This is my attempt as NaNoWriMo last year which I have finally gotten around to revising and editing. Now I want some feedback for the first chapter. Please post any constructive criticism you can think of!

Chapter One

A yawn touched the lips of Shay Trudel as he rubbed at his sleepy, gray eyes, his tousled black hair sticking up at odd angles. The sound of an incessant alarm stopped as his fist slammed down on the snooze button. Heavy feet shuffled along the wooden floorboards as crumpled clothing was thrown aside. Murmuring a good morning to his father which sat at the breakfast table, he slumped down in his chair, the top button of his white shirt unbuttoned, his tie left hanging loosely around his neck while his blazer was clenched in his loose fist.

Shoving eggs and bacon from his plate into his mouth, Shay quickly left for the front door, rubbing his hand over his mouth as he yelled behind him,

"Gonna be late! Thanks for the food!" Grabbing his backpack from its place beside the doorway, he rushed out the door. The man sitting at the table finally glanced up from his newspaper before mild amusement played across his face,

"That boy's probably going to be late again." Aleric Trudel muttered his piercing eyes focusing on the clock for a minute before turning to a worn picture sitting on the bookshelf.

It was a picture of a beautiful woman in mid laugh, her eyes trained on a dark haired boy walking unsteadily across the grass lawn. Shay's mother. A drunk driver had crashed into them and Shay got away with only scarred hands. His mother wasn't so lucky.

"We did the best we could though, didn't we dear?" He asked quietly, his hands raising the mug of coffee one last time before he stretched, eyes moving from the picture to the clock once again before grabbing his briefcase,

"Better get to work or I'll be late too."

***

Muttering could be heard in between the sound of running feet, as Shay rushed down the sidewalk, his backpack swinging and sweat beginning to run down his face. A loud rattling filled his ears as his eyes widened and he put on a burst of sudden speed to pass the closing gates. Resting his hands on his knees, Shay looked up at the school, his reluctance obvious. Running his hand through his hair, Shay walked in, the bell already pealing as he traipsed through the hallways.

Opening the door, a sheepish look in his sleepy eyes as he interrupted the role call,

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Blackwell, I set my alarm too late again." The teacher, Lieric Blackwell, only shook his head, knowing it was a lost cause to get Shay Trudel to be on time for school,

"Just know you have detention today." The man reminded, pushing up his glasses, brown eyes rolling as he finished off the rudely interrupted role.

"What are you doing being late again?" Aria whispered to Shay as he slumped down in the empty seat next to hers.

"It really shouldn't be a surprise anymore." Shay said, his smile spreading across his face as he ignored the glare which was drilling into his side as he listened to what Mr. Blackwell was explaining on the whiteboard hanging on the wall, only comprehending half of what he was saying.

***

"I can't believe you got into detention AGAIN." Aria said, her eyebrow raising and her arms crossing in front of her as she walked alongside him, his smile still stuck on his face. Shay shrugged, his smile turning into a small smirk,

"What can I say? I can't help being late, you know how difficult it is to wake me up before seven thirty!" Resting her head in her hands and stifling her groan, she opened her mouth as if to say something but closed it again before shaking her head,

"There's no use in lecturing you. You're right, trying to get you up before eight is already difficult enough, for that matter I'm surprised your dad manages to get you up at all!" Aria exclaimed, her eyes rolling as the two of them stopped in front of Mr. Blackwell's classroom,

"Well, good luck. You're probably gonna need it. See you later Shay." Aria said with a wave as she walked off,

"See ya Ari.", Shay said with a cheerful smile as he entered the now empty classroom.

"Ah, Mr. Trudel I'm surprised you managed to be on time for your detention." Blackwell commented as he looked up from the tests and homework he had been grading.

"Well, you know the drill so take a seat and please stay quiet, OK?" The teacher asked, his eyes already back to the pieces of paper littering his desk.

