That brought me back to reality, very suddenly at that. I wasn’t noticed. I hoped I wasn’t, certain that I wasn’t, until he flew towards me that was.

  “Would it kill you to wait for me?” he said, very loudly, at that. Disregarding his bad timing, that voice alone made me roll my eyes upward, tightening my mouth to suppress this lingering emotion. I have completely forgotten about him. Phobos, that bird, I must have lost him on my way here.

  That “ah” sound must have been Phobos getting hit by a tree branch. My bad, not that I actually felt tho, but also not surprising. In my pursuit of running from my professor, I took a shortcut through the infamous unmaintained trail of the Forest science department. Might have been too difficult for Phobos to navigate alone. I could totally see him getting lost there. He was too much of a royal brat to go through such wild routes on the daily. Knowing this, certainly, I mean you have to agree, it was an issue on his side for getting lost, not mine.

  Everything was going according to plan, for me at least. Sure, this was the longer route, but I could reach my car unnoticed. I was about to go through the backside entrance of the chemistry department, which had a bridge connection to the parking lot, when I heard that fateful sound, making me follow it. That roughly summed up how I ended up here, in the center of a grassy space bordered by major buildings of my uni.

  And obviously enough, the three supernatural beings, who so forcefully entered my life, weren’t in this plan of mine. It was instances like those that made me wonder if perhaps past lives actually exist and I did something deserving of this punishment. I couldn’t see any other reason as to why I was cursed to such a fate.

  Phobos was attracting attention, I had to do something. In the spur of the moment, my body reacted on its own. Looking back, this was very much unlike me at that time, taking into account my lack of mobility and fitness, it was almost impressive how I caught that raven mid-flight, by the beak no less.

  Music was loud enough to hide an explosion of a bomb, so something so minor as the croaking of some raven had no chance of being heard by them. Knowing this, I couldn’t take any chances, those two were roughly two meters away from us. Interestingly enough, the first time I saw them was on university property as well.

  Hunching over, hiding behind people, I took another peak. “Do they study here?” I questioned. I really hoped they weren’t professors or teacher assistants. Realistically, what could they have possibly taught? "How to Kill 101?" My eyes darted to the rightmost corner as I inhaled sharply. A single sound escaped my vocal cords —"Hmm"—while my mouth twisted into a smirk. It might have been fun to be taught by them, if the subject was something like that. Maybe I would have actually attended every single class if they were my teachers.

  Getting lost in the daydream, Phobos slipped my mind again. “Lmmf mmm gmm,” he tried to speak, his beak muffled by my hand. That raven wasn’t helping with all the noise it was making. The people near me were starting to notice my intent to hide, whispering about my fidgeting, speculating as to the reason.

  He was getting on my nerves and I would have gladly let him go; unfortunately, I wasn’t certain if I was the only one who could understand this bird. I still had no clue as to why I could understand him while other people around me couldn’t. However, there was no guarantee. He was the same as them, in my mind, so there was no reason to believe they didn’t know he wasn’t a regular raven. The raven, who mind you, was always following me around. That being said, those two weren’t dumb enough not to put two and two together. There was a high chance they would find my location.

  Given those circumstances, I had to keep him hidden, so I kept him tightly pressed against my chest, which, I admit, didn’t make me look any less suspicious. “Be quiet,”I whispered, tightening my grip. Adamant on getting out, he moved chaotically, pushing back with his wings; he even got one wing past my grasp before accidentally getting his feet stuck in my knitted sweater, giving me an opportunity to fully secure him with my hand.

  Continuing to hold Phobos’s beak shut, I moved him under my armpit to get a better grip as I turned to allow him a better view, “ look, don’t those two remind you of anyone?” Confused, he didn’t see what I was talking about at first, deeming me insane.

  Coincidence or divine inference, at this very same moment, gray clouds parted, directing the majority of light in their direction, albeit briefly. Just centimeters from the stage was a girl who could have easily gone unnoticed, given her height, if not for her long, bright pink hair pulled back into a ponytail. Her hair bounced and swayed as she shuffled her feet, jumping to the beat. Loose hoodie would lift every time she jumped revealing the short pleated skirt underneath, adding a playful touch. Chunky sneakers grounded her outfit, while knee-high socks covered her legs, leaving just a small peek of her porcelain skin visible. All of which were black, but the blackness of her fit didn’t take away from the overall cuteness. Instead, she had more of a youthful and energetic appearance. A great dissonance to the true nature of her being.

