Chapter 2-

"Cerys, are you sure that you are absolutely safe? We both know that your father and I can book a flight right now, and be there in a few hours," my mother's words come out quick and shrill, but I know that she only means well. Last night when we got back to the dorms I immediately climbed into my bed and fell asleep but also completely forgetting to unpack my things. Now with my phone squeezed between my cheek and shoulder I speak with my worried mother while unpacking items.

"I mean, can we ever really know that we are safe? Death is inevitable after all," I say in a sarcastic tone knowing that it is probably making my mother feel worse.

"Cerys An-," I cut her off as she begins my middle name.

"Mom, I am fine. I still carry around both the pepper spray and the blade that dad got me for my eighteenth, so in the event that I am not safe, I can at least protect myself." I repeat the phrase that I've done so many times before, it is pretty much routine for us now whenever I reach uncharted territory.

"And the police?" she asks, "on speed dial," I answer back quickly. She sighs and in my head, I can see her pinching the space between her brows.

"Okay, Mommy and Daddy love you, do not forget to call your sister and let her know you are alive and we love you."

"I will and I love ya too," with a press of my finger I hang up and finish smashing the last box with the bottom of my shoe.

"Did you tell mama Castallanta that I miss her?" asks Willow while strolling into the room with what I can assume is a mimosa in hand.

"Uh...it didn't come up. Seriously though? It is like 10 something in the morning," I toss the cardboard box remnants into the pile of other smashed boxes.

"Hey, it is basically an adult orange juice. Are you hungry, because I am. Let's go get some food in our stomachs; the dining hall should be open." Willow grabs my arm and we leave the dorm.

...

"No f*****g way," I whisper under my breath as I see Serena sitting beside some other girl eating bagels. Serena is hard to miss from her thick false lashes and a bubble of gum that she quickly pops. Her light brown hair fell just before her shoulders in small waves. When she lifts her drink to her mouth I can see the tattoo she got from her cousin when Serena was fourteen that reads "Filipino Princess".

"HI, HELLO!" The girl next to Serena gets up and comes quickly to Willow and me, her quick steps matching her bubbly tone.

"My friend and I moved in last night but you two are the only other new faces I have come across. My name is Valerie Wong; my family moved here from Calabasas a year ago-" I hold my hand, Valerie stops talking and her dark brown eyes sadden. I internally sigh at the fact of me meeting someone who is also taller than me. Valerie is probably 5'5 but the top bun on her head makes her look taller. Valerie is dressed in an outfit that I can only describe as something the kids in student council wore.

"Nice to meet you, but let me drink something to wake me up before we continue this already too energized conversation any further." I try to give a smile to brush the harshness off my tone but when I hear Willow clear her throat I know she will explain things for me.

"Don't worry Valerie, she just comes off as a b***h...but eventually, she will rub off on you," I smile to myself at Willow's typical apology for me, as some things never change. It is not that I do not like people, it is the socializing part that literally drains me, especially after unpacking boxes most of the morning. Willow has always been the one who could strike up a conversation with anyone, while I was the one who relished in an awkward silence.

"Hmm, when does 'eventually' soak in because I'm still waiting," says Serena in an annoyed tone but when I turn to see her she flashes a bright smile and pulls me in for a hug.

"You guys know each other?" asks Valerie as Serena moves from hugging me to embracing Willow.

"More or less...we grew up together, though we were always on different wavelengths," says Serena before taking the mimosa from Willow's hand and downing the rest of it. Serena and Valerie go back to the table while I press my own juice and Willow builds a salad.

"Honestly never thought Serena was going to go to college," I say in a surprised but hushes tone.

"Also thought Kyle was going to stay a forever fuckboy." Willow tops her salad off with croutons and we make our way to the table.

"So Valerie, how is Winchester Cove treating you?' I ask as I sit down on the cool wooden chair.

"I think it is really cute how almost everyone knows each other. In Calabasas, the only way your name gets around is if it is involved with some sort of gossip."

Willow finishes a bite of her salad and asks, "Ever see any celebrities?"

Valerie sighs but then picks up her smile, "The first time is exciting but then you see them so often that they just become regulars like us."

"What about you Cerys," Serena turns in her seat to face me, "What have you been up to since leaving this town in the dust, and why did you come back?'

"You moved away?" asks Valerie and I swallow a gulp of the mix between watermelon and peach juice before saying "Too long of a story for right now." Valerie's shoulder slumps a bit and Serena slightly rolls her eyes.

"But to answer your question Serena, life in Texas was pretty simple. I'm not too sure why I came back, sounds weird but honestly, it was just a gut feeling that I should come here for school. How did you and Valerie meet, she does not seem like someone who you would befriend...no offense."

