"So, let me get this straight. You want to...kill your own father?" I squinted, turning my head to give Jack a wary look as we walked back to the dormitory.

He tilted his head momentarily in an expression before exhaling a deep sigh, "Well, when you leave out all the awful stuff he's done一it does sound pretty bad, yeah."

"Hey, I'm not judging. My dad's a little fucked up, too. But this plan sounds flawed."

"How so? I mean, aside from the obvious."

I sighed, "Uh, you're pledging your allegiance to a magical secret society that will literally kill you the moment you go at Coventry一after however long it takes you to get there. It's a fucking cult, Morton. A cult with magic powers."

"You're saying I got the shit end of the stick," Jack stated, rhetorically. I nodded a little, shrugging my shoulders, and Jack sighed heavily. "Can't argue with you there."

No, he can't. If you ask me, any parental figure that sends their young into the lion's den for their own personal gain probably doesn't care as much about their young as they should. No amount of being 'old fashioned' changes that.

Though, I probably was not the most qualified person to speak about how parents should treat their children. Or about how families should work at all. As we reached the front of Townsend House, I noticed something familiar一someone, to be more specific.

A tall-dark-and-handsome was just coming off the steps. "Randall?" I asked, to get his attention. He was preoccupied with his cell phone, most likely texting. But he looked up from the device the second I'd spoken his name.

Randall bore his teeth in a cheeky smile. "Hey, Gray," he said, coming to a stop a couple feet before me and Jack. He glanced between us and made a gesture with his phone, "I didn't know you two knew each other."

"I didn't know you two knew each other," Jack piped up, looking between Randall and I with a rather perplexed expression.

I shrugged, not knowing what else to do in the awkwardness of the situation, "I guess it's a small campus after all."

"You're telling me," Randall chuckled a little, making a sarcastic expression of agreement. "I've got a class to get to, but i'll see you guys around."

He'd glanced between me and Jack with a carefree smile, before patting Jack's shoulder as he walked around him to follow the sidewalk. "Oh, Gray-" I turned around, raising an eyebrow at the sound of Randall's voice from behind me. He pointed a finger in my direction as he walked backward, away from me, "-I'll call you."

My body's first instinct was to hold up my thumb in agreement with a casual smile, as if I genuinely believed it was in a 'just friends' context. Randall smiled wider at my gesture, looking on a moment longer before turning around to walk straight forward again.

I felt the presence at my side shift, drawing my gaze back to Jack. He was giving me a look that was a mixture of things一surprise, curiosity, humor. "What?" I questioned.

"You guys are dating?" another rhetorical question.

Shaking my head, I replied, "Not yet."

That answer caused him to corkscrew his lips, tilting his head, and I smiled patronizingly at him before taking to the stairs. I only had a couple hours before it was time to walk to the Sigma Sigma Delta house for the party.

I'd already worn one of the only dresses I owned, so I would have to dress it down a bit. But that was fine. I wasn't going to actually party. I was going to be too busy investigating and not giving a shit to worry about my outfit choice.

Jack walked with me to my room. He was supposed to be helping me with a game plan for tonight but, the second I opened the door, all he could do was snoop. I stepped inside, holding the door, and Jack gradually gravitated to the right side of the room一Chelsea's side.

Sighing a little, I locked up the door. "Is this all Chelsea's stuff?" Jack asked, knowingly. He moseyed to Chelsea's desk, visibly eyeing the few papers she'd left out for what was supposed to be her lecture the morning after her night of fun.

"Mm hm," I nodded, as I crossed the room to get to my suitcase. "No one's come to get her things yet, but they probably will soon."

I hefted my main suitcase onto my bed, unzipped and opened the lid, then started sifting through the mess. There wasn't much time to unpack everything what with all this investigating and studying going on.

Chelsea and I were supposed to unpack and decorate the room together. Doing it without her was a thought too depressing to process just yet. Jack, exhaling rather loudly, dropped onto my bed beside the suitcase.

