Building the Tension | ✔ | 18+

Chapter 1c

The cafeteria was closing up shop by the time I actually settled in to get some food. After I scrounged together what food I could still find, which turned out to be a couple bags of potato chips and a bottle of chocolate milk, I headed back towards my dorm. As I was walking, I spotted Dimitri going across campus.

"Hey," I called to him, as I walked up to him, "Are you on duty right now?"

"No," he replied, "I was just on my way to the gym." He began walking again, and I followed in the direction he was going.

"Can we talk for a minute?" I asked, almost running to keep up with his long strides, "About what happened earlier during the attack?"

"Nothing happened," he said.

"I saw that look in your eyes," I said, "when I pinned you. You know something did."

"It doesn't matter, Rose," he replied flatly.

I moved in front of Dimitri and faced him. "Why not?" I asked.

"Because it can't be," he replied.

"Because I'm underage? Because you're my mentor? Those things won't last forever. I'll be eighteen in less than two weeks, and I'll be graduating soon. They won't last."

Dimitri said, "It's not just that. Roza, all I can give you is disgrace. I can't give you the life you deserve. Or the one you want."

That did it. I was angry now. "Dimitri, who are you to tell me what I want? Shouldn't that decision be left up to me? I - " I suddenly stopped. Dimitri stopped immediately and gave me a puzzled look. There, in front of my eyes, Mason appeared. He looked the same as he had since I started seeing him again, almost. The despair I had seen was still present, but there was something else that I couldn't figure out. It might've been anxiety or annoyance, but it almost seemed like terror. That didn't make sense, though - how could a ghost be afraid?

Dimitri asked me, "What's wrong?"

"Do you see him?" I pointed to Mason's pearly, glowing, transparent form.

"See who?" Dimitri looked, but it was clear he saw nothing.

"Mason," I replied. Mason was getting more agitated. I still couldn't determine what was wrong, but I knew that this was serious. I could also tell Dimitri still wasn't on board with me seeing ghosts. Mason's lips were moving - almost like he was trying to talk to me. There was something important he needed to tell me, but he didn't have a way to do it.

"What? What is it?" I asked him. He was getting frustrated. He pointed towards the northwest.

I was getting frustrated, too, but I didn't know what to do about it. I said, "Tell me." Dimitri kept glancing between me and the space where Mason was standing, though I was pretty sure he couldn't actually see Mason standing there. I didn't know what was going on, but I knew it was important.

Mason was moving his mouth, opening and closing. I could tell that he really wanted to speak to me, but there weren't any words coming out. It felt excruciating watching him keep trying, but then, the impossible happened. The words were so quiet I almost didn't hear him: "They're ... coming...."

"Who? Who are coming?" I could tell from the time between his words and the time it took him to reply that it was taking him some effort. He made some strange hand gestures where he put each index finger on one side of his mouth pointed down, but I was clueless and just shook my head.

Finally, he moved his mouth again and no words came out. He tried a second time and said, "Strigoi."