Transfusion

Chapter 1

 Blurry faces came into focus above me as my head stopped spinning, and my nausea quickly faded into the background.

 My arm was bandaged.

"Do you want some water?" A blond boy kneeled in front of me with a concerned expression on his face. I felt dumbstruck as I looked into his warm brown eyes and... why am I on the ground?

When I didn't answer, he offered me a large hand and gratefully, I took it to pull myself up. Blood rushed through my head and I almost fell over again but his hand helped keep me steady.

The room was dimly lit, and as far as I could tell we were in the living room of an apartment complex. It was very sparse, with some gray couches leaned up against the walls, antique lamps, a wooden coffee table and plush carpet lined the floor under my feet. 

Getting my bearings, I realized that there were three other people in the room with us.

"She shouldn't even be here." growled a bitter voice from the corner of the room.

 I turned to look at the speaker and saw that it was a guy maybe only a little older than I am, but the hatred in his glare shocked me. He stood rigidly, back against the wall, his muscular arms crossed in hostility.

"Don't mind Dravin," the blond said, guiding me over to the sofa, shooting the boy a stern look over his shoulder."Welcome to Collective 608, I'm Leon, your Pacesetter."

Those words triggered memories that came dripping back, bit by bit.

 Recruits. Initiation. Right.

"I guess I've been admitted." I said almost to myself.

"Perhaps by mistake." 

The owner of that voice was lounged out on the couch right next to me, his feet propped up on the coffee table, but I hadn't noticed because he was so silent. The first thing that caught my attention was his stare.

My eyes traveled  to his face and stopped there before I had to look away.  There was no doubt that he was attractive, but his dark eyes... they were intense and unsettling. They pierced through me, and his gaze although not filled with absolute hate, was definitely not friendly either.

"Elias." Leon warned, sharply.

"Look, if someone like Val couldn't survive the assignments from those damned assholes, how is this measly girl supposed to take his place?" Elias asked, eyes narrowed, watching me. "Not to mention, two new recruits within such a short period of time, it's like they're trying to turn us into babysitters." he scoffed.

"Don't underestimate Ashlinn," said Leon, "I heard from Management, that she did exceedingly well during initiation."

He knew my name.

 I wanted to laugh when a warm feeling spread through me, the one you get when someone surprises you by remembering your name. Then again, of course he would know my name, I'm his newest recruit after all. What I was feeling had to be the contrast of his warmth and friendliness against everyone else's hatred, because damn if it didn't feel like everyone else in this room despised me right now.

 Everyone, except Leon, who was the only one that genuinely seemed to care enough to defend me, and was the only one concerned how I was feeling. In this hostile environment, I felt the urge to grasp even more tightly onto his kindness, and the warm feeling I had inside spread some more. 

It was then, that I noticed there was another female in the room. She was sitting in the corner of the couch, among the shadows, trying to take up as little space as possible. The girl looked fragile, and her round rimmed glasses took up half her face. Was she the other new recruit?

"Ashlinn has a mouth right?" a cold voice shook me out of my thoughts. Of course it was Elias again. "Let's hear what she has to say about this."

Now all eyes were on me.

All I could think about, was that he called me a "measly girl" earlier, and it rubbed me the wrong way. I couldn't help the sudden anger that coursed through me.

"I think you're an asshole who doesn't know anything about me." I snapped. 

It felt good telling him off but I couldn't help wincing internally.  Somehow, pissing him off didn't seem like a good idea.  

It was silent for a whole second before Leon chuckled. Elias's eyes flashed, and he raised an eyebrow but  kept his mouth shut. Oh god, he was going to murder me in my sleep.

"Who's hungry?" Leon asked, changing the subject. "I've bought dinner, and we're having a debriefing meeting afterwards to get our new recruit caught up, and hand out new assignments." he said, winking at me. 

I had the urge to smile back. At least there was one good thing about this place.

Nimbly, the girl in the corner hopped up and all but ran for the kitchen. The two guys slowly followed, and Elias passed me, but not without another arresting stare, like he was analyzing me, and I shivered.