away for him to see me but I could see him and smell him clearly.

Asher and I have been best friends for years. We were probably about 10 when we met, and he's gotten to be one of the most popular kids in school. We both were actually. Well, sort of. I didn't have a lot of friends, but everyone thought I was pretty so everyone tried to cozy up to me. I'm sure it was the same situation with Ash and his popularity, but he was genuinely nice and friendly to people. He had chocolate brown, long, curly, always perfectly messy hair, gorgeous tan skin, eyes as dark and warm as a cup of freshly brewed coffee, and a smile as warm as the sun. He was 6 feet tall and really muscular, not that he flaunts it. Today, he was wearing a fitted black shirt, dark blue Cody James jeans that I had bought him, a long sleeve blue and white button up shirt, and black boots.

"Ash," I squealed as I got close enough to hug him.

He grinned and wrapped me in a bear hug. "Bella," he rumbled sweetly, "you look tired. Are you okay?"

I looked up at his concerned eyes and could have sworn he knew the truth, but that was impossible. I smiled and nodded. "Of course, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I don't Bellalyse, but you know you can trust me right? You can tell me what's going on."

I forced myself to smile. He knows I hate it when he uses my full name. "I'm fine Asher. Why don't you go ahead and go inside. I'll be in in a few."

He pressed his lips tight together and nodded. Slowly, he let go of me and walked away towards the huge castle like school. I sighed and watched him go before running back into the forest. Barely breathing, I slowly hunted a few rabbits and a couple birds, draining them of blood, before heading to the abandoned changing rooms no one used anymore.

I quickly used the sinks to clean the blood off my face and looked at my reflection again. I want to tell him everything. I really do. but I can't risk it. Not after what happened to Lilly.