The PHONOI • || Lee Heeseung ||

Chapter Two: Blood will tell.

"Stay away from the darkness or it will consume you"

Jia's POV

"Here are your keys, ID card and other documents. Your dorm number is 405. You can ask for the watchman's help if you face any trouble finding your dorm or have any dorm related issue. Oh Also, the gates closes at 10 PM sharp everyday and opens at 6 in the morning. Make sure to be punctual or you will have to spend the night outside." The lady at the administration office informed me.
"Uh okay." I stood up to take my leave and headed towards the dorm buildings.
"Don't mind her words. This is a private university, the parents will throw a fit and sue the uni if their kids faces even a minor inconvenience. You can go out and come in any time you want. That's what all of us here do." Beomgyu who hasn't left my side since the lunch break informed me about the unruliness of the students here. I didn't wanted to appear rude so I just replied with a small 'I see' and kept walking, in return he just grinned and continued walking next to me. I wonder why he is still around. Does he not have any friends here? But considering how amiable he is, he must be having a lot of friends. Maybe he just wanted to make some new friends or something. I shrugged inwardly and reached the dorm building first.

The watchman sitting next to the elevators informed me about my floor number. I looked back to see Beomgyu talking to someone. I didn't bother waiting for him as the elevator doors were opening. A chill ran down my spine for some unknown reason as soon as I stepped into the elevator. I was about to press the buttons when I realized they were covered in a crimson liquid, not only that, the floor had splashes of the crimson liquid too. I immediately knew that was blood, for I have been very familiar with that red liquid. It even smelled like blood, who was to not know?
"What the hell!" Beomgyu exclaimed getting into the elevator. The watchman must've heard Beomgyu's cries and came running towards us. He was shocked to see the sight but then let out a string of curses although inaudible, one can easily make out what he was saying.
"Goodness, these kids are up to some mischief. Don't worry Miss, it's just red paint. I'll get it cleaned in no time." Said the watchman.
"Ahjussi, how can this be paint? It's blood, can't you see that? It even stinks in here." Beomgyu countered.
"Student, don't you know this building mostly has art majors residing in here, they often tend to make their art pieces realistic, one of them must have spilled some of it's content here. You both don't worry. Here, use the other elevator while I get this one cleaned." The watchman seemed adamant on proving his point.
"But-" Before Beomgyu could continue I dragged him out.
"Let's just go." I asked him. He huffed like a little child and agreed with me. He got out a floor below mine and looked at me for a moment, still skeptical about what happened down there, before bidding his farewell. I won't blame him. I didn't believe the watchman either but somehow decided on letting it go for it wasn't my concern.

When I reached my floor, the hallways seemed quiet and empty. I guess most of the students had already retired for the night. With little to no difficulty I was quickly able to find my dorm. It was quite spacious for a single person and that made me a little delighted. Without wasting much time I quickly started to unpack my stuff and make myself at home. After taking a hot shower I was ready to hit the bed when my phone's ringtone blasted throughout the empty house. With quick steps I reached my phone and a little smile spread through my lips when I saw who was calling me at this hour.
"Mimi!" It was Changmi my best friend from back in the states.
"Jiji, my bae! How are you?" She shouted through her speaker. I had to put the phone a little away from my ears so as to not damage my ear buds, still I smiled nevertheless.
"Gosh Mi, calm down. You are damaging my ears." I spoke while making my bed.
"Yea whatever. How was your first day at your uni? Met any hot guys there?" There she goes.
"It was okayish and please not with that again" I replied.
"Okay boomer~ I miss you being here. It's so boring without you And I'm failing my grades oof!" She spoke sadly.
"God, I miss you too. Wish you were here." I really did, in fact there's nothing more that I wanted as of now than to have her next to me.
"Same though but of course i can't be there because neither I'm filthy rich nor super smart to get admission at your prestigious BIA." I rolled my eyes at her words.
"Hey! That's not the case!" I was about to say something more when she cut me off.
"OKAY enough with these talks. So, did anything interesting happen today?" She genuinely seemed curious.
I rolled my eyes at the 'Typical Changmi type' question.
"I don't think so- Actually wait. Something did happen while I was coming to the dorm." I replied after I remembered what happened earlier.
"OMG WHAT?" She exclaimed.
"So.. When I stepped into the elevator to get to my dorm room, I saw that the elevator had blood splashes on the floor. Not only that, the bottons were covered in blood too."
"No way! That's creepy" I could feel her shuddering.
"Ikr? But the watchman begged to differ. He said it was just paint and must've been accidentally done by an art student or something." I replied, still unsure about the incident.
"But what if the watchman was saying the truth? He must have seen it happen before. You never know?" She tried convincing me.
"NO! It was blood-" I began to speak when she cut me off again.
"Jia.. You must be mistaken" Why was she not believing me?
"I swear it was blood! I refuse to believe it was paint, as the watchman says. I'm telling you something is definitely going on here!" I tried proving my point to her.
"Hmm... Whatever it is sweetie, just take care huh?"
"I will. You take care of yourself too, okay?" I reminded her.
"Of course mommy, now that you aren't here I'll have to take extra care of myself. Anyways I gotta go or I'll be late for classes. Bye. Love ya~" With this the call ended.
It almost slipped my mind that it must have been broad daylight there in the States unlike the darkness that has consumed the sky here. Almost immediately after the talk with Changmi, I dozed off to sleep.

