Nethania

Chapter 11: Chaos

AUSTIN'S POV

I POURED water in the kettle and turned on the electric stove. I put the kettle on the top burner and walked toward the table and sat on a chair. My cup with coffee powder was already in front of me and waiting to be filled with hot water. It's four AM in the morning and because I wasn't able to sleep, I got off my bed and decided to have my morning brew. I stared at my notebook and reviewed my notes.

Nico was still on his bed, wrestling with his pillows. I smiled when I heard him snort, which could be heard even in the kitchen. I wanted to wake him up to stop him, but I thought to myself, who am I to disturb his peaceful sleep.

It's been two days since Tyrone was detained in the school's detention house. He's been there alone since the detention house was only used when a student violated a law, and no one breached the law when he was detained. His watcher never let him call us or text us. The watcher took his phone from him. I didn't know what he'd been doing there for two days.

My kettle squealed, puffing white vapor. I moved my chair behind and turned off the stove and poured hot water in my cup. I stirred the content and slowly sipped my coffee, while scanning my notes.

I put down my cup when I heard two knocks on the door. I sat still, waiting for another knock on the door.

Two hard knocks followed and I stood. Crap, who is this man who knocks on someone's door at four AM? It's a good thing it wasn't three am. I strode across the living room, and Nico appeared at the doorway of our room, yawning and stretching his arms up in the air.

"Who is it, Tin?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

I shrugged. "I have no idea who it is."

The stranger outside banged on our door four times. I even jerked from my spot, turning my head straight to the door where the stranger stood, waiting to be accommodated.

Nico eyed me. "Tin? Maybe it's the killer who killed Margaret," he whispered. His voice was shaking.

"I don't think so."

"Hey! Are you guys in there? I'm standing here for a couple of minutes and no one opened the door for me! What the f**k?" The stranger shouted, banging the door.

I sighed. How come I didn't think that our friend just got home?

"It's Tyrone," Nico stated, smiling.

I nodded and went to the door and opened it, revealing a guy with a sharp glare and arms folding across his chest. He was wearing a white sando and black pants. He was carrying his bag, which we had delivered to him in the last two days.

"Tyrone!" Nico exclaimed, leaping toward Tyrone and hugging him.

I cringed. Was that the thing he should do first? That's kind of weird, huh?

"Ughh!" Nico groaned when Tyrone punched him right in his abdomen. It wasn't that strong.

"Distance from me, Nico. I ain't a fan of hugs," Tyrone quipped, pushing Nico away.

"Me too," I said as I took his bag from him and carried it to the couch before heading to the kitchen. Nico closed the door and sat on the couch.

"So how was the investigation?" I asked as soon as I gave him a cup of coffee. He accepted it the took a sip of it. I sipped my coffee and placed it on the coffee table.

He sighed. "The campus police let me go when they had proven my innocence. The f**k I didn't kill her. I was also surprised to learn that she had bled to death. And then they accused me of doing it just because I was his boyfriend. That's not fair!" he exclaimed, clenching his fist.

Nico patted him on the back. "Hey, Dude, calm down,"

"No I won't." He shook his head. "As long as I haven't caught the real killer, I won't go silent. Whoever he is, he placed my name on the verge of destruction."

Oh crap, as if he could make it. How come the campus police had a hard time catching the real culprit? And how the culprit got away easily with the murder he committed?

I adjusted my seat on the couch, facing him and crossed my legs. "How did they know you're innocent?" I queried.

He threw me a sharp glare. "Are you still doubting me, Austin?"

Whoa. That caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting that kind of reply from him. I was just asking, man, what's wrong with that?

I shook my head. "No, surely I'm not. I am merely curious about how they came up with your innocence," I replied, throwing a glance at Nico, who was pinching his nose while listening.

"Okay. There were witnesses." He began, eyeing us one by one. He raised his index finger. "First was the librarian. She said that I'd been in the library from one PM until five PM. Yes, that was true because I slept and calmed my raging system there. And after five, I went directly to the cafeteria and had my dinner and watched an anime before going home until seven. The cafeteria staff were also my witnesses," he explained, receiving nods from us.

That was why we didn't see him after he followed Margaret and came home at seven PM. This man, didn't he know how to use his phone? He could have just texted us where he was that time.

"They didn't find any of my traces in the crime scene, nor did they find my finger prints on the batton used to kill her. I'm innocent, purely innocent," he added when we remained silent.

I ran my fingers through my hair and Tyrone sipped his coffee. Nico and I subtly eyed each other. It seemed our stares meant suspicion and we were still wondering what had actually happened.

"Hey! Don't you believed me?" he asked with narrowed eyes.

"We are believing you, Dude," Nico mumbled. "If you're not guilty, who is their suspected killer?"

Uh-huh, exactly the same question I am about to ask and we must hear an answer from you, Tyrone.

"I don't know," he replied nonchalantly with a shrug. "That's their problem now." He stood, holding his cup of coffee and bag and went straight to our room.

