UNDERWORLD

Chapter 3.

After about a minute of anticipating our demise to the demon that stood in front of us. We slowly opened our eyes to see what was wrong. Why haven't we been devoured yet? And to our surprise, Arlo stood in front of us, with the most ridiculous look of disappointment. Skylar and I quickly let go of each other as we tried to navigate the situation and what had happened with the demon.

"Did you see it?" I asked Arlo worriedly.

"You mean the demon? Of course I did. Who do you think scared it off while you guys were here waiting to be eaten?" Arlo replied sarcastically.

"How did you scare it off?" Skylar asked.

"Is that really what matters right now?" he replied.

"I guess not." Skylar replied.

"How are you not freaking out right now? You realize that we just found a demon, right?" I asked.

"If demons are real. Does that mean everything else is too. Vampires, werewolves, witches, fairies, mermaids, banshees, e.t.c. All of them are real as well." Skylar replied enthusiastically.

"Hey, slow down there. So demons are real, that doesn't prove that the others are too." Arlo replied.

"But it does prove to us that they most likely are." She replied back.

"Wait, I have an even bigger question. How did you know that we were here?" I asked.

"I was following you guys." he replied.

"Say what?" Skylar replied.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to make sure that you had nothing to do with her death." he replied.

"You have got to be kidding me." I replied disappointedly.

"Well good news. You had nothing to do with it, it was the demon. But I am still curious about something though. I've been on this path about a hundred times after I found out about her death. But I didn't see the demon, I didn't see anything in fact. So how come the demon only showed itself when you started looking for it?" he asked with a curious look on his face.

"I don't know. I'm just here still trying to comprehend the fact that a demon almost killed us, and you're over here acting like it's just a regular Monday for you." I replied with a high tone.

"Come with me. We need to tell the chancellor about the demon." he replied.

"And what exactly is he going to do? We should just go straight to the cops." Skylar replied.

"And you think they'll believe you?" he asked.

"You think the chancellor will?" I asked back.

"Just come with me." he replied.

Skylar and I glanced at each other. She shook her head in disapproval. And then whispered in my ear that we should just go to the cops. Let's just try talking to the principal first, I whispered back. she sighed and we left behind Arlo.

About thirty minutes later, we arrived at the chancellor's office. The lady at the front desk was about to question us when Arlo told her that we wanted to speak to Mr. Whitlock. Which is the name of our chancellor. She replied that he was busy in a meeting at the moment and couldn't see us. But Arlo insisted and told her that it was important and related to the recent death that occurred in the school. She sighed and told us the way to his office. We got to his office door, and Arlo didn't even bother knocking and just barged in.

"Mr. Clifford, how wonderful of you to let yourself in." our chancellor said sarcastically.

Skylar and I walked into the office and just like the lady at the front desk said, he was in a meeting with someone. I couldn't see his face because he was sitting on the chair with his back to us.

"What do you want Arlo? If this is about Rina, I've told you already, we are doing everything that we can to find her killer. We will get to the bottom of this. And what are these girls doing here?" the chancellor said.

"Well you're right. This is about Rina. We found what killed her." Arlo replied.

"What do you mean by what killed her?" our chancellor asked.

"It was a demon." Arlo answered.

Immediately those words left his mouth the man sitting on the chair got up and immediately went to Arlo.

"What do you mean a demon killed her? They've been forbidden from summoning demons for centuries. Why would someone summon one now and kill your friend?" the stranger asked.

"I don't know. As far as I know, Rina didn't have any enemies. I'm just as confused as you guys." Arlo replied.

"Forbidden from summoning one? What the hell are you guys on about?" Skylar asked.

"Why did you bring them here? Are they one of us?" the stranger asked.

"No, I don't think so." Arlo replied.

"Get rid of them. We can't get them involved in this." the stranger replied.

"Excuse me. If it weren't for us, you guys wouldn't even know that you're after a demon. We risked our lives to find that out. And now you just want to get rid of us. Not a chance. We're seeing this through." I replied with a strong tone.

"What she said." Skylar replied.

Skylar and I stood our ground determined to see this through with them. I thought the mysterious stranger was annoyed by it. But he turned around, looked me in the eyes, and his next words really caught me off guard.

