The Bloodied Scriptures

Chapter 1: the Evil Spirit

Thud. An open book falls to the ground. I stood up from my seat, and picked up the ancient manuscript, coughing up the dust. I placed it back on its shelf and returned to my seat.

Seconds later, the book was thrown towards my way, filthy, with a stench of rotting flesh. A slimy hand brushed over my shoulder and I trembled, slowly looking back, my breath stopping. A bloodied face of a woman's mouth threaded, smiled widely at me, staring with her empty eyelids dripping with blood. I screamed, and fell off my chair to the cold ground, sweat dripping down my face. She raised her hand, her sharp nails shining in the candlelight, cackling with glee.

Alexander stood behind, swiping his hand on her silhouette. She screeched and evaporated, and he held his hand out to me. His messy blonde hair and dark circles under his eyes still remained perfect with his symmetrical face. On top of that, he was strong amongst spirits and also popular amongst the female ones if you know what I mean. How can he have it all, except a breath of life?

"So exhausting...take my hand, Heli."
"Thanks, I-I c-can get up o-on my own."
"Are you okay? You look pale."
"I'm f-f-fine..."

I slowly got up and slapped my face. I couldn't let this disturb my writing time.

"Hey, that just gave me an idea!" I exclaimed.

My friend laughed and shook his head in disappointment.

"You're so lucky you have me. If you didn't, your dumbass would've been ripped to shreds."
"Ah well, benefits of having a ghost friend I guess."
"I am the protector of this library. Do you know how many bookshelves have been ruined because of these damned spirits?!" he exclaimed, pinching his nose and picking up the manuscript with the tip of his fingers.
"Yeah, yeah. Now stop distracting me."

He scoffed and flew away to the back of the library. I will never get used to his spirit form. I slipped my earmuffs on and started to write down my experience. Surely, my assignment and story ideas will be loaded after this.

Literature is what subject I am taking at this university. It sure is hard to balance it out with my cleaning shifts in the evenings. Nobles are demanding to their maids and that includes me. That's why I always go here to complete my assignments and continue my novel every night, mostly midnight.

After a long period of work, I yawned and stood up as I took my candle and stepped along the silent halls between the shelves. I slid my hand across the dusty books and grabbed the clean hardcover book. I chuckled at the empty title and turned to the first page. The bloody writing only spelled a word on the first page. "Him." I raised my eyebrows and turned the page. A picture of a young student in their pyjamas, his wavy hair covering the sides of their face. The picture was painted with the same red ink. There was something familiar about the drawing. I looked closer, the particular eyes were lowered and his skinny body was covered in ragged clothes. Looking out the window with a twinkle in his eyes. That face belonged to one particular student, a writer. That face that I saw in my mirror every day. I closed the book in the realization that someone was drawing me in red ink. This wasn't a novel, it was a sketchbook of me! I turned the pages to see more and more drawings of me. Joyful, depressed, and aroused?! Oh god, this was so embarrassing.

I smelled the fresh ink that smelled almost metallic. I smeared the lubricant and felt the sticky substance on my skin. It was like...blood, it WAS blood! Oh my gosh. My breath shook a little and I let out a suppressed laugh, my eyes wide like a moon. This was insane. I dropped the book, and quickly wiped the blood on my lap.

A tiny feeling in my chest found it thrilling, and that was the insane part of me that wished for supernatural encounters for ideas. The part that took over me was the wanting to flee from the area. I grabbed the notebook and swiftly saw my way out.

The window reflected the full moon's light on the long, wide hallways. Each step of my leather boots echoed on the marble floor. The lights were all out on the lanterns, and faint giggles were heard across the hallway. The child spirits ran across the hallway, chasing each other. I walked around, observing the little game they played amongst each other.

"Look, a man!" A little girl beamed.

She ran up to me and tugged on my clothes.

"Why do your clothes look so torn up?" she asked.
"Not everyone is rich like you!" another child responded.

I stood there awkwardly as they argued amongst each other. Alexander leaned his back on the door frame and called the children back to the library.

"Long night, huh?"

I nodded and waved to him. He smiled warmly and waved back.

I opened the door to the hallway, and shut it, clicking the lock. No more spirits on this side, I'm back in the real world, the lonely one, the dorms of my school. I creaked the lock open and looked out in the distance. Maybe a walk outside wouldn't hurt. I already broke the rule of not entering the library every day.

The cold wind prickled my skin as it swayed the trees with its song, the leaves playing the percussion. I smiled at the thought. The full moon was high and bright, shining its light over the tall building. This was the moment that I needed. I strutted to the oak tree and lay on the floor of leaves under it. I closed my eyes and rested.

A leaf fell on my forehead, and I felt a hand swipe it off.

"You know, if you fall asleep here, you'll get caught." A deep, soft voice whispered against my ear.

I groaned and rubbed my eyes. I slowly opened them to a man leaning over me, covering his mouth, his sharp eyes staring into mine. His long dark hair touched my cheek, and he stood back up. I stood up and scratched my head. What should I say?

"Thanks for considering that..."

What the hell am I even saying? That doesn't even make sense.

"You're welcome." he chuckled.

I stared longer at him, noticing the blood dripping off his other hand at his sides.

"What are you looking at?" he asked.
"N-nothing."
"Are you looking down at me?" he asked, taking a step closer.
"N-no! Not at all!"
"I'm just kidding with you!" he laughed, tapping me on the head.

He wiped the blood from his hand on my shoulder. My bottom lip trembled a bit as I looked up at his eyes. He laughed and picked his nails at my cheek, leaning his head to the side, and staring at my face. I glanced to the ground and fiddled with my fingers.

"We should call this a night, and maybe, you don't need to mention this to anyone," he said, in a gentle, yet threatening voice.
"Y-y-yeah..."

He glanced at my notebook and removed his hand, revealing his fangs glistening in the moonlight. A vampire?! I didn't know they still existed, I've only heard of them in history books. They've done a good job to hide themselves it seems. The worst part is that I've encountered one right now, yikes. I slowly backed away, my hand shaking a little while I gripped my notebook.

"You shouldn't steal books from the library, you know?"

I nodded, scrunching my eyebrows. How did he know that?

"You mind if I return it?"

I shook my head and turned away.

"I like the drawings in here."
"A stolen sketchbook, how scandalous. Oh well, I won't force you. See you next night, Heli."

How does he know my name? Before I could even ask him, he brushed his lips on my forehead, holding my face into his neck. I jolted and questioned the situation I was in.

"I'll spare you this time."

The air became heavy, and I closed my eyes and fell to the ground.

Welcome everyone, hope you liked the first chapter! Feel free to leave your comments or vote to show your appreciation. Tomorrow, we'll get a sneak-peak of the romance on a Valentine's day special, so stick around! This series updates every Tuesday.