"So, you really think you'll be able to find something out at this party?" he asked, before flopping back on the comforter.

"Well, Addison said she saw Chelsea take the sidewalk out the back gate," I recalled, pulling a top out of the suitcase to get a better look. "If anything, I might just find something following that sidewalk."

"But why was she in the backyard in the first place?"

"I don't know. Another thing to figure out, I guess."

Turning slightly, I held the top up to my body, raising an eyebrow in question to Jack. He wrinkled his nose and gave a shake of his head, so I tossed it back in the suitcase. "And while you're actually making progress, I'll be taking some random final test," he huffed a bit.

"Two birds, Jack. Two birds," I replied, as I sifted. Down near the bottom of the suitcase was a glittery, silver and black top. The design reminded me of a pair of jeans I knew should be in the suitcase, so I set the top aside and dug around for the pants.

Sure enough, I found them in the far right corner. They were one of my most comfortable pairs of jeans. Small, plastic diamonds ran down the outer thighs of boths legs. I laid the two together as best as I could atop the now messy suitcase to see if they truly matched. Jack mused, "Does it really matter what you wear?"

"Not really, but I can't go looking like a crawled out of a dumpster if I want to blend in, can I?"

"True," he tipped his head in an expression, then pushed himself upright. "Test or no test, call me if something happens, okay?"

My eyes shifted in his direction, my eyebrows lowering. "If I get into trouble, what are you gonna do? You'll be God knows where. Relax, Morton. I got this," I assured him. I nabbed the clothes off the suitcase and pulled the lid closed. "If you don't wanna see my bra, you might wanna turn around."

I didn't wait before tugging my sweatshirt over my head. There was a tank top beneath it, so it was no big deal. Sighing, Jack dropped back against the bed, his eyes sticking to the ceiling to avoid looking at me.

It only took me a moment to swap shirts. Then I quickly changed out my jeans, swapping black ones for the ones with diamonds, before signaling the all-clear. "Okay, you're good," I announced, as I flipped my hair back while standing up in order to resituate it.

"Are you this comfortable around every guy you've only known for three days, or am I just special?" Jack smirked a little, speaking sarcastically as he sat up once again.

I paused, clutching my wadded up tank top to my chest as I softened my expression dramatically. "It's only you, Jack," I said, wistfully. "It's always been you."

His hand went straight for a t-shirt draped on the bed beside him, and he hurled it at me in retaliation. A laugh bubbled it's way up my throat as I dodged the projectile shirt. It missed me by at least an inch.

There were moments like this that I shared with Noah. Those brief but memorable times when we both acted like stereotypical siblings, not like the strangers we were just two years ago. It was bittersweet to think about一so I tried not to.

I shuffled to my desk and sat in the chair to put on my shoes. "So, you really can't give me anything to go on?" Jack prodded, squinting an eye in an expression.

"Nope," I shook my head.

He sighed heavily一again. There really wasn't anything I could say that would help him tonight. Though, I could understand his persistence. I would be just as nervous if I'd actually been tapped. In a sarcastic quip, he said, "Why'd we team up again?"

"Because we need each other for information."

"Right."

Jack snapped his fingers once before standing up from the bed. I finished swapping shoes and stood as well, stepping back toward the bed to get a jacket. "Be cool, soda pop," I exhaled, grabbing the leather jacket I'd worn to the first party. "You'll do fine. Text me when you get accepted, 'kay?"

I pulled it on and walked for the door. Jack huffed a chuckle, and I could hear him following behind me. I'd made sure to grab my bag before walking out. I couldn't do much investigating late in the evening without a flashlight, and I needed my phone to take pictures of possible evidence.

A small notepad would be great for keeping track of my thoughts. It looked like a normal bag, but it really doubled as my Nancy Drew detective tool bag. Jack and I had to split up once we got outside to get to the right places for our various events.

Then, I was walking by myself to the Sigma house.

