Chapter 67: Hunting God
It was still early evening, but the streets were already mostly deserted.
This is typical for American television during major holidays—people head home for family reunions, and even most restaurants close down.
Many people experience holiday blues, which is actually quite normal. Without friends and family around, and unable to cook for yourself, you might not even get a hot meal, let alone feel festive. It's genuinely depressing.
The streets were nearly empty, and a cold wind scattered abandoned newspapers across the pavement. Chuck looked up at the sky—dark clouds obscured the bright moonlight. As he walked toward his car, he pulled out his phone and sent a text message.
Now that he'd successfully completed his required social interaction for the day, he felt satisfied. His mental energy was surging, and he looked forward to returning home for his daily sensory regulation routine.
His phone screen went dark, displaying a chess interface.
Chuck got in his car, put his phone away, and began playing the game through voice commands.
When he reached New Jersey, he suddenly received a phone call. After answering, a female voice came through—low and extremely panicked.
"Find somewhere safe to hide. I'll be there soon."
Chuck immediately recognized his classmate Justine's voice. After listening to her explanation, he gave her instructions, turned his car around, and drove quickly toward Princeton University.
A few hours earlier, just after nightfall, in the back kitchen of a restaurant:
"Justine, need me to leave a light on?"
the restaurant owner asked.
"No, I'll be done soon,"
Justine replied, looking at the remaining unwashed dishes.
"Happy Thanksgiving."
The owner said, then turned off most of the lights, leaving only one dim bulb. The restaurant immediately grew dark, with just a faint glow remaining.
"Happy Thanksgiving,"
Justine replied and continued working. After finishing the dishes, she headed back to school.
By then, campus was completely empty. All the students had gone home to their families. Holiday spending was expected, and the idea of splurging during the holidays was practically universal. Few students, unwilling to spend the money on travel, chose to stay behind—like her.
Only the night security guard was on duty.
Justine, with her outgoing personality, was well-acquainted with the dorm security guard. She greeted him warmly upon entering and returned to her room, where she did laundry while enjoying a solo dance party in the building that now belonged entirely to her.
Once her laundry was done, she returned to her dorm to study.
After witnessing true geniuses like Sheldon and Chuck, she realized she was still far from that level, so she worked even harder than before.
But after studying for a while, she glanced up at the moonlight outside and her eyes drifted to the BMW keys on her desk.
These were the keys to her best friend Cheryl's BMW, which Cheryl had insisted she take before going home for the holidays, so Justine could get around campus.
Unable to refuse her best friend's generosity, Justine had accepted, though she hadn't planned on using the car.
Driving a BMW to wash dishes at a restaurant? It just felt wrong to her.
But now, she suddenly felt the urge to go for a drive. After a moment's thought, she got up, threw on her jacket, grabbed the BMW keys, and went downstairs to tell the security guard she was going to the store to buy something. She asked what he wanted to drink.
The security guard couldn't refuse her thoughtful offer, so he asked for a bottle of Coke and reminded her to tell campus security that she was a student staying over the holiday, since the gates would be locking soon. She should be back as quickly as possible.
Justine smiled and agreed, saying she'd be back within half an hour. She hadn't planned to go far—the gas wouldn't be worth it—just to a small convenience store near campus.
After leaving the dorm and getting into her friend's red BMW, she drove expertly off campus.
Whether from the part-time jobs she needed to make ends meet or her hobbies of track and swimming, she'd developed a strong physique. Combined with her exceptional intelligence—not quite genius level, but definitely academically gifted—Justine seemed to master everything with greater ease than most people.
Less than ten minutes later, having enjoyed the thrill of driving, she stopped in front of the small convenience store. She didn't browse around like a typical shopper, but rather, more efficiently, headed straight for what she needed. She first grabbed the Coke the security guard had requested, then immediately went for her own items.
The store was nearly empty.
A single hooded girl was rifling through magazines, apparently unable to find what she wanted. She tossed each one on the floor without bothering to put them back.
Justine glanced at her from a distance and decided to steer clear. She simply reached over to grab her toothpaste and other essentials. Hearing someone approach, she looked up to see the hooded girl coming toward her. She immediately stood to leave, but accidentally dropped her toothpaste, which the hooded girl picked up.
Only then did she get a clear look at the girl's face.
While she was quite pretty, the hooded girl had nose and lip piercings and wore sunglasses with the price tag still attached, staring intently at Justine.
Seeing her holding out the toothpaste, Justine thanked her with an awkward but polite smile.
"I like your car,"
the hooded girl said, staring at Justine while reaching out to touch her hair. "You're so beautiful."
Justine deftly avoided her touch and ignored the comment, heading to the cashier to pay and leave. The hooded girl followed and argued with the cashier about a student discount on her sunglasses. The cashier ignored the punk girl, who refused to show her student ID.
Seeing time was running short and needing to get back to campus, Justine offered to help pay for the sunglasses.
A pair of sunglasses wasn't expensive, and no matter how punk this hooded girl looked, she was just a young woman in Justine's eyes. It seemed like a good holiday deed, and it would help her leave quickly.
"I don't need your charity!"
The hooded punk girl abandoned the cashier and turned on Justine with a nasty attitude.
Justine was also getting annoyed and couldn't help but think: "No good deed goes unpunished."
"Even worse, Christie—it's you!"
The hooded punk girl began speaking harshly, shouting incoherent names, slapping money on the counter, and storming out.
After Justine paid and walked outside, she was immediately blinded by headlights. A few seconds later, the car sped away. She realized something was wrong and immediately got into the red BMW, rushing back to campus.
(End of Chapter)
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