I woke up in the middle of the night, somehow still jet lagged even after a week of getting used to a different timezone. It was around 3 at night and I could hear nothing but pure silence, of course what else did I expect at such an hour? Even though nights are supposed to be dark and quiet, I still felt a little uneasy in this dimly lit apartment. The air seemed heavy with an unsettling stillness.
To make myself feel a little better I looked out of the windows, which showed the rest of the town. It was dark too. The wind howled through the empty streets, casting eerie shadows. The moon hid behind the clouds, adding to the sense of foreboding.
Not feeling any better I pulled back and went to living room to get myself a glass of water.
That was until the silence of my dorm was broken by faint echoing footsteps growing closer with each passing second.
As the footsteps grew louder, my heart raced in anticipation of what was coming next. The sound echoed through the empty hallways, clearer than ever, But that wasn't the only sound I heard, the echoing footsteps were accompanied by the faint sound of something being dragged along the floor. The sound sent a shiver down my spine, intensifying the sense of mystery and suspense.
I was about to open the doors and see the source of the noise but then stopped. Suddenly I remembered what my mother told me a few years ago. Her words still vivid and clear in my mind.
"You've always been a curious child, my love, it may lead to adventures but tread carefully. Some mysteries are better left untouched for they may lead to dark places you are not ready to face" I felt myself get a little emotional recalling her words for I missed her. Deciding on following her advice, I quickly retracted my steps and went back to the bedroom to try and sleep for the night.

The next morning I jolted awake to the cacophony of boisterous voices outside the dorm, the chatters echoing through the morning air. It was as if the whole building had come alive with animated conversations. I quickly wore my shoes and walked out of my door to see what the commotion was about. There I could see students, all outside their dorms chatting among themselves, some had their cell phones out to record something on the floors. That's when I saw the cause of this morning chaos. The floor was marred with crimson trails, snaking their way across the wooden floor.
I heard some students saying on how these pranks were getting out of hand and that the janitors should be here any moment to clean the mess. I wonder if it really was a prank or was something bigger going on in the shadows of this prestigious university?

When I raised my head, my eyes were immediately connected to a boy who I assume, stayed in the dorm across me.
His eyes scanned me, gaze piercing through my very soul. It felt as if he was dissecting every inch of my being, searching for something beneath the surface. I knew better than to look away and feel scared. So I stared back and made sure he knew that I was aware of his intentions. We stood there for God knows how long, maintaining eye contact, until someone called him and he was the first to look away.
It was an unsettling encounter that left me questioning his intentions and wondering what secrets he hoped to uncover.

Next Chapter-

"That's the problem! You all are perfect together and I'm far from it. Please, just let me be that way."

A/N : So what do you think is happening in this university? Also who was the boy staring at her? Any guesses?