Nicole Jane’s POV
“Hey! It’s you again. What are you doing here?”
I quickly ran out of the gate after playing when I saw the young boy who helped me escape when I was kidnapped.
“Hello? Can you hear me?” I waved my hand in front of him, but he didn’t even blink and just stared at me with a blank expression.
“I didn’t have the chance to say thank you last time. So, thank you,” I shyly said.
But still, he didn’t respond.
But if he’s being snobbish, then I’ll be persistent. “By the way, I’m Nicole Jane. And you are?” I extended my arm towards him, then smiled.
He was finally about to speak when I suddenly heard a loud beep coming from a car.
Everything went so slow. My eyes were wide open while waiting for the car to hit me when I suddenly felt a pair of strong hands pull and hug me from behind.
That made my eyes shut, and I felt the wind blowing so hard as well. It seems like something had quickly passed by.
And the moment I opened my eyes, he’s no longer in front of me. Again.
Gasping for breath, I opened my eyes. It’s him again. I don’t know why I keep dreaming about that young boy these past few days. Usually, it’s just blurry. But I know it’s still him.
And it bothers me. It feels like my dreams have a deeper meaning.
“Good morning, Nicole.”
I turned to Steph, who had just come out of the bathroom and was drying her wet hair with a towel.
I just nodded at her and quickly got up to take a shower and get ready.
“Let’s have breakfast at the dining hall,” Steph invited me as soon as I finished getting ready.
I took my bag before I looked at her. “You go ahead. I don’t have an appetite.”
I didn’t wait for her to say anything else and quickly left the room. I walked through the hallway, lost in my thoughts. Luckily, there were no students scattered around here because I wanted some peace and quiet for now. It seems like my mind has been elsewhere for about a week now.
Those letters and about that little boy. It seems like fate was not on my side right now.
“It seems that you’re deep in thought. Are you okay, Nics?”
I was almost startled when someone suddenly bumped into me. I turned to look at Mikan.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” I tried to retrieve my arm that she was hugging tightly now.
But she held onto me even tighter. She sure has a death wish.
“You’re not a good liar. Come on, tell me. I’m listening.” She leaned closer to me.
Well, do I have any other choice? I know she won’t let me off easily.
I stopped walking, and so did she. I turned to her and sighed. For now, she’s the only one I can confide in.
“Well, can you help me look for someone?” I whispered to her.
She furrowed her brow but eventually nodded. “Of course. But who is that person you want to look for? Kyle might get jealous, you know.” She chuckled.
I winced at her question. How am I supposed to answer that? I don’t have even the slightest bit of information about that boy. Well, aside from his face.
But that was ten years ago already. Most likely, his appearance has changed by now.
I scratched my head. “Actually, I don’t know?”
Her frown deepened, so I sighed before starting to explain.
“Here’s the thing. I met this little boy when I was around eight years old. He used to always be there for me and help me whenever I was in danger. But I didn’t have the chance to get to know him. He would always suddenly disappear.”
She nodded in understanding. “But Nics, how can we find someone who you don’t even know? And you don’t even have a picture of him. Do you have any other clues that could help identify him?”
I pondered for a moment and recalled the young boy. But there’s only one thing I’m sure of right now.
He’s not a human but a vampire, judging from the abilities he showed back then. But I didn’t care or notice it at the time because I had no idea about such things.
Besides, I know there’s still something strange about him.
But I can’t tell Mikan that. She might suddenly lose consciousness.
Why did I even think of telling her and asking for help in the first place? I should have just let her keep bothering me, even if it annoyed me.
“Well, nothing really. But if I ever have the chance to see a picture of him, I’m sure I’ll remember him.”
She just pouted and nodded in defeat. It seemed like she wanted to argue, but she chose to stay silent.
I immediately pulled her away. I know that I’m going to have a hard time finding him. But I still hope that I’ll be given a chance to meet him.
Again.
***
“You’ll surely be held accountable again by Kyle once he finds out that you left the academy without notice.”
As I was flipping through the old yearbooks here in my former school, my gaze was suddenly lifted to Mikan. I was hoping that maybe he was just a former schoolmate who had helped me and I hadn’t noticed. Fortunately, the guard and librarian here in the library still allowed me to enter.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of him,” I assured her.
She just shook her head and looked out the window again.
I didn’t really plan on doing this now. But I don’t know what came into my mind and suddenly I wanted to know more about that guy.
Instead of going straight to the classroom earlier, we ended up at the gate. I politely informed the security guard, who had doubts written on his face. Thankfully, he still allowed us to proceed.
Mikan was puzzled by what I said, as I managed to convince the guard. But I just shrugged. So, I didn’t have another chance to tell Kyle.
I’ll figure it out later.
I’ve been searching for hours in the yearbook of my batch and the previous and preceding batches, thinking that he might be a little older or younger than me.
But there’s really nothing.
“Why don’t you just ask for help from Kyle?” she asked the moment we stepped out of my old school’s library.
I looked at her in disbelief. “As if he would help me. He doesn’t even want me getting close to any guy if possible. What more if he finds out I’m looking for a guy? Besides, I don’t want him thinking about unnecessary things.”
“Then why bother to look for him? You were still young back then, Nicole. Maybe it just so happened that he, whoever that guy is, was always there whenever you were in trouble.”
That made my mouth shut. Why did I suddenly want to see and know him? We weren’t even acquaintances. We weren’t even friends.
But a part of me keeps bugging me that there’s something about him that I need to know. And I won’t be able to rest until I find it out.
“Um, Nicole? Since we’re already outside, can we buy some flowers? I just need to make a quick stop.”
That brought me back to my senses. I just noticed that we were already in the parking lot. I paused as I was about to open the car door and looked at Mikan with a furrowed brow.
“Flowers? What for?”
I couldn’t miss the welling tears and sadness in her eyes, but she quickly blinked them away.
Did I say something wrong?
“Oh, I haven’t mentioned it to you,” she said, bowing her head sadly.
“Mentioned what?” I asked, curious. The Mikan in front of me seemed different. I was used to her being lively, noisy, and cheerful. Not like this, in a state of melancholy.
She looked up and forced a smile. “I had a sister.”
I blinked. I had no idea about that because she never mentioned it to me. In fact, I didn’t know anything about her family. I thought she was an only child.
But wait. Had?
“Had? You mean—”
She nodded as if she could read my mind. “She’s already dead.”
***
Third Person’s POV
“Oh, son. You're finally here.” His mother greeted him warmly and kissed him on the cheek.
“Yeah. Where’s Dad?” He looked around before sitting on the long couch.
“Well, he just needs to do something important before we finally move to the Philippines in a few weeks. For good.”
His eyes widened in surprise, and he turned to his mother, who was looking at him intently.
“What? For real?” he asked excitedly, like a boy being surprised with a trip.
“Yes. Your dad and I have already decided. It’s now the right time for the two of you to finally meet in person,” his mother replied with a wide smile. He couldn’t hide his happiness either.
But even so, he couldn’t help but feel nervous, especially about what might happen when she returns home.
“Finally! Thank you, Mom! You and Dad are the best!” He stood up and quickly approached his mother to hug her.
“You’re welcome, son. Besides, we should have done this a long time ago.” She gently patted his back.
They held each other tightly in their embrace, and his gaze shifted to a picture frame displayed not far away. He looked at it with a smile, particularly at the picture of a young girl.
“Wait for me, our princess. I’ll be home soon.”