How to Catch a Criminal at College

Chapter6- The Fountain

(What's the painting on top?)

Jannat POV

I found my dorm. Two connected rooms, one has a bunk bed, a tiny kitchen and a wide study table and the other room's restroom and shower. How fancy. I find Maria's suitcase lying across the floor in a corner and set mine next to hers.

I set some water to boil in the gas that's on the small countertop and put some tea leaves in a cup. Leaving it to boil, I go and sit down next to Maria on the bottom bunk. She looks annoyed.

"Something up?" I ask.

"No. I'm great"

I look at her scrolling through Instagram motivational quotes on one of those totka pages. Something is definitely wrong.

"Just tell me what's wrong." I poke her a few times.

"NoTHING! Alright! Just don't bother me!"

I let her scroll through a few more quotes.

I take out my phone and decide to give Siddharth a call someday.

"Any progress on our mission?"

I remembered the note I had read. Should I tell Maria? She is my partner after all...

But then I look at what she's staring at on her phone. 'I like when you smile, but I love it when I'm the reason'.

What a trash quote.

Maybe she needs a break. I'm sure I can handle this easy peasy mission without her.

"Nope" I reply and she just nods.

I take the kettle off the stove and pour the hot water into the teapot, and eventually into the cups.

I try to hand her a cup but she refuses.

"I only drink matcha" ok gross.

"U sure?"

She nods and I put the cup on the study table. One cup'a tea gone to waste.

I'm just starting to enjoy the silence when Maria's phone tings with a notification and she hops off the bed. Wonder who that is?

"Where're you off to?"

"Oh nowhere. Just going for a walk" absolutely. I'm sure she can lie better than that.

Anyway I let it slip and watch as she walks out the door.

I remember the note telling me to be at the fountain by 7:30pm.

It's 7:23pm and I chug down the tea, putting the cup into the sink and putting the black leather jacket over my shoulders.

I take a semi auto, not that I'm particularly good with it, but shove it in an empty pocket anyway.

Now... where's the school fountain?

The corridors are half as quiet as I thought they would be, with students everywhere chatting away, some drinking whereas others try to study.

I walk through the corridors till I reach the entrance and walk around the gardens, but no fountain.

I search for another few minutes and realize that it's 7:34pm- I'll just say I'm fashionably late.

I eventually manage to find an abandoned drinking tap, which is the closest I could get to a fountain, and just wait there.

A few more minutes pass and there's still no sign of anybody. This is the stupidest mission I've even been on, for sure!