"What did he do?" I asked, trying to figure out if I had misheard something.
We had been sitting in the library for a good half hour. During that time, I had been questioning Mia about various people from school. Since I was going to have my first day the next day, I wanted to be prepared. However, during our conversation, I realized that the information I had wasn't quite useful. Names, surnames, class, or comments about parents didn't reveal much if I wanted to dig deeper.
Thank goodness I met Mia.
She may not have been surrounded by those people, but she had knowledge and had heard a lot about them. She knew most of them since kindergarten. As she spoke, I discreetly took notes, planning to add the information to my files later.
"Really," she nodded, and a grimace appeared on her face. "Apparently, his father dealt with the matter for a whole week so he could come back to school."
We were talking about Hunter.
From her posture and the way she talked about the boy, I was curious about what had happened between them, although I didn't show that I had guessed anything. If she didn't want to talk about it, who was I to ask?
I also learned a thing or two about the twins. Justin was the one who had his nose broken a few years ago. Or rather, someone broke it for him. Jason wasn't any better, although he got into fights less often. They were always together. If one wasn't around, the other wasn't either. And when one was seen, the other lurked nearby. They shared everything, starting from clothes and ending with girls. When one got tired, the other took over. Or they did it simultaneously, if you believed the rumors about them - Mia's words, not mine.
In my mind, it sounded more like conjoined twins, but separated. Which was really creepy, if you thought about it.
"So, just because he had bad grades, he couldn't stay in the team anymore?" I returned to the subject, forgetting about the twins' disgusting behavior. "And after finding out about it, he vandalized the teacher's car, the one who failed him? That's stupid," I commented.
I was surprised. What kind of idiot does something like that? It was absurd. Especially since he didn't even bother to do it well or discreetly. He was caught immediately, and then he admitted to his deed. What a moron.
He probably knew his rich father would save his ass.
"Of course, it's stupid..." She turned her head away, and I furrowed my brows and looked at her attentively. Was there something more to this story?
Never mind, I scolded myself in my thoughts. It's none of my business.
And though I tried to restrain myself, something inside me was genuinely intrigued. It was hard for me to admit, but I extracted information from her not only to make my task easier but also... to know more about the lives of ordinary people.
Even though Hunter was an idiot, he was undeniably... free. He could do whatever he wanted and apparently didn't even care about the consequences. Not like me.
I felt a tightness in my chest and suppressed my envy right from the start.
"That's why you should stay away from them as much as possible," she turned to me again, and in her eyes, I saw something akin to determination. "Sure, they're popular and handsome..." She sighed softly. "...but getting involved with them only brings trouble, trust me," she snorted quietly and gloomily at the last words. "Maybe Derek is the only one who's okay, although he hasn't been at school for a few days, and everyone wonders what happened. They apparently had a falling out," she muttered, shrugging her shoulders.
I furrowed my brows. Did I mishear something? Who the fuck was Derek?
"With whom did he have a fight?"
Probably surprise was written all over my face because the girl's gaze changed. She smiled faintly.
"With Hunter," she leaned towards me as if she was about to reveal a great secret. Which was quite strange because it was just a silly argument. "The two are best friends since... well, forever. Total opposites, yet they always stick together. Both super hot, popular, wealthy, and involved in the team. But Derek isn't such a jerk," she nodded, agreeing with herself. "Usually, he smooths things over when Hunter gets himself into trouble. And Hunter always stands up for Derek. Once, he supposedly beat up someone in elementary school because that guy made fun of him. And then Derek had to explain what happened," she paused briefly. "They behave similarly in school. And every girl swoons over them..." She stopped, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks. I struggled to hold back the smile that was pressing against my lips. Bingo. "Of course, not me," she leaned back and laughed, though not convincingly. "I'm not that dumb. When it comes to Hunter, he probably had every..." She shook her head as if she really disliked that thought. "But Derek is different. True, he's been seen with some girls, but never from our school. He only goes to parties because of Hunter. Or at least that's what I've heard. And I've talked to him once! He has more to offer than any boy from our school, and his grades are pretty good too," she gazed somewhere behind me. "Not only handsome but also smart. He's really great, but..." She caught my gaze and blushed again. "Never mind."
But he wasn't her type, I added in my thoughts. I had the impression that while describing the virtues of this "amazing" Derek, she was trying to convince herself that he was indeed the better choice.
"But getting back to their argument," I said quickly. On the one hand, because the girl was genuinely embarrassed, and on the other hand, the boy's merits didn't interest me much. I wasn't here to find a husband candidate who had more to offer, but rather to quickly return to my life and end the game called 'Alex - a normal teenager.' "Do you know anything else?" I asked, quietly hoping that she did know something. Perhaps this pair was the key to my success? If they were popular, it was possible that they had heard something.
