Enigma Of The Killer Lecturer

Sarcasm

Faculty of Arts

Soraya walked down the bustling corridor, past the road she used to walk with Diana. Strangely, Soraya felt that something was missing.

The winter wind blew, Soraya shivered. She knew it was going to be a long winter and that meant campus would soon be closed.

"I want to take a break and go home. Celebrate Christmas and be with my family!" She thought. Soraya tried to think of pleasant things. To cover up her frustration over losing Diana, the trauma of s****l violence she experienced and her guilt over what she said to Kerry a few days ago.

Because she was too lost in her thoughts, Soraya didn't notice that the people nearby were whispering as if they were talking about her. She didn't want to pay attention, but when she heard Diana's name mentioned, she immediately realized that she was the target of the next bad rumor.

"She came in today, they said she had been absent for two days. It turns out that she still dares to come to campus? If I were her, I would definitely quit college and go back to my parents' house."

"She had a fight with her roommate before, right? Kerry Smith is a psychology student. It's said that Kerry tried to kill herself because she couldn't stand the constant humiliation and pressure from Soraya Chamberlain."

"What a lunatic! She's always walking around daydreaming? Has anyone seen her in the woods behind the dorm. It was before Diana Brown's disappearance, but it makes me think she must have something to do with Diana Brown's disappearance!"

"Me too! After all, she was the last person Diana was with before she disappeared. Suspicious, maybe she killed Diana Brown-"

"No...!" Soraya shouted loudly, stopping the girls from talking.

They were surprised to see her reaction which immediately shouted without warning. The people around the corridor immediately focused their attention on her.

Soraya froze, trying hard to hold back her tears. Even though she dared to scream to silence them, now she was speechless.

"Hey, you yelling at us? What have we done to you?" Asked the blonde girl who suddenly found her courage after seeing the reactions of the people around her who thought Soraya was a strange person.

"I-I'm sorry-"

"Tsk, why are you apologizing? You i***t, raise your head!" Said Kimberly who came to save her like a hero.

Kimberly walked haughtily, approaching the three gossiping girls who felt that what they were talking about was something true.

"Oh the seductress came to help her friend, huh? Hahaha... I'm not surprised!" She said while laughing with her friends.

"Malina Kurtz, how's your sugar daddy, Mr Hendrick Robinson? I heard you got dumped because your p***y was loose and smelly, huh? Ckckck, what a pity! That means you won't be getting a fancy Christmas present this year!"

"What did you say? How dare you-"

"Dare? Of course I'm brave because I know who you are? Even cheap second-hand goods don't take away! Pathetic!"

"Shut up...!" An emotional, Malina tried to slap Kimberly in the face, but quickly, Kimberly parried and held her hand.

"Don't touch me, slut! Have you taken the medicine the doctor prescribed? You are useless because no man will ever want to sleep with you again!"

"Hey Kim, stop it! You're outrageous, why are you saying that!" Said Cindy and Depney, two other gossip girls who became close friends of Malina Kurtz.

"Cindy Allerson, you better take care of your seven boyfriends! How was the party last Sunday night? How many men have you slept with? I don't understand, why a university of this size would accept students who are passionate about partying s*x and using heroin! No one knows?"

Kimberly is getting worse, revealing one by one the disgrace of the gossiping girls who always spread good rumors about her and Soraya.

Hearing their disgrace began to be dismantled by Kimberly in front of many people, Malina, Cindy and Depney were frightened and tried to run away before the cook grew bigger.

"Let's go!" Said Malina. Her face was flushed with embarrassment and she walked briskly.

"Hey Depney! Why did you leave? I haven't said anything about you!"

"Kim, stop it!" Soraya asked Kimberly to stop. She felt displeased even though Kimberly tried to defend her.

"Come on, Soraya! Leave it alone! They are gossipers and must be removed!"

"That's not how it works! Would you like to repay them by exposing their disgrace? Does that make you feel triumphant?" Soraya said. Kimberly fell silent, staring at her coldly.

"Okay, it's up to you! I'm just trying to help you. If you don't like it, what for?" Kimberly walked away, leaving Soraya unmoved in the middle of the corridor.

People who originally noticed, started to leave and again ignored. They don't think that the exciting spectacle is over, they're just looking for entertainment.

Soraya took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. It was hard for her to move, even though the corridor was getting quiet and she was the only one left.

Tuk...tuk...tuk...

There was the sound of footsteps behind her, the same footsteps as the one in her dream. Soraya thought that it was just a hunch that forced her to bury the sound of footsteps that sounded the same, meaning that the footsteps were from the same person.

Slowly, Soraya looked back. Her eyes caught the face of Robert Stanley who was walking calmly towards her.

Soraya was amazed, every time she saw the man, she couldn't blink. His face is very handsome and perfect. His tall, talkative and sturdy body, any girl would be crazy about him. He is God's most beautiful creation.

