Chapter 6

As soon as I walked into the faculty room, a heavy silence filled the air, while everyone stay seated. While I was there, I didn’t let that eerie feeling distract me. I went directly to the humanities professor’s table, where the teaching assistant was busy typing on his seat. This man who always wore a striped polo shirt didn’t like people talking to him. So, it wasn’t a surprise he ignored me when I stood in front of him. He still fixed his eyes on the laptop without sparing me a glance. I didn’t know why he was acting like that and I wasn’t planning to know.

“Here’s our report. I am hoping you can send them to the professor,” I said to him as put down the two flash drives on the table next to his laptop.

He didn’t say a word that made me took a deep breath. I was not worried he would not listen to what I said. Luckily, the professor knew what kind of person his teaching assistant was. If he did not pass the reports, the professor would scold him that would end up putting him in a poor light.

After I tried talking to the teaching assistant, I left him in his seat. As I made my way toward the door, someone entered the faculty room. He had a dazzling smile on his face. He greeted the other professors with a bow as he passed by and walked closer to the teaching assistant. Because he wasn’t looking in his front, we almost bumped into each other. I stopped before our head hit each other. He also flinched in surprise and stepped one step back.

“I am sorry,” he said as our eyes met.

I didn’t talk to him and continued making my way to the door. He looked at my back before he stepped closer to the teaching assistant. I noticed the glow on the teaching assistant’s face the moment the new guy greeted him. It told me they knew each other. I didn’t bother putting a meaning into their meeting and walked out of the faculty room. It wouldn’t help thinking me thinking about them. But if I knew what was going to happen to my days in the university, I shouldn’t have ignored them.

I had walked further away from the faculty before the noise of the hallway bombarded me. There were students walking in different directions like it would never end. In the middle of this nuisance, I found Gavin holding a paper bag with a smile on his face. He pointed at the bag happily and used his other free hand to sign, inviting me to eat.

I stopped when a thought hit me. I was thinking hard of what should I do now that I wasn’t the only one there in that university who belongs to the other world. But when I think about there was not much difference even before. It had been like that. Danger was always clinging to my side. I really didn’t have to be alarm. I could always run when everything crumbles.

Seeing that I was not moving, he approached me in big strides. “Aren’t you hungry? I bought you food,” he said to me when he reached where I was standing.

I took a deep breath. My day was so simple, but this guy ruined it. I only had to know where we met because I felt like it was important for me to remember. And if I did, I would leave right away and planned on never talk to him again.

“Don’t do this again,” I told him as I turned to the left.

He followed me and walked beside me. “But you’re hungry,” he told me. “You only ate a sandwich in the morning. And it’s already past twelve.”

“I don’t feel uncomfortable.” We walked out of the small door.

“You will get used to what I am doing.”

I glared at him. “Aren’t you really going to listen to me?”

“Yeah,” he said to me. “Come on. Relax. If you’re acting like that, I will think you are falling for me.”

My blood boil because of what he said. “You’re dreaming,” I growled at him.

He smiled at me and pulled my hand to run. He didn’t let go of me, even though people were looking at us. It also didn’t matter to me because I was more fascinated by his happiness. It was an emotion I longed forgotten. He didn’t forget to turn around his dashing smile. His bravery amazed me to the point I was getting jealous. I also wanted to be free like him. But I didn’t know how.

We took the pathway beside the school building where it both sides flowers and thick pine trees grew.

He stopped dragging me when we reached the lines of tables where students hang out during break time. He finally let go of my hand, took a seat at an empty table and patted the sit next to him as he looked at me. I didn’t sit down beside him and sit facing him instead. I removed my bag pack from my shoulder. As I put down my bag pack on the table, he prepared my lunch. I just watched his every move.

“Can you say something?” he said as he took out the fork and the meal wrapped in a plastic container.

“What do you want me to say?” I asked him.

“Anything.”

“Are you used to doing this kind of thing?” I said, waving my fingers at the food.

“No. This is my first time serving someone. Back at home, my butler did everything for me,” he told me confidently.

“I see. It doesn’t show on the way you move.”

“That’s why you need to be proud and happy. And I am telling you I will not do this to anyone else.” He opened the container. “Do you want me to feed you?”

I grabbed the fork from his hand and pulled the meal closer to me. “I am not a cripple,” I said.

I ate a sizeable chunk of meat, a mouthful of rice, and a bunch of broccoli in one go. It made my cheeks protrude. He watched me ate with admiration in his eyes.

“You’re really a big eater. In a second, you’ll finish everything.”

