Human - phan

Twelve

The forest seemed eerily quiet and sinister without Phil by my side. I glanced over my shoulder towards the dormitory windows. They were blank and faceless (Phil, Chris and PJ were all in media), but I couldn't help feeling as if someone was watching me. I tried to remember exactly where Purple Shirt Guy had entered the trees, and struck out into the darkness. This patch was completely different to the leafy, sunlit glen I'd walked in with Phil. The woods were dense and cold, and so dark I could only see a few trees ahead of me.

I wasn't sure exactly what I was looking for. Clues. Inspiration. But why did I care so much? The others had all but forgotten it, apart from Phil. Phil was the reason I was here. Something wasn't right, and I had sworn to get to the bottom of it.

I used my phone as an admittedly pretty pathetic torch, searching the ground for footprints or some kind of track. I had no idea what I was doing, each tree trunk looked exactly the same, the mud floor evenly soft and damp.

I wondered where Phil went with Jakob, if he took him to our river. Or maybe Jakob was the one who had shown Phil the river. I hadn't thought of that.

I shook the thought out of my head and continued searching.

For what?

The little voice in my head asked.

You're not a detective, or a tracker. You've been watching too much Sherlock. Go back to Phil. You should trust him. He is your boyfriend now, remember?

And how could I forget? Phil, with his glistening eyes and his soft pink lips. Phil with his floppy fringe and crooked grin.

I was about to give up and leave when a flash of white caught my eye. A tiny scrap of paper caught in a bush close to the ground as though tossed aside, fluttering in the breeze. I stooped to snatch it, unfolding and flattening it against a tree trunk to try and make out the scribbled characters.

30 Yao 22/04

What did that mean? I hadn't the faintest clue and it was hardly anything to go on. I had no proof that this piece of paper had anything to do with Purple Shirt Guy, I wasn't even entirely sure I was in the right bit of forest. It could have come from anywhere, blown in the wind maybe. Nevertheless, I folded it carefully into my pocket before leaving with a shiver.

There was a good chance I was standing unhealthily close to a murder scene. At the very least I was deliberately tracing the last steps of a human being - with a life and a family and friends. It was kind of morbid, and I broke self consciously into a jog as I made for the tall grey dormitory building.

*

It had been a long day at college and the bus had broken down on the way home, leaving me in a foul mood. Once I had collected an unhealthy assortment of snack-foods hunter gatherer style (from the cupboards), I headed upstairs to my room, collapsing on my bed with a sigh. I unloaded my bounty and tipped the contents of my bag onto the floor. As I did, a tiny scrap of paper I'd almost forgotten about fluttered innocently down onto blue carpet. I surveyed it for a moment before leaning back and propping myself up with pillows, turning my laptop on and assuming browsing position.

Just as I'd got comfy and signed in, I realised my headphones were on the desk - a whole three metres away. I groaned, seriously considering gaming mute, but after a brief pep talk I psyched myself up to the move. It took me another few minutes to get comfortable again once I was back, and I muttered angrily to myself under my breath.

Maybe it was the music I was playing or maybe it was the coffee I'd drained to try and get me through last period, but I couldn't concentrate on Guild Wars. I changed the song several times a minute, skipping through playlists and creating a bizarre mix of Tchaikovsky and Metallica.