~~Daniil’s POV~~
Day two in IUC and everything returned to normal. Classes resumed and Yoshida was back on my nerves. Having granted her access yesterday, she acted really friendly with me today, somehow flaunting herself to the class as my first friend. She’d walk up to me to ask questions random and useless to put brusquely, sit with me when the class was void of lectures, and do all sorts of annoying yet farcical things to keep my attention to herself. Of course that made the minds and hearts of a couple of other girls boil, I couldn’t care less. I was reaching my breaking point. I wanted Yoshida off my back. ‘For Christ’s sake!’
“What do you think about this one?” she asked, showing me a fashion magazine on her phone. She was obsessed with fashion yet her fashion sense denied that obsession completely. To me at least. I never begged more for a lecturer to just walk in and make her go back to her seat. ‘Goodness gracious!’ If only she knew how hard I tried to restrain myself, she wouldn’t act all touchy with me. “Are you listening?” she waved over my face. My eyelids flickered like I was on my seat yet far away.
“You were saying?”
“What do you think about this? I’m thinking of purchasing it for date night.” She flashed me a hot red gown displayed across her phone screen.
“Kura!” what sounded like Jordan’s voice bellowed from nowhere. I extended my eyes a little farther to see him approaching us, swelling with rage.
She pouted her lips and heaved a sigh before turning around to face him. “What?”
Did I mention Jordan’s been eyeing me the whole day? Well, there wasn’t a moment when Jordan didn’t shoot me an intense glare each time our eyes met. He looked at me like I was trying to snatch his girlfriend. I didn’t know why but it was quite intense. Even more intense when Yoshida was within my arm’s reach.
Without moving as much as a muscle, leaning against the chair, hands in my pockets as usual, I peeked at him as he crossed the distance between us.
“I need to speak to you.” I heard him whisper to Yoshida.
“Why are you acting grumpy?” That’s the word! ‘Grumpy.’ Jordan was acting grumpy and it pissed me off. ‘If she’s your girlfriend, grab her by the hand, and take her away from me. Far away!’ I still could not fathom what gave me the grace to act so calm and unmoved by their petty behaviors.
“I need to speak to you, Sakura.” He looked her dead in the eye like he was trying to say something with his eyes.
“Ugh…fine,” Yoshida yielded begrudgingly. “I’ll be back, okay?” she said to me as Jordan dragged her away in a rush.
My inner voice breathed a sigh of relief I was finally void of the nuisance.
My eyes followed them until they left the class and Ashley walked in. My stare steadied, keen pushing aside the nonchalance in my eyes. The whole time I’d been stealing glances at her on consecutive occasions. Unlike the myriad of girls ready to dance to my every tune, she remained indifferent to my existence entirely. I wished our eyes would just meet randomly but that never happened. I wondered where the interest from yesterday vanished and I somehow found myself craving her attention.
She walked past me, to her seat and just stared out the window. She had to walk past me to get there. But not once did she look at me. Not even by accident! Her side view was enticing, by the way, I must say. Her hair was packed in a ponytail which made it possible to feed my eyes. Throughout, she remained quiet, engrossed with either her drawing book or her headphones she only removed when a lecturer stepped in or when someone was trying to talk to her. She never really chatted except with the honey-brown-haired dude that came around her from time to time. How badly I wanted to walk up to her and start a conversation but my legs wanted otherwise.
With my seat situated two seats in front of hers in the next line, I got an okay view. While staring, my mind wandered off, picturing her face yesterday in the hallway. I wondered what had gotten her mood sour. Suddenly, she turned around to face me. And I was caught off guard. ‘Or … hol’up.’ She wasn’t actually staring at me but in my direction, at the door.
I turned to see what she was staring at to see a guy smiling and waving, standing by the doorway. He looked familiar. When I felt someone walk by, my eyes instinctively followed and landed on Ashley walking out with her bag packed. That was when I remembered it was the guy from yesterday.
With furrowed brows and narrowed eyelids, I scanned him. For some reason, I felt bothered, and slightly uncomfortable with his coming. The last time – yesterday – he took her away, she returned hours later gleaming with spite. I checked my wristwatch and saw it was past 4 already. ‘Is he her boyfriend?’ I thought, watching them chat as they left.
“Prolly not seeing her until tomorrow,” I mumbled beneath my breath when she left eyeshot.
