CHAPTER 3
1737 Words
He kept on bugging me until the rest of the day. I have no energy left to argue with him so I just let him follow me around. Fortunately, he wasn’t in my last class so I finally got rid of him. Or at least that’s what I thought.
“Hi!” he suddenly popped in front of me when I walked out of the room.
My hand went to my chest in surprise. He startled me!
“This is your last class right? Do you want to eat first before you go home? I know a lot of good restaurants nearby.” He talked while walking beside me.
“No thank you. I’m not hungry.” I said but right after that, my stomach loudly disagreed. I am actually starving right now because I couldn’t eat before going to class. I was in a hurry and I wanted to save too but I didn't want him to know that!
My cheeks heated profusely in embarrassment when he chuckled. He heard it. Ugh.
“C’mon, don’t worry. It’s my treat.” He said then grabbed my hand and pulled me to the parking lot.
“This is your car?” I asked when we got to a black sedan.
“Yup.” He simply answered before opening the passenger door for me.
“Uhm…” I don’t want to go with him but I don’t know how to refuse.
“Just get in. I won’t bite promise.” He then gently nudged me to go inside the car. I reluctantly sat as he jogged to go to the other side.
“What do you want to eat?” he asked when we are already driving.
“Anything is fine with me.” I whispered.
“Okay then.” He drove for a few minutes then stopped at a restaurant just near the university.
I didn’t wait for him to open the door for me. I immediately came out after him. He led me inside. A waiter assisted us to a table and gave us both menus. My eyes almost popped out when I saw the prices of the dishes.
I immediately wanted to drag him out of here. We can just eat at a cheap noodle house nearby.
“What’s your order?” he asked me but I couldn’t answer so he just ordered for the two of us.
“Don’t be shy, we’re friends now.” He said when the waiter left.
“Huh?” I was confused for a moment. Since when did we become friends? We just met today!
“Yes. We have a lot of things in common. We’re friends.” he smiled which made the dimple on his left cheek visible.
“Oh-kay…” I answered with hesitation.
He kept on talking about everything under the sun while we waited for our food but I couldn’t focus on anything but the delicious scent of food. The aroma of the foods wafted through my nostrils making me hungrier than ever.
It took a while before our orders are served. By this time I am already famished. I immediately started eating after the waiter laid down the dishes on the table. Everything looked and smelled so good I didn’t know which one to eat first. There is steak, some salad, soup and desserts.
I was busy eating when my hand froze mid-air. The spoon kept hanging outside my mouth. I looked up and found him looking at me intently.
“W-Why?” I asked feeling so confused.
“Nothing. You look cute.” he said out of the blue which caught me tongue tied.
Cute? Really?
I felt conscious after that. I tried to eat slowly and chew more carefully until we finished our dinner. He insisted to drive me home even though I refused. He was too persistent though that now, we’re already back in his car.
He started driving but my brows furrowed when I noticed that we are taking the route to my dormitory. Wait a minute. Did I tell him where I live?
I looked at him in confusion.
“What is it?” he glanced at me.
I didn’t say anything. We’re getting nearer to the building where I live and my heart is starting to beat frantically. How did he know I live here?
“We’re here.” He announced after stepping on the brake.
“How… How did you know I live here?” I asked slowly, waiting for his reaction.
“Oh!” I saw how redness crept from his neck to his whole face. He scratched his head while looking at me with a sheepish smile on his face.
That’s when I it dawned on me. Now I know why he looks familiar! I’ve seen him in the coffee shop for several times already!
“Sorry… I’m not a stalker but… you just made me curious that’s all.” He said, his eyes now trying to avoid my gaze.
“Then… you were the one who’s following me around?!” I asked in shock but it also made me feel relieved. At least he looks harmless compared to what I was imagining.
“Kinda.” His redness worsened so I decided to leave.
“Uhm okay, I have to go now.” I said awkwardly. “Thanks for the ride… and for the food.” I continued while opening the car door beside me.
“You’re welcome.” He smiled.
I walked out of his car then hurriedly went inside the building. My hand flew to my chest to feel the fast beating of my heart.
“Don’t get fooled by guys Rei. Avoid them at all cost.” Gramp’s voice seems to be echoing inside my mind the moment I got to our room.
I took some pajamas and went to the common bathroom to do my night rituals. Then I jumped on my bed and stared at the ceiling until I fell asleep.
But I woke up in the middle of the night when I heard strange noises. It’s what woke me up from my deep slumber. I searched for my phone to know what time is it. I groaned when I saw that it’s only one in the morning but the noises around are too much.
What's going on? I sleepily rubbed my eyes. Is there some kind of an emergency? An accident? A fire somewhere near?
I can hear different noises all at the same time that I can’t figure out each one of them.
The car engines seem to be blasting together with some other sounds. I stood up and dragged my legs to the window. I looked out to check what’s happening outside. Everything looked normal. There aren’t too many vehicles on the road but why can I hear that much?
I sighed and turned around. I saw Irish sleeping soundly on her bed. She doesn't seem to be bothered with all the noise. She may not be a light-sleeper. She sleeps so soundly that I can hear her even breathing and her calm heartbeats.
Wait what?!
A gasp came out of my mouth when I realized it. I can really hear her heartbeat. And how can I see her clearly when I haven’t turned on the lights yet? It’s dark but I can see everything inside the bedroom when I looked around.
Tears started to well up from my eyes.
I feel so terrified right now!
What’s happening to me?
“Rieka…” and there goes that voice again.
“No! No! Stop it! Leave me alone!” I yelled as I pulled my hair out in utter frustration.
“Rei?” a raspy voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
“What’s wrong?” Irish asked. I might have woken her up but can’t she hear those noises? She seemed unbothered by it all.
“I-I’m sorry.” I looked at her confused face.
“Did something happen?” she asked though I can see that she’s still so sleepy.
“Nothing. You can go back to sleep.” I said quietly despite the turmoil inside me.
“Are you sure?” she asked while already crawling back under her blanket.
“Yeah, sorry to bother you.” I smiled bitterly. I waited for her to fall asleep again before I walked out of our room.
I have to get some air. I can’t go back to sleep anyway.
I found myself walking out of our building. The cold breeze is gently blowing my hair. I forgot to grab something to cover up but I don’t want to go back yet.
My tears fell as I hugged myself. I feel so scared right now. I wanted to run and be with my granny and gramps but I can’t. I couldn’t let them see me this way. I’d rather suffer alone in silence than let them see me hurting. It will hurt them more for sure.
I looked around the whole city and realized how clearly I can see everything even from afar. Oh my god. How is this happening?
What will happen to my grandparents if ever I end up being crazy? Or worse dead? They will be devastated and I couldn’t let that happen. I have to hold on to my sanity.
“Rieka.” The voice that’s slowly getting familiar to me spoke again. Why does she always have to call my name?
I shook my head. No.
There’s no voice inside my head. I can’t hear anything unusual. Everything is fine. I tried to convince myself.
“Please listen to me.” The voice pleaded but I still chose to ignore it.
My steps got faster in my attempt to get away from it, until I already started running. My feet came faster and faster. I just wanted to escape from whatever is haunting me right now.
All the sounds that seem to be bustling inside my ears got me more and more terrified. I was running out of fear that I didn’t notice I’m already in the middle of the streets. A fast speeding car approached and it was too late when I noticed it.
It hit me and my body came flying meters away from the car. The impact was too much I can feel my bones broke. I laid there gasping for breath and unable to move until everything went black…
- Writer