During the walk to the frat house, I ran the information we already knew through my head, refreshing for when I find out something knew. That way it would be easier to piece it all together. It all sounded so crazy.

What did I even know about investigating a murder? Especially one with supernatural forces at play? I mean, I've watched a lot of Supernatural, but I don't think that counts for much in a real world situation like this.

Music could be heard down the street as I approached Sigma Sigma. Party-goers littered the front lawn and crowded the wrap-around porch. Everyone was drinking. Everyone was oblivious. I made my way up the steps and slipped inside the house.

My eyes scanned for familiar faces as I eased myself through the house toward the back, making sure I didn't run into anyone who would try to talk to me and ask why I was here. After all, why would I want to come back here? It was the last place I saw Chelsea. That could either mean something horrific or something sentimental for me.

It meant neither.

The music became low and high like a volume wave as I passed doorways to the living area, walking straight into the kitchen. Once again there was beer of every kind and some hard liquors on the counter.

It was just like the first party. Even the music was similar. Why did I even try to get into the partying scene? I'd rolled my eyes at the introspective question. I knew why I tried to get into it, but that didn't make it any less pathetic.

The back door was already open, a few guests hanging out on the porch一drinking, smoking, laughing. Completely oblivious. I stepped through the open sliding-glass door and walked to the railing of the wrap-around porch. From the second I walked in the door of the frat house, I'd wanted to go straight out back and dig around.

But that would be a little weird. So, just to be inconspicuous, I took a little time in each spot. Like a game of leapfrog一hopping from the door, to the kitchen, to the back porch, to the yard. Next was the yard. I gave a few casual glances to my left and right as I moseyed lazily down onto the lawn.

Obviously, I have no idea what i'm doing.

Investigating a murder is kind of a first for me, like most people put in my situation. Still I felt like the only idiot in the world at that moment. A preliminary glance around the yard revealed nothing out of the ordinary. I kept looking, doing my best to look casual as I drifted toward the fence lining the sidewalk.

Out of seemingly nowhere, a sudden drop in skin temperature caused the hair at the nape of my neck to stand on end, a few bumps freckling my arms. I knew what it was almost immediately一a pair of eyes. Someone was watching me.

In a split second I'd gone from confused to knowing too much. Vera said she'd put someone in charge of looking after me. Whoever it is must really be dedicated to the Order if they're willing to follow me into a frat party full of half-drunk morons.

Sighing heavily at the thought, I pulled open the fence's gate and stepped down onto the sidewalk. It was getting fairly dark out, meaning it would be easier to lose this asshole, even with the few streetlights.

So I started walking. To the best of my knowledge, this route was a little more of a roundabout way of getting back to campus. If Chelsea went this way that would explain why she was a target一if it really had nothing to do with her being a pledge.

It was a bit secluded, with less light, making it the perfect path to attack someone. Person or not, it was the ideal. A bout of nausea hit my stomach as it sunk in how morbid this line of thinking was. Who looks at a place and thinks, this would be a good place to kill someone?

I mean, other than the killers themselves. No normal person, that's for sure. I didn't get far from the frat house when I felt a presence. It loomed over me from behind, combining with the bumps and upright hairs, creating an uncomfortable sensation of unrest.

All along my left were the backs of small houses. But, to my right, was nothing but trees. I pulled my bag strap over my head to secure it across my chest and kept walking for just a few more feet. Then I bolted.

I dove to the right, breaking into a sprint. The idea was to get this fool lost, then circle back, and I could continue investigating as I needed. Though, it was incredibly dark in the trees this late in the evening. I kept running, however, with no choice of turning around just yet.

Thin, low hanging branches slapped my arms, the zipping sound mixing in with the sound of crushing leaves and breaking twigs from beneath my feet. Those things, along with the sound of my heart thrumming in my ears, made it almost impossible to hear if anyone was behind me still.

