New Girl

Ever since she had shown up to their dull and sleepy town last week, things had become really interesting, everyone was talking about her, they weren't used to seeing new people, everyone had gotten so used to seeing each other, that it didn't occur to them that someone else existed apart from themselves or people they knew!

Ava, the girl who was the talk of the town was in Aileen's class but it brought her no excitement nor discomfort, living in that town, she had become indifferent to things around her, so much that even a stranger didn't excite her.

She could say from her little observation of her that Ava wasn't enjoying the attention bestowed on her, at times she could even see the irritation in her eyes but Ava tried not to show it to others, she tried to entertain their queries but the interest in her won't end no matter how many questions she answered.

Even after months the interest in Ava refused to die down, the indifference that Aileen had felt earlier had turned into something different the more she observed Ava, she couldn't pinpoint the exact change in what she felt towards Ava, they weren't friends, just classmates who hardly talked, sometimes when Ava looked at her and smiled, she smiled back.

That was the latest interaction with her that she could remember, then why had she suddenly started feeling uneasy around her, she felt discomfort around her, her indifference had turned to discomfort, there was an eerie aura around Ava, something felt off about her, it was like her instincts were telling her to protect herself but why?, that she didn't have any answer to.

Their sleepy town didn't have only Ava to talk about anymore, the earlier excitement had been replaced with a sense of fear after a mutilated body of a young woman had been discovered in the forest, her body showed signs of torture, the gory details of the crime had shocked the town residents even more.

Everyone in school walked in groups, they were afraid to even walk alone in daylight now, Aileen missed the earlier sense of calm now, she regretted feeling her town was dull earlier, maybe those sleepy and dreary vibes of the town were better than the present state of fear they were all in.

As they were recovering from the crime, another mutilated body was found, this time it was found on the town outskirts, the young man who was killed worked in the department store and was missing since two days.

Some of her classmates preferred to stay at home till they felt it was safe to go out again, Aileen came to school to feel a sense of normalcy, being at home made her feel depressed but being at school made her anxious.

Ava was as anxious as her, she had grown paler than before, Aileen felt the need to reassure her that everything will be back to how it was, but how could she, when she wasn't sure herself.

The walk back home felt uneasy, even though she was with her friends and surprisingly Ava had joined them too, though Ava usually walked home alone, the fear had seemed to gotten to her too.

They all felt they had a lot to talk about but at the same time they were gripped by a sense of fear, everyone was aware about all the gory details of the crime, they didn't want to turn into another victim, no one wanted to end up as a mutilated body in a deserted location!

It had been more than two months since the bodies had been found but the police were unable to find the perpetrator, they had virtually no leads and the few leads they thought they had turned out to be useless, they were circling around with no direction to lead them to the perpetrator.

She gave up her hesitation and approached Ava when she saw her sitting alone during lunch, they didn't know what to talk about with each other but when Ava offered to share her lunch with her, Aileen felt compelled to share her lunch too.

Ava shared with her that she felt the murders were the work of a serial killer and maybe they mutilated the bodies to hide something, Aileen had never thought in that way, she was impressed with Ava's line of thought and in further talks, she came to know that Ava was huge crime thriller fan, she offered to show her novel collection to Aileen over the weekend and although she was hesitant to visit the house of a girl she barely knew she reluctantly agreed.

There was an eerie vibe to the whole place, it looked like a normal house but something was off about it, Ava explained that her parents were busy at work and won't return soon and she could feel at home, still she couldn't make herself feel comfortable.

As she went to the kitchen to get a glass of water, a strange scent filled her nose, the metallic scent wasn't unfamiliar to her, it was blood!, the whole kitchen was filled with the stench of blood, she felt disgusted and covered her nose.

"It's disgusting right?, but I am used to it"

As she turned around, she saw Ava standing behind her with a smirk, the whole thing began to make sense to her now, she was sure who the killer was but she also had no chance of escape, as she tried to grab something, her back hit the counter and she realized she had nowhere to go to!

"So you are what I am", Aileen said with a similar smirk.

Ava smiled but before she could say something, Aileen lunged forward and grabbed her neck, Ava tried to scream and get her to loosen her grip, but she proved to be stronger than her, seeing her flail helplessly brought Aileen a sense of assurance that she had the upper hand, as she tightened her grip around Ava's neck, she told her,

"Vampire's don't openly display their victims!, those who do cause trouble for others and should be eliminated!"

Despite all the fear, no new victim was discovered, although the police weren't able to track the perpetrator, things had started to become normal, the class was disappointed to know that Ava had transferred, maybe the fear was too much for her to bear they thought, Aileen had returned to her previous state of indifference but whenever she heard the girls discuss about Ava, she felt a sense of superiority in being the only one who knew the truth.