Finding 'x'

•My pledge to Tiny•

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I hope you like this gift,
From me to you.

I gasped.

It was written in the same ink as the last, there was no doubt as to who it was from.

My eyes quickly scanned the room for anything unusual, I found nothing.

I retuned my attention to the note, apart from the four lines of words, it didn't hold any other information, but I knew better than chalking it up to nothing. This maniac, from what I learned so far, had never been one to play inconsequential pranks. If he wrote about a gift, it was something that would be ghastly and if it was in the room, I had to find it before my roommates showed up.

The time read 2:34pm.

Crap.

I didn't even know where to begin from. 

It was possible that he would hide it somewhere for someone else to see it first, especially when that person is a malicious gossip, so I began my search from Alero's end.

The room was as large as a classroom, so everyone had her own corner and decorated it according to preference. In dorm room 029, the amount of gadgets, furniture and whatnot you decorated your corner with determined how much wealth your parent commands. That was why  expensive wardrobes took the place of normal lockers, wallpapers replaced the plain paint of the walls, bunkers were displaced by Queen sized beds and loveseats, vanity mirrors and other frivolous things spilled into the empty corner that was meant for Tiny. 

All these superficial items were a major hindrance in my search operation, by the time I was just half of Alero's corner, it was already twelve past three and I knew I'll never find whatever the gift was in time. There was also the risk of being accused for theft so I retreated to my corner in resignation.

Maybe it was actually empty words to ruffle me up.

My fingers were crossed on that until I got to my locker.

I didn't need to go through the trouble of twisting and turning my lock combination. It was unlocked and slightly ajar.

The most appropriate place to keep a surprise gift would be somewhere the recipient checks often, right?

I held my breath as I opened the locker.

I couldn't help but wonder what the gift was about. All of the possibilities were sickening.

A pungent, eye watering stench assaulted my face with such forcefulness, that I almost retched the guts into the locker. I hadn't even seen was it contained as I was still trying to retrieve my vision from the temporary blindness the stench had gifted me with. It was a strong mixture of rot and alcohol.

From behind me, I heard the clicking sound of the lock, someone was coming in.

Crap. Crap. Crap.

I quickly snapped the locker shut and leaned against it as the handle twisted open to reveal non other than my sister, looking all kempt and smug, peering into her phone with rapt attention. 

She stopped abruptly and turned sharply towards me just when she was about to reach her corner at the adjacent end of the room.

My breath hitched when her eyes connected with mine. I averted mine immediately.

"Ella," she whispered softly in apparent surprise and hastily dropped her expensive bag to the ground without paying mind. What fell out of her mouth next shook me to the marrow, "are you okay?"

I blinked, once, then twice. Then I pinched myself to make sure it wasn't another nightmare.

She asked if I was okay.