So after a little while, I stopped. My chest was heaving as I finally turned around to look. To the best of my eyesight I couldn't see anyone in the near vicinity. And I didn't expect there to be. There's no way some Order lacky is going to be able to keep up with me in a high speed chase.

Vera had to know that could happen. You'd think she would've thought ahead and assigned to me someone with the ability to keep up. But, this is Vera we're talking about. There's no way she actually thought of that.

I stood there a minute, catching my breath while I waited enough time for whoever was following me to get fed up and leave. I could see it now. There would be laziness. A moment of indecision, knowing what Vera would do if she found out. Then that fed up 'ah, forget about it' before finally deciding to go home for the night.

In the middle of the 'ah, forget about it' thought, I heard a sound. A hollow, shrill crack. It was just loud enough to startle me. I turned quickly to face the direction of the sound. But there was nothing. The sky above was still blue一as dark as it was一but I knew it was too late to be out in the woods alone.

And as that knowledge came to mind, so did another morbid line of thinking. This could be what happened to Chelsea. She was out late, went down that sidewalk path, and maybe she wandered off in her drunken state?

Whether there was any truth to the theory or not I still found myself backing away from where I'd heard the sound. The chill of the night was setting in, cooling my arms even through my jacket. I could feel it, twisting and forming its own sheet of ice along my spine. It kept my bones rigid and I trembled against it.

Again, there was a sound. I couldn't quite place it, and I didn't care to as I turned myself around, forcing myself to move quickly back toward the sidewalk. I wasn't sure how far into the trees i'd gone. I'd tried to think back, tried to gauge how fast I needed to move to get to it before I completely panicked.

That's when I heard a growl. It rumbled right into my eardrums, vibrating my ribs, and something made me stop. I didn't know what it was. Maybe I was in shock? Maybe the fear and the cold were keeping me from moving any farther?

Or maybe it was what I saw when I turned around?

At first I'd only twisted my upper body to see behind me. Then, out of sheer intrigue, I turned around completely to face the sounds coming from what I could only assume was a wild animal. Most likely a dog or some kind of bear.

What else could growl like that? Well, probably a lot of other things, but none I could think of that resided in these woods. Eyes rounded, I reached a trembling hand into my bag, the strap still tight across my chest.

I dug out my flashlight. When I flicked it on, a light beam shot forward. In that beam was the tale end of something horrific. It was incredibly large and covered in fur, but the thing moved too fast for me to see much else. Either way, the growling sounds it made intensified when it passed, causing me to startle back a few steps.

I almost一almost一dropped the flashlight. Thank God I didn't. My fingers gripped onto it tighter after that, as if that tiny device could somehow offer comfort and reassurance from being in my grip. It was a long shot but I was too terrified not to take that chance.

My chest was heaving again, this time from pure terror-fueled adrenaline. Yet, at the same time, something in my brain was going crazy. You have to know, I thought. You have to know what killed Chelsea, so you can stop it.

But my body was having a hard time coming to terms with this course of action. My feet were moving but they did not understand. Everything else within me screamed at me, begging me to get back to the sidewalk and get home. Instead, I walked forward.

My trembling hand once again dug into my bag一this time, for my cell phone. I pulled out the phone and opened the string of messages with Jack. Very messily, my fingertips pressed the keys, and I wrote out a text.

I told Jack all that had happened and what I was doing now, explaining the lead I was following as best as could with how unbelievable it sounded, and then I hit send. After that, I slid my phone away and did not touch it for the rest of the night.

There was no further sight of whatever kind of beast I was chasing in my flashlight but still I walked. All I could hear were my feet crushing leaves and small twigs. That, and my somewhat ragged breathing. I waved the flashlight to the right, paused, then waved it to the left.

For a second it didn't register just what i'd seen on the right. I had to move my flashlight back over it, and even then my brain couldn't comprehend it. My feet stopped cold as I took it in. A concrete building sat there in the trees. It looked to be old, cracking and covered in ivy and moss.

