Obscure

thirty one

A COUGH DRAGGED Sophie's attention toward the front of the classroom. Aubrey stood with her arms folded across her chest, a nasty glare fixated on her face. Her gaze flickered toward the clock that had appeared on the wall behind Aubrey. It was another countdown clock; Sophie had about thirty minutes left.

Sophie glanced around the classroom, not really concerned. The other contestants worked, hunched over their booklets with determination.

Her eyes darted toward her own booklet. She pulled it closer and opened it to the first page, skimming over the first question. Her lips twisted into a wrinkled line. The sudden wave of nostalgia burned through her veins like lava.

She gulped.

Sophie sucked in a deep breath. She had to at least finish the booklet. A small part of her knew that she couldn't outright refuse to take the test. If she tried, Eli would catch on immediately. It wouldn't take long for him to deduce her plan and either tattle or stop her. Sophie was also afraid to offend him. Right now she was supposed to be competing to be his mate. Even as his friend, if she purposefully failed, she knew he'd be upset. She didn't want to hurt him any more then she had to.

Her gaze scanned over the first question again. Immediately, she worked out the dumbest answer. She circled it and moved onto the next question.

And then she repeated the process.

It didn't take long to finish the exam. When she was through, she looked around. There was still a solid twenty minutes left on the clock. Most of the other Night Class contestants had already finished their booklets. The students sat ram-rod straight in their chairs, and clasped their hands on top of their desks. Sophie noticed that Margret hadn't finished yet. The girl scribbled furiously at her booklet, her eyebrows furrowed with confusion.

Aubrey still stood at the front. She reminded Sophie of a statue; it looked like she hadn't moved at all. Her gaze still remained focused on Sophie, her eyes narrowed with distaste.

Sophie propped her elbow against the desk and rested her chin against her fist. Her gaze traveled back down, and landed on the booklet. Now that she had finished her botched test, she could allow herself to think.

Two distinct problems surfaced within her mind.

The first was her plan for the rest of the games. There was only supposed to be one challenge left. Then the winners would be announced, and life would go back to normal. Sophie wasn't sure what exactly the test would entail. All she knew was that she didn't care.

She had to fail the last test. In order for a definite loss, the Headmaster had said that you had to pass at least two of the challenges. Sophie had messed up with the first test. Instinct had taken over and, before she knew what was going on, she'd almost won the race.

She just couldn't afford to win another challenge.

The second was her mother, and the questions in the booklet. She would have to double check. She was certain that Eli would know when the academy had been established, and planned to ask him. Then she could work out the dates. Her mother had never mentioned attending the school or anything about vampires.

"Alright." Aubrey's voice ripped Sophie's attention back toward the front. The last twenty minutes had flashed by faster than Sophie could blink. Aubrey snapped her fingers. "Pencils down. Pass you booklets to the front."

Sophie walked her booklet to the girl in front of her. She didn't bother to return to her seat, curious as to what would happen next.

Aubrey collected the booklets and tucked them under her arm. She started toward the door. "Your scores will be revealed tonight at dinner. Remember, if you lost the last challenge and scored low on this one, you will be dismissed from the games."

Several Day Class members looked uneasy.

"You can return to your rooms now."

The door clicked shut behind Aubrey. Sophie was the first to reach the door. She stepped into the hallway and started toward her dorm, determined to avoid the others. The pitter-patter of determined footsteps sounded from behind her. Sophie glanced back over her shoulder and saw Margret hustling to catch up.

"Hey!" the girl snapped. "I need to have a word with you."

Sophie tried hard not to roll her eyes. She didn't bother to slow down. "What do you need, Margret?"

Margret fumed. Sophie could almost see the steam streaming from her ears. "I need you to stay away from my future mate, that's what!" She reached out. Her slender fingers curled around Sophie's arm and wrenched backward. "You'll infect him with your slutty diseases."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sophie forced out. Her arm bristled from Margret's touch. Alarms blared inside her head. She stopped then in the middle of the hallway and turned toward the girl, her eyes narrowed.

Margret's face twisted with anger. "Oh yeah, right! Like I believe that!" Her hands clenched into tight fists at her sides. "I always see you with him, hanging all over him like a whore. Just leave him alone."

A burst of anger sizzled through Sophie. "Why are you even acting like this?" she asked honestly. She crossed her hands over her chest. "You know, he doesn't like you. And to be honest, he finds you pretty annoying. Your chances with Eli are slim to none, even if you do manage to win the games."

Margret swung her right fist.

Sophie's body reacted instinctively. In the blink of an eye, her hand shot out and grabbed Margret's wrist. Her hand squeezed tight; Margret's expression morphed with pain. The attack stopped cold in its tracks.

"Don't be stupid," Sophie warned her. She watched Margret's other fist in her peripheral vision.

"I hate you, you bitch." Margret seethed.

"Well, that's good for you. I don't care." Any ounce of patience that Sophie had had vanished. Her grip tightened on Margret's wrist and she watched as the girl's lips parted around a pained gasp.

Margret tugged against Sophie's grip. "What are you doing?" she shouted. "You'll break my wrist! Ouch! That hurts!"

"You swung first," Sophie reminded her. Her lips twisted around a mean smile.

Then she spied her reflection in Margret's pained gaze. It was small; somehow, her eyes were able to pick out each individual detail within her pupils. 

Sophie froze in shock. She looked an awful lot like Aubrey had, when the Night Class matriarch had attacked Sophie.