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"You've been a handful, Miss Hancock..." His deep, husky voice sends shivers down my spine. "I believe in discipline. Maybe you'll learn to behave... or maybe you'll enjoy the punishment." Weeks ago, at the shopping centre, I saw him. At least six-four. Dishevelled dark hair. A black t-shirt straining over a chest carved for sin. His amber gaze locked onto mine—and my body went rogue. Goosebumps exploded across my skin. A lightning strike straight to my core, knees buckling. And when I stumbled past him, he let out a low, feral growl. Like a wolf. What kind of man even growls like that? It only made me burn hotter. My panties were insanely soaked before I hit the exit. Every night since, he haunted my dreams. That growl. Those eyes. "Soon," he whispered. Now I'm standing in the dining hall of this creepy boarding school. The man who just marched in—the one who makes the entire room bow their heads? My mystery man. My midnight phantom. The headmaster. "It's you..." I whisper. His eyes darken. "Welcome to Crescent Moon Academy, Miss Hancock. We have so much to discuss." --- Prologue The Diary of Chole Hancock 7th July Dear Diary, Okay, so, I know I have not been faithful in doing my daily journal entries, but I honestly have a very valid reason. You see, things in my life have gotten very weird of late. It all started around a month or so ago in my Chemistry class. Now, I may have blown up an experiment, which, by the way, I firmly put the blame at the teacher’s door! I mean come on, who sit’s a bunch of seventeen year olds Boy, Girl, Boy, Girl along the lab tables in a bid to control them! NOBODY! But Mr Phillips in his infinite wisdom did just that, and if he hadn’t treated us like 5-year-olds thinking the opposite sx had cooties, rather than the teenagers we are that want nothing more than to catch the cooties from boys or girls next to them, it would never have happened! So, there I was sitting next to the hottest boy in school, “Monty”, captain of the football team, captain of the cricket team, and by all accounts the best kisser in the school, and like any other normal hormonal 17 year old, it was too good of an opportunity to miss, and I channelled my inner f***t to perfection. Now, we were tasked with making some concoction or other that can, if not treated with care, explode. The instructions were to heat very gently on the Bunsen burner. Again, in my defence, at least I remembered the low heat was the yellow and not the blue flame, so it could have been a lot worse. What I did not realise, due to zoning out during Mr Phillips' demonstration, is that to ‘very gently’ heat you only use the tip of the flame! I was busy heating my explosive ‘handle with care’ concoction in the centre of the flame, whilst having a great conversation, which was going really well might I add, and had the potential of ending in a much sort after date; and finding out if ‘Monty’ was in fact the best kisser in school, not that I have a lot to go on being classed as a little weird just because I do not subscribe to wearing pink and have that rock edge and ‘don’t give a shift’ attitude that girls sneer at, and boys seem a little intimidated by. ‘Monty’ was just asking what I was doing on Friday night after school and at that precise moment, my explosive concoction, well, it exploded! A massive bang making b*tchy Bev, the queen bee of our year, scream and hide under her desk (Drama Queen), the test tube glass exploding everywhere. A shard of glass hit Monty and, as a result, now has a small cut with a few stitches on his handsome face. Hey, the scar will make him hotter, I did him a favour, and the whole episode resulted in a two-week suspension, plus one week grounding by my parents to teach me a lesson, and ‘Monty’ looking at me like I was something he had trodden in! A week later, I was finally free from my home punishment, and having no school to attend, I decided to make good use of my time, and go get the fantastic hairstyle I had been saving for, so I headed for the hairdressers in the local shopping centre and had my w***t length black hair dip dyed with a very vibrant purple and lilac colour. I have to admit it looks fierce, and I love it, my mother and father, not so much! Anyway, I leave the hairdressers and I am walking along minding my own business when suddenly there was a man, now if Monty is the ‘Hot’. This guy is a blazing inferno. Tall around six four at a guess, dark brown hair that looked like his hands had just run through it, and it had fallen effortlessly perfectly around his strong jaw line, his amber-coloured eyes bright, and don’t get me started on his body, it was out of this world! Wide chest, you know the type of chest that strains against the black t-shirt he was wearing, the hint of ink on his big b*****g guns on each arm and his t****s, thick and just WOW! This man was, I would guess, around 24, but still he was hot with a capital H. He stood motionless when he saw me, and just stared, but as our eyes met, I began to feel goosebumps, rising up my body covering every inch and making a bee line straight to my core. New p*****s were required, no joke, literally soaked, instantly! So, there we were stood staring at each other, in the middle of the shopping centre, and well, as much as I was enjoying looking at this sx God, it was becoming embarrassing, so I walked past him, and hot Dam just being closer to him made my heartbeat out of my chest. Now here is the weird part, when I got to where he was standing, to walk past, his eyes never leaving mine. He actually growled, I mean who does that? It was like an animal growl, one that would normally have me thinking ‘Freak’, but oh no, when this guy did it, I felt like my knees became weak, and my body exploded from head to foot in sparks. Then he turned on his heel and left. Now here is the really weird stuff that is happening. Every night I dream about him, and in that dream, he tells me he will see me soon. It is so real I would swear he is right beside me, but when I wake up to my utter disappointment, I am alone in my bedroom. I must admit, I have spent a lot of time in the shopping centre, like, crazy stalker amounts of time, to try and see him again, because he is that hot, but no such luck and now my time has run out. A week after that strange encounter that left me hot and bothered, my Dad