CHAPTER TWO

     “Hey, are you sure you’re okay? You’re still pale, how many days has it been?” 

I spaced out in front of me, not hearing anything at the moment. Until I felt something cold on my cheek, I jumped from my seat and slightly trembled. I looked at Alison in horror, and she eyed me curiously, baffled by my reaction.

     “Don’t do that again,” I huffed a breath, and took the water bottle in her hands.

     “What is wrong with you? You’ve been like that for a week. Did something happen back on the last day of the orientation?”

     “No. Nothing happened”

     “Then, are you not feeling well? You looked paler than usual these days,” she says.

God, I wish I could tell her. I wish I could tell someone and ask for help, but I’m getting paranoid with each passing day. The scene from that night at the park is still fresh in my mind, not wanting to be forgotten like it was a living threat.

His words in an eerie voice keeps ringing in my ear, and I kept getting anxious.

The rumors of the mass cat killer never died down, so I’m guessing that man did not stop his psychotic actions after getting caught red-handed by me. Perhaps he was already caught in the act more than a few times, but he threatens everyone as he did to me. That is how he kept going despite the rumors spreading like a wildfire.

I clutched my folder pretty tight to my chest, as I passed through the hallway of the faculty. Students like me who pass through this hallway are conscious of noises, as there is a huge tarpaulin just above the faculty office door that says ‘BE QUIET’.

I’ve also witnessed a lot of professors scolding a student for being loud a lot, so I guess it has become an unwritten golden rule to pass through this hallway in silence.

     “Ow,” I grunted when I felt my butt hit the tiles, someone bumped into me pretty hard. The papers from my folder scattered on the floor, and I panicked, didn’t get to respond to the girls’ apology.

Those were my homework that is due today!

I hurriedly picked up the papers, and I was down to the last one when a white sneaker stepped on it. I was in the middle of lifting the paper when he stepped on it, so it ripped.

     “Hey, you-” my voice dispersed into thin air as the culprit of my ruined project walked away leisurely without looking back. I felt a nerve on my forehead throb. 

Rude!

I was one hair away from losing all of my built-up patience, and I almost went ahead and confronted him right then and there. Alena, let’s set our priorities straight, I took a deep breath.

If my project is ruined, and it is due today, then it’s better to find a solution to fix or redo this as soon as possible. I’ll think about getting upset later.

I got up from the floor and dusted my clothes before I started walking back on the way to the library, ignoring the stares of the people who just saw the whole thing unfold. The library’s appearance was just exactly the same as when I left earlier. The brown long table in front of the librarian’s cubicle was empty, compared to the back tables behind the tall bookshelves that were so full. 

I hurriedly placed my things there and went to fetch some reference books I could use for my essay. I had to redo the part that was ripped, and it was hard to distinguish which book was it that I used earlier. Not only that, but I had to read every single page of what I had done to connect the words and ideas exactly as they were.

I could hear the hushed conversations of the students, the turning sound of the ceiling fan from above me, and books being flipped. Feeling uncomfortable, I took my earphones out and shoved them in my ear to focus.

     “Ms. Florence, you are fifteen minutes late.” my prof snarls at me with eyebrows raised, and I lowered my head in response.

     “Two points deduction for every five minutes delay, isn’t that what we agreed on?”

     “Yes, ma’am,” I said, frustrated, but I had no choice but to accept.

     “Good. You have six points deduction. You may go.”

It was around my lunch break when I mindlessly went to the music hall. Suddenly, I became conscious of the people around me. The corridor wasn’t as packed as it is today, the first time I came here.

I’m not surprised. It is as expected at this hour that the open space across the hall is where university students take a breather from school work. Laptops on the thin scarf they used to sit on. The inaudible laughter between friends made me realize I don’t have one yet, aside from Alison.

I make my way toward the slightly opened door of the music hall without a second thought and peeked inside. I was not expecting anyone inside, so the man standing right at the entrance caught me by surprise.

I clutched my chest, startled, and took a step back.

     “Hmm?” the man says, examining me.

     “Ah, are you looking for NO NAME?” he asks

I took a second to let that sink in and my head tilted to the side, “Huh?”

     “They stopped coming here since the last battle of the bands ended”

What NO NAME? 

      “Their guitarist frequents here, though. If you want to take a look around, you can come in,” he says and made way for me.

I nodded and stepped inside. I looked back at him, and he was on his way out with his companions. Some smiled at me and I awkwardly smiled back at them, before shifting my attention back to what was in front of me.

The smell of mahogany, rosewood, and maple, singes my nose as I took a deep breath in. Now that I’m looking around here again, it makes me realize how impressive their maintenance is when it comes to their instruments. It’s well taken care of.

The thought of joining the orchestra crossed my mind, and I laughed at myself. I would probably become the black sheep and ruin the music.

Someone appeared on the stage and his footsteps echoes around the hall. The first thing that caught my eye was the university’s architecture department vest above the white dress shirt and tie. Black slacks fall shortly below his shin.

He’s tall.