He was not wrong. I had been always like that ever since I was a kid.

I met his eyes as I grind the content of my mouth. I swallowed afterward before speaking again.

“Aren’t you worried, parading yourself in the open?” I told him. I put the last piece of meat in my mouth.

“Why would I be worried?” he asked with a querying look in his eyes.

“Don’t you know we’re not the only one here who belongs to the other world, right?” I said to him.

“I know. I’ve met them a few of times. Are you worried about me because I killed the werewolf to save you?”

“No. Why I would be worried about you? I am sure you can handle them.”

“You’re not wrong about that. And besides, they will do nothing to me because of the treaty,” he told me. “Don’t think about the werewolf who tried to kill you. I’ve settled everything.”

“How can you be so sure about that?”

“I’ve already let my butler made it like he died because of an accident after failing to turn,” he told me.

“The pack where he came from would still know if they investigate.”

“If that happens, then I had to fight. Just focus on your study. I will make you safe. Okay?” He brushed my hair, and I removed his hand to make him stop. “What’s your plan after university?”

“I’ll travel to places faraway from everyone.” After eating the last broccoli, I finished eating. He quickly grabbed the bottled water from the paper bag and gave it to me after opening it.

“I will go with you then,” he said as I received the water.

“No.” I drank the water silently.

“But we’ve promised to be together once we meet each other again.”

I stopped from drinking and looked at him. “Can you stop saying things like that? I don’t remember making a promise with you. Don’t you ever thought that I am not the one you’re looking for?”

“How can I be wrong when you have the scar on your butt?” he told me. “I was the one who bit you. It didn’t heal well.”

Because of what he said, I almost choked on the water. I coughed hard, closing the cap of the bottle of water. I stared at him and he smiled back. He didn’t look like he was joking about my scar.

But he got it all wrong because, from what I remember, a captive vampire was the one who bit me. It’s impossible that it was him. I saw the vampire died in front of me after the sun burned him.

“Stop making stories while I am still being nice,” I told him.

“I'm telling you the truth.”

“If it is the truth, how old are you when I met you?” I put the empty container into the paper bag.

“Six years old,” he answered.

His response made me think. If that’s the case, we didn’t really meet. I thought he first saw me after I escape from the pack.

“Are you really sure you didn’t make all up what you’ve said to me until this point?”

“Yes,” he answered without a hint of hesitation. “Are you remembering something now?”

“No. My memory is still hazy,” I told him.

There was one only possibility about his stories. It wasn’t me he had met, but my brother, who really looked like me since we were twins. And I couldn’t tell him about my brother. I could trust Gavin, but I would not risk my brother’s safety. My mother always reminded me not to involve my brother. It was enough that I was the only one who would always struggle since I was used to it.

Now that I know I wasn’t the one Gavin really liked I felt guilty. My thoughts were interrupted when Tristan reached the table where we were sitting.

“What are you two doing here?” he asked and sat down on my left. “Are you on a date or something?”

I shot him an eye to stop him from saying anything else. “I just ate my lunch,” I corrected him.

He exhaled as he put down his face on the table without removing his eyes on me. When he was acting like that, I knew what it meant. He was having a problem with something he needed to do.

“Levi,” he said softly that told me I wasn’t wrong to what I was thinking.

“What is it this time?” I asked him.

“I still haven’t finish interviewing the divorcee in my list,” he told me the problem. “The last divorcee is so scary. He was once belong to a gang.”

“Seriously? What did you do during the entire school break?” I growled at him.

“I helped Maggie do her other part-time jobs,” he explained.

I just sighed deeply about what he said. “Why did you even take that course about marriage and life when it didn’t have relevance to your degree?” I reminded him.

“They said I could get a girlfriend while taking that course,” he explained, which was not the first time I had heard of about it.

“But you didn’t. You had a girlfriend now because of me,” I reminded him.

“When you look closely, it’s still because of that class.” He sat up straight and grabbed my arm like a child. “Please! Levi! I will treat you to a meal for an entire week.”

I thought for a second. It wasn’t a poor offer. I could save money for food that takes all of my earnings.

“Fine. I will go with you,” I said to him. He stood up happily after I agreed with him. I turned my attention to Gavin, who was patiently waiting to finish our conversation. “You can’t go with us. Stay here,” I said to him.

He met me in the eye. “No. I will go with you. I insist,” he said to me.

“Just let him be. It would be fun. We could take a break after the interview,” Tristan said nudging my side. I turned around to my friend and glared at him.