I walk out of the building and notice Paul walking up the stairs. He notices me when I call his name. He stops to smile and greet me, "You got a class today?" I ask him and he nods at me, "I do."

"See you tomorrow," I remind him, since I know I'll probably drop by the studio to study there. The music they play is so relaxing. Paul smiles and nods and I continue descending the stairs,

"I can't wait." He smiles at me, and I turn to finally leave.

We've been hanging out a lot and I really appreciate that. Although I never attempted to talk to anyone and hang with anyone as much as we hang out, I'm fine with it. I do trust him. He didn't really judge me (I think) when I exposed my secrets to him, especially about Pennywise. Jeez.

I wonder what would have happened if I never told this to anyone? Would I blow up?

What if I told the secret to someone else? Someone who would've reacted differently?

I guess I am lucky. He's a pretty nice guy.

"What are you studying for?" Paul asked Alissa as she sat in the same corner she always sat, with her book open on her lap, and a drink just a few inches away from her. Paul allowed her to bring a drink inside the studio. She thought she was lucky enough that he wasn't strict with her, even though he was part of dancers' club.

"For art appreciation," Alissa replied and showed him a chapter in the book,

He decided to sit beside her before he danced for her again,

Alissa looked at Paul as he read her book. They've been having alone time in the dance studio lately. She started to assume that the club changed the rehearsals time or something.

"Hey, how come I never see you guys perform?" Alissa suddenly asked making Paul look up at her quickly,

He pretended to turn the page, giving the impression that he's reading the book intently, "The club hasn't made an official performance night yet."

She nodded and sipped from her drink, "Oh okay."

Pennywise needed so much power to fill a whole auditorium with false souls and puppet them for an hour just to make up a fake dance night. The demon clown didn't even give a shit about that.

"I'll invite you when it happens." Paul smiled at her and she smiled back lightly, "Before then, I'll have to rehearse." Paul stood on his feet and returned the book to her. Alissa started reading again,

"I've never seen the photos you took of me yet." Paul mentioned,

"Oh yeah, I'll show you when the submission comes." She said not even looking at him as she's busy skimming through her book,

"They must be really good photos." Paul started. It was time to lure her into seduction,

"I hope so."

"You hope so?"

Alissa chuckled, "I haven't seen them yet. I don't look at my photos right away, I just snap away, and when it's judgement day, the feeling I get seeing the photos feel fresh. So I know which ones have a great impact."

Paul walked towards her with great fascination, "That's really wise!"

She shrugged, "I guess."

"You're very talented, Alissa. I bet they look amazing." Paul said with a flirtatious tone,

Alissa caught this, making her roll her eyes, "Yeah, sure."

"I mean it." He said and stood in front of her, "You're very...amazing."

She looked away and turned the page from her book, "Keep dancing, Paul."

"When will you ever dance with me?"

"When you stop annoying me." She looked up and paused,

Paul smirked, "I don't think I ever will."

"That's a shame, then."

"I like annoying you."

She ignored him and kept reading,

"I like you."

She paused and peeked through her lashes to catch a glimpse of him to see if he's serious. He was smirking at her. It made her feel uncomfortable.

"Do us both a favor, Paul."

Paul answered, "What?"

"Just dance. So I can study." She sipped her drink and kept reading.

Pennywise crumbled inside in exasperation. She was going to be hard to break. He could smell her scent of doubt. She was indeed uncomfortable. The demon's anger rose but it managed to clown around, enjoying its obsession in deceiving the girl.

The credits started rolling, giving Alissa the signal to finally go to bed. She finished studying early, and she had no other errand left to do, leaving her to watch a movie. But the movie finally ended, and she was still not sleepy.

Her mind wandered as the credits kept rolling. She finally closed the window and placed her hand at the back of her laptop ready to shut it, but she paused at the thought of going over to google.

Slowly, as if cheating on herself, she entered a search site. Alissa started typing:

Missing_

But she stopped when she realized her actions are going to lead her to another impulsive need to dig further about the clown that left her hanging.

She stared at the blank search bar for seconds until her phone blasted her ringtone, making her flinch on her bed. Alissa sat up and left her laptop to reach for her phone at the end table. She looked at the screen and saw her Mother's name flashing,

Alissa answered, "Hey, Mom?"

"Hey, hon. Aunt Maria called and she called about the annual halloween party."

Alissa chuckled, "She did?"

"Yes, and you know her, she wants you to come with so you can spend time with your cousins-"

"Mom, you know I have school."

"I told her that! But she kept insisting, saying that this would be the last annual halloween party for the family since you're off to college and would be going to parties on your own."

Alissa could not help but swipe her palm across her face anxiously, "Mom."

"She needs your help, too, because she found out you take photos now. She said she'd be willing to pay you extra if you took photos at the party?"

Alissa suddenly sat up, "Oh really?"

Her mother chuckled, "She said just one night, she'd give you a hundred."

"This is why she's my favorite Aunt." Alissa said making her mother chuckle again, "I'll see you soon, honey."

"Tell her I miss her." Alissa asked genuinely, "And my little brats."

"I surely will."

"Alright," Before she could hang up, she heard her mother call her name,

"Yeah, mom?"

Her mother tried not to laugh, "She said you could bring a date, too."

"A date? To a family party? No."

"So you do have one?"

Alissa rolled her eyes, "No, Mom."

"Oh but I thought you've been hanging with someone?"

"I have but we're just friends."

"Bring him, then!"

Alissa grasped the sheets beside her. This was definitely something she did not like talking about. Especially Paul. She didn't like thinking about Paul that way. She cringed at the thought of calling him her 'date.'

"We'll see."

"Oh, and costumes! Don't forget the costumes!"

Alissa shook her head. She was definitely not going to wear one. Not anymore. "Alright, Mom."

Her mother laughed, "See you!"

"Love you," She said, trying to end the conversation to save her from cringing any further,

"Love you."

Finally, she ended the call. Alissa stared at her reflection in the mirror in front of her bed, and could not help but cringe. All she could do was let out a frustrated scream.