  An ominous silhouette of black widow spider on the back of her hoody matching with her partner was the only hint into who she was. I was doubtful at first as I could barely see her face, but the K-pop idol like face of her partner was something I remembered all too well. It was her—Licho, no doubt about it.

  I felt all motion stop under my hands as Phobos understood, quieting down in the process. That was my cue to let him go, and so I did. Possibly a wrong move on my part.

  “You almost suffocated me,” he screamed into my ear the moment I loosened my grip. My ear was ringing from his primal scream.

  My brows furrowed, “Чорт,” I swore. I was scared to be caught. Shaking him out of my shoulder, I took a step back, preparing to run. The crowd was getting thicker as more and more people rushed in, enthralled by the captivating melody. We, who were right at the epicenter of it all, were slowly getting pushed closer to the stage. A stage next to which the supernatural pair of interest was vibing to the music, a somewhat unexpected turn of events. Regardless, it was time to get away. Walking against the flow of the crowd made it harder to squeeze past them; that being said, this had its benefits. The new song was rather aggressive and loud, drowning out all my noise, while the newfound crowd allowed me to blend in, escaping unnoticed or so I thought.

  I got shoved forwards by the pressure of the crowd. The atmosphere was getting more heated with all the jumping and disjoined movement from the audience. All I wanted was to get out of this madness. With great effort, I twisted my backpack to wear it at the front. I didn’t trust this crowd not to steal anything.

  I was getting tossed and shoved, I was moving, further and further from the stage. There was just one but. Before I knew it, looking from above, I saw the top of a pink haired ponytail. “It couldn’t be…right?” I thought, sweating despite the cold spring breeze. “Please don’t be her,” I prayed.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Wherever it was a coincidence or just my bad luck, but my attempt to run away just made me closer to them. Turns out they also decided to move further back. To my pleasant surprise, somehow, Licho, the flamboyant pink-haired shorty, didn't notice me even though I was right behind her, which ended up saving me. She was distracted by a rather suicidal fellow. The nerve. Given that poor young soul didn’t know who she was screwing with; nevertheless, fighting a random stranger who confronted you for flirting with their partner isn’t something anyone would just do.

  I wasn’t making the smartest moves that day either I know, but I figured I could stay a little longer. What? The music was nice. There was enough crowd to keep me hidden. Running away no longer left as urgent after remaining unnoticed even so I was practically breathing down her neck. “How would they know?” I thought, trying to console myself, mixing with the incoming crowd.

  This open space was considerably large, but even it was slowly reaching its capacity. Central area was especially packed, making the cobblestone roads leading to various campuses no longer visible. Being further from the center, I saw faces of occasional frustrated students trying to get to their class, now forced to take a detour.

  Good thing, I didn’t care about my current outfit. My shoes in particular were a mess from people stepping on my feet, which made me a bit sad when they wouldn’t even apologize. I mean, I knew that I looked horrible that day, but was I that invisible. Then again, with all that chaos, I wasn’t the only one. Also, what was up with this concoction of a smell? Somebody was definitely smoking weed and something synthetic too.

  “Ugh,” I tried to hold my breath, choking on this smell. All I needed was to hold it long enough until I reached the three story building at the border of this quad.

  I wanted to get to this microbiology hall and use it to get out, but the crowd was considerably smaller on the edges, so I decided to walk. The air was fresh and walking past blooming trees, listening to music was nice. So I walked, feeling satisfied, wondering how this concert came to be. It was bound to be illegal, certainly not something the university agreed to, given how much of an interruption it was to all the classes. Normally those happen closer to the end of the quarter, which I suppose it was. However, it wasn’t even noon yet. Seemed too early. I wasn’t complaining. This was a gift from fate for me. I needed this distraction. It calmed my mind.

  Another pleasant surprise awaited me. As I was walking past a bench, the person sitting there stood up and left. Perfect for me, I guessed. I sat there enjoying music, staring at the Renaissance style building behind it, it was a mathematics building. I sighed. This was a STEM section after all. “Did it have to be math again?” I whined. It reminded me of something I tried my best to forget.

  The anxiety of having to act, having to make a decision was catching up to me. I felt my heart rate intensify. There was tightness in my chest as if somebody was holding onto my heart, squeezing it. It was getting harder to breathe. I wanted this to end. A passing thought wondered into my mind:

  “Maybe I should die?” It was dumb. Trust me, I knew that well. However, you have to agree, it’s…a sort of solution when you have no visible way out. A stupid and cowardly solution, but a solution nevertheless.