got an offer for a new job, a massive promotion, in Japan of all places, and the new company had specifically head hunted him. Apparently, they like to invest in the whole family and give opportunities to their staff’s children. Now Japan is the one place I have longed to go, so happy was an understatement when I found out that we would be moving there. But my happiness was short-lived, because oh no, I am not going, despite looking like an Anime character with my hair. Nope, the new company Dad is working for decided that I should be given every opportunity to ‘reach my untapped potential’ here in the UK! So now I am being carted off to a boarding school / college/ university, up north in the highlands of Scotland, where they teach’ gifted and talented students’ or those who require a little help in a more ‘disciplined environment’. Now I know I am not academically gifted or talented, given I have Disl …deslex… dyslexia (why make that word so hard to spell!!!!) and I get bored and distracted very easily, so I believe I am being sent to some sort of boot camp, to a creepy looking castle that would look amazing in any horror movie, that has been renovated into a school that takes you from Primary education right through to degree level, and from what I can gather from the brochure that they gave my parents, sounds like a radical group! The Crescent Moon Academy, as it is called, has five houses, “Full Moon House” For those with leadership qualities who are aged 16 plus “New Moon House” For those with special gifts or talents aged 16 plus “The Half Moon House” For younger leaders from age 8 plus “The Blood Moon House” For those who show good potential in military skills – All ages “The Eclipse House” For those who need to find their place in the world. – All inclusive See what I mean, weird and cultish, and the worst part is, despite ‘$exy Hot God’ haunting my dreams, each and every single night, I now know, I will never bump into him again, because tomorrow my parents are taking me to The Crescent Moon Academy, hundreds of miles away where I shall spend my day’s learning and being disciplined and that dear diary suks @ss! Chapter One Chloe looked out of the window of her father’s car, as the Scottish countryside passed in a blur of green trees and purple heather, the vehicle only slowing as her father made his way through the small villages before stepping on the accelerator once more. Her whole life was now in this car. Chloe's parents had rented out her childhood home, and would be heading back tomorrow before flying out on their own adventure to Japan in three days. The sense of foreboding was creeping into her psyche once more, the realisation her life would change so dramatically, her protests about being sent to “The Crescent Moon Academy” had fallen on deaf ears. If only this had happened six months from now, when she would be 18, and could legally tell her parents “suk @ss”, she would not find herself being hauled off to the place she felt deep in her bone’s was some sort of weird radical group. But as she was still 17 and her mother felt this would be the making of her, maybe calm her down a little. Chloe was not really a bad girl but had to admit to doing some crazy shift at times, normally fuelled by the monotony of school life, and the ever-present boredom of a child who found it difficult to concentrate. That mixed with her dyslexia, and being told to write down what she had learnt, which was more of a hindrance than any help. hll, if they asked her what she had learnt they would have found she knew more than they gave her credit for, but to her the words were lost in translation as she attempted to transcribe it, resulting in frustration. Then the act of just messing about because she knew the written work would be chastised for bad writing, poor spelling and grammar, so mostly Chloe thought to herself what is the point? The road began to climb, then narrow, as the trees thickened with each passing mile. “Look at how beautiful this scenery is, Chloe”. Her mother tried once more to cheer up her gloomy mood. “Yeah, if you like green” Chloe sighed, unimpressed. “Look honey, I know you are pissed off, but this is a fantastic opportunity for you. Maybe you can make new friends. If you possibly try and fit in. Maybe dress less aggressively, smile a little more. You will find people will actually give you the time of day”, her mother continued. It was the same old lecture she had heard a million times before, but why should she change? If people could not embrace her unique sense of fashion and slight craziness, then as far as Chloe was concerned, it was their loss, not hers. “Dress less, aggressive, well, given this place has gone back fifty years and has a God Awful uniform requirement, I think the radical group has put pay to my creative flare and individuality” “For the umpteenth time, Chloe, it is not a radical group”. Her dad gritted out, shaking his head. “Chloe, it is a highly expensive, private education. Which you are fortunate to have. Your father’s new company are paying a lot of money for you to receive this amazing opportunity. You need to be a little more thankful”. Her mother chastised Chloe, exasperated at her total lack of enthusiasm. “We are nearly there, just a couple of more miles,” her father stated. Thankful for the change of topic regarding her negativity about the place, Chloe looked out of the side window once more. The thick pine trees rustled in the breeze, as the road turned to shale, it was more than a little bit off the beaten track, giving Chloe the shivers. The road turned to the left, before straightening out again, and in the distance, Chloe could see the tall spires of her new school, and home. The dark, imposing, grey building, with windows set in an arch pattern, looked to be over four floors. To the left, the vast expanse of trees opened up into a large neatly kept field, where some of the other “radical group members” could be seen. A few of her new classmates were running laps, others looking like they were engaging in hand-to-hand combat. It seemed that both girls and boys were pitted against each other, and even though she would deny it if ever asked, Chloe found that refreshing and pretty cool. To the right of the car stood a group of boys, and, hot Dam, Chloe’s interest immediately spiked. Was it a prerequisite that all men in this place be hot? All