A chill ran up my spine, despite myself, I couldn't force composure. Kira placed a hand on my shoulder, giving me a reassuring smile.
"I didn't mean to bring up bad memories, you've been through a lot. Tell us what happened."
I recited the sequence of events once again. I had been told to keep it a secret, but these were my friends. Kira's face twisted with mixed emotions, she turned to me and asked:
"Describe how you met this Haylen again?"
"Well, I was walking around the dorm area when he came up to me to ask where Junjujun Library was. The entire interaction was a little weird, but he didn't seem like a bad guy."
"Dorm…"
The word rolled off Kira's tongue strangely, as if intertwined with the emotions she was feeling.
"Do you remember what he looked like? Describe him." Her voice grew in urgency, not enough to garner concern but enough for me to notice. I felt my heart jump and my mouth grow a little drier. Despite not knowing Haylen for a while, he had saved me and I had to admit I felt an affinity for him. The tone in Kira's voice, a tone that threatened to bring with it complications and headaches, scared me.
I gave the most accurate description I could. He was a little shorter than James, who was 190 cm, with angular facial features and the maroon eyes of an animal, wild and filled with a determination I didn't often see.
"What about his hair, what color was it?" Her tone only rose further as she barely hid her concern that had now turned into the beginnings of fear.
"They were black…" I said, my voice lacking in confidence. "I don't really know how to explain it, but in the seconds before I lost consciousness when he came to save me, I think I remember his hair being white."
I was a little embarrassed to add that last part, seeing how ridiculous it sounded. How could someone's hair go from black to white in the span of a few minutes?
Kira's face was now pale as she looked at me with a mealstorm of emotions I couldn't quite identify.
"What?"
Kira's lips opened only to close again. She repeated this several times before finally saying:
"Someone broke into my dorm last night. He tried to hide and leave when I fell asleep but I caught him, then…"
"Then?" Jack was very protective of Kira, his body had already tensed upon hearing someone had broken into her dorm.
"His hair turned white and he started screaming some sort of cultish incantation. Then, my entire dorm was covered in snow and frost. I was scared half to death."
"Snow suddenly appeared in your room?"
"Like magic, yes." Kira replied to James's question with a straight face, she was serious.
"But how?" It was the first time Dane had spoken, his voice soft and shy.
"No clue, I thought I was hallucinating."
This was all starting to sound too strange. If Haylen was really the man who had broken into Kira's dorm, then I had to reevaluate my thoughts on him.
"But he saved me…" My lips moved faster than my head, letting slip words I had no intention to say out loud. Kira gave a nod of acknowledgment at my statement.
Yes, he had broken into Kira's dorm, but he hadn't stolen anything or hurt her. Based on Kira's description, it seemed like he was trying to leave the room as quickly as possible.
Almost as if he were running from something.
…
…
…
James tore through my thoughts with a clap.
"You're thinking too much. Don't worry, we can all put our brains together when you heal."
Dane and Kira agreed, especially Kira, who threatened to knock me out if I didn't sleep. I laughed and smiled as they left.
They were right, I should try to get some rest. I threw myself into bed and wrapped myself in the thick blanket, trying to relax. But I couldn't, my thoughts swirled. The medical wing grew eerily silent now that I was alone, no longer filled with the sounds of footsteps and the hum of machines. It was as if the entire building had been vacate
Just as I managed to calm my thoughts and my eyelids grew heavy, a faint sound entered my room. A voice, barely audible.
"Quiet down, he said he'd hang us if we were caught!"
James had forgotten to properly close the door.
"What's so special about this kid anyway? There's no reason to hire us for something like this, we're the Hou Brothers for crying out loud!" There was a sound like flesh on flesh, likely the first voice slapping the second.
"Does it matter? We're getting paid, are we not? Regardless, Artofex Tremblay isn't exactly a man I want to anger."
My body tensed at the words. I recognized that name.
I tried to focus on the faint voices. There was silence, one of them grunted, then footsteps. It seemed like they were transporting something. My body moved on its own, moving to crouch near the open door. My heart pounded against my chest, my palms were wet and a pit formed in my stomach. I felt sick, I desperately wanted to throw up.
But I swallowed my fear, Artofex Tremblay was the same man who had told me to keep quiet about what had happened to me. He was related to whatever was happening with Haylen.
The scene in the hall could barely be seen through the crack in the door. Two men dressed in cloaks held onto a large object.
Straining my eyes, the object's form could barely be made out. A large chrysalis of ice, webbed with cracks and gently emanating a faint mist, seemed to wrap around a humanoid figure. Parts were dyed shades of crimson and vermilion, resembling blood.
The figure inside was unsettlingly familiar. I gasped when the men turned, revealing a face I knew all too well.
White hair framed a face with sharp features. His clothes were riddled with holes and his expression was a mix of pain and resignation.
It was Haylen.
The two men turned towards the door at my gasp. I just barely managed to hide.
"Did you hear that?" The first voice asked.
"Bro, that door's open."
My breath caught in my throat, I felt as if my heart would burst. Footsteps slowly approached my room, too loud, too close. With each thud on the ground, I felt a pit grow in my stomach. Why? Why had I decided to listen?
Was that steel? Was that steel I heard scraping against the ground? Time moved painfully slow, each second drawing out decades. I could feel everything: the blood rushing to my mind, my eyes trembling with fear, and every single step coming my way.
The door shook slightly as a hand landed on the doorknob. A small force pressing against my back, as if giving me a second to regret my decision.
Just as the man was about to open the door, a voice tore through the air.
"What are you doing?!" It was Artofex Tremblay.
"I heard something coming from here, just checking. Didn't you want to keep this a secret?"
There was a brief pause, Artofex Tremblay was looking at the room number. I felt it in my gut, he was adding me to a list of people to take care of.
"Leave it, just come help."
What?