"They were the ones that found the demon?" he asked.

"Yup, they're lucky I was following them. Otherwise they would have ended up as demon food." Arlo replied.

"Then it's safe to assume that the demon most likely has their scents, and will try to attack them once again." the stranger said.

"Come to think of it though, how did you scare it away? Considering the size of the demon and your size. There's just no way." I replied.

"Let's just say that I'm stronger than I look." Arlo replied.

"Fine. You guys can hang around until the demon has been handled. But it's just so I can make sure you guys are safe. Since it has your scents." the stranger replied.

"Okay." I replied.

"Now if you don't mind excusing us. I have something I want to discuss with the boys in private." the chancellor said.

"We'll be outside." I replied.

"Thank you." the chancellor replied.

Skylar and I left the office and stayed just outside the door. And as usual Skylar's curious mind got the better of her, and she proceeded to trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. I on the other hand was trying to make sense of the whole thing. Who is that guy, why are they all so calm like finding a demon here is a normal thing, and why aren't we talking to the cops right now. These questions kept running through my mind, and the one that I'm most curious about is who is that guy. How does he fit into all this? Was he a friend of Rina's? Or perhaps her brother? Or maybe her boyfriend? I didn't really get a chance to analyse him because of how tense the situation was back there. But now that I calmly think about it, he really piques my interest. He gives off that mysterious vibes that always seems to capture everyone's attention. Not to mention how absolutely hot he is. He seems like a goal oriented person. He also gives off leader vibes. Strong, assertive, does not let feelings cloud his judgement, straight forward, puts others before himself, and he also seems really strict. I wonder if he also attends MU. And while I was lost in the thoughts of a guy I didn't know anything about and Skylar was trying to eavesdrop on their conversation, the guys where having an important conversation about their next move.

"So we just locate the demon and kill it, right?" Arlo asked.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple." the chancellor replied.

"We also need to look for the source. The person who broke the rules and summoned a demon. So for now we should try to locate where exactly the demon is coming from. If we can get that then we can locate whoever it is." the stranger replied.

"So how do we locate where a demon is coming from?" Arlo asked.

"We don't." the stranger replied.

"Wait a minute. You want to use the girls to get the demon, don't you?" Arlo asked.

"If you mean do I plan on waiting for the demon to attack them then follow it back to it's master. Then yeah I do." the stranger replied.

"Just make sure you keep them safe while you're doing that. Nothing and I mean absolutely nothing must happen to Kayla. Do you guys hear me?" the chancellor said.

"What's so special about her?" the stranger asked.

"She's the daughter of a friend. And she asked me to keep her daughter safe. So if you guys are going to use them as bait, you better make sure she stays safe." the chancellor replied.

"Don't worry I won't be taking my eyes off of her." Arlo said as he made his way towards the door.

"I trust that you can handle this, right?" the chancellor asked.

"I can and I will." the stranger replied.

"Good. Now go handle it." the chancellor replied.

"They're coming." Skylar quickly whispered as we quickly tried to compose ourselves.

The guys came outside of the office and we all just stared at each other for about a minute before I decided to break the silence.

"So what are we doing now?" I asked.

"We wait." the stranger said and started to walk away.

I tried to call his attention to ask what he meant but he didn't respond to me. We got outside the building and he finally spoke again.

"Do you girls have anything planned for the rest of the day?" the stranger asked.

"No we don't. And what did you mean by we wait. Shouldn't we be going to the cops or something? How come you guys are so calm about this?" I replied.

"Well I don't have the time to answer all your questions. So I'll leave it up to the V here." the stranger replied.

"The name is Arlo." Arlo replied.

"Well then I'll leave it up to Arlo. Keep them safe. I have to leave. I'll be back later this evening." the stranger said.

"Shouldn't we at least know your name before you leave?" I asked.

"Declan. Declan Meynard." he replied and then left.

"Well I will be leaving too. I have zero plans on being a third wheel for you two. And don't worry I won't go looking for the demon. I'll stay at the residence hall. I don't think the demon can get me there. Have fun you two." Skylar said and then left.

And just like that I'm left with him again. The guy who thought I was so evil that I murdered my own roommate.

"Hey." he said.

"What's up?" I replied.

