The Degenerates - Under Edit

f i v e

A day passed, and Neijla attended her classes without seeing any boys in black or leather.

This morning, she had another Psych-2 class, and Trey didn't show.

Lila met with her for lunch, tugging at loose threads in her cheerleading uniform she hadn't taken off from practise yet. She barely touched her food. This was day three, with no sign of Brad. Neijla was confused as to why no one was talking about this; golden boy gone. Lila's eyes were darkened and there were rings of dark purple forming below her lashes.

She hadn't slept properly since. "I just kept looking for him when the boys were training, but he wasn't there, and the coach had them lined up demanding where he was."

Neijla wrapped her apple core in her paper bag, "Of course he's angry rather than concerned."

Lila averted her eyes downward, "They'll replace him as captain before bothering to find him."

"Men will be men," Neijla said sourly, "Only care about themselves."

"I could see that they were looking worried, his friends. Everyone else was just happy that the captain spot is probably going to open up."

"I thought everybody loved Brad?" Neijla asked.

"They do," Lila affirmed, "But you know, sport and rivalries. And everyone wants to be captain. It basically means you're the best."

"Sure," Neijla smiled.

Lila had an afternoon class to attend to, whilst Neijla had finished up for the day, heading back to the dorm. The short, half an hour memory of when she met Brad rolled on replay through her mind. Reassuring herself for the umpteenth time; Brad seemed like a nice guy. He wouldn't just disappear.

She stopped in her tracks immediately at the sight of Trey Arden leaning against the brick wall of the building. Reluctantly, she approached him.

"Did your phone stop working?" she asked half-heartedly, then kicked herself. She hoped he understood she meant he could have called first before stopping outside her building, rather than to admit she was expecting him to contact her.

"Come with me," Trey said, unbothered, kicking off the wall and rounding the other side of it.

Neijla sighed before following, watching as he reached the wire fence and easily stepped over it. She knew better than to wander off with strangers, but she had her own questions about Brad. She did the same manoeuvre over the fence, though not as gracefully, and followed him down the raised ground of dead leaves. It was slippery, and it looked dark under the canopy of trees.

"Is this where you tell me you're going to kill me?" Neijla offered, breaking the silence.

"I need to talk to you about something," Trey answered, his expression its usual dark and stoic.

Instantly, she was intrigued. Maybe he wanted to talk about Brad. "Okay, talk then."

"Not here,"

"No," Neijla halted, holding her ground. "I'm not going down there."

The tall trees cast a gloomy shadow overhead, and it became very quiet. No birds sang, not even a cricket rang out. It was mossy and damp, and the temperature managed to drop a few degrees less, and Neijla found herself hugging her arms to her chest.

Trey turned back slowly, and she could sense his annoyance. His face was hard.

"I have no idea who you are," she told him, "so if you want to talk, it happens here."

"I don't want people listening," he answered finally, and he nodded to the car park and dorm buildings behind her. She could have just as easily turned and walked away but something told her he was being serious.