Overgrown, falling apart, all alone out here in nothing but endless forest. I could relate. Something about the structure piqued my curiosity. The building wasn't all that big. It looked to be a tall cylinder, maybe ten feet. As I approached, I noticed its odd structural pattern.

All over the outside of the building was a kind of diamond pattern. Ropes of concrete criss-crossed each other to make the risen shapes, giving it a braided look. Moss grew inside the diamonds and ivy covered most of the building.

It seemed odd on one hand yet intoxicatingly intriguing on the other. Who would put this much detail into something they were just going to abandon? I thought. The door to the inside was a hunk of rotting wood hanging on some hinges. It hung open a few inches, cracked in odd lines.

I reached out, taking a step closer, and slid my fingers around the handle. The metal was cold but that wasn't what startled me. A throaty growl from somewhere behind caused my whole body to lurch forward.

Without a second thought, my hand yanked open the stiff and broken wood of the door, and I scurried inside the dark building. I tugged the door closed behind me as quickly as I could in a rush of panic. That thing was back. Had it done what I tried to do with my follower? Did it run ahead, lose me, then come back to watch me?

I wasn't sure what thought was more terrifying一the thing existing at all, or it wanting to following me through the woods. Inside the safety of the concrete building, I took a deep breath and stepped back from the door. When I did my heels clattered into something hard.

Startled yet again, I hopped forward, then twisted quickly to shine my flashlight on the object I'd run into. My light beam landed on what looked to be some kind of wooden chest. It sat there in the middle of the floor, alone, with its lid hung open.

From what I could tell the box was empty. But it made me even more curious. So I lifted my flashlight and shone the light beam across the inside of the building. It looked to be empty, for the most part. A built in ledge of some kind ran around the circular inside wall.

Atop the ledge were various small things一a few books maybe, and what looked like some kind of lamp stand or candle holder. To the far right was another chest, this one closed.

I sidestepped around the open chest on the floor and walked closer to the closed chest on the ledge. The light beam remained on it as I approached. There were only a few steps between us when the wooden box suddenly shifted in a lurch.

The movement caused a loud thud, the sound echoing off the walls of the empty concrete chamber. My body reacted with a startle but this one was more isolated. I ceased in moving forward and instead leaned back on my heels, a ready-to-run stance. The light beam was trembling as violently as my hand.

Briefly, I wondered if Chelsea had taken refuge here. Maybe that was why the door was cracked so oddly? It could've chased her here. She could've never made it far after making a break for it. My mind was racing with theories when the wooden chest suddenly jerked.

The left corner lurched forward an inch, popping up off the ledge, and the lid dented outward momentarily一almost as if something was pushing it up from the inside.

My whole body lurched back this time and, almost as if trying to follow me, the wooden chest bounced forward. It tumbled off the ledge, falling open as its front hit the concrete floor. The loud sound, the weird movement一I was shaking so hard the flashlight fell out of my hand.

It hit the floor when I shot backward, and the metal device rolled a few inches from the momentum. The light beam shined right at the front of the chest. Mere seconds after it did, the lid was thrust open, snapping upright from the pressure inside.

Every part of me trembled violently now. The inside looked black and empty, but only looked that way for a split second. Something inside moved and I couldn't hold it in anymore. I screamed. I didn't care if it told that thing outside where I was. This shit was getting a little too horror-esque for me.

My terrified voice seemed only to draw it out. The darkness inside the chest writhed and twisted and, if I didn't know any better, I would say it looked like it had fur.

The shadowy object then lunged out, hurling in my direction with incredible speed, sprawling out in width as it gained distance from the chest. It hit me with a force that knocked me back against the decrepit wooden door. My scream was cut short, and instead I was grunting from the pain, then shrieking as the furry darkness began to cover my body.

It latched onto my torso like a fucking leech. I grabbed at it, pulling and yanking, and it only covered my whole being even faster. The darkness spread so quickly I barely had the chance to pull on it once before darkness was all I could see.