"Look I'm really sorry about earlier. I let my emotions get the best of me, and I wasn't thinking clearly. It was wrong of me to have accused you like that, especially with no proof. Please forgive me?" he replied.

"It's cool. I get it. If I were you I wouldn't trust me either. I just would have handled it differently." I replied.

"Yeah I should have handled that a lot differently. I'm sorry, I just have a hard time controlling my emotions. But I'm working on it." he replied.

"We're good. You're forgiven." I replied with a flirtatious smile.

"Thank you." he replied.

"So what do we do now?" I asked.

"Let's go somewhere. Somewhere private, just you and me. So I can tell you about everything that's going on." he replied.

"Hmm..... we probably shouldn't be in a private place with that demon around. But somehow I'm not really all that worried about the demon right now." I replied flirtatiously.

"That's probably because you know you'll have me right there with you. And I'll protect you if it shows up. Come on let's go to my secret spot here." he replied.

"You have a secret spot here?" I asked.

"Yeah, come on I'll show you." he replied.

And just like that I was going out with Arlo to his secret spot while also trying to avoid being demon food. We arrived at his secret spot about thirty minutes later, and the spot is absolutely breathtaking.

"Wow. There's absolutely no way." I said in disbelieve.

"Yeah, I said the same thing when I first found this place." Arlo replied.

Why am I in shock? Because not only is the spot absolutely beautiful, it's also the definition of never judge a book by it's cover. To get in here you have to walk past a lot of trees with dead flowers or no flowers at all. So basically the outside really doesn't do the inside justice at all. A lot of people pass by this spot everyday, and they all just ignore it because of what they see on the outside.

"Hey wait, we should be able to hear the people passing by but I can't hear anything. Why?" I asked.

"We'll get to that. I just have to do this first." he replied.

"So they are the reason why we had to spend twenty minutes at the store." I said whilst looking at the fishes in the pond.

"Yeah sorry. Rina used to be the one to feed them, but now she can't anymore and someone still has to do it. She actually showed me this spot. She told me that it was her own little private hideout, and that I should come here whenever I needed to just breathe and calm my mind. I miss her so freaking much. She was the one that helped me through the hardest moment of my life and I won't ever forget that. She was the most beautiful, loving and caring soul. She was too good for this world." Arlo said as he slowly broke down and cried.

I quickly rushed towards him and held him tightly to comfort him. To let him know that I was here for him. We both didn't say anything and just remained like that for a few minutes.

"Sorry about that. I just couldn't hold it in anymore. Gosh, now I feel so embarrassed. That wasn't very manly of me." He said.

"If you ask me I'd say being manly is overrated. You guys are human beings with feelings too. You're also allowed to break down whenever things feel overwhelming." I replied.

He smiled and we both just stared at the beautiful scenery for another few minutes before he finally broke the silence.

"So about the demon issue. I can't really go deep into everything with you. But what I can say is that there's an agency that oversees supernatural things. And let's just say that Rina worked for that agency, which is why they sent someone, aka Declan to investigate her death. But the thing with demons is that they can only be summoned by Ashanties. They're basically witches but with a different name. By the way never call them witches. They do not like being called that. But they've been forbidden from doing that for centuries." Arlo said.

"Wow. Well that's something. If it's an agency to deal with supernatural issues, does that mean more supernatural beings exist?" I asked curiously.

"Like I said before, I can't go into detail with you on that. I've said all I can say." he replied.

"Fine whatever. I'll just uncover everything as we go." I replied.

"Let me guess, you're not one to give up easily?" he replied sarcastically.

"Oh I definitely give up on stuff. Just mainly on stuff that I know nothing can change. I give up on them." I replied.

"Well that's a new one." he replied back.

"I give up on stuff but not without trying them first. And then I continue working on those that seem possible." I replied.

"So you're one of those people that think practically." Arlo said.

"Exactly." I replied.

"Tell me more about yourself. I want to get to know you Kayla Madden." Arlo said flirtatiously.

"Only if you tell me about yourself too, Arlo Clifford." I replied.

"Deal." Arlo replied.