Soraya felt her heart beat very fast, contracting with time that seemed to stop spinning. Soraya knew, there was a strange desire in her heart. Even though she should be afraid of all men, after all the bad things that happened to her.

"Why are you still standing here? Class is about to start!" He said coldly expressionlessly.

"I-excuse me! I'll be going to class soon!" She said looking down.

Soraya remembered the first time they had met about three months ago in this corridor. She came late on the first day of class. They collided in this corridor and at that moment Soraya thought that the man she had seen that day seemed to have come from heaven.

Robert Stanley walked past Soraya who seemed still reluctant to move into the classroom. It made Robert a little confused, but he didn't want to be seen as close to his students on campus.

"Sir, wa-wait!" Spontaneously, Soraya called out to Robert who was already away from her. Robert stopped walking and turned his head back to look at Soraya's flushed face with nervousness and embarrassment.

"What's wrong? You want to say something?"

"Th-that's me, I will definitely come tonight!" She said with a face that was very red like a boiled crab.

Robert stared at her for a moment, devoid of any sense of youth. Then gave a signal as if he was going to continue his steps again.

"Come! I'll be waiting!"

Soraya couldn't help the smile that spread on her face which was starting to heat up. This silence allowed her to hear the sound of her own heartbeat. Her eyes were wet, she was happy to think that she had finally found someone who could understand her.

"Thank you."

***

Soraya was standing in front of Robert Stanley's fence. Her eyes darted around, looking around. Hoping that no one who knew her saw her visiting her teacher's house alone.

After making sure things were safe, Soraya looked at her watch. At 06.30 pm, the promised time to visit.

Soraya took a deep breath to shake off her nervousness. After pressing not a few seconds ago, someone opened the door of the house and Soraya could see Robert coming out of the house and opening the gate.

"Go-good night, Sir!"

"Please come in!" Robert said expressionlessly as he opened the gate of his house and prepared Soraya to enter.

Upon entering his house, Soraya felt a strange fear. The atmosphere in this house is the same as before, very quiet. Even the sound of the door closing could startle her greatly.

"Sit down! I'll make some tea!" Robert said as he walked towards the kitchen.

"Thank you!" Nervously, Soraya sat on the same sofa where she was sleeping at the time.

As before, the house is very clean and tidy. Like not a house inhabited by as if a single man. Soraya was a little scared when she remembered her nightmare at that time. She began to wonder in her heart, why did she return to this house after that time managed to get home safely?"

"Why am I thinking about that? Because of that article, I started to get influenced. No-no! Mr Robert is not a bad person, he is a good man who happens to be very quiet and secretive. But that doesn't mean he is a bad guy let alone a murderer. That's not possible!" She thought. Soraya tried hard to shake off her anxiety. She had already decided to accept Robert's dinner invitation, there was no way she could just decide to go home.

"Besides, I love his cooking! Just like mom's cooking at home."

Robert came back from the kitchen with a tray of two cups of tea and set them on the table.

"Please drink!" He said coldly.

"Th-thank you!" With trembling hands, Soraya grabbed the teacup on the table and rebuked her. She was very uneasy because Robert was sitting right across from her and was watching her intently.

The tea that goes into her throat tastes very good and smells good. But somehow, it's hard to enjoy because of this very awkward atmosphere.

"Delicious!" She said. She knew she had to give credit for this fine tea.

"You like tea?" Ask Robert. He immediately asked an unexpected question.

"Yes, of course! I really like tea, especially Darjeeling. It tastes really good and makes me feel better every time I drink it. Do-do you, like tea, Sir?"

"Yes, I really like it."

Soraya was stunned, she saw the look on Robert's face had changed slightly and best of all, he had just heard about what he liked about Soraya. It made Soraya feel lucky.

"What tea do you like, Sir? Ceylon? Darjeeling?"

"Earl Grey."

"Earl Grey? I also really like Earl Grey. At home, it is the tea my father likes the most. Since I drink it almost every day, I also follow it and like it very much too." Soraya smiled gently. Little did she know that she and Robert were both tea lovers.

Even though Robert just kept quiet and listened to her explanation, it was enough to make her feel happy.

"Let's eat! I've prepared dinner!" Robert said as he got up from the sofa and went to the dining table near the kitchen.

Soraya nodded and when she arrived, her eyes immediately fell on the fridge in the corner of the room. She shuddered, remembering the nightmare again.

Robert pulled up a chair and sat quietly, while Soraya was nervous and a little uneasy. She was not calm if she had to see the fridge.

On the table, dinner was served and looked very delicious. Beef sticks, stew and mashed potatoes. These are all her favorite foods.

"You cooked all this, Sir?"

"Yes, eat and don't leave anything left!"

"W-well, actually these are all my favorite foods. I will definitely finish them all!"

***