I shook my head. This is bad. When he was out of earshot and the door was shut, Nico sat beside me with furrowing brows.

"Tin, I'm nervous. They just let go of Tyrone, and he didn't know if the killer was in police custody or not. I'm afraid..." he muttered with downcast eyes looking at me.

I leaned back on the couch and stared at him. "Are you suspecting Tyrone as the real killer of Margaret and he was just smart to make an alibi and scare his witnesses to testify for him?"

"Kinda." He looked below and stared back at me. "But it doesn't mean that I'm thinking he's the real killer. I'm afraid because the killer isn't caught yet and maybe he's lurking around the academy."

"The campus police are perhaps trying their best to catch the killer as soon as possible. However, the killer is still unidentified and there's enough time for you to escape—"

"Tin! Stop joking!" He cut off my words and frowned.

I laughed. "Okay fine. Let's get ourselves ready for our class later."

AVIA'S POV

"HILARY look up, I'll apply eyeliner to your eye," Hannah said, touching Hilary's chin and lifting it a little.

I was scrolling my social media home page when our academy's social media page posted an announcement that popped up on my notification bar. "The person of interest is released: Campus police is still searching for the real killer," I read the title of the announcement after I opened it. I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand.

I stood up from sitting at the table and went to see Hilary and Hannah, who were busy applying cosmetics.

"Guys, look!" I said, giving my phone to them and Hilary took it. They stared at the screen and their eyes widened and their mouth slightly parted because of what they saw.

"What the hell is that, Avia Cruzette? Are you pranking us?" Hannah asked, placing both of her hands on her waist.

I rolled my eyes. I grabbed a comb from the table and started combing my long wavy hair. "Why would I prank you? Am I a hacker that can infiltrate the school's page and post something threatening on it? Use your mind, Hannah. Geez," I snarled sarcastically, rolling my eyes at her once again.

"I'm just kidding, girl," she replied, tightening her ponytail and adjusting her earrings.

"Is this true? I can't believe this," Hilary uttered while looking at the screen.

"Let me read it." I grabbed the phone from Hilary's hand. "The Campus Police have decided to release Tyrone Fyle, the person of interest in the murder of Margaret Fylvin. The witnesses who have testified for Tyrone Fyle have solidified the plea of innocence of the defendant. In addition, the Campus Police have not seen any traces of Tyrone at the crime scene or on any part of the weapons used in the murder. They came up with the decision to release him and labeled him not guilty," I recited and placed my phone on the table.

"That's it, we're doomed. How sure are they that, that jerk wasn't the killer? They just let him go," I hit the table with my hand and heaved a disappointed sigh.

"And it wasn't mentioned too if they had a new suspect?" Hilary commented, rescanning the announcement. "There are many comments, most are steaming comments about the release of Tyrone."

Hannah left us in the room, carrying her bag. "Heaven knows what will happen to us. If the killer killed another student, I'd just toss a champagne bottle in celebration of my impending death—"

"Hey!" I cut off Hannah's insane words. I grabbed my bag and followed her into the living room. "Don't say that. Nothing will happen to us. The killer will be caught as soon as possible," I said, looking at my reflection in the mirror.

"Yeah. Remember what the killer wrote on the wall? One down, you're next. It means he has another target to kill."

"Yeah." I turned to her. "We will make sure that we aren't those targets he wanted to kill."

This girl. She was too pessimistic to think that we would be killed by an unknown killer. I adjusted my above-the-knee ash gray skirt and straightened my ash gray necktie over my long-sleeved white polo shirt. I also checked my black knee-high socks and shoes if they were free from dirt.

"I just hope no one gets killed next time," Hilary whispered when she appeared beside me, fixing her long straight hair.

I nodded and smiled at her. She smiled too, but something was off.

"Let's go to our class, it's getting late," I said.

I OPENED the door and I stepped backwards when I saw the room that was in total chaos. Crumpled papers and random things were scattered everywhere. Chairs and tables were out of their rows and it was like they went on a rampage. Books were thrown out and windows were all opened. Our bulletin board was unnailed from the wall, leaving it hanging only in one side. It almost fell off the wall.

"What happened in here?" I asked, causing my two friends peeked inside. They gasped when they witnessed what happened inside.

Hannah stepped inside, looking around the place. "We are the people who got here first."

"Who do you think would do this?" Hilary said while following me behind.

I shrugged. "I have no idea."

My eyes widened when I saw the words that were written on the white board. I poked Hannah in her shoulders and she turned to me. "What?"

"Look at the board," I said and she turned her head toward it.

"Hi, my ex-schoolmates," Hannah read the words on the white board that was written using a red pentel pen. The way it was written was crooked and the stroke was unstable.

"Freak! What is this?" We turned our heads to notice the girl who yelled in the doorway. Alexandra, the head student and also our class president, came in and looked at us with furrowed eyebrows. She had this armpit-length black hair and side swept bangs.

