Faith and The Vampire ✔️

Chapter Nineteen

It was a typical Tueday morning, I strode across the street on the way to the Institute. I stood up on shaky legs, feeling restless and a little dizzy actually. What else would I do anyway? Sit around? My brain kept telling me to keep going, because I could sit around in the class for hours later.

Andrei and I cut across the C building, laughing as we recounted the party last week. Andrei and I got to sit together in our shared morning classes but didn't do much talking. The stares certainly did follow me a little bit, but I found that the more I talked to people, the more they warmed up. I was the only one talking. Andrei stared straight ahead, listening but neither acknowledging nor participating in my attempts at conversation.

Two classes later, I finally earned my lunch escape. As I stumbled across campus toward the commons. It turned out, everyone knew Aisha wasn't speaking to me. Just like that, whatever social headway I'd made plummeted. She didn't outright condemn me, but her silence spoke legions, and people behaved accordingly. Aisha was sitting there with her friends from the same faculty, I could see Kak Dani was also sitting there. Andrei, Carly and Gina would have welcomed me to their lunch table, but all I wanted was to be alone to think, to sort thorugh the confused mess of emotions in my head. I shook my head, trying to make sense of everything.

I decided to spend the lunch break hiding out. I walked toward the bleachers by the track. I was carrying my own lunch. As I glanced around, I realized that the track was quite. I could see a bunch of guys playing something in the middle of the field, but here in the bleachers, I was alone. That’s a good thing.
I’ve got a brown paper bag with my sandwiches, grapes and a bottle of water. I had just opened the plastic wrap of my sandwich when a voice called my name.

“Mel?”

I craned my head to get a better look, startled. Khalid stood there watching me, looking both amused and curious. It would figure that while I was sorting out the problems in my college life, he would be the one to find me.

“Hey,” I said “I was hiding away from the patrolling staff members. They’re watching me, it’s creepy." I made a face, recalling Mrs.Padma’s warning last week

A hint of a smile played over his lips. “You do realize that I was on the committee too, right?”

I shrugged. “So? What are you doing out here? Are you watching me too?"

“No, I happened to see you from there.” He gestured at the entrance of the A building.

“Of course. You’re not a patrolling staff. You’re their boss.” I took a first bite of the sandwich.

Khalid came near me, and sitting on the bleachers, just below mine. "Melody—" He murmured. "What are you really doing out here?"

He was using the stop fooling around voice, so I gave him as truthful an answer as I could. "I wanted some air."

“It’s freezing out here. Why don’t you sit with Aisha and the others inside?” He got his hands in his pockets to keep them warm

I shook my head, deciding not to mention that I couldn't feel my feet. "I'm fine. I can’t sit with Aisha. Honestly, I’m not in a really good term with her right now."

His expression growing troubled. He studied me for several moments. He was probably thinking about what had happened almost a week ago, when he had helped me and Aisha to get to the hospital after she cut herself. “What happened?”

“Actually, I had a fight with her last week. Before.... before the incident.” I said, avoiding his eyes. “We haven’t made it up with each other.”

"Are you okay?”

"It doesn't matter if I am, remember?" I looked up at him. "Is Aisha okay? This'll be hard on her.”