The Party
825 Words
Chapter 1
The sound of Caius’s footsteps echoed through the hallway as he made his way to class. The scent of freshly crafted scale models and coffee lingered in the air—an unmistakable sign that the architecture students had barely slept again.
He adjusted the strap of his bag, feeling the weight of rolled-up tracing papers and model boards inside. A T-square was tucked under his arm, and a tracing tube hung from his shoulder—creating the classic image of an architecture student. His second year in college had been intense, but he had gotten used to the pressure. He excelled in his courses, after all.
“Caius!”
He turned to see Lance sprinting toward him, a wide grin on his face.
“Dude, you missed a hell of a night. The party was wild!”
Caius blinked. The party…
A sharp pain throbbed in his temple, like a distant memory trying to break through. He remembered agreeing to go even he did not want to. He remembered the flashing lights, the music, the influencers… the two girls. But everything after that? Nothing.
Lance playfully nudged his shoulder.
“Bro, you good? You were kinda out of it last night.”
Caius forced a chuckle, brushing off the unease creeping up his spine.
“Yeah, just tired. You know all the submissions and preperation for the preliminary exam ”
“Damn, you cheater you didn’t even drink much last night!” Lance laughed. “Oh, but hey, I got some good pics from the party. Wait, let me just—”
Caius’s breath hitched.
Photos? Of the party? Did they hold answers to the blank space in his mind?
He swallowed hard, heart pounding as Lance scrolled through his phone.
Should he look?
Lance smirked, turning the screen toward him. “Here, check these out.”
Caius hesitated before focusing on the images. The first few showed the usual party chaos—drinks in hand, people dancing, neon lights flickering in the background. He saw himself in one of them, standing near the bar with a faint smile, looking normal. But then—
His stomach twisted.
The next picture was different. It was darker, blurrier, like it had been taken in secret. Caius was still in the frame, but his expression had changed—his eyes unfocused, his posture loose. Someone was beside him, too close. A woman. One of the two. Her lips near his ear, whispering something. But what unsettled him the most was his own face.
He looked lost.
I've never been in a situation like this. And I believe I have a high alcohol tolerance. Caius felt strange and something was definetly off.
A pit formed in his stomach as he gripped his phone tighter. “Lance… do you remember anything weird happened?”
Lance raised a brow. “Weird? Nah, man. You just seemed kinda tipsy. The girls were all over you, though.” He wiggled his brows. “Especially those two influencers. Dude, they were into you.”
Caius swallowed, the unease creeping back in. His mind told him something wasn’t right. His body? It was reacting like he was in danger.
Maybe I'm just over reacting.
For the first time he encoutered a difficulty in distinguishing his gut feeling from paranoia.
His phone buzzed in his pocket. He stiffened. Slowly, he pulled it out.
Unknown Number: Did you enjoy the party?
Before he could even react, another message popped up.
Unknown Number: I hope you enjoy the photo I took :)
His breath caught. His fingers tightened around the device.
"T-this photo, do you took it? " He ask Lance
"Where, Oh that one?" Pointing the blurred photo with the two girls. "Honestly, I don't even know, since I received most of the pictures via airdrop, why? Is there's something wrong"
Lance’s voice seemed distant now, drowned out by the rush of blood in Caius’s ears.
Whoever it was, they were watching.
And they weren’t done with him yet.
*****
Caius spent the rest of the morning distracted. No matter how much he tried to focus on his lectures, his mind kept drifting back to the messages.
Who the hell is this?
His fingers itched to reply, but something told him not to engage. Not yet. He needed answers first.
During lunch break, he excused himself from his friends and found a quiet spot in the library. Taking a deep breath, he unlocked his phone and opened the messages again.
With hesitation, he finally typed a reply.
Caius: Who are you?
Seconds passed. Then minutes. Just as he was about to put his phone down, another vibration.
Unknown Number: You’ll find out soon enough :)
A chill ran down his spine.
His fingers hovered over the keyboard, debating whether to push further. But before he could type anything, a notification popped up.
Airdrop request received.
His blood ran cold.
It was a file.
A video.
- Writer