of them tall, extremely good looking, and looked like they lived in the gym. A smile teetered on her l**s as she watched them all intently. They were not as hot as the shopping centre guy, but hll, they were a good second best. “Chloe, put your tongue back in”. Her mother shook her head as she caught where her daughter was staring intently. At the front of the school stood a girl, around Chloe's age, long blonde hair that looked like she had just stepped out of a shampoo commercial, tall, slender, her red and black kilt sat mid-t***h, with a black blazer and white shirt. Chole almost scoffed at the knee-high white socks. The girl was beautiful, there was no denying that, but instantly Chole knew she was the Cults version of b*tchy Bev, obviously the queen bee of the place, and she inwardly g*****d. Chloe's father parked the car outside the entrance to the castle as her mother opened the car door, excitedly. “Hello, My name is Ursula Kirkstone, and I am the head girl here at Crescent Moon Academy”, Ursula said, then extended her arm to shake her mother and father’s hand before turning to Chloe and trailed her eyes up and down her with a look of disgust, before quickly smiling to cover herself, then extended her hand to Chloe. “Chloe Hancock” Chloe introduced herself with a brief shake of uptight Ursula’s hand. “Well, it is my pleasure to show you to your lodgings, then take you to see Mrs Black for your schedule. I believe you are currently in the “Eclipse” house”, Ursula stated. Chloe did not miss the slight change in her tone as she mentioned “Eclipse house”, as if that was a place reserved for the low-life of the earth. “Normally the Alp…Headmaster would personally greet you, but he is away at present at a convention, actually in England” Ursula smiled with pride as she talked about the Head as if he was some God that had to be obeyed and she was head of his personal fan club. “Oh, that is a shame. I wanted to meet with him, to discuss things before we leave for Japan”, Chloe’s mother said with a sigh. “I am afraid that will not be possible, he will return next week. It has been a long trip, he has been away for weeks now… can I offer you some refreshments?” Ursula faked a smile at Chloe’s parents. Chloe quickly discerned that uptight Ursula was not that genuine, a show in front of the parents, and she would like to bet she was a class A bltch when they left. “Actually, if you can show me to my room, so I can get unpacked, we can have refreshments later” Chloe stated, not happy at standing around whilst this girl made small talk and pretty eyes at her parents in a bid to be “nice”, and boredom was starting to rear its head as she began to look around distracted from the mundane conversation. Ursula narrowed her eyes slightly, obviously not used to being told her idea was not the greatest anyone had ever heard before, she put on her fake smile once more, that showcased her perfectly straight white teeth. “Of course, but first, we must get you your uniform and schedule from Mrs Black and the boys will carry your boxes to your room for you.” Ursula stated in a tone that was friendly but with the distinct hint of ‘do not mess with me’ attached to it. Chloe and her parents followed uptight Ursula to the school office. A woman of no more than 23 stood, her red hair sat in a perfect high formal bun on top of her head, her body was that of an athlete, dressed in a tight black dress, again she was stunningly beautiful, like everyone else Chole had seen in the school. “It’s the fking boarding school for the Stepford Wives” Chloe muttered under her breath, only to receive a sharp nudge from the elbow of her mother, and a look that said ‘shut up’ followed by a small shake of her head, before she turned to Mrs Black. “Hi, I am Chloe’s mother. Nice to meet you.” Diane Hancock extended her hand to the gorgeous woman before her. “Nice to meet you Mr and Mrs Hancock, I am Mrs Black, the school secretary and PA to the headmaster” Mrs Black smiled. “I am sorry the Headmaster, Mr Colton, is not here to greet you personally. He sends his deepest apologies, but he is currently finishing an important convention in England at present”, Mrs Black smiled. “Yes, we heard” Diane Hancock responded, feeling a little intimidated by the beautiful woman who looked in her early twenties, but had the confidence and poise of a woman twice that age. “Well Chloe, welcome to Crescent Moon Academy.” Mrs Black turned her attention to Chloe. “Here is your schedule for your lessons, along with the after-school clubs we have available. As a boarder, we strongly recommend you attend at least two of the clubs. Now most of our students are weekly boarders, or attend school daily. However, you are with us full time. I have placed you with one of our other full-time boarders and fellow Eclipse House students, Nicola Davis. I am sure you will like her. She is with us full time. On a weekend, you can go out to the village, and we do have a couple of staff members on hand, but you will need to be back in your dorm by the 11pm curfew. On school nights it is lights out at 10pm, and breakfast is served in the dining hall from 7am to 8am. We start the school day at 8:30 am.” Mrs Black explained. Chloe resisted the urge to roll her eyes and sigh, she was already bored with the conversation, and if the teachers here thought she would be going to bed at 10pm like a good little girl, they were in for a rude awakening. “Here is your school uniform, now as you are in Eclipse House. Your skirt, I think you will be pleased to know judging by your amazing hair, is purple and black tartan. Each house has its own colours. You have five skirts, shirts, and jumpers, with two blazers and two school ties. You are responsible for the upkeep of your uniform, and it must be worn from 7 am to 4:30 pm when the school day ends. After that, you can wear your own clothing, there are no restrictions on what you can wear after the school day, and at the weekend, all we ask is that you keep it respectful”. As much as Chloe hated the uniform, she had to admit she was pleased about the purple tartan, and the fact she could wear whatever she wanted after school. “Here is your Physical Education kit. PE is mandatory, and we focus a lot on self-defence. We believe every pupil, male or female should be able to defend themselves against any attacker. We also run laps to build up