Taking his normal seat, Shay looked around the room, his surprise at being the only one in the room evident as he stared at the empty chairs. Pulling the remnants of his crumpled math homework from the bottom of his backpack, he began to pen in the answers. His eyes only raised from his work as Mr. Blackwell rose from his seat, papers in hand as he glanced at his watch,

"Mr. Trudel your time with me is up so you may head home now. I hope you are on time tomorrow, though it might be miracle." He said, a small smile tugging at his lips while he left the room.

Slowly, Shay stuffed his finished math homework back where it belonged--back at the bottom of his bag--before exiting the room, the sound of the lock clicking shut behind him. The abandoned hallways were eerily quiet even if it was after hours. The only sound within the hallways were the squeaking of his tennis shoes.

***

He watched his feet and shadow move across the concrete as he walked home. Heaviness seemed to surround him like a miasma until he came to a stop. His eyes narrowed as he drew closer to the glint of gold which he had seen with the light of the setting sun. Bending down he picked up the small object which caught his interest and brought it up to the light.

It was a ring. Gold dragons twisted among each other forming the ring itself, a dark red gem--probably a ruby--was embedded in the mouth of one of the dragons. Raising the ring to reflect the sun, Shay blinked as the ruby and gold glinted. Even if it was only costume jewelry, it just looked so REAL. Shrugging, Shay pocketed the ring, he could ask his dad whether it was real later, right now there were more pressing matters. For instance, getting home on time for dinner.

Unlocking the door and stepping inside, Shay kicked off his shoes, leaving his bag next to the door as he called out loudly, completely forgetting about the ring,

"Hey I'm home!" His father looked out disapprovingly from the kitchen, steaming pan in his hands,

"Don't tell me you got detention for being late again?" Aleric asked, shaking his head, disappointment flooding his face as he crossed his arm,

"You should follow the example of Aria, she's always on time and have you seen her grades?" Chuckling at Shay's indignant expression, Aleric motioned for him to take a seat,

"You know I'm only kidding Shay. Come on, Aria's already here." Right on cue, Aria's disembodied hand gave a wave from the kitchen doorway.

Shay blinked, his bewilderment pushing him through the doorway into the kitchen.

"Why are you in my house before I am?" He asked, looming over the girl calmly eating dinner. Chewing carefully before swallowing, Aria rose to her full 5' 2" before speaking,

"Because you're too slow and I don't want to wait." A smirk on her face as she grabbed her bag and walked past Shay. Shaking his head, Shay just followed her up to his room as he gave an over dramatic sigh,

"Dad, we'll be in my room working on our homework, OK? Could you put my dinner aside for the moment?" Shay asked, watching as his father nodded before going up the stairs. Glaring at the girl now making herself at home on his bed, Shay took the office chair and slung his bag beneath the desk.

"Ari, why do you always get back to my house before I do? YOU have your own house, go to that one!" Shay complained, spinning the chair around to face her,

"I do this for two reasons. One, your father is an amazing cook and two, because it annoys you." Giving a shrug, Aria began to pull books and papers from her bag, eyes scanning the words, spinning a pencil between her fingers,

"Shay come on, we need to finish our homework and get started on the Literature assignment that Mr. Blackwell gave us." Sighing heavily, Shay rose from his seat and thrust his hands into his pockets while he traversed the length of the room and leaned against the wall. A frown appeared on his face when he pulled out the warm ring,

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot!" Shay exclaimed, looking down at the ring as he played with it,

"What?"

"I found this earlier while I walked home! Doesn't it look cool?" He asked while slipping it on his pointer finger. Drawing closer to see it, Aria's brow furrowed as she grabbed his hand to examine the ring even closer,

"It looks expensive Shay, we should probably turn it in." Without saying another word, a warm, heavy weight collapsed on her back.

"Shay? Shay?! This isn't funny, what are you doing?!" Aria asked as she shoved the boy off her back. Flipping him over onto his back, she grabbed his shoulder and shook it, her eyes slowly becoming panicked,

"Shay?! Come on, wake up! Mr. Trudel!" She screamed, her eyes filling with fear as she stared at the comatose body.