It was mere second before I could feel it rescind, letting go of my body as if it dissolved, and I could open my eyes一if I dared. As I tried to lift my eyelids, I found myself battling with a harsh light. The light caused a dull throb between my eyes.

But I forced them open still out of a desperate need to know. I had to know what happened. I had to know where the darkness went. My eyelids finally lifted totally and I squinted against the light until my vision adjusted.

From what I could tell, I was still at the location of the concrete building, but I was outside. To the right of me was the door. The wood had fallen off its hinges, slumped to the side on the soft dirt. It wasn't quite right, the positioning, for it to have fallen. My eyes moved to the hinges. Realization hit me the moment I saw them.

Or, rather, the lack thereof. The hinges were gone, torn from the frame they'd been securely screwed into. It was obvious then that the door had been ripped off. More and more, questions began to pop up as I took in my surroundings.

Somehow I was outside, somehow the door had been ripped off, somehow it was daylight. It was a rather cold morning. Or, maybe, it was just a cold night? Did I sleep out here all night? Why didn't I go home? Why didn't I know what had happened?

My skin felt numb from the cold, but still I shivered. Upon a glance down I confirmed a deep-set fear一I was naked. Completely naked, I sat in the dirt and dried leaves, my skin smudged with what I hoped to be just dried dirt.

None of this made any sense to me. But I think I was too hungover from last night's reeling emotions to truly feel the weight of it all. My first action was to find my clothes. Very shakily, I climbed to my feet. In standing I could see the area much better.

I looked around a bit outside before daring to step up to the doorway of the concrete building. I didn't go in, but I didn't need to in order to see my clothes in there on the flooring, tattered and torn. My flashlight was still on, laying there by the empty wooden chest, and my bag一strap now ripped from the main body一lay open by it.

Carefully, I took two slow steps inside the building. Just enough to bend forward and snatch my bag from the floor without spending too much time by the chest. It was empty now, but it had looked empty last night as well, and look at how that turned out.

Bag clutched tightly to my bare chest, I retreated back into the open forest, and dug into the bag to find my phone. Surely Jack had received my text last night. Maybe he would know what the hell was going on?

My brain was a bit scattered. I was moving my hand around inside the bag but, for a second, I'd forgotten was I was looking for. And for the life of me I couldn't remember what it was. Normally, that wouldn't be a big deal. But I was standing stark naked out in the woods with no memory of what happened during the night. This was a big deal.

Frustrated, I moved things around and searched in my bag until it finally came to me. My cell phone. I latched onto the device and immediately opened my messages. Jack hadn't replied.

A morbid idea floated through my mind that maybe he'd come to find me when I sent my first text, then whatever thing was outside waiting for me made sure he never arrived? A shiver ran down my spine and I clutched the bag to my chest again. This time, I started running.

Naked or not, I needed to get back to my dorm. I needed to get back, find Jack, and sort all this out. Getting into my dorm without streaking across campus might be a little more difficult than anticipated, but I reasoned that I would cross that bridge when I got there.

So I kept running, I kept running and I did my best to follow my mental compass toward the campus. Of course, my compass was fifty shades of fucked with all that happened. I wasn't sure in which direction the campus really was. But I had to start somewhere.

I had to find some kind of direction, a landmark to help me figure out where to go. It was nothing but woods for a while. Then the trees tapered out to houses. I found the sidewalk path between the Sigma Sigma house and Belgrave sooner than I expected, but there was a hitch一if I followed it, I would be streaking all the way to campus.

Was I really that desperate? It wasn't like I was insecure about my body to the point I was willing to stay out in the woods naked all day. But the thought of countless eyes gawking as I ran naked did trigger some unhappy thoughts and feelings. I had to remind myself of just where I was, the reality of my circumstances.

At this point there's nothing to lose, I thought.