stamina, along with some strength exercises. You will attend PE at your allotted time slot every day, Monday to Friday, without fail or excuse.” Mrs Black smiled once more. Chloe let out a frustrated sigh, she hated PE. Running was never her forte. However, she did like the idea of self-defence. She had wanted to go to classes a few years ago, but her mother was fearful she would turn aggressive as well as a little mischievous if she had attended those, so she had refused permission. “Now, your things should be in your room, and it is time for you to say goodbye to your parents. Ursula will show you to your room”. Chapter Two Chapter Two Chloe hugged her mother and father goodbye, swallowing the lump that was in her throat, and blinking back the tears in her eyes. For all she had the normal teenage angst towards her parents, she loved them with all her heart and as much as she would deny it if asked, she was going to miss them. “Try and reign in some of your mischievous tendencies, Chloe, and promise me you will keep in contact every couple of days”. Her mother said, holding on to her daughter. “We will see you in six months for your birthday, it will fly over” her father stated, trying to convince himself more than his only daughter. “We love you, stay safe”. Her mother said, placing a k**s on Chloe’s cheek. Chloe took a breath and blinked once more, determined not to give in to her emotions, then taking a step back from her parents, she turned on her heel and walked towards the school doors, then looking back over her shoulder she offered a small upturn of her l**s to her parents and shouted over. “See you in a bit”, then turned and walked without a backward glance back into the school. “Hey Chloe, I know it is hard saying goodbye to your family for a long time, but know that the staff at the school are here for you; and believe it or not, we have a strong family ethos here” Mrs Black offered, understanding totally how the teenage girl was shutting down her emotions, in order to cope with the changes in her life. “Ursula, please show Chloe to her dorm, and have Mr Gibson let Nicola leave his class and come to the dorm. Then make the introduction please.” “Of course, Mrs Black.” Ursula walked with a fake smile towards Chloe before leading her down the corridor. Taking a turn to the left, Ursula motioned to the right-hand corridor. “That leads to the Full Moon House. You do not enter that area, EVER” she said with a look of disdain on her face. Chloe shook her head, she had been right as always, Ursula was fake, and nothing more than the school bltch. “I see your mask has cracked, FYI your little act didn’t fool me” Chole retorted. Uptight Ursula was not the first queen bee she had dealt with in her life. “Look, I am the head girl, part of the Full Moon house, and destined for leadership and greatness, you are Eclipse, someone without talent, and for some reason or other you have ended up here. Remember your place, and show respect to anyone and everyone in red and black tartan”, Ursula growled out to Chloe. “Hey, respect is earned, not a given right, and trust me, I don’t give a shift about which house you are part of, or how you think you are destined to be a leader, because all I see is a bltch on a power trip.” Chloe scoffed. “You will learn respect, one way or the other. Just stay away from Full Moon House”, Ursula gritted, not happy at being spoken back to. Turning the corner once more, Ursula walked up the large light oak staircase. “Yeah, well you keep out of my way, I will happily keep out of yours” Chloe shouted after Ursula, then followed her up the stairs. Stopping outside a large oak door, Ursula shook her head. “I cannot believe they have you in this room, the best in the school. It should be reserved for Full Moon students, but apparently, you get to stay in it with the other Eclipse loser, Nicola Davis. Well, she will be here soon, and you two can bond over the fact you are both less than nothing and will come to nothing.” Ursula huffed and turned on her heel and left. Chloe shook her head with a humourless laugh, then looked around the large room that was a lot bigger than she could have ever envisaged. To one side of the room, was a single bed, a large ornate wooden wardrobe sat on the wall opposite, the satin covers were a dusky lilac colour. The matching wooden bedside table held a gold lamp with lilac shade, and had a book sitting on it. A frog pyjama case sat on the bed, and along the shelf were little ornaments of frogs with funny faces. At the far side of the room, was a large window, where another matching bed sat alongside. The wardrobe for this bunk was even more ornate than the other, but matched perfectly. The bedside table again matched its counterpart, but once more was slightly bigger with more carvings, the lamp again gold, and the shade purple. This bed had a deep purple satin bedspread, with extra pillows. The walls were painted a soft golden colour, and worked perfectly in the large room. The hard wood floors were covered by a purple, lilac and black tartan rug to match their house uniform, the edges embroiled with gold thread. At the far side of the room sat two cream sofas, facing each other, covered with gold images of the moon in different phases, woven into the fabric. Chloe’s suitcases stood at the foot of the larger bed and her three boxes of personal items were placed in front of the large light oak work desk, where two laptops sat on it, one Apple Mac and one HP. “No wonder Uptight Ursula is pissed I have this room.” Chloe muttered to herself. The door to the room opened, a girl of around 5 foot 4 walked in, her brown hair hanging in soft waves down her back. She approached Chloe, her hazel eyes as wide as her genuine smile. “Hi, you must be Chloe. I am pleased to meet you, I am Nicola Davis, your roommate.” Nicola greeted Chloe warmly. Unusually, Chloe liked the girl instantly. Normally she would be reserved, but something inside her felt reassured by her presence, almost like she could trust her. “Yes, nice to meet you, is this bed mine?” Chloe asked, pointing to the larger bed. “That’s right, the headmaster informed us which bed and rooms we have to dorm in. I was told this one when I arrived three months ago, and now you have that one”, Nicola smiled. “So…you are relatively new as well?” Chloe questioned. “Yes, and it takes a little getting used to, with all