Abyss

Kiran couldn't help but sigh wistfully as she watched Alessa Dia prance into the campus with a spring on her step like she hadn't been stressed with the research papers and upcoming mid-term exams. Alessa's dark wavy hair, which was held up in a simple ponytail, bounced cheerfully in the humid rainy season breeze. Her bright eyes captivated anyone she walked passed on the hallway, and the smile on her rosy chestnut lips made the hearts of students around her flutter. She was a refreshing lady of spring lighting up the gray; her glowing skin standing out against the gloomy haze of the cloudy day.

Alessa was one of the most popular girls in the university because of her stunning features, tall height, and flawless skin. She could easily make a lucrative career in the entertainment industry as an attractive model or a beautiful actress, but she was studiously taking a degree in Biology with her sights set on becoming a medical professional. The fact that she rivaled the smartest students in her department made her even more popular. She had the makings of a beauty queen and everyone, even the most terror of professors, were easily captivated by her innate charms.

"Kiran!" Alessa greeted as she approached the main building lobby wearing a white shirt tucked into a pair of skinny denim pants, and a pair of slightly worn ankle-high sneakers that made her look like she was modeling for a hip clothing brand.

"Hey," Kiran greeted, trying to smile through round, wide-rimmed spectacles that were barely hiding the grey bags under her eyes. The accessory didn't take everyone's attention away from the pimples scattered along her cheeks. Matching the cloudy prediction of the weather forecast that morning, Kiran wore a brown cardigan over a black top which also hid her flabby arms. She stood up from her place on the steps of the lobby, dusting off the pair of faded denim pants she was wearing. Standing in front of Alessa on a pair of worn out, flat doll shoes that needed replacing, she realized how she only reached Alessa's nose.

"Sorry, I'm late," Alessa said, looking apologetic at Kiran. "I got caught up in a conversation with the Dean about a research project. Anyway, I'm going to give you what I've researched so far for our writing class," she said, fishing out a thick printout from her crossbody bag and handing it to Kiran. They were partners in a writing course where they were tasked to do a research paper about a topic they both agreed on.

"It's fine, you're actually on time," Kiran replied, giving Alessa her own research. "I just got here myself."

It wasn't entirely a lie. She made sure to arrive early knowing that Alessa would always arrive at least 5 minutes before their appointment. That was another thing worth noting about Alessa. On top of her stunning physical features and graceful demeanor, the girl was blessed with a good head on her shoulders and a heart that treated everyone with kindness and humility. Unlike the stereotypical rich and pretty girls on TV, movies, and books who acted like spoiled brats, Alessa was approachable to anyone. She also held her own against bullies, and made sure to exercise her skills in martial arts against anyone who dared to make an inappropriate move on her.

Alessa Dia was perfect - at least in Kiran's eyes - and while that should be enough reason for Kiran to envy her to the point of aversion, she couldn't help but feel admiration toward her.

"You're too kind," Alessa said, smiling as she received Kiran's research. "Oh and about the deadline for the write-up, I talked to the professor yesterday and he finally agreed to adjust it since we're already swamped with the research. He said he'll announce it later today, but I'll bug him about it again in case he forgets. You know how he is," she grumbled, rolling her eyes in distaste.

Kiran nodded. Their professor had been known to be strict with deadlines, but rumors about how he seemed to favor attractive girls in his class - Alessa included - had made rounds among the students. It seemed like the only explanation for how he might suddenly accept late project submissions or adjust deadlines was Alessa's insistence.

"By the way, do you still have problems sleeping?" Alessa asked, noting the grey bags under Kiran's eyes. "My mom sent me lavender tea. I can give you some."

"Oh thank you but I'm good, really," Kiran shyly answered. "I just…um…I couldn't put a book down so…yeah…"

Many seemed to have an impression that people wearing glasses were geniuses: that studying doubly harder than everyone else caused their eyes to go bad. That wasn't the case with Kiran. In fact, she was one of the many students who crammed for exams and projects. Most of her time was spent on online novels and comics which kept her awake until dawn. The routine cursed her with deep grey eye bags, coupled with breakouts all over her oily face.

"Oh yeah, we were supposed to exchange book recommendations today too!" Alessa excitedly said. "Is it okay if we meet at lunch in the cafeteria and talk about it? I have class in five minutes."

"Sure, let's meet there for lunch," Kiran answered. "See you later!"

Alessa waved goodbye at her one last time before heading out of the lobby to a nearby building where her class would be held.

"She's so annoying," a familiar voice suddenly muttered behind Kiran. For a moment, Kiran thought it was her own inner voice grumbling complaints in a weak attempt to hide her desire to be like Alessa.

