Xander POV
My mind raced back to that party, it had been my first party as a fresher. I had expected to have all shades of fun that night until it got cut short when I sensed its strong presence. Like a magnet, I felt drawn to it.
"Come on, man. You don't have to go to this party. I promise you it wouldn't be lit," my roommate said, he was also a fresher like me.
I threw on a white tank top and donned my black jacket. I checked myself out in the mirror as I combed through my hair with my fingers.
Ever since we both resumed as freshers, my roommate had always been afraid to sleep alone.
"Shut the eff up, or you let me get ready in peace."
He groaned, "Come on. This place is still unfamiliar; I don't want to stay alone."
"Then get ready," I told him for the umpteenth time, standing my ground.
Eventually, we went to the party together.
"You know the host?" I asked, sizing up all the sexy girls in the room.
I felt his hard gaze on me, "How am I supposed to know? You forced me here."
"Relax and have fun," I patted him on the shoulder and wandered off to the dance floor, in search of the lucky ones to share my bed tonight.
As I stood on the dancing floor, moving my hip to whatever music was being played. Even all the girls leeched on me, as usual.
"How would you like to know the smell of my bedsheet?" I drawled as I whispered into the ears of the hot girl.
She smirked and twirled. Then she faced me, "cheesy."
I shook my head as I raced a finger. "I bet my ass that you haven't heard that line anywhere before," I told her confidently.
"You're so sure," the girl raised a brow. "I might have heard it somewhere," she twirled strands of her hair around her finger.
"No worries. It would only take me a minute to make up another line.
She giggled and slightly pushed me on my chest with a finger. I in turn placed my palm on my chest and staggered back dramatically.
I heard someone suck in a sharp breath right after the clatter of glasses scattered on the floor. I felt the liquid seep into my shirt and get on my skin.
"Oh my Goodness," I'm so sorry," she tried to wipe the blue liquid from my white tank top but as expected she only worsened it.
I regained my composure. "It's alright," I squatted down and picked up some shards of broken glasses and the tray and gave it to her.
I didn't wait for her apology. I faced the girl I was dancing with. The drink that was poured on me was starting to feel sticky on my skin. Her brows were creased together cutely. "Oh, sorry."
"Please, where's the restroom?"
She regarded me for a while before speaking, "Aren't you a senior? You should know where the restrooms are."
"Well, I don't," I snapped, the sticky feeling was starting to feel irritating and she wasn't making matters better.
She drew back, frowning. She craned her neck to look back, "Just go up the stairs, the last room down the hall by your right is the only restroom we're…"
I didn't wait for her to complete the sentence with some irrelevant words as I pushed through the sweaty bodies and flew up the stairs.
I stopped dead in my tracks the moment I reached up the stairs, there was a unique feel to this area of this house. It felt different.
In front of me was the long hallway, I started with swift steps but slowed down as the feeling remained. I wasn't sure what I was sensing yet, but it felt oddly familiar.
The hallway reverberated the energy. I started looking through the rooms, seeking where it might be emanating from, all thoughts of cleaning the sticky blue drink that stained my top vanishing.
I started with the doors by my right. There were five doors on each side. On all the doors by my right, there was no one occupying three except for the first and the last.
There was a passed-out drunk on the bed in the first room. In the last room, a girl and a boy were making out. They didn't even know that the door was opened. I gently closed it back and began with the rooms by my left.
The rooms were also empty until I reached the third room. The moment I opened the door, it felt like a gust of wild wind hit me as I sensed the energy.
And this time, I was very sure what I was sensing. But how could it be? In a place like this? This was the last place anyone would expect it to be.
The person was seated on the bed, their back to me as they faced the other side of the room, hunched over a book, their hand gripping a pen and moving rapidly on the book.
"Hello?" I called hesitantly.
They turned back, glasses on the bridge of their nose, eyes as wide as a tennis ball, she put some strands of hair behind her ears. "Yes? Do you need something?" Her voice was the tiniest I had ever heard.
"Umm," I stuttered and my eyes quickly flicked across the room. My eyes landed on the bulb. "How did you turn that on? It's so bright?" I couldn't stop, "Is there a different switch to brighten it or there's some kind of setting that a certain set of geniuses know?"
Her brows were creased. She removed her glasses and looked between the bulb and my face. "Excuse me, what?"
I released the door handle and fully stepped inside. There was no way I would leave now. Not after I've finally found her. I didn't know what step to take next but I just knew that I wasn't going to leave. "The bulb," I pointed at it, "it's so bright…"
A beautiful smile adorned her face and a soft sound escaped her lips. "Are you drunk? You can lay on the bed if you want."
I accepted her offer without any argument. My head was spinning and trying to wrap around this whole thing. Of all the people out there, why her? Who would have ever thought?
If I hadn't been fortunate enough to feel its presence, there was no way I would have suspected her.
I heard her swallow loudly. "You're staring at me. Do you know me from somewhere?"
My mind came back to the present and my vision settled on her. "I wasn't staring at you," I pointed at the bulb behind her. "I was staring at the bulb."
"You must have an obsession with bulbs. Bright ones to be specific," she muttered, shook her head, and went back to whatever it was she was writing.
I lay on the bed, my eyes on her back. "Of all places to hide, the red moon witch just had to choose her."