the ranks they use. To be honest, it is a little weird, but most of the students are really nice and respectful. Well, apart from Ursula.” Nicola shrugged as if it was no big deal, but Chloe did not miss the dulling of her bright eyes when she mentioned the Head Girl. “Ranks they use?” Chloe questioned. “Yeah, I will explain everything to you, but first, you should get unpacked. I can help if you like, or go get us some snacks if you prefer some privacy?” Nicola smiled “Hey, we are going to be together a lot of the time, so if you want to help, knock yourself out” Chloe grinned at Nicola. As the girls began to unpack the boxes Chloe wanted to know Nicola’s story, how she ended up there, if her father or mother worked for the same company as her father. “So how did you end up here?” Chloe asked. “Oh, my father got a new job, working for Colton Industries, and was shipped over to Japan to help launch the company over there. As part of the deal, I was sent to this school. Did you know the Headmaster, Mr Colton’s family own that business?” Nicola asked. Chloe shook her head, it was the same place her father had been employed by, but she did not know it was connected to the school in such a way. The information only cemented further her idea that the school was a radical group. “Yeah, my father got the job out of the blue last month, and now, with only two weeks to go until the end of term, I have been sent here”, Chloe sighed. She had been looking forward to the summer break, before starting her last year at school, and leaving for good, yet here she was dumped in this place, and no where to go for the summer. “Yeah, they don’t really have term times here. Basically, if you want holidays, you can take them with your parents when they are home. They designed it like that so that we do not miss out if our parents are home during ‘Term Time’.” Nicola smiled. Chloe sighed, that meant she was not going to get a break for another six months. When her parents came back, she would be stuck there for Christmas and New Year, probably being made to attend lessons. “Honestly, Chloe, it is not that bad.” Nicola reassured her. “What about Christmas?” Chloe could not help but ask. Although she was 17, her parents always made a fuss. They still put out presents from Santa on their sofas for her, even though she had not believed in him for over 10 years. “Oh, apparently we can go to the large village most of the students come from, and celebrate it there, along with a lot of other parties the village arranges”. Nicola smiled “Have you been to a party?” Chloe wondered aloud. “Yes, I have been to four. They have a bonfire and. BBQ night, each full moon, not sure why, but we have to return to school at 10pm, and from what I can gather the party lasts most of the night for the people who live in the village” Nicola shrugged Chole nodded, it seemed this place was obsessed with the Moon, again reaffirming her belief it was some sort of weird radical group. However, a party was a party, but she would keep her wits about her so as not to be brainwashed. “Well, now for the real news, who, out of the multitude of HOT boys I have seen, is available?” Chloe giggled. “Quite a few are paired up with others in their houses. To be honest, it can be a bit sickly, they are intense, like not wanting to be apart. One day they are little more than friends, the next, generally around their 18th birthday, they become inseparable, and there are lots of displays of PDA.” Nicola shrugged. “shift, do you think we are in a radical group, and they are told who to be with when they reach 18?” Chloe asked out loud. “I am honestly not sure, it is certainly different around here, but I just keep myself to myself” Nicola shrugged once more. “So is Uptight Ursula with someone?” Chloe asked. “No, but the rumour is that Josh Colton, the headmaster’s younger brother, will be with her when she turns 18, although he seems not at all bothered by her, but who knows.” Nicola’s face clouded, as she frowned slightly. “So, the headmaster's brother attends school here?” Chloe asked. “Yeah, as a day student, their family seem to run the village, and a lot of businesses. But Josh is really nice, he is always kind to me, even brings me small gifts. I collect frogs, and he often brings me one. All of these are from him” Nicola motioned to the shelf with the array of comedy frogs on it. “He also defends me when Ursula and her pack of biches bully me, but he is not always about when they do.” Chloe noticed how Nicola’s face lit up when she talked about Josh and gave her newfound friend a broad smile. “You like him, don’t you?” Chloe giggled. “Yeah, but it is pointless if Ursula is with him when she is 18. I think he just feels sorry for me being stuck here. I once met him before I came here, you know.” Nicola sighed sadly. “Really, how?” Chloe asked, sitting on her bed cross-legged. “My parents and I went on a camping trip during the Easter break not far from here, about 5 miles north of the village, I was walking through the forest, just minding my own business, when he appeared out of nowhere. It was weird, I liked him instantly, and after he asked my name, he walked away as quickly as he had walked up to me”. Nicola shrugged. “Then you came here, and he is the head boy.” Chloe smiled. “Yes, but like I said, Ursula is determined he will be with her when she turns eighteen, and what Ursula wants she gets”. Nicola shrugged. “Hey, well, don’t worry about her and her gaggle of biches bothering you anymore. I am here with you now, and well, pissing off Queen Bee’s of the school is a speciality of mine.” Chloe said with a mischievous grin. “Thank you, Chloe, now it is time for dinner. We need to head to the dining room, before the students from the other houses get there, because they eat mountains of food, seriously, not sure where they put it all, and I will introduce you to some of the others in our house.” Chapter Three Chapter Three . Chloe and Nicola walked out of their room. In the corridor were around 10 other students all part of the Eclipse house, one girl, the rest boys. Each greeted her with a broad smile, a younger boy of around 16 years old shook Chloe’s hand. “Hey, I am Ethan, and I love your hair.” Ethan smiled at Chloe. “Thanks, so where are you from?” Chloe asked. “The village, but I am boarding in Eclipse, as I haven’t gotten my….. well, I haven’t reached my