We both smiled and had the most amazing time getting to know each other. Hours later, it was now 7pm and we made our way to my residence hall. It's only for females and guys aren't allowed in after 5pm. So he walked me to the door step and waited for me to get in before leaving. It was so cringe but also really cute. I got to my room and found that the door had been locked from the inside. I knocked so whoever was in there could let me in. And to my surprise it was Declan letting me in. I got inside and found Skylar on my bed on her phone and eating snacks.

"Good, you're back." Declan said.

"I am. What's going on?" I asked.

"Demons usually strike at night. So I'm here to protect you guys. And yes guys aren't allowed in here after 5pm but the chancellor specially ordered me to be in here. I don't want to make you guys uncomfortable, so I'll be standing guard outside. Just yell my name if you need me." Declan replied.

"You're going to be standing guard outside all night?" I asked.

"Yes. I'll leave now." He replied.

"Don't bother trying to convince him not to or tell him that we'll take turns because he won't listen. I already tried." Skylar said.

"Okay." I replied.

"Go get changed and get your ass over here. I need the gist on how things went with Arlo this afternoon." Skylar said excitedly.

"I'm coming." I replied.

After gossiping till our heart's content. We both finally decided to get some rest at around 12pm. Skylar and I shared my bed and left Rina's empty. Skylar fell asleep the moment she decided it was time to sleep. I envy that ability of hers. Because I'm just here staring at the ceiling trying to wrap my head around everything that's happened. It's hard for me to fall asleep when I have things on my mind. I wonder if Declan is still awake outside. I should check on him. I got up from the bed gently, trying not to wake Skylar up. I made my way towards the door and called his name. He responded immediately by asking what was wrong and why I wasn't asleep. I replied back saying that I couldn't fall asleep. Then he told me to just close my eyes and I'll eventually fall asleep. But then I opened the door and told him that I'd rather keep him company until I felt sleepy. He obviously disagreed but I was adamant on staying, so I stayed.

"So you work for the agency, right?" I asked.

"Yup." he replied.

"What exactly is your job though?" I asked curiously.

"What exactly did Arlo tell you?" he replied.

"Not much. Just that you work for an agency that deals with supernatural issues like this one." I replied.

"Then you already know what I do. I deal with supernatural things." Declan replied.

"Tell me more about yourself. How did you get into dealing with supernatural things?" I asked.

"I don't think this is the appropriate time to try get to know each other. Considering the demon and all" he replied.

"Well you're wrong. It in fact is the perfect time to get to know each other. Besides, don't you think I should at least know something about the guy that's standing outside my dorm room's door protecting me." I replied.

"You do know something. You know my name." he replied.

"Seriously?" I replied.

"My mom is in the agency. That's how I got involved. I'm twenty years old, and I have no social life. Your turn." he replied.

"My name is Kayla Madden. I'm eighteen years old, and I'm in my first year at MU. I actually got here just two days ago. Would you think I'm crazy if I told you that I was actually drawn here. Like the school called to me or something." I replied.

"No. That's how it usually works. You pick the school that calls to you." he replied.

"Not like that. I've never told anyone this, not even my mom. But the pull to this school felt familiar. It felt like my dad was calling to me. I know it's crazy because my mom told me he's dead. But it's just how I feel." I said with a sad tone.

"Maybe your dad attended school here. And that's the pull you feel. Besides, I understand how you feel. I never got to know my father either. Guess that's something we have in common." he replied sadly.

"Yeah it is." I replied.

"Are you scared?" he asked.

"I am. I'm freaking scared right now, but not because of the demon. I'm scared of myself, of the darkness I can feel inside me. I don't know what's going on and it's driving me absolutely nuts." I replied shakily.

"Hey hey. Look at me, nothing is going to happen. I'm right here. Just breathe. It's going to be alright." he said reassuringly.

We continued our conversation and got to know more about each other. Honestly speaking, I've never been one to open up so quickly to someone I just met. I usually obverse first and then decide if I want to open up. But with them, it just comes so natural to me. I just met these two guys and I already feel so connected to them. It's almost like I was supposed to meet them, like we're all supposed to go on this journey together. Yeah I know, I sound pretty crazy. Like an hour later, both Declan and I had fallen asleep. And normally how situations like these go, we'd wake up on each other's shoulders the next morning. Yeah, that is not how this went. At this point I think the universe just hates me.