She sighed loudly, and my hope vanished as quickly as it had come.
Beautiful, I thought ironically, even before the girl said anything.
"Not really. No one knows what's going on with Derek, and Hunter is silent. A few days ago, Derek was late for class and had to go to the principal's office. No one has seen him since. There was probably some argument between them at the party the day before," she said, tapping her fingernail on the table. "I heard that Hunter and Derek went somewhere, which made Sophie really angry."
And once again, another person I had no idea about. Or rather, I had a vague idea because the only thing I remembered about a girl with that name was that she was in the same class as Mia, came from wealthy parents, and was blonde. Besides that, she shared a lot about her personal life on the internet, where she was quite well-known. But she owed that status to her father, who owned a large and famous company.
"Oh, sorry," the girl across from me spoke up. "I forget that you have no clue about all this school drama," she laughed softly. "Sophie is Hunter's ex-girlfriend. He broke up with her about three months ago, and since then, the girl practically throws herself at Derek whenever she gets a chance. But it's not working for her. It's very possible that something happened between the three of them at the party, and then the boys had the argument."
An argument over a girl.
If not for the circumstances, I would have found it quite amusing.
But now, I was only annoyed that I had nothing substantial, except for a little love triangle drama.
I sighed.
"So, basically, nothing important..." I muttered to myself.
"But enough about these boring things!" The girl's expression changed, and her gaze sharpened as if she had come alive. "Who are you?"
"WHAT?" I asked, taken aback, and my muscles tensed instantly. A red alert flashed in my mind, although Mia didn't notice my change.
"Like, who are you... I only know that you used to study at home, and now you have to live with your aunt because your uncle went somewhere. And you're doing well financially!" She sent a wide smile my way. A thousand thoughts raced through my head. "But that's basically it. You haven't told me anything about yourself. Where did you live before you came here? Why did you have homeschooling? What does your job look like? Because seriously, if they pay you that well, maybe there's an opening?!" She laughed, and I almost choked on my own saliva at the thought. Thankfully, Mia didn't notice my terrified expression, and I quickly snapped out of it.
However, it wasn't just that which concerned me. Why was she questioning me about all of this? Was it just simple curiosity, or was there something more?
I gave myself a strong mental kick in the ass for my stupidity. In a matter of seconds, I analyzed the girl's behavior since I met her. She didn't seem overly suspicious to me, but what if I was wrong?
From the moment she saw me, she seemed quite intrigued. Later, she offered me her help, and the next day she ran into me at the store. And now, foolish me, I was sitting with her in the library because I had asked her to. Although she wasn't part of the "elite," she knew a lot about them. She was sharp, I was sure of that, but was she that sharp? At first glance, she seemed quiet and calm, but now she sat in front of me and chattered nonstop. Her appearance also didn't indicate any threat, but even sweet, tiny elves could be terrifying extraterrestrials. They could increase their size several times over and devour a baby.
However, Mia wasn't an Extraterrestrial. She had a documented past and a large family. She had lived here since she turned three. If I were to rely solely on my information, the girl didn't seem like a threat. So could all of this just be a coincidence?
The problem was, I didn't believe in coincidences. Granted, I also didn't have much experience when it came to normal life, and I had to be cautious. If all of this was just my overthinking, I could lose access to valuable information.
I had to play this game carefully.
"Um... it's quite complicated," I finally replied. Think, Alex, think. "I used to live with my uncle, who... traveled a lot, and I went with him. We never really stayed in one place for long, so I had to learn at home." If you're going to lie, sprinkle in a grain of truth. It made it sound more realistic. "But thanks to that, I've seen a bit of the world and been to many beautiful places..." I added quickly, hoping Mia would focus on that topic. How would I explain the rest? What lie could I come up with regarding my job? She wouldn't believe the truth, and I didn't know any profession in which a seventeen-year-old could earn substantial amounts of money.
"Really?" she asked, and mentally I gave myself a high five.
I was already preparing the next lie, but before we could delve deeper into the topic, the main doors of the library swung open, and a boy walked in. At the sight of him, Mia gasped loudly, and before I could get a better look at him, she grabbed my hand and pulled me behind a large bookshelf.
I looked at her, puzzled, but when I tried to peek out, she started waving her hands. If it weren't for her strange reaction, I would have burst out laughing at the sight.
"It's Derek!" she whispered.
"So what? I thought he was okay."
"He is, but Hunter isn't!" she exclaimed. Quickly, though, she covered her mouth with her hand, realizing her mistake.