"We don't know either," I replied, tilting my head sideways. "We just got here."

She looked around the classroom and she shook her head rapidly while massaging her right temple. "Freak! Who made this mess? And someone wrote a creepy message too." We just observed her roaming around. I folded my arms across my chest and rolled my eyes. Hannah sighed and grunted beside me.

"Ahhh! What's this?" Alexandra exclaimed while moving backwards and covering her mouth. She gazed at us. "Look at this! Quick!"

We eyed each other before going to her spot. I wheezed when I saw a ball point pen soaking in a pool of blood. A pen with blood again? Geez! I'm tired of this!

"I'm out," Hilary whispered.

Our classmates began flowing like a river into our classroom. I glanced at my watch. Seven o'clock AM. Our class will start soon and our classroom didn't feel like one.

Our classmates were surprised by what they witnessed this morning. Some gasped and some just stood quietly while wondering what the hell was going on?

"Who the freak would do this kind of thing? This isn't a funny joke or a prank! Has anyone of you done this?" Alexandra asked, pointing her finger randomly to our classmates.

They remained silent. They simply stared back. "How dare you to suspect us when we all came here at the same time?" Hannah blurted out, facing our class president.

Alexandra raised an eyebrow at her. "So? Shouldn't I blame all of us here when there's someone who probably did this on purpose?" Alexandra replied, showing contempt in her voice.

"Are you saying that someone who belonged in this class did this on purpose?" I commented, rolling my eyes. "Then who could it be?" I eyed them one by one.

Buzzing voices hovered across the classroom.

"Can we just clean this classroom since we haven't figured it out yet?" Austin's voice overlapped my classmates' voices and they went silent. "Look at that greeting on the board; Hi, my ex-schoolmates, that was just a mere salutation and nothing more. And it shows a clear example of a prank, right? This?" He spread out his hands. "This mess was just an ingredient to make this prank more creepier and substantial. I know no one will take responsibility for this prank," he preached, and everyone nodded.

Alexandra clapped her hands to catch my classmates' attention. "We will clean this room and if ever I catch who did this, I will see you in the Student Council office," she ordered while her eyes were squinting.

Everyone got their cleaning materials and started their respective tasks. I returned to the ball point pen and examined it. The blood was still fresh, I guess, because it was still dark red in color and smelled rusty.

"What's that?" Jamsen asked, leaning closer to the pen. "Was that the same pen we saw on the first day of school?"

"Yeah, that's probably the same with what we saw," I replied.

"Geez! Hey, that's blood!" I gasped when Austin dipped his finger in the pool of blood and smelled it. I cringed while looking at him.

"Still fresh huh," he said, nodding and wiping off the blood from his finger with a piece of paper.

"Why did you do that, Austin?" Jamsen asked him, creasing his forehead.

"To know if it is still fresh or not?" he guessed.

Suddenly, an idea popped up in my mind when I saw the bloody pen. I nodded when I tried to disconnect the two ideas, but then I failed. It seemed that the two ideas in my mind were connected to each other and I couldn't help it but to think about it.

"Oh, that's what geniuses do or a lunatic like you?" Vino suddenly appeared like a ghost beside Jamsen. "What a nice prank, dude. He even used real blood."

We jolted backwards when Austin grabbed Vino by the collar. "What's wrong with you?"

"Hey stop. Geez, do you want to be scolded by Alexandra again?" I spread out my hands across them to make them stop. Austin released Vino while Jamsen was holding him from behind. Jamsen left Austin and placed his arm over Vino's shoulders and dragged him away from us.

"Fine, I'll go. I can't bear to stay with that lunatic," he yelled to us.

"What's wrong with him?" Austin straightened his uniform. "Have I done something wrong to make him treat me like that?"

I shrugged. "Just ignore Vino, he's a jerk sometimes. By the way, why did you tell everybody that this was a prank?"

"To make them believe it is."

"But why?"

"Here," he whispered. "I believe this isn't a prank, Avia, someone made this and tried to scare the hell out of us. And the best way to twist that expectation is to make them believe that this was made for fun, to wipe out terror. Get me?"

"Okay, I got you. So you believe that this isn't a human deed?"

"Ahh... I didn't mention that this is the deed of a ghost. What I mean is that someone was trying to pull a prank on us to make us scared."

Oh... I nodded. I thought he believed that this was the deed of a ghost. Arghh! Why was I thinking about ghosts? I shouldn't be believing in them!

"Hey, Avia, are you still here?"

"Uhh—yes."

Austin knocked some sense into me when I spaced out. He crouched and examined the blood again and cleaned it using a paper towel.

"I'll just throw this crap into the trash," he said, smiling at me and went on.

I just observed what he was doing. Then a realization struck me. Did I just talk to him like we were friends? Geez! What the hell? It can't be! Arghh...

The greeting, the blood and the chaotic classroom gave me a lot to think about.

A ball point pen remained pierced into her chest and thick blood was ozzing from it...

Is that the same ball point pen?