full potential yet” Ethan stated, with a shrug. The group of Eclipse students walked into the dining hall, but as they entered, the chatter stopped instantly, and Chloe felt hundreds of eyes looking at her intently, and a shiver washed over her, as she saw the scowls on the faces of the girls sat at the Full Moon house table. “Guess not everyone is pleased to see me” Chole giggled, not at all bothered by their stares. “Ignore them, come on, let's go to our table.” Nicola sighed out, heading for a long table at the bottom of the room, furthest away from the food counter. “Nicola, bring yourself and Chloe over here, you both should sit with us” A tall guy with muscles to rival Mr Universe stated, his hair was long, dark brown and hung in waves down to his shoulders. Chloe looked at him, he seemed vaguely familiar, but she could not think where from. “Oh, thank you Joshua, but we are with the members of our house,” Nicola answered, her face turning a deep red. “Yeah Josh, we don’t want Eclipse low-life sitting with us” Ursula shouted, placing a hand on Joshua’s bicep and narrowing her eyes at Nicole. Joshua quickly removed his arm from Ursula’s hand, his face frowning, as he continued to look at Nicola. “Okay, but are you going to introduce me to the new girl?” Josh asked Nicola. “Oh yeah, sorry, this is Chloe Hancock. She arrived today, and is my roommate.” Nicola stated “Your roommate? Interesting.” Josh muttered, turning and extending his hand towards Chloe. “Nice to meet you Chloe, and welcome to Crescent Moon Academy. I am Joshua Colton, head boy. If you need anything, just give me a shout and I will be happy to help.” Josh smiled. For all he was extremely attractive, Chloe did not feel any attraction, other than this boy seemed to be genuinely nice, and her gut was telling her to trust him, and over the years, Chloe had learnt to always trust her gut, it had never let her down. “Well, as Uptight Ursula is scared, the Eclipse house taint her by association. Why don’t you join our table, there is a spare seat?” Chloe smiled up at Josh. Ursula grimaced, then flicking her hair she turned towards Chloe. “He doesn’t sit with low life” she announced. “Actually, these guys are not low life, but valued students. I would count it an honour to sit at their table.” Josh announced, then headed back to where he had been sitting, and grabbing a plate piled high with food, he walked over to where the Eclipse house sat and took a seat. Seeing this, the rest of the dining hall all looked over, wondering what was happening, and the guys from the Eclipse house all looked slightly stunned by his action. With a shrug, and a small smile to Nicola, Chloe took a seat, leaving a spare one between her and Joshua. “Nicola, please sit here” Chloe grinned, as Nicola began to shift slightly, her blush even more profound as she took the seat between Chloe and Josh. “Hey Nicki, I saw this in the village gift shop and thought you would like it.”, Josh smiled, handing a small paper bag over to her. Chloe rolled her l**s, it was as clear as day that Josh liked Nicola as much as she liked him, but for some reason Nicola was too timid to make the move, and Josh was treating her with kid gloves. “Oh, thank you Josh.” Nicola smiled, taking the bag, and opening it. Inside was a frog sitting on a lily pad, its eyes wide, and a big grin on its face. Chloe could not see the attraction, however, Nicola’s face lit up, she absolutely loved the thing. “Oh wow, it is perfect!” Nicola smiled up at Josh. Chloe supressed a triumphant giggle when her tummy began to rumble. “Someone is hungry, you stand in line for the food, there is always plenty to go round” Josh smiled at Chloe, pointing to the end of the queue of students serving themselves at the large buffet. Chloe nodded, then picked up her plate, and turned to Nicola to see if she was going to get food, only to find Josh piling some of his own food onto her plate, his eyes bright as he encouraged her to eat. Walking over to the back of the line, Chloe passed Uptight Ursula and one of her minions, then stood behind a 6 foot-2 boy who again looked like he belonged on the cover of GQ magazine. As she waited patiently, she could hear Ursula complaining to her friend. “Seriously, he is supposed to be my mate, everyone thinks so, but since that little human tramp turned up, he hardly gives me the time of day.” Ursula complained. “Oh Ursula, just wait and see,. He is just being polite. Once you hit your 18h birthday you will both feel the mate bond, I am sure." The minion reassured her. Chloe stood listening, this was weird as anything. Why call Nicola human as if it were a curse word? Did Uptight Ursula have such a God complex that she believed herself to be above humans? And what is it about mate, and mate bond? This place really was cultish, Chloe thought to herself. “Hey Chloe, what do you fancy eating?” Ethan asked behind her. “Oh, it all looks good, I am not sure.” Chloe smiled at the younger boy. “I recommend the haggis with tatties, it is really good.” Ethan grinned at her. “What stuffed sheep’s lungs and potatoes, I think I will pass. Thank you.” Chloe shuddered. “Seriously, it is amazing, you are missing out.” Ethan shrugged. “No, I think I will go for a good old portion of lasagne, with a salad, and leave you to your wired @ss, Scottish food” Chloe laughed out playfully. “Bet you would like the deep fried mars bar though.” Ethan nudged Chloe’s arm. “Hum, not too sure, however, I am willing to try anything that includes chocolate” Chloe laughed. She then grabbed the battered, deep fried Mars bar, placing it on a side plate to eat after. Grabbing a bottle of Irn bru at the end of the counter, to embrace the fact she was in Scotland, Chloe walked back to the table, where she found Josh side eyeing Nicola, as she side eyed him, but neither of them speaking to each other. Dam they had it bad for each other. Taking her seat next to Nicola, Chloe decided to get them to converse a little, and with a smile she turned to Josh and asked him. “So how old are you, Josh?” she asked. “I turned 18 four months ago.” Josh smiled “So I hear you are the headmaster's younger brother,” Chloe continued. “Yes, but trust me, it doesn’t grant me any favours. If anything, I am expected to achieve a lot higher standard than anyone else.” Josh shrugged. “So do you live in the school or the village?” Chloe pressed