Kiran turned around and found one of the few friends she had in campus, Remy, pouting resentfully at Alessa's retreating back. She snorted a chuckle. "Remy, is this because Connor has a crush on her?" she asked, smirking at her friend.

Remy stared aghast at Kiran, her cheeks and ears flushed scarlet. "W-what?!" she choked, confirming Kiran's suspicions. "What are you talking about?"

Connor was one of the popular guys in campus who Remy, like many students in school, fawned over. Remy also happened to be friends with Connor since their high school years where she first fell in love with him. According to widespread rumors, Connor was infatuated with Alessa and he had been planning to officially ask her out on a date.

Kiran snickered. "You have nothing to worry about. Alessa doesn't seem like she's interested in Connor," she explained.

The first time Kiran and Alessa met for their project, she took a chance and asked her if she might consider dating Connor. Kiran was surprised that Alessa calmly shrugged off any possibility of the event ever happening by saying, "I'm not really into any guy on campus. I honestly never felt any strong romantic connection with anyone even back in high school. Don't get me wrong. I do admire good looking guys - just not enough to date them."

Kiran figured that it was the curse of being the perfect girl: the inability to romantically fall in love with anyone who wasn't quite as perfect as she was.

"That doesn't mean she's not making him feel things!" Remy snapped.

Kiran rolled her eyes. "Feel what? Attraction? Is it really Alessa's fault if people feel attracted toward her?" she asked. "Is it Connor's fault that you like him? If so, then why aren't you hating him? You're clearly feeling hurt because of your feelings for him after all."

Remy bitterly turned away. "Why do you always defend her?" she grumbled. "Aren't you annoyed at all the attention she gets? All the recognition? All the boys seem to be head-over-heels for her, and professors seem to readily grant her favors just because she's too cute or pretty to refuse. Why should she get special treatment from everyone because of her looks? It's not like she needs anyone's sympathy to survive. It's not fair!"

"I do envy her flawless skin and lean figure," Kiran admitted. "But I can't hate her when it's not her fault that she has great genes, or that people treat her the way they do. If she's being a brat on top of being pretty, I might feel the same way you do, but she's friendly and humble. She makes a good effort in whatever she does," she said, glancing at the sheets of paper in her hand - the materials that Alessa gathered for their research. "Hating her just because she was blessed with things I don't have isn't exactly reasonable. Hating her for how people decide to treat her would be even more unfair."

"You're just too naïve and kind," Remy sighed. "Girls like her take advantage of their good looks all the time. I bet she used it to gain stuff from people."

"Now you're just sounding like an Internet troll, declaring assumptions as facts," Kiran teased. "Find someone better than Connor, already. He's not a good guy anyway. He's practically a playboy."

Connor, like many guys who were aware of their attractive features, dated and flirted around women who swooned and eagerly welcomed his advances even while he was in a relationship. He supposedly dated five different women over the course of a year, not necessarily in a chronological order.

"Why don't you try Ethan?," Kiran asked. "He's a cool guy. He's approachable and he isn't a huge flirt like Connor." Ethan was one of Conner's friends. A lot of people also found him attractive, but he was more reserved and a gentleman than everyone in his social circle. Ethan was rumored to have dated one girl in high school whom he broke up with before entering university. He hadn't jumped into the dating scene since then.

Remy smirked at her. "Ooh…so you're into guys like Ethan, huh? Athletic and tall?" Remy teased back.

Kiran rolled her eyes.

Truthfully, spending hours reading novels and comics made her develop standards that she realized might be too high for a lot of men in the real world to meet. Looks just wouldn't cut it for her anymore. They would have to be mature enough to think beyond dating beautiful women, responsible enough to keep their word, and respectful enough to treat women as equals. It may have sounded simple, but almost none of the popular guys in campus seemed to meet Kiran's standards. Ethan's dating track record seemed to meet one of Kiran's criteria, making him the most decent candidate in Kiran's eyes so she recommended him to Remy.

But of course Remy would misunderstand her.

"Fine, go to class on your own," Kiran muttered, marching away to another building and leaving a complaining Remy on her tail.

***

The sun lazily hovering over the horizon had turned the world a warm shade of orange. Students ready to end their day and trudging their way to their last set of classes were filling the narrow pathway to the campus gate. Kiran was on her way out of the university herself when she spotted Alessa in the crowd.

The flawless and slightly flushed skin on Alessa's exposed nape stood out in front of Kiran, just like it did for the giddy snickering boys beside her who were unsuccessfully trying to pretend like they weren't gossiping about how to ask their senior, Alessa, out on a date.

Uncomfortable at being close to them, Kiran sped up her pace so that she could walk closer to Alessa. She was just two steps behind her when she suddenly wondered if she should greet her.