  “It will be better for everyone if I do”. I closed my eyes. Everyone would have been better off if I didn’t exist. My mom wouldn’t have to suffer. I should…

  “No, no, no. What am I even thinking.” I opened my eyes again. Either way, I am nothing but a burden. She, the one so dear to me, sacrificed so much for me. She came back to my dad, the one who tortured her, the one who left her for dead, all because of me. How did I repay her?

  By not even being able to receive my bachelors degree. I was 23 for crying out loud and I still needed one more year to finish my degree. That is if I can even pass the classes this quarter. The way it was going so far, I wouldn’t even be able to register for the classes, which mind you, I already told my family I was signed up for.

  “What do I do?” My mind screamed at me. Shifting my weight forward, I hugged my legs, a cheap attempt at self-soothing. There was only a week left. Technically two days by now. I had tomorrow and Wednesday to figure this out and somehow solve everything that I have done.

  “This is my last resort,” I smiled, mouthing the words to the song. Once again I wondered, “should I really take my life tonight?”

  I had two days left until…until all of this would be over. One way or another.

  Getting lost in my thoughts, leaning sideways on the bench, I didn’t notice as the previous confrontation was getting more heated.

  “Bang,” I felt somebody bump against me, practically falling into me. It was that random girl, who was fighting with Licho before. Details got fuzzy here. Her appearance never solidified in my memory. So just picture your regular uni student girl, a bit drunk, a bit high.

  Surprisingly, that girl was mad at me for who knows what really. I was still sitting sideways with both my legs bent, leaning on the bench when she came onto me, disturbing my thought. Not wishing to get involved, I pushed the screaming girl away from me, getting ready to leave. At least I tried too, that was until a sugary voice stopped me.

  “Fancy seeing you here,” she said, taunting me.

  My heart raced as I locked eyes with her. Not that crazy rando. No, those were the glowing eyes of Licho. Green was supposed to be calming, what a lie, serenity was the opposite of my state of mind back then. I knew that I had to run and do so fast, but something was stopping me, freezing me in place.

  My senses sharpened, focusing all my attention only on her. I was no longer registering the music, instead I heard the sound of her shoes squishing dump ground beneath her feet, the sound of her clothing rubbing on each other with every step she took.

  I was uncertain if I even blinked, without a doubt; however, I never broke eye contact. Imagining the moment we would inevitably meet, I thought I would be scared, anxious. Don’t get me wrong, I was, in a sense, but I also wasn’t, if that made sense. Something was different.

  Synthesizer, drums, bass and aggressive distorted solo of an electric guitar, all of which my brain got used to hearing, stoped, bring my attention away from Licho’s eyes. The crowd went silent. A single voice filed my mind, “Don’t you want to hide?” it said, seemed like I was the only one to hear it. “World is a scary place…” I looked from side to side to see who’s talking. Nobody around me moved.

  Nothing out of the ordinary, at first glance. That was if one were to forget about the mosh pit like chaos a few seconds ago. There were also minor things like a cup filled with light brown liquid. Just a cup that fell out of someone’s hand, spilling the contents within, again nothing special, except maybe, well some may find it peculiar. I had no logical explanation, that cup was stuck in place, it was just there in the air, without anyone holding it, with drops of liquid remaining motionless as well. This wasn’t the only instance, as if this was a snippet of a moment in time, a person was frozen, smiling happily mid-jump with both feet in the air.

  “Like a picture,” I thought, “ frozen in time.”

  I looked back at Licho. I no longer saw her face, even her body was just an outline, a black silhouette of what it once was. Like with shadow I couldn’t gauge her expression. There were only her glowing, green eyes left. Crescent moon shaped eyes, haunting me, mocking me, they were smiling.

  My feelings intensified, I was starting to feel dizzy. But with this dizziness the heart ache disappeared. My conscience was fading. I no longer felt my body. I tried to take a step, my body swayed. I almost fell. I stood up, clenching my fist. The fear was fading. It was as if I was seeing the world for the first time. The trees, this cobblestone road. It was exciting, it was so new to me. Euphoria was flooding my brain. I was getting overwhelmed by all the colors of this world.

  And the music returned with a heavy riff of guitar and the singer's voice cutting deep into my soul. I felt happy, happy all of this was about to be over. This was somehow way better than facing the disappointed gaze of my family. This was easier than fixing the mess I created myself. This was…my way out.

  I was feeling happier than ever. I forgot how great it felt. I laughed? A genuine laughter at that. “Fuck It!”

  In this state I walked. I had no idea how or when, but I got there. A bridge connection over a busy road. There were cars right under it.

  “I could just drop dead,” I thought, looking down, “jump off the bridge.”

  “Jump,” a resolute voice that wasn’t my own screamed within my mind.