The Arcane

19

Nyx's pov.

I gave myself one last look in the mirror and nodded in approval.

Today is Saturday, which means I'm allowed to go downtown today, although not all the time we'll be able to leave on weekends, today was one of those days where we could.

I wore a simple jeans and t-shirt with a sneaker in my foot, my hair styled in a high bun above my head.

Grabbing my tote bag, I packed it with my 'clue book', the diary, the memory card, my phone, some headphones, and the book Linda gave me.

I left my dorm and locked it, heading down to the lobby.

"Hey guys." I greeted my friends with a smile.

"Nyx!" Olivia turned to me with a slightly shocked face before smiling and hugging me.

"My turn." Alex said as he playfully shoved Olivia aside and wrapped his arms around me, giving me a side hug and resting his head on my shoulder.

I chuckled and reciprocated his hug.

"You going somewhere Nyx?" Rebecca asked as she chewed on a burger held in her hands.

Her question drew attention to me, mostly my outfit, which was a bit 'too dressed' for a weekend at Aldmoor.

"Yeah I uh," I racked my brain as I tried to come up with a lie. "I'm heading downtown to check on my mom, she's a bit sick."

I bit my lip as I fiddled with my bag strap. I hated the thought of lying to them, but I had no other choice.

I don't want to get them wrapped up in my trouble.

"Oh no, is she okay?" Oliva asked with a worried frown on her face.

"Do you need us to come with you, Nyxie?" Alex asked as he slightly released his hold on me.

"No, it's nothing serious, just the flu." I reassured them.

"Call us if anything happens." Jamie, who was been quiet before, finally spoke as he stared at me with his usual resting face, but I saw in his eyes that he was worried.

"Yeah yeah." Rebecca nodded along as she grabbed Alex's shirt and tugged him back, much to his dismay. "Go make sure your mom is okay." She said with a comforting smile.

"Thanks guys."

I adjusted my bag on my shoulder and smiled as I turned to leave.

"Be safe." Olivia chided as she waved at me with a small smile.

I smiled back and nodded. "I will."

I sighed and my smile fell the moment I spun around and began walking away from them.

I found myself biting and picking at my nails the moment as I stood under the shed of the nearby bus stop.

I checked the time before looking back at the road.

11:45am

As the school was a good distance from the city and most of the students had cars or personal drivers, there wasn't really a lot of transportation services available.

A bus passes around the hours 12:00am and 5:00pm.

I wrapped my arms around myself as I looked around, spooked by the eerie forest.

There're so many trees, someone can easily get lost in there.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as the rumbling of the bus sounded.