Haunteds

Chapter 10

"Vergil!" Cana shouted. Her strangled cry snapped me out of my trance. My first reaction was to turn my head towards the trees, to look for the Shade, for Mr. Donovan but I didn't see any of them. Someone gripped my wrist and felt a forceful pull that I almost stumbled, dropping my pen and handbook. I managed to stay on my feet and looked up to see Eris dragging me along with her as we all raced back inside.

The glass door automatically slid open as we approached and we spilled inside the safety of the dorm. Panting, I saw that there were quite a few people down here. They started crowding around us, greeting us with questions that the visitor's lounge became filled with a muddle of anxious voices.

"What happened?"

"You guys okay?"

"Where's Kent?" Demi asked. "Isn't he with you?"

Fish Braids Girl walked over to me. She pulled out a handkerchief. "Here, let me clean you up."

I swatted her hand away, no doubt upsetting her. "Kent...Kent's dead," I said my voice on the verge of cracking. I ran past them, towards the stairs as they gasp at the news. They were trying to get me to talk, to explain further but I ignored them and bolted straight up to my room.

Once inside the bathroom, I turned on the faucet. I watched the water spiral down the drain as I try to steady my rapid breathing, my hands gripping the edges of the sink tight in an attempt to stop them from shaking. When I calmed down somewhat, I decided I was ready to see myself in the mirror. I looked up from the sink. My face was speckled with beads of Kent's blood. Some caked my hair, stiffening my bangs into thick layers of strands, like wax. My uniform got sprayed too, leaving a constellation of glowing dots of blood.

I cupped water in my hands and splashed my face. I began rubbing furiously that even though I cleared my face, I didn't stop. Perhaps I was thinking it was just a bad dream and if I rubbed my face hard enough, I'd wake up in my bed. But it wasn't. Kent... Kent really died. This is his blood. I worked on my hair, then my clothes. Seeing that I can't get rid of blood stains on my clothes with just water, I gave up and went outside.

I was drying my face with a towel when I saw Cana standing at the door. Then I remembered the panic I caused earlier. I felt so embarrassed and stupid about my actions that I couldn't look at her. "I...how are they..."

"They'll be fine," is all Cana said, very careful about mentioning my major freak out. She let herself in, coming closer so that we were face to face but I kept my head down. "You okay?"

I pretended to dry my face some more just to hide a little longer. But sooner and later I will have to face them all again. So I might as well do it here, with someone I'm more used to.

"I'm sorry," I said, uncovering my face. "I..."

Then she wrapped her arms around my neck, her soft skin brushing against mine and pulled me closer. My knees bent a little, my head ended up resting on her shoulder. She caught me by surprise so my first reaction was to break free. But instead, I closed my eyes, allowing myself to feel the warmth of her body fully. I'm not sure if she's wearing perfume or it's her shampoo but she smelled of sweet strawberry, which I like. Suddenly, my breathing slowed down, my hands no longer shaking. For a moment, the world ceased to exist. It was just us, standing here in my room, locked in each other's embrace.

"It's okay," she sniffled. It was hard not to notice her body shivering, making me realize that she wasn't handling this any better than the rest of us. This girl, as scared and confused as the rest of us and yet she came here to check on me, to comfort me. While here I am, hiding in my room, being a huge wimp. I am not proud.

I was about to hold her too, to make her feel safe like she's doing for me when I heard someone knocked.

Immediately, we pulled away. Harmony was at the door, looking no better than the rest of us. I wiped my face dry for the last time, even though I was already dry and clean.

"Harmony..." Cana said, wiping her tears. Her voice got croaky from crying.

"Was it true?" Harmony asked. "Was Kent really..."

"I'm sorry," I said, even though I know they really didn't know each other, Kent was still someone from her school. Cana must have considered this as well because she stepped forward to give Harmony a hug. Harmony was way taller than her so she had to stand on her tiptoe.

There was someone else at the door. A scrawny kid with short, wavy hair.

"Demi," I said. "Hey man, you need something?" I tried to pull myself together. I embarrassed myself enough.

Harmony pulled away, brushing a tear from her cheek. "I guess I'll go now."

Demi was avoiding eye contact. "Can I sleep with you guys?" he asked. "The soldiers told us downstairs to stick together. Everyone's doing the same." His eyes were beyond terrified but his voice was so monotonous.

Harmony's face lit up. "Can we stay here tonight, Vergil?" she asked. "Please." Both of them looked at me expectantly, and I really don't think I'll be able to sleep alone, anyway so I nodded assent.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then," Cana said.

"You're sleeping alone?" Harmony asked.

Cana looked uncomfortable. "I can't sleep with...others. Besides, there's only one bed here."

"We can bring my bed here," Demi suggested.

Before Cana can protest, Harmony took her hand. "Please?" she said to her. "Just for tonight?" Cana finally agreed. I'm sure she agreed more for Harmony's sake than anything.

We started getting ready for bed. I helped Demi took the mattress from his bed and moved it to my room, which we now share on the floor. Cana and Harmony ended up sharing my bed.

We didn't fall asleep immediately, even though no one was in the mood to talk. What can you say after what just happened? Instead, each of us was tuning in to detect the slightest noise outside. We were still so tense, so scared that the occasional critter scurrying along the window was enough to make us jump.

I got up and looked out the window. Since my room is just above the glass door of the dorm, I could see everything. I watched as military trucks pulled over, reinforcements spilling out of the back. Major Coleman got out of the driver's cab. The noises pulled my roommates to my side and we watched as the soldiers covered Kent's body with a white sheet and carried him on a stretcher to the back of the truck. We watched as the soldiers comb through the forest in every direction. And with Major Coleman back, the tension in the room had relaxed a little bit. I can feel my heartbeat slowing down, returning back to its natural rhythm. One by one, we went back to bed.

Hours had passed, still, nothing happened. I glanced at the clock hanging above the door. It's past three in the morning. It was peaceful, like everything that had happened was just a bad prank. But I still couldn't sleep. Every time I close my eyes images of Kent's death flashed across my mind. His confused and terrified eyes, the sound of him choking, his desperate attempt to keep from bleeding out, all of it came flooding back. My hands would start to tremble, what little drowsiness I've had would disappear.

The ticking of the clock didn't help, either. Each tick felt like a long time before the next one, like every second is dragged out into hours. Waiting for the sun to rise, hoping that nothing else would happen for the next couple of hours, is torture.

Still lying on my bed, wide awake, I propped myself up on my elbows and checked on the others. Next to me was Demi, lying on his side with his back towards me. Cana and Harmony are sound asleep on my bed. I wondered how they were all able to sleep. Maybe the exhaustion of crying and screaming overpowered the horrors we've just faced. Or maybe them not being splattered with blood on their faces could be it.

After some time, I tried closing my eyes again. Almost immediately I'd notice how tired I was. My mind grew foggy as I drift out of consciousness, only for my eyelids to fly open again once the horrors start anew. Finally, my brain took pity on me and decided to keep quiet, granting me rest from the night.