I blinked several times.
I really needed to find out what had happened between those two. I was afraid that if I didn't, curiosity would eat me up from the inside.
"But Hunter isn't here... Derek came alone," I reassured her, placing a calming hand on her shoulder.
"How do you know? Maybe they're supposed to meet here?"
"But didn't they have a fight? Who in their right mind would meet in a li..."
I paused because I heard the sound of opening doors, and when I peeked out again, he was standing there.
Damn it.
Could Mia be clairvoyant?
"I was right..." she murmured.
I just nodded, although the girl didn't notice because she was already looking around. However, Hunter didn't even glance in our direction; he headed deeper into the library, making his way to the history section.
Suddenly, something occurred to me.
"Mia, would I find anything about the history of this town in this library?" I completely forgot why I wanted to come to the library in the first place.
Damn all these school dramas, I thought angrily.
"Why do you ask?" She seemed thrown off, but at least she stood still.
"Well, you know, because of my frequent moves, I like to learn about the history of different cities... it's kind of a hobby," I said and cringed at how silly it sounded. A hobby? Seriously?
"Oh, umm, probably," she replied after a moment. "There might be something, but our town isn't particularly special. I'm not sure if there's a lot about it, but you could ask the librarian," she added.
I nodded and turned around to find the woman, but Mia grabbed my hand again, stopping me.
"What are you doing? You can't go there now."
"But..."
She looked at me pleadingly.
"Can't it wait? Tomorrow after school, we can come here again, I'll even help you search... but please, let's get out of here."
I sighed and thought to myself. I didn't find much information about this town on the internet, and the documents sent by Eve turned out to be insufficient. The library was my last hope.
But would one day make a difference? I still had to go through my notes and add the information I had gathered. And I had to resume training. Partly to stay in shape, but also to clear my mind.
Movement always calmed me. And I had a feeling I would need it in large doses in the coming weeks.
I nodded slowly.
"Alright, but I left my cell phone on the table, so maybe you can go ahead and wait for me by the car? It won't take long, really."
She agreed right away, and a few seconds later, she was heading towards the exit. It looked incredibly funny as she tried to walk slowly, but practically ran out of the building.
I sighed aloud, but as promised, I went to get my cell phone.
I couldn't quite believe I had forgotten about it. It's not that I was addicted, it was just the only way to stay in touch with Eve when I was away from home. And I didn't want anything important to slip away. Like a report about a new body.
It was where I had left it. I grabbed the phone and was about to leave when I heard Hunter's conversation with Derek.
"I'm telling you, I don't remember anything." Indistinct words and a quiet laughter.
I couldn't make out who said it, and even though I didn't think they were talking about something important, something held me back from leaving.
As carefully as I could, I approached closer, making sure neither of them noticed my presence.
"Are you sure?"
"I was wasted... I should probably thank you for getting me home."
A sigh and some mumbling.
I was still too far away.
"Derek, we were both wasted in the woods. It's not such a big deal," Hunter said.
In the woods... why the hell were they there? I leaned in closer.
"And by the way, why were you avoiding me for a few days? God... did I puke on you or something?" He added in a concerned voice, only to laugh a moment later. "Did I do something stupid and you got mad at me?"
"What? No... I just got sick. I basically slept for those few days."
"You got sick?" He seemed genuinely surprised, but after a moment, he cleared his throat and added, "Oh, okay. I thought you were being touchy."
"What the hell... so you don't remember anything from that night?" Derek asked.
I furrowed my brows. Why was he asking like that? As if he wanted to make sure Hunter didn't remember and it worked in his favor.
Could it be... no, that's silly, I thought immediately. If they had encountered the creature, neither of them would be standing here. Since I was sent here, this pair wouldn't stand a chance of survival.
"I remember how Sophie was circling around you like a hawk, and then that stupid story from Adrian. Man, remind me that if I ever meet him, he's getting a kick in the ass for all that nonsense. The next day, I woke up with a hangover, and on top of that, my leg was hurting from our walk."
"Hmm... that's good," Derek finally laughed too, and a thought crossed my mind that it was a very pleasant sound to the ears. "Thanks to your shitty ideas, I missed a few days of school and had to rest. By the way, what did I miss?"
They stopped whispering and started talking about other topics.
But I wasn't listening anymore because at that moment, I remembered Mia, who was probably angry.
Damn it.
As quietly as I could, I distanced myself and quickly headed towards the exit. On the way to the car, where Mia was standing, I analyzed their conversation. And although I didn't find anything extraordinary in it, Derek's pleasant voice echoed in my mind.
Why did he seem so concerned?