Apris Academy

14. Christmas

From the perspective of Aiko.

I can feel it.

The pull. The magnetic force. The uncontrollable longing.

I open my eyes and look around the dark room. Moonlight shines on the dorm room floor, revealing the plastic cups and confetti from our Christmas Eve party.

I throw my bed sheets aside and wiggle into my slippers. I try to maintain composure. Try not to lose my control.

But my body is urging me forward. I can't help it.

I stride to the door and into the hallway. I run down the stairs and into the Commons.

The room is spacious and eerily quiet. Muted light filters in through the windows.

I can feel the electricity in the tips of my fingers. I thrust myself forward.

My hands collide with the wall, and I am blinded with color.

***

Flowers bloom around me, clouding my vision. They're vibrant with color, spiraling into the air.

A beautiful woman stands in front of me. The flowers wrap around her, sprouting from her skin.

Her hair is a gorgeous shade of blonde, bordering on white, tumbling down her shoulders, streaked with blue and pink.

The woman picks a flower from the wall. She looks at it with heavy eyes.

The woman blows on the flower, sending its petals flying towards me.

They cover my eyes, turn blood-red, then tear away, revealing a completely different scene.

A terrifying scene.

A giant throne sits in the middle of the room, perched atop a mountain of animal skulls and twisting black vines.

A cloaked man rules from the throne, jagged antlers growing out of his head.

I try to shriek, but no sound comes out.

The students of Apris Academy surround the throne, groaning and weeping, clawing at the vines. Their gray clothes are bloodied and tattered.

The teachers are trapped in the shadows, watching with horror. Vines cuff them to the wall, the thorns piercing their skin.

The sound of screaming and crying and cold laughter overwhelms me. This place is filled with such darkness. Such pain. So cruel.

The man on the throne begins walking down to me, stepping on the skulls of animals and the heads of students. Every crack I hear kills me.

He's now inches away from me, reaching out his hands. I feel tears in my eyes.

His bony hands clasp my face, sending ice straight through my body.

I scream and jerk my hand away from the wall, squeezing my eyes shut.

When I open them, I'm on the ground. The Commons Room of Apris Academy is vacant of whatever evil I just witnessed.

I stand up, my head pounding, and stumble back up to the dorm room. I collapse into my bed, my slippers still on.

As I fall back to sleep, thoughts spiral around my head.

Who was that woman with the flowers?

Why do I keep having these visions?

Are these visions actually going to happen?

***

Diana shakes my shoulders, yelling, "Aiko, wake up! It's Christmas!"

I roll over in my bed. Every memory from last night comes crashing back down to me, flooding my head.

I open my eyes and see Diana, smiling at me. "Fine," I say.

We put our robes and slippers on. After Diana pulls her hair into a bun, we head downstairs with the rest of the girls.

I can see the Christmas decorations clearly in the daylight. They fill the Commons: green wreaths, garlands with bells, Christmas trees. Everything is bright and cheerful, the polar opposite of what last night looked like.

Last night, every garland cast a dark shadow, and every tree was a monster waiting to attack.

Our whole dorm runs to our designated Christmas tree and starts ripping open presents. Elizabeth gets a care package, shipped from her family in Canada. Anne gets a giant plush octopus from her best friend.

The only gift I get is a wool sweater from Diana. It's blue, with little white cotton balls on it. I slip it on, embracing its warmth and comfort. I can feel the warmth travel to my face, and I can't help but smile.

When I look over at Diana to thank her, she's opening an envelope. Her eyes widen. I look over her shoulder, and she lets me see the message:

Dear Diana,

I formally invite you to attend the New Year's Dance with me.

From,

Theo

My heart sinks.

Attached to the envelope was a small box. Diana opens it, revealing a small necklace inside. It's made of shimmering silver, with a single diamond in the center.

"Oh my gosh," Diana whispers, setting the envelope down. She slowly places the necklace around her neck and clasps it in the back.

It looks amazing on her. She deserves to have it. She deserves someone like Theo.

Not me.

My present for Diana is forgotten, hiding somewhere under the Christmas tree.