~~Ashley’s POV~~
After what happened, I decided to visit Miss Antonia. Our next session wasn’t until two days but I couldn’t wait that long. I needed to tell her everything that happened yesterday to the last detail. It had barely been a week and it already felt like I could tell her everything and anything. And so bugging my mind all day, concentrating on lectures that morning was pretty difficult. I was so indulged in my wristwatch, waiting patiently for the perfect time to slip out of school.
I couldn’t ask Maverick to drive me there. I called Carson instead. It was the first time I called him for something other than Makayla but I had no choice. I couldn’t risk walking the streets of Chicago all by myself. I talked to him and he agreed to come for me around 4 when he would be back from work. I had to wait.
“Do have a nice day class.”
“Have a nice day, sir…” the class chorused in response, ending the third period of the day.
For the umpteenth time, I checked my wristwatch and it was just past 1! ‘Good riddance!’ To me, the time crawled. I wish it’d just gain pace and bring 4 o’clock to me. I heard waiting for the time made it take forever so I decided to distract myself for the time being. I took out my drawing materials, hoping to while away time.
With my headphones on, tuned to the highest as usual, I traced the drawing on my paper. Having been in another realm, I didn’t notice someone walking up to me until I saw a juice box placed on my table beside the paper. I paused, following the trail of the hands that dropped it, my eyes met with Archer’s dark hazel eyes
The innocence lying deep within his concerned looks didn’t faze me. Giving him a soulless stare in return, I brought down my headphones.
“You haven’t had lunch yet, Ash.” Right. I’d heard the bell for lunchtime but as always, ignored it. I didn’t have the appetite, my mind was too preoccupied to even remember I was hungry.
“Ah,” I exhaled briefly.
“You can have it.” He gestured down to the juice box.
‘How considerate of you.’ Leaning backward, my eyes moved down slowly from his face to the juice box, then back to him. “Thanks,” I said simply.
“Would you like something else?”
I grabbed the juice box. “I’m not – ” my stomach growled, betraying me at the worst timing. I looked up at him, and then he smiled lightly. I felt embarrassed but masked up with a shrug.
“Let’s grab a bite.”
I had lunch with Archer.
Hours later…
My soul lit up when I saw Carson smiling and waving at me from the doorway. ‘Finally!’ my inner voice cried. After waiting for so long, it was time to leave. In all honesty, I felt bad for ordering him around and having to use his feelings for my selfish gains, but it was ultimately his fault for letting himself get used all the time. I packed my bag and went to him.
“I’ll go through the back like last time.” I shut all avenues for pleasantries with my abrupt statement made straight-faced. I wasn’t in the mood for any of that, but he was. The smile he had on faded away slowly but surely.
“Sure,” he concurred, low-spirited.
…
“Did you find something else? Any sort of connection? Leads? Clues?” I queried keenly. If he was going to drive me, might as well kill two birds with one stone. I was hungry for information on the case. I mean, I could barely think straight since yesterday. That was why I needed to see Antonia quickly. I already believed she had the solution to all of my ordeals, charmed.
“We’re still surfing the database for more information.”
“And the blue-eyed guy? Anything yet?”
“As in Makayla’s case, we’re having a hard time tracing him.”
“What about the victim?”
“She’s still in the hospital.” I exhaled sharply. “Ashley?”
“Yes?” I stressed.
“How about we go shopping for sunshades? You never know when you might run into a set of blue eyes in school.” He was right. I couldn’t keep leaving it up to luck. Just when I parted my lips to give him a response… ‘Turn right,’ the voice from the GPS tracker cried out. We were trying to locate Rush Street from the address Miss Antonia had given me.
“Stop here,” I said, comparing the numbers on the buildings with the ones on my phone. The number on my phone was ’21.’ The number on the building we stopped close to bore ’18,’ and coincidentally a good parking spot around it. I was going to take it up from here myself.
“Let me come with – ”
“It’s okay.” I stopped him when he unbuckled his seatbelt and tried to jump down. “Just wait for me here.”
“You sure about that?” he asked with so much concern. ‘I’m not dying, bro. Save me this drama.’
“It’s not like I’m going into the battlefield,” I replied, my voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Fine. I’ll wait for you here.” He sighed, giving up.
“Alright, thanks.”
I got off.