Chapter One

It was a beautiful night. The moon was in full glory, the sky was glittered with stars, and the atmosphere had that serene feeling to it.

If I was back at Rosario, I would probably be lying on the roof of our small house, listening to different night owls as I stare at the vast sky. It was kind of a habit that I got from who-knows-where, and I'd been doing it for as long as I could remember on nights like this one. But instead, here I was, sitting perfectly still inside a car that wasn't mine, hands clasped tightly together while I waited anxiously for the vehicle to make a turn towards the tall silver gates of Crimson Academy.

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, trying to imagine the creatures that lived within these gates. Their skin as pale as snow, eyes as red as blood, and fangs that could pierce through skin; living proofs that nightmares weren't just found in dreams; immortals granted with immeasurable power... vampires.

For decades, humans believed that supernatural beings were nothing more than fictional characters, myths, or figures of one's imagination. But that was before the vampires left the shadows and decided to reveal their species to the world.

Now, they were as real as they could get. And it had been that way for two years since the Great Awakening.

"Have you met one, Miss?" said a deep gentle voice that pulled me out of my trance.

From the tinted window, I turned my head towards the driver's seat. Mr. Santiago's dark eyes met mine through the rear-view mirror.

"Vampires?" I said. "I don't think I have. There aren't many back at Rosario."

"Then this will be the first?"

"Yeah. Think so." I smiled, and brought my eyes back to the window. "What are they like, Mr. Santiago? Are they scary? Are they as beautiful as people claimed?"

"They are certainly peculiar, that I could guarantee. They think in ways I could never comprehend. Maybe a result of their long existence. But in some ways, they're just like us."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll see when you met one." Even though I couldn't see his face, I could feel his smile when he said that.

I rested my head against the window and closed my heavy lids as we drove past the rows of trees that somehow surrounded the academy. Just the thought of meeting the creatures of the night already felt like a heavy blanket had just been placed over me. But because of Mr. Santiago's words, I somehow felt a little bit more at ease.

Only when the car pulled up did I opened my eyes. My heart pounded heavily against my ribcage, pumping adrenaline through my veins that almost drowned away my anxiety.

Taking a deep shaky breath, I grabbed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder before opening the car door. The smell of pine trees and the cold night air welcomed me the moment my feet landed on the concrete. I hugged myself, my gaze fixed on the brick building in front of me.

Can I still go back? I thought.

But where to? I already lost my home when my mother died three months ago, and I had spent every last money she'd left for me. I couldn't possibly stay with my best friend, Lianne, and her family. They've sheltered me long enough, and asking them to keep me longer than they should would just be plain embarrassing. I wasn't their responsibility. I wasn't anyone's responsibility. No one was obligated to help me survive but myself. Which was why I accepted Crimson Academy's proposal — to be one of their students. Not only would I have a place to live in, I'd also be able to go to college, something that I thought was impossible at my current state.

It was the perfect opportunity to grab, while I go and search for a job that could help me stand on my own — basically hitting three birds with one stone.

So why was I hesitating again? Oh, right. Crimson Academy was a former all-vampire boarding school.

Just months ago, vampires were the only ones accepted in the academy. What they needed to learn after their long existence was something I couldn't fathom. But apparently, they still needed to be educated, and the academy was built for that sole purpose. Then soon after that, more and more establishments meant for their kind have appeared: hotels, bars, clubs.

But not everyone was able to accept the sudden changes in the society.

It wasn't because people were totally freaked out by vampires in school uniforms, or shocked that these ancient creatures could have some fun. They were terrified to accept the fact that we had always lived with monsters among us, and even more terrified that we now share the world with stronger, more intelligent species than ourselves. And who could blame them? Everyone got used to the idea of vampires as killing-machines and soulless demons.

Even after Japan introduced their newly developed synthetic blood and blood pills that actually maintain a vampire's life without the necessity of drinking from humans, the majority of people were still anxious around the vampire community. That pushed the government to take action regarding this matter.

Thus, schools like Crimson Academy started mixing humans with vampires, in hopes of bring our separate worlds together.

I was one of those humans.

Was it something to be proud of? That I wasn't sure just yet.

"Would you be needing some help, Miss?" Mr. Santiago said.

I turned to him. The forty-year-old man was now out of the car, holding my luggage with a smile that showed the few lines his face accumulated as he aged.

Despite the long drive from Rosario to the city of Ostport, and the hours of exchanging conversations with me, Mr. Santiago still looked lively in his black suit, straight pants and leather shoes. His dark hair with a few streaks of white still looked neat, and his expression never showed exhaustion.

"I think I can manage." I smiled and took my suitcase from him. "Thank you, Mr. Santiago."

"Please, call me Noel."

"Sir Noel," I quickly supplied, "thank you."

The old man smiled and slightly inclined his head. "You're welcome, Miss Luna. I hope to see you again."

Waving my hand, I watched as Sir Noel walked back into the black vehicle. He started the engine and drove away. Only then, when I was on my own, did I felt reality slapping me in the face.

I'm finally here.

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