on. “Both, I stay at the school or the Village. Actually, we are having a little get-together tonight, just pizza and films, at my brother’s house, making the most of it before he comes back. Why don’t you come, Nicola, and bring Chloe, I can make sure you are back for curfew.” Josh asked, staring at Nicola, who looked too embarrassed to answer. “Yeah, that is a cool idea, how do we get there?” Chloe answered for her new friend. “Oh, well, I have after-school training till 6pm, you can get changed and I will take you, meet you both at the entrance to Full Moon block. Say 6:30?” Josh grinned. “Okay.” Nicola answered in a small voice. After they finished the food, Chloe and Nicola headed back to their dorm. Once through the door, Nicola started to jump up and down and squeal manically. “shift Chloe, Ursula is going to be pissed off” Nicola said. “Good, nothing I enjoy more than pissing off Queen Bee’s” Chloe shrugged, not caring one little bit. “What am I going to wear? This is at the headmaster's house, apparently it is like a mansion”. Nicola ran to her wardrobe, grabbing out her clothes. “Well, I am not the normal fashion type of girl, as you can see, but it is still summer, and the evening is hot, so how about this red sundress? It is $exy without looking like you are trying too hard.” Chloe grinned at Nicola. “Okay, shift, I need to shower and wash my hair” Nicola stated, clearly beginning to panic. Chloe chuckled, as her friend ran to the bathroom, then turned to her own wardrobe and picked out a pair of skin-tight black ripped jeans, a purple tank top, and a pair of mesh ankle boots. Chloe waited for Nicola to finish her shower, before heading in herself. Tonight, Chloe was on a mission, to get Nicola and Josh together, come hll or high and mighty Ursula. Chapter Four Chapter Four. “Are you sure I look okay?” Nicola asked for the tenth time as she looked at herself in the mirror. “Yes, you look lovely, the red of the dress looks great against your tanned skin and brown hair.” Chloe smiled, for all this was not her type of outfit, it suited Nicola perfectly. “Chloe, you look stunning and fierce. I am really jealous of your hair. My parents would never agree to me dying my hair in vibrant colours.” Nicola smiled. “Thank you, I can tell you, mine were not over happy with me when I did it, but it is my hair, and so if I want it with purple and lilac streaks, I will have it like that.” Chloe shrugged with determination. “You are such a bad @ss,” Nicola laughed. “Not really, just know my own mind…now come on, else we will miss our lift and I am sure Josh will love your dress.” Chloe grinned and winked as Nicola’s cheeks went as red as her dress at the mention of his name. The two girls headed out of the Eclipse house block and made their way down the corridor towards the entrance to the Full Moon house block, where Josh stood in a pair of black tracksuit bottoms, and a black Henley t-shirt that strained against his large muscles, as he saw Nicola approach his eyes dilated, making the amber colour disappear into pools of black irises. “You look stunning, Niki” Josh breathed out, clearly happy with what he saw. “Thank you”, Nicola blushed. “Come on, let’s go” Josh grinned, never taking his eyes off Nicola. Chloe grinned to herself, feeling that she had accomplished something, as Josh placed his hand on the small of Nicola’s back and led her down the staircase. They walked to the black Range Rover Evoke, parked at the front of the school. Chloe widened her eyes. “Nice wheels” she complimented. “Thanks, it is practical to have a four-wheel drive around these parts, especially in the winter.” Josh smiled at her. Chloe went to get in the rear seats, and as she attempted to close the door, Nicola quickly jumped in beside her. Chloe rolled her eyes at her friend, she was clueless, she should have ridden shotgun, and Chloe whispered into her ear. “You should have sat beside him.” her voice was low, so Josh could not hear. However, as she said it, she was sure she heard a small chuckle from him. Brushing the thought that he had some sort of super hearing out of her mind, Chloe looked out of the window as they made their way down little more than a small country road, for a few miles, before turning left between the trees, the road little more than a dirt path, and unless you knew exactly where it was you would miss it completely. As Chloe watched she noticed every few trees there was one with some sort of scratch on it. Clearly some animals lived in the woods, and she shuddered slightly. Being a town girl, wild animals roaming around wooded areas was an alien concept to her, and she was not sure she liked the idea. As they pulled up in front of a huge white house, which looked to have four or five floors, and had large long windows,.Along one side of the square building, solar panels covered the roof, and the double doors at the front were a black surround with long glass panels. “Here we are.” Josh smiled at them. “So do you live here?” Nicola asked, her eyes wide. “Yeah, it is my brother's house. He occupies the top two floors. I have the third floor. However, we also have a large area on the ground floor dedicated to members of the village, so they have somewhere to go. Some of the guys who are not staying at the school stay here on the first and second floors. My brother likes to protect the villagers.” Josh explained as best he could. Chloe looked at the house and thought about the logistics of housing people from the village, and again her first thought was it was part of some crazy radical group, and the headmaster was probably the radical group leader. She shuddered slightly at the thought, but as soon as Josh opened the door, the faint smell of musk and sandalwood hit her nostrils. A peace descended over her, replacing her initial fear like a warm corsy blanket in the midst of winter. As they walked in, the house was huge. To the left were a series of wooden doors. Josh opened the single door to the right. “This is the kitchen, snacks are in the cupboards on the far side of the wall. You can help yourself. Drinks are in the first fridge.” Josh smiled, opening the fridge door to show them. Chloe stood open-mouthed gaping at the huge kitchen with stainless steel cupboards and work tops, it had two American-style fridge freezers standing side by side. The four floor to ceiling larder cupboards stood, then two