While they did spend lunch together that day, it was more to talk about their research and swap book recommendations than hang out as friends. Would Alessa find it uncomfortable if Kiran suddenly greeted her? Would a brief 'Hey, going home? Me too. Bye!' be enough? Or should she engage in small talk to appear like she wasn't as socially awkward as she really was?

Should she even make an effort to talk to her when she was practically a nobody in school?

Kiran frowned, an odd feeling suddenly hitting her. She felt as if the world tilted slightly, and she was swaying from left to right in every step she made.

Panicked shrieks and screams suddenly erupted from the students around her. Some dropped on the ground as the concrete path trembled beneath their feet. They were petrified as they watched the roof over the concrete path creak from side to side. Some began to sprint to the gate, stampeding over the students who ended up stumbling and sitting crouched on the ground to save their lives.

Kiran and Alessa dropped to the ground and shielded their head with their arms, just like the earthquake drills taught them. The running students forced them further to the edges of the pathway, close to the concrete foundations of the steel poles supporting the roof.

Kiran felt like she was suffocating as she squeezed herself further to the side to avoid the painful stomps that had left bruises on her back and arms. Her heart raced as the ground trembled more forcefully than before. Nausea immediately clouded her senses, triggering a piercing headache as the tin roof overhead clattered loudly against the grumbling earth.

Kiran found herself staring at Alessa in front of her because the sight of the swaying roof above her and the jumping dust next to her feet worsened her anxiety. Alessa was trembling, probably just like Kiran and everyone else who were petrified in the pathway at that very moment.

Kiran realized she had been inwardly muttering "please stop now" over and over again like a mantra inside her head. Earthquakes usually lasted for 10-30 seconds but each second felt like an eternity. Surely it would stop soon. The ground would stop trembling and everything would calm down, right?

Then a loud crack echoed from below them.

Kiran gasped as she stared at her feet. A trail of ground fissures erupted on the concrete, making everyone nearby shriek. The ground trembled more forcefully, throwing the crouched students on the ground back and away from the cracks. Those who dared to stand and run ended up tumbling down over the concrete pavement, unable to maintain their balance against the violent vibrations of the earth.

Kiran herself stumbled back and winced as the cracks beside her grew and split open to reveal a dark abyss. A deafening scream snapped her from her fears, making her look up ahead. It was then that she realized that Alessa was dangling over the edge of the crack in front of her - her fingers slowly losing grip over the cracked concrete.

Kiran wasn't sure how it happened but she quickly grabbed Alessa's hand to help her. Thankfully, Alessa still had enough courage and strength to kick the crumbling earth on the edge of the cliff and climb up, just as Kiran mustered all the courage and strength she had left to pull her out to safety.

Alessa crawled up and away from the sinkhole and released a sigh of relief. She was about to thank her savior when she noticed the pavement supporting Kiran collapse into the cliff.

"NO!" Alessa shrieked, tightly grabbing Kiran's right hand to stop her from falling.

Kiran squinted and yelped in pain as Alessa desperately pulled her up against the edge of the pavement, her face and chest slamming squarely against a wall of earth. She opened her eyes and felt Alessa's hands tug at her arm. Kiran was about to reach out her left hand to Alessa when she she felt something grab her free arm from below.

Kiran's eyes went wide as she recognized the sensation - ice-cold fingers digging into her wrist. The hand tugged her forcefully downward, releasing her from Alessa's grip. Kiran wasn't sure if she was able to release the scream that crawled out from her throat at that moment, but she was sure that mysterious hand tugged at her so hard that she found herself falling back-first into a dark abyss.

Alessa's panic-stricken face was her last vision of the world before everything faded into black.

***

Kiran squinted as a chill swept across her skin. The scent of freshly cut grass filled her senses, piquing her curiosity. She bitterly groaned as her consciousness pushed away the comfortable sleep that she had been confined in. Something extremely cold suddenly touched her neck, making her gasp and snap her eyes open.

Everything was blurry, but she could make out a dark starry sky and a silhouette of a person hovering over her. A cold breeze caressed her skin, making her wince and blink several times until her vision cleared.

To her surprise, the silhouette transformed into a young man with a rowdy mop of dark hair, piercing and glowing silver eyes, and lips that were pursed in a thin line of distaste. He seemed to be clad in layers of clothing: a maroon scarf wrapped around his neck, and a long black cape hiding the rest of his body.

Kiran felt the ice cold sting against her neck again and gasped as she traced the man's extended arm. He was holding a sword with a glass-like surface in front of him. Its sharp blade was pressed against her throat.

"Izhneoh akhe-ha?" the young man said in a deep icy voice that sounded like he had officially declared himself a threat to Kiran's existence.