I stared mindlessly at the food in front of me as the clusters of forks and knives flanking against plates and chatters from other students filled the air in the cafeteria.
Last night I didn't sleep much, I kept waking up at odd times in the night till my body finally tired out.
The bowl of soup and rice stared back at me as I was already losing my appetite.
"Hey."
I felt a shake on my table as someone sat besides me.
I looked up and saw that familiar smile of Jasper.
I hadn't seen him in a while after the training.
"You have been staring at your food for a while now. What's wrong?" He nudged my plate inspecting it. "Is it poisoned?" A quiet laugh escaped his lips.
I couldn't quite reciprocate the feeling, it already felt like a thousand weight was hung on my shoulders.
I haven't even seen Samantha since this morning.
She should have come out for breakfast by now.
"Uhm.. Freya? Is everything okay? The playful expression wiped from his face.
Guilt crept into me as he remained unanswered.
"I just feel sick." I threw up a lie not wanting to snub him longer.
"You want to talk about it?"
Why is he still here? I just wanted to be alone now.
I was bubbling with irritation inside already and he is still pushing it.
My lips stretched in a tight smile and threw a thumbs up.
"I'm fine Casper."
He was about to push it more when I stood, grabbed my bag and left the cafeteria.
He stood behind dumbfounded by my sudden action but didn't bother me anymore.
I woke up heavy like my body was bound to a heavy metal inside my bed and felt no need to attend classes today.
With Samantha not in sight.
As I pushed past the backdoor leading to the garden, I made up my mind to call dad.
Sitting at a bench at a far corner in the garden under a huge tree, I searched for my phone in my bag and dialed his number.
Dad in caps with three heart emoji appeared on the screen.
"Hello… princess." The cheerful voice of dad vibrated my speaker as he picked on the second ring.
Dad still calls me princess, not minding that I was already in uni. I'm sure he would still call me that when I'm married and old.
"Hi dad."
"What's wrong princess? I hope nothing bad happened to you." He asked with a tune of worry in his voice.
"Nothing of that sort… It's just that I have been feeling off lately and woke up tired. I guess I still miss home a bit." I fiddled my fingers and pricked at the wooden table.
"I understand. Would you like a visit from us?" He suggested.
"Not really. Maybe next time." I don't want to meet them like this.
Not going to lie, it felt like the weight on my body lessened and I laughed at some of the dad jokes dad was telling me.
I really missed his jokes.
"Take care my princess… and never hesitate to call your mother and I for anything."
"I won't. Wait, where's mum?" Mum always loves to join us in our calls anytime and anywhere. So I was really surprised to not hear her voice.
"She's at work. Went really early this morning…I would inform her of your call princess. Do you need anything else?"
"That would be all. Thanks dad, love you."
"Take care. Love you too."
I took in a huge calm breath in as I looked around.
A sense of relief washed through me as I felt light unlike earlier.
The sun's brightness glowed everywhere.
I decided to spend the rest of my day at the garden and skip lectures.
I laid my head on the table just to receive more of the fresh air till my eyes drooped and slept off.
****
A light prickle on my nose woke me up.
I raised my head up still with that sleepy state as I saw a leaf on the table.
The weather had gotten darker.
How long did I even sleep?
At least I felt much better.
I stood up about to leave when I felt a strange change of the air around me.
It felt like something was in the garden with me but there was nothing.
Goosebumps rose on my skin.
A slight sound reached my ears as I gazed at where the sound came from behind the garden trees.
Every instinct screamed for me to bolt, but my legs felt like they were rooted deep into the garden soil."
I felt in a trance with a fixed gaze at the trees.
'Come.'
A voice like the whisper of the wind called out.
I was about to follow the sound when the sudden call of my name snapped me out of the trance.
"Freya!"
Casper and Samantha came running to me as they jolted my shoulder pulling my gaze from there.
"Where have you been? I searched around for you this morning." Samantha was first to speak.
Casper fixed a glare at the exact spot I was looking at.
Samantha looked panicked, staring at me waiting for an answer.
"I just came to have a bit of fresh air." I grabbed my bag as Samantha exhaled a breath of relief.
"I also-
" We need to leave now." Casper's voice cut through the air sharp with an edge to it.
I felt a shift in the tension around us, and from his rigid Casper's body, I knew something was wrong.
Samantha took my hands as we left the garden back to the dorm.
I was about to apologize to Casper for earlier but he wasn't behind us anymore.
Was he annoyed?
Guilt washed through me as I thought of what happened earlier.
"Samantha, where did you go this morning? I searched for you this morning." I wanted an answer.
She stopped as we reached our dorm room, "I promise to explain tomorrow." She rushed out, not giving me a chance to reply.
I stared at her retreating body before entering my room.
I entered the bathroom and had a quick shower before heading to bed.
***
The sound of the monogamy clock on the wall kept on ticking as sleep removed to approach.
2:00am
The weather outside was extremely dark and the room was dimly lit by the Moon's glow illuminating in the room.
I couldn't force myself to sleep, tugging away the covers, I climbed from my head and made my way to the bathroom.
My feet cooled at the cold feeling of the bathroom tiles.
Reaching the sink, I slid my solid face soap across my face in hopes of calming me soothing any ache.
Gently rinsing my face, I grabbed a face towel to wipe.
The sight of a dark figure behind caught my sight in the mirror, not thinking much about it I continued what I was doing.
I glanced back at the mirror about to leave when the view in front of me made every ounce of blood in my body curl.
At the far end of my bathroom stood a dark ominous figure with emerging dark smoke around it gradually suffocating the bathroom.
It just floated still not moving, igniting more fear in my body.
It had no face and was in black cloak with everything covered.
With my heart pounding harshly against my chest, my body stayed unable to move like every part of my body didn't belong to me.
Suddenly everything around me felt heavy.
My head spinned as the room became dizzy.
The bulbs began flickering aggressively as it glided across the tiles to me.
It had no feet and was covered in a ragged cloak.
The room was engulfed in the smell of dust and flickers of red fire in the air.
My nostrils flared with every suffocating breath I took as my lungs screamed in pure anguish.
My voice cracked like a clog was stuck in my throat as I tried to scream.
Every breath I took ignited a sharp pain in my heart.
I was dying from the pain.
It came closer ghosting its stretched long black sharp fingers around my face, my eyes bled as blood streamed down my cheeks.
My vision blurred around the edges as I prayed for death to consume me.
The last thing I heard was a screeching cry of anguish as I fell into an endless void.