"I sort of met her through Kyle, Valerie's girlfriend Taylor is practically best friends with Kyle. One night when we were at the movies Taylor brought this preppy chick along and she stuck. Now Taylor is in love and Valerie and I somehow became friends." Serena explains the short story with a smile and I actually feel happy that she found a friend, hopefully, Serena won't put a knife in her back.

I open my mouth to ask Valerie how she handles Serena's attitude but I am interrupted by the sudden chatter of several voices. From the windows of the dining hall, we are all able to see several officers walk in the direction of the dorms. Amongst the officers is the detective that stood out to me from the park, he walks in front of the others like he may be in charge.

"Ohmygoodness, he's here." Willow pulls out a pocket mirror and lip-gloss to freshen up her makeup. Serena, Valerie, and I all exchange confused looks at who exactly Willow is talking about. Willow looks out the window with googly eyes and it hits me.

"No way Willow, the guy you took to church is a cop?" I cannot help but laugh as Willow's porcelain skins turns pink.

"So I see the youth group leader is still living in sin," says Serena before loudly popping her bubble gum. Willow rolls her eye and shakes off Serena's comment then straightens her outfit. Then Willow looks at me like she is asking for approval and I shake my head nonchalantly and tell her "Go on."

"Eeeeeee" she gets up so quick her chair is almost knocked over and she runs out the dining hall doors. I watch from the window as Willow approaches a young dark and handsome cop. He looks both ways, probably to make sure no one is looking, then he and Willow proceed to sneak off to somewhere out of view.

"Ya know Serena you can't be quick with Willow when you both have high sex drives," I say as I finish the last of my juice and Valerie hides a small laugh.

"I'm not judging... I am just saying it is kind of ironic how praying is not the only frequent thing she gets down on her knees for."

"Okay well, it was nice meeting you Valerie and good to catch up with you Serena. I am gonna go back to my room to finish organizing my closet." On my way out the hall, I snag a few items from the food bar for when I will get hungry during a possible movie binge.

...

After leaving the girls I came back to the dorm to finish both my closet and making the room feel more like a home. Last night while I slept Willow had almost flipped the room all on her own. I needed my headphones blaring the sound of rain so I would not be awakened by the sounds of Willow replacing wallpaper and adding décor. To my surprise she did not do too bad of a job, the walls were white with faint flowers instead of the former yellowed walls. With the right amount of rugs, photos, and a few candles, the room looked nice and bright.

To me the room just needed one more thing, a cleansing. Nothing makes me feel more at home then the soothing smell of incense; my mom always burned incense once a week to promote positivity in our home. After burning sandalwood incense I fell asleep watching some reality show that involved binge drinking middle-aged adults.

I'd woken up to the sound of quick and harsh knocking on the dorm room door. "Damn Cerys, open up already," Willow's voice comes out in a rushed whisper. I sit up on my bed and prepare myself a possibly drunk Willow...I really hate vomit. I make my way to the door as her knocks get more intense the more she waits.

I open the door just in time of her raising her first for another knock, "Wait what?" the words come out my mouth when I notice Willow does not look drunk nor does she reek of alcohol, instead she looks afraid. I peek my head out into the hall to look down both ways, seeing nobody else in the hall I grab Willow by the arm pulling her into the room.

"Willow, did something happen? If something did, you tell me right now and we will head to the hospital," I say as I grab my car keys and stare directly into her eyes.

Willow blinks "Huh?" We both share a look alluding to a dark event that could have happened to her and she recoils back. "Oh, my goodness no! Ethan is a guy I trust, he is also a police officer..." Willow trails off and begins to pick at her fingernails, the first sign of her thinking of something that is troubling her.

"I saw that he was a cop when you ran off with him, what's the issue?" I ask as I sit beside her.

"Well, um...he told me some information about the ongoing case."

"Willow, I kinda feel like he should not be doing that but okay...why are they here?"

"Well, he didn't know specifically why but something about the body that was found lead them to the male dorms. Apparently, the guy's body was in pretty bad shape, to the point of being unrecognizable." A tiny pain of remorse fills my heart as I empathize with the victim's family. I go to the mini fridge and pull out an iced tea; I take a drink as I look out our window.

"That's terrible, I hope they can get an id and give the family some peace," I say as I think about the pain a family goes through when a loved one is lost.

"There's more...despite the damage, they were able to identify a distinct marking." Willow's voice has become shaky and I turn around to look at her. Her eyes drop from mine to my neck or chest, I can't really distinguish her stare.

"The guy had two puncture wounds on the base of his neck, similar to-" My hand instantly flies to my chest, where just at the base of my own neck I still have two small scars to remind me of the time I spent locked away. For the first time in a long while the bite mark feels sore as if I was just bitten the day before. I feel like I am going to be sick.

***Next Chapter on Tuesday-26/01/2018***