So I clutched my bag to my chest even tighter than before and I booked it. My bare feet slapped the pavement and the wind rushed through my ears as I sprinted by streets and houses.

If I thought about what I was doing for too long, I'd get almost too humiliated to keep going. What had my life turned into? Investigating magical murders, following large beasts in the woods at night, and running naked through the streets. Can you be on drugs and not know?

I'm beginning to think it's possible I hit my head and will soon wake up in a hospital room surrounded by friends and family. This is the stuff of deranged hallucinations. Even with my very fast sprint, it took a few minutes to get to campus. Thankfully, the dormitory was not that far from where the path spit me out.

Still there were plenty of people going to and from Townsend House. It was early, but not early enough that people weren't trying to get to class. Shit. It figures that the universe would decide to throw all this at me right now, rather than some other more convenient time.

No, that would be too easy. I sidled up to the brick side of the building and leaned around the corner a bit to see the front entrance. The plan was to watch it, wait for the least amount of traffic possible, and then book it to my room.

That opportunity didn't come before a real-life miracle happened. I'm not a religious person, but when the RA of your floor一whom you know is a really nice person一comes out of a building you're waiting to enter because you're butt naked...it has to be a sign. My hand shot out from behind the building and flailed, "Michelle! Hey, Michelle! Over here."

She was just coming off the steps when I called for her and, though looking rather confused, didn't hesitate to come toward me. "Hey, Gray...what's going on? Why are you back there?" Michelle asked, coming to a stop a foot from the corner.

"Well, funny story一i'm really naked right now, and I need to get inside to get my clothes-"

"Oh, shit. Hold on- I've got a change of clothes in my bag," Michelle said, quickly taking her backpack off her shoulder. "It's just sweats but it'll get you inside."

I sighed in relief, hanging against the building, "You are seriously a lifesaver, you have no idea."

She dug into her backpack and pulled out a pair of Belgrave blue sweatpants and a matching Belgrave sweatshirt, chuckling a little from my words. "Always gotta be prepared if you're going to school at this place. Weird shit's always happening these days," she said.

As I took the clothes from her, I realized she was right. Weird shit was always happening. Even though the world was a weird-shit kinda place, it seemed localized at this fucked up university. "Are you going to be okay going in?" Michelle asked, once I'd gotten the clothes on.

They were a little snug in some places, but it was so much better than going in naked. I nodded quickly, finally able to step around the corner, putting myself in public view. "Yeah, I'll be fine," I assured her. "Thank you so much for this一I'll get you your clothes back."

"No worries. But I'm pretty sure your Philosophy class starts in, like, twenty minutes so you better hurry," she told me, before walking past me to rejoin the sidewalk.

I hadn't even thought of my morning classes, I just knew I needed to get back to my room. But I really can't be late for yet another Philosophy-related thing. I've been late to every class and missed the fucking lecture. It was not helping my image at all.

So I swore under my breath and ran up the steps into the dormitory. With all the sprinting without warm-up I was doing this morning, I was bound to get a shin splint. My track coach would probably murder me for not taking care of myself. But it wasn't like I had a choice一other than functioning like a normal person so I wasn't running late all the time.

Making it to my dorm only took a couple of minutes. Then I rounded up my things and put them in a different bag. Mine was too damaged to use at this point.

There wasn't time to take a full-on shower, so I used some wet wipes to wash off the dirt smudges you could see after I changed clothes. It was gross but the rest would have to wait for later. Once I was clean enough, I pulled on the strap of my new bag and left the room.

Jeans and a Belgrave sweatshirt were becoming the only things I showed up to classes wearing, and it was starting to bug me. For once, I'd like to be able to shower, style my hair, and go out in public wearing something a little more intricate.

As I trotted down the front steps of Townsend House, I tried texting Jack again. There was no reason to jump to such conclusion as him being eaten by a mythical creature just yet. I would give him another few texts and some time to show up.

If, after all that, he didn't show一then it was time to worry.