Criminal
1549 Words
“The Premier League. Can you believe it?” Denis commented, shaking her head with a smile. “I can’t believe you brought me to a local gambling den.”
We were already back on campus and walking toward the dorm. We had stopped at a convenience store for some late-night snacks and ended up leaving with two bags full of junk food.
“It was a betting shop. Two different things,” I responded.
“It was scary either way and could’ve been totally avoided. Whatever happened to betting apps? You would’ve found out the truth.”
Silence reigned between us. Then I sighed. “I’m sorry.”
I felt bad, not only for dragging her out, but because I had missed my chance of getting rich.
Denis sighed too. She grabbed my hand and placed a bag of chips in it.
“Thank you,” I said before opening it and taking a bite.
“Are you in need of money? I could lend you some,” she said.
I smiled and shook my head.
“No, that’s not it. I have enough. It’s just that I missed the chance to become ten times richer.”
I kicked an empty can lying on the street in frustration.
Denis shook her head, clicking her tongue.
“So greedy,” she murmured.
“You would be too if you went through what I did.”
Recalling all the grievances I had suffered — dying, traveling back only to discover you would die again, wanting to cash out on my situation wasn’t greedy in the slightest. It was rational.
We walked in comfortable silence, with only the sound of our munching filling the night. A few students strolled around campus, chatting amongst themselves.
I was watching them absentmindedly when my eyes suddenly landed on one in particular.
In the distance, a boy was walking with headphones over his ears while looking down at his phone.
It was Elijah.
‘What if someone creeps up on him? Zero spatial awareness,’ I grumbled inwardly.
Before my thought had even finished, I noticed someone else hurrying behind him. The person had a hood pulled over their face, making it impossible to tell who they were.
But they were moving dangerously close to Elijah.
My instincts kicked in.
Who said Elijah’s life wasn’t in danger before the rooftop incident? The killer could’ve tried to assassinate him long before then.
With that thought, I dropped my chips and bolted toward the suspicious figure.
“Aurora! Where are you going?!” Denis shouted.
“Catching a criminal!”
I sped up.
The mysterious figure reached into his pocket and was about to point something at Elijah when I rammed into him from the side.
He crashed onto the pavement while I barely caught my balance.
Elijah noticed the commotion, pulled off his headphones, and stared at us with wide eyes.
I smacked his arm, ignoring the sting that shot through mine.
“What’s wrong with you? Why are you walking around at night with headphones on? If I hadn’t been here, this bastard might’ve actually hurt you! He was pointing a weapon at you!” I panted from the sprint. ‘You don’t just have your own life to worry about anymore. You have mine too.’
I didn’t say the last part out loud, though I desperately wanted to. He couldn’t keep treating his life so carelessly.
“Are you crazy?” Elijah stared at me. Then he sighed. “No. What am I saying? You are crazy.”
I scoffed.
“I just saved your life, you ungrateful jerk.”
Elijah looked past me toward the figure groaning on the ground.
“Seb, you okay?”
The figure slowly climbed to his feet. His hood slipped back, revealing brown hair and a painfully familiar face.
Sebastian grimaced, rubbing his side before giving Elijah a thumbs-up.
“Might’ve bruised my ribs, but I’ll survive.”
My eyes widened. I covered my mouth in horror.
Just then, Denis caught up, panting as she grabbed my arm and yanked me backward.
“Why would you do that?” she whisper-yelled into my ear. “Why would you shove him? Do you have a death wish?”
My heart pounded as I looked at Elijah. His concerned gaze shifted from Sebastian to me. The moment our eyes met, his expression darkened.
My breath hitched. I’d messed up.
I remembered Jace’s bloodied face and immediately went rigid.
“You,” Elijah spat.
Denis quickly stepped in front of me, shielding me from his glare.
“She didn’t mean it. She was just trying to help.” She turned and whispered fiercely, “Tell him you were trying to help.”
I nodded rapidly from behind her.
“Y-Yes. I thought he was trying to hurt you. He looked like a—”
“A criminal?” Sebastian chuckled, shaking his head. “Yeah, I heard you the first time you yelled it. I’ve never been called that one before.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine.”
He nodded before clapping Elijah on the shoulder.
“Dude, loosen up. She was just trying to help.” Then he picked up a black power bank from the ground and handed it to Elijah. “Here’s your weapon back. My phone’s fully charged.”
I could feel my face burning. So Sebastian had only been returning Elijah’s power bank. This was unbelievably embarrassing. Sebastian chuckled before glancing back at us. His eyes drifted to Denis and he smiled.
“Hello, Denis.”
Denis forced an awkward smile.
“Hi, Sebastian.”
I looked between the two of them. Then I remembered. This was the guy she had a crush on. Guilt washed over me. Had I just ruined her chances?
“Why are you girls walking around this late?”
Denis and I exchanged a look. I subtly shook my head. She couldn’t tell him where we’d actually been. Denis turned back to him with a smile.
“We just went to buy some snacks.” She lifted the shopping bag. “Aurora had a long day and was exhausted. That’s probably why she imagined things and misunderstood the situation. She didn’t mean any harm.”
“It’s fine.”
Sebastian looked at me.
“Aurora. You’re the one who used to deliver food to Jace, right?” He smiled. “I’m Sebastian. I stayed in the room next door. I heard you were fond of doing charity, but I didn’t expect you to be heroic too.” He laughed. “Look at you. Saving innocent citizens.”
My cheeks burned even hotter. I knew he was only teasing me, but somehow that made it worse. I wanted the ground to split open and swallow me whole.
I bowed slightly. “I’m sorry again.”
He waved dismissively. “If you girls are heading back to your dorm, we can walk you there. It’s not safe to be out alone.”
I glanced at Elijah’s still-dark expression before looking back at Sebastian. His smile was much easier on the eyes.
“No, thank you.”
“We’re fine.”
Denis and I spoke at the same time.
I shot her a strange look. Didn’t she like him? I thought she’d jump at the chance.
“Are you scared of Elijah?” Sebastian asked with a grin. “He’s all bark and no bite. He’s actually kind of sweet under that icy exterior. He won’t mind walking with you.” He winked at Elijah. “Right, Elijah?”
Elijah rolled his eyes. “Don’t push it. I’ll punch you too.”
Sebastian laughed.
“We really are okay. Sorry for disturbing you,” Denis said before grabbing my wrist and dragging me away.
“Oh, it was nice meeting you guys!” Sebastian called after us.
Neither of us looked back. After walking a fair distance, Denis suddenly stopped. Then she dropped to the ground, clutching her head dramatically.
“Oh my God! I can’t believe that just happened! I can’t believe he saw me like this!”
I bit my lip and reached out to pat her on the back. The moment my hand touched her, she sprang to her feet and lightly smacked my arm.
“Why do you always have to cause trouble? A criminal? How could you mistake him for a criminal? That was obviously Sebastian! You can’t mistake someone like him for anyone else.”
I took several steps back to avoid her swat.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I should’ve known better!”
“Like hell you should’ve.”
She sighed, finally calming down. “Since when did you become Elijah’s bodyguard anyway? I told you to stay away from him.”
I scratched the back of my neck.
“Well… I can’t. Our fates are intertwined.”
“First it was a prophetic dream, and now it’s fate. I wouldn’t even be surprised if you tried summoning the dead next.” Denis grumbled and started walking ahead of me.
I hurried after her.
“Forgive me. You’ll get another chance to meet Sebastian. I promise.”
“Forget it.”
I sighed and followed after her as we made our way back to the dorm.
- Writer