full-sized sinks sat under the long window that looked out to the front aspect of the house. Underneath were two large dishwashers. To the opposite side was a long wall filled with overhead cupboards, and under-counter ones. Before the wall was finished off with two large built-in ovens, then to the right were two large stainless steel hobs, then leading back to the door were more under counter cupboards, the wall having a double door hatch that was currently closed. “Bloody hll, a family of four could live just in this kitchen.” Chloe said to Nicola, who just nodded her head as she looked around. “Yeah, it is big, but as it is a safe place for the villagers, a lot of people come to hang out or eat.” Josh shrugged as if it were no big deal. Leading the girls out of the kitchen, Josh pointed to a door on the left-hand side. “That is the downstairs bathroom” he smiled, then walked to the large double doors on the right-hand side and opened them. The room was huge with two large dark blue corner sofas, the walls painted a light grey colour, with modern art hanging on them, red being the primary colour for each piece. There was a large TV hung on the wall opposite the sofas, a glass coffee table sat in the centre. “We will hang out here tonight, but there is a games room just down the hall.” Josh smiled. “Make yourself at home.” he smiled. Chloe and Nicola sat together on one of the large sofas that could easily fit ten people on it and looked around wide-eyed. The far wall had floor to ceiling windows which looked out over a large garden area that was surrounded by trees. To the right was a large swimming pool, along with a slide. Then just beyond that was a massive wooden play-park. “This place is huge,” Nicola stated. “I know!” Was all Chloe could answer before the doors to the room opened, and members of the Full Moon house descended, most of them stopping in their tracks as they looked at Chloe and Nicola with confused looks on their faces. Ursula was laughing with one of her minions Chloe had yet to learn the name of, when suddenly she stopped and glared at Nicola and Chloe. “You have got to be fking kidding me!” Ursula growled out. “What the fk are you doing here? You are not wanted” the minion stated hands on her h**s. Chloe shook her head at the pair of biches, choosing to ignore them as Nicola looked down, obviously feeling intimidated. “They are my guests, Ursula, and you should remember your place.” Josh stated, then quickly went to sit next to Nicola. “Guess we are wanted after all.” Chloe laughed at them as both girls instantly bowed their heads in response to Josh. “PIZZA!” One of the guys who was from the full moon house shouted as he walked into the room with his arms stacked high with Pizza boxes. “Put them on the coffee table, Gav.” Josh told him as he went to help his friend with the boxes. Placing them all on the table and opening them up, Josh smiled at both Chloe and Nicola. “Help yourselves, don’t be shy” he smiled, then handed Nicola a huge piece of peperoni pizza and a small paper plate. “Hey new girl, I am Gavin Gray, Joshua’s bet… best friend” Gav introduced himself. “Hi, Chloe Hancock, new inmate at the school.” Chloe grinned. “And already thinks she owns the place,” Ursula hissed. “I will not tell you again” Josh said, his eyes boring into Ursula’s. Chloe noticed how every person in the room, apart from Nicola and her, instantly bowed their heads and went silent, and she wondered what the heck that was all about. The members of the school obviously took his head boy status very seriously. “Right, let’s put on a film, and as the new girl, Chloe can choose.” Josh stated, then sat next to Nicola, his hand gently resting on the top of her t***h. “Oh, shift, not a fking chic flick, please!” Gav sighed out, and the three other guys with him agreed. “Do I look like a 'chic flic' type of girl?” Chloe laughed at them. “She has got you there Gav.” one of the guys laughed. “So, what is it going to be?” Josh asked. “How about SAW?” Chloe grinned, as Ursula’s face paled, and Nicola looked at her as if she had grown another head. “fking brilliant, now we are talking” Gav grinned, and ran to the large black cabinet at the side of the room, and took out the DVD. “SAW, really Chloe?” Nicola whispered, her voice nervous. Clearly, she was not a fan of horror films, but Chloe had a plan, and a horror film was just what she needed to execute it. “Yeah, if you get scared you can hide on Joshua's chest.” Chloe whispered and winked at Nicola. Suddenly Ursula stood up, glaring at Chloe and Nicola, then with her arms folded across her chest she announced to the room. “We are not staying here!” Ursula looked around at the others who were all sitting with their pizzas, as if waiting for everyone to follow. When nobody other than her minion moved, Ursula stormed out of the room, as Chloe giggled and shouted after her. “BYE THEN!” Around half an hour later, Nicola was nicely hiding in Josh’s chest, making Chloe grin in triumph, as he held her close, whispering words of reassurance to her. The guys were all laughing and joking about the film. When Josh’s eyes glazed over and he paled slightly, the room fell eerily silent. Josh excused himself, leaving the room. Looking around the room, she saw the others all had a concerned look on their faces, and she wondered if they were all scared by the film. A few moments later, Josh walked back into the room. “Sorry girls, I am going to have to take you back to school. There is a problem with some less than nice people who like to try and attack the house. They can get quite nasty, I need you both safe whilst we sort this out.” Josh stated, then quickly taking hold of Nicola’s hand he motioned for Chloe to follow him back to the car, as the other members of Full Moon house all quickly began to mutter and seemed to be itching to get out of the house. “I will drop them off at school and come straight back. Robin will be here soon. Follow his commands.” Josh announced, rushing out of the house and into the car. Then he bundled the girls in the back and sped off towards the school with a very confused Chloe and Nicola. Suddenly, in the distance, Chloe heard what sounded like howling, and she looked at Nicola, and whispered "What the fk was that?" .... Open the app and continue reading the rest of the story . 👉(It will automatically jump to the book when you open the app)