I watched him set up his white electric guitar on stage closely. Attaching the cable to the amp, then next, the compressor that was in his hands. It didn’t seem like he noticed my presence, and just continue getting busy in his own little world. He put on the guitar sling, tuning the tone, and I waited in anticipation.

I observed the movement of his right hand as his fingers ran through the strings gently, the sound sending goosebumps to me. My mouth gaped. He is that guy! The one who I heard at the orientation. Man, he is insanely good with the guitar.

I closed my eyes to feel the music, swaying to the tune, and smiled to myself. It’s a different mood than last time. This one’s, jolly, excited, and maybe, in love. I opened my eyes when he stopped, and I planned to compliment him. Until his shoes came to view and I immediately lost my mood.

The white sneaker that stepped on my project earlier.

My face soured.

     “Hey,” I called up to him, and he turned his head on me. The sweet and woody smell of his perfume lingers, but I ignored it.

     “Don’t you remember me?” I asked, arms crossed.

     “Who even are you?” he asked back, and my blood boiled.

     “Earlier? Faculty office incident?” I specified, and his forehead was crooked. I could not contain my snort.

     “Wow, I can’t believe this. Aside from playing the guitar, you’re also good at feigning ignorance, aren’t you?”

      “Sorry, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t even know who you are”

      “You stepped on my project earlier!” I yelled, but he wasn’t phased at all. He just started to disassemble his things. 

     “I don’t remember anything like that” he deadpanned.

     “You don’t, but I do. Apologize”

     “Why would I apologize for something I can’t remember doing?” 

God, I’m losing my patience, he’s pissing me off. I have never encountered anyone like this before. Sure, I met a lot of ‘Karens’ when I was working part-time at a convenience store when I was in high school, but they were much easier to deal with than this man right here.

     “What? You’ve got something more to say? You’re disturbing me,” his face soured.

I huffed an annoyed breath and walked away without saying a word. The other club members started to come in, and fortunately, when I stepped outside, Alison was already there waiting for me. She was on her high-waisted skinny jeans and a blouse. Her blonde hair was tied in a high ponytail. Man, that’s my best friend right there.

When our eyes met, she looked at me with a shit-eating grin. I frowned.

     “You’re close with Seon Yuu?” she asks.

     “Who?”

     “Huh? I mean, the guy you’re talking to earlier, his name is Seon. He’s a senior and, he’s quite famous, you know”

     “He pisses me off,” I said truthfully, and her expression changed.

      “What of him? His good looks?” she laughed, and I rolled my eyes at her.

Hell week came, and I just transformed into a human panda, walking around the campus in a flash. Maybe the professors held a competition on who had the most difficult project to give to their students because it sure seemed that way. Multiple individual projects were raining down on us, aside from the group video presentation one. 

I couldn’t even remember if I had held my drumsticks for the past week. I was just holed up in my room and, at school, coped up with schoolwork. I hadn’t touched my drum for a week now. Wow, college hits different. 

Surprisingly, I managed to stop myself from going near the music hall after my confrontation with Seon Yuu, in case I’d run into him again. What’s annoying was, now that I am aware of his name and his face, I kept hearing all sorts of things about him.

Seon Yuu, a fourth-year architecture student, a constant dean’s lister, and a guitarist. Alison was right, he is quite famous. He’s skilled, so I guess he deserves that much recognition. I just don’t want to see him again. Thank God, the architecturel building is built on the other side of where I frequent.

     “You?” he rasps, frowning at the sight of my face.

I take that back. What the hell is he doing here?

      “Excuse me? I got here first,” I argued, pertaining to the bench I’m sitting on.

I don’t know why I ended up at the park where I met that mass cat killer, I just did. Hypothetically, I am just testing whether I have already moved on from the trauma, or I haven’t yet still. It’s part of my chosen course, you see. But out of all days that I decided to test this, Seon Yuu has to be here. What luck.

      “No. My things are placed here, can’t you see?” he pointed at his back that I threw on the ground below the bench earlier.

      “What? Is this thing called bag bench now? This is built for humans to sit on, and not for your things!” I reasoned out.

      “Yeah, keep justifying your rude behavior.”

He just grabbed his bag and left me dumbfounded in my seat. Good for me! I don’t have to deal with him any longer!

Wait.

I froze in my seat as I inhaled the last scent of his perfume lingering in the air. What is this sense of familiarity? Perhaps?...

No, it can’t be. No matter how rude he is, he can’t be that messed up in the head to do something so abominable, right? He’s got a good reputation at school too.

The next thing I knew was that I was already following him closely.

Come to think of it, he’s also as tall as that masked man, as far as I can remember. Though my memory is a bit blurry due to the fear, they’ve got the same body physique too. What the hell, do I hate him this much that I’m suspecting him? Have I finally lost it?

      “Come here, Kitty” he whispers, calling a cat with a can in his hand.

I lost grip on my tumbler, and it made a noise as it hit the concrete. He turned his head at me, looking terrified. From that moment on, I knew, Seon Yuu has a problem.

      “You’re the mass cat killer!” I shouted.