*Jordan*
I froze, my heart racing as the person's grip on my hand tightened. "Who are you?" I demanded, not turning, trying to hide the tremble in my voice. The figure remained silent, its presence seeming to fill the room. Suddenly, the lights flickered, and the room plunged into darkness. But as my eyes adjusted, I saw the person. Julian!
"Julian! What's going on?" I asked, confusion mixing with fear. Julian's expression was stern, her eyes cold. "You shouldn't have come here, Jordan," she said, her voice low and menacing. "You're searching for answers, but the truth is not meant to be opened." Julian's grip tightened, and I winced in pain. As a girl, she was surprisingly strong; her body structure looked almost masculine. She was acting up to her boyish name, Julian. "You're meddling with forces beyond your control."
She pulled me closer, her breath hot against my ear. "Stop searching, Jordan." I tried to shake her off, but who was I kidding? I was no match for her strength. Her grip was firm. "You're putting yourself and others in danger." Suddenly, Julian's grip relaxed, and she stepped back. "Remember, Jordan, you've been warned." I rubbed my sore hand, watching as Julian disappeared into the darkness.
*Julian*
I hope this little warning really keeps him off. He will get himself and others in danger if he fails to listen. I remember the principal's words: "Keep that Jordan in line, Julian." I can't go against her, judging by how much power she can muster. I should keep an eye on him and his friend, whose name I don't know.
*Author's POV*
A woman dressed in a black robe with a menacing smile on her face stirred the black liquid set on fire with all her strength. As the liquid bubbled, her smile grew, and the background humming increased. Suddenly, she turned and widened her eyes, with the wild smile still playing on her lips, slowly becoming sinister laughter. Her movements were weird, but the people before her seemed to enjoy it all. Happily, they all scooped a portion of the black liquid into their cups before passing it down their throats. All were excited, doing this except someone; she looked at the gourd in her hand, and tears threatened to fall from her eyes.
"Don't!! Don't let it fall," the woman in black robes shouted at her, and the girl flinched. All of a sudden, the woman's eyes turned cool, and she drew the girl closer. "We don't cry here, my dear. We've won!!" She screamed, raising the staff she used initially to stir the liquid. Other people in the room cheered. "We're alive once again! We won't accept defeat anymore! We're alive!!" The woman screamed again, and the girl shivered. "We're alive!" The people in the room cheered again.
*Jordan (continued)*
Julian's warning played in my head as I walked back to class. I don't know how to face her, how to tell her I went to the principal's office despite her warning. Now, I've got my wrist bruised, and Julian caught me in the act. But my whole escapade wasn't in vain; now I know Julian knows a lot, probably more than me. Her gaze was strong, yes! But still, I saw pity in her eyes. Should I trust her? Maybe she's not really bad.
I was so lost in thought that I didn't hear Jaden calling my name until he hit my shoulder. If I wasn't lost in thought, it's really hard to know he's calling; I hardly hear him talk, so I don't know his voice. I rubbed him, curiosity clearly written on my face.
"Jordan! I'm sorry I called you like this, but I have to tell you this. If I don't and something bad happens to you, I might not forgive myself," he said, making my heart pound. "I don't know what you've found and how disturbed you are, but you have to stop now. Please put a stop to it, or they will put a stop to you." He smiled and left, leaving me in great dilemma.
I'm so disturbed that I need to talk to someone - Heather. She will scold me, yeah! But I can't leave her out of all these. Just as I'm thinking about all these, Heather sat in front of me.
"You went to pour all your intestine into the zinc?" Heather joked, but seeing how I'm not smiling and my swollen wrist, she became serious. "What happened, Dan?"
"We can't talk about that here. I'll come over after school, so we can talk better," I said, but it seems she isn't listening at all.
"Did you get into a fight? With who? I thought you went to the toilet." She was asking all the questions with a frown on her face.
"I'll explain everything after school, Heather," I assured her. She wanted to say something again, but a teacher entered, and she nodded, going back to her seat.
_Maya Brown_
I know very well Liam is using me for his fame, but little did he know that I'm using him for a bigger advantage. I'm Maya Brown, an orphan living with my poor grandma. I won a scholarship to study at Ravenswood thanks to my good brain.
I used to be a very humble girl, contented with whatever I was given, and that was the personality I planned to use throughout my journey in Ravenswood. But then, I realized I'm just a wretched girl among the students who are children of prominent people. So, I decided to step it up a little.
I gained popularity pretty fast due to my unmatched academic performance. I told no one about my background, and they all foolishly believed I'm from a rich home. So, when Liam asked to date me, I couldn't turn him down. At least, he will help me keep up with a high-profile life, and he didn't fail to do that.
Both of us didn't want to admit it, but our relationship is a business deal. He is using me for fame since I'm the student leader, and I will use him to pay my bills. It's a win-win!
_Heather_
I walked into my house with Jordan; I met Xavier playing video games on the couch and knew he would say something.
"Hi, Xavier!"
"What's up, Jordan? It's been long since you came over," Xavier said.
"Yeah, I'm sorry," Jordan replied.
"Since you see your girlfriend in school every time, you don't visit anywhere," Xavier said sarcastically, and I hit him.
"My girlfriend? Who?" Jordan asked, confused, while I laughed.
"Don't worry, Dan; let's go," I said to avoid banter from Xavier. I took Jordan to my room.
I locked the door, knowing Xavier might come in.
"Are you sure you don't want to put anything on your wrist?" I asked, seeing his wrist condition.
"No, it's fine," Jordan replied.
"No, it's fine. Xavier! Get me an ice bag!" I shouted to ensure he heard my voice.
He brought it up immediately and made an attempt to barge in, as usual.
"Why will you lock the door?" he asked, as I opened the door.
"Just give it to me and get back to whatever you're doing," I collected the ice bag and slammed the door on his face. I handed the ice bag over to Jordan, and he placed it on his wrist.
"Now, tell me everything," I said, as I sat back on the bed.
"Okay... I went to the principal's office, and..." he said, and my eyes lit up in surprise.
"You did what?!" I almost screamed at him.
Jordan explained how he went to the principal's office, got threatened by Julian about how she wanted him to stop.
"How can you go in there?!" I scolded.
"But we have to find out the truth," Jordan defended.
"Yes, but not at the detriment of your safety, Dan," I said, and he was quiet.
"So Julian actually knows something," I said.
"That's not all; Jaden told me I need to stop too if I don't want them to put a stop to me," Jordan said, and I sighed.
"You see, no one can be trusted. Who knows that Jaden can know something?"
"We're left with two options because this is really serious, and..." I was talking when Jordan cut in.
"Should we involve the police?" Jordan asked, and I almost cursed at him.
"Are you an idiot? Do you think this is an average police case?"
"I just think... you know," Jordan pouted, massaging his wrist with the ice bag.
"Like I said, we have two options. We either leave all these and let things get back to normal or we continue and see if they can really put a stop to us."
"We can't stop now; stopping me doesn't guarantee our safety," Jordan said, and I nodded.
"Good you know! The option is we have to continue, and for that, we have to involve Julian. She seems stronger."
"Julian?" Jordan asked.
"Yes, Julian."
"That's if I'm sure about her cooperation, but wait; you still have Malcolm's file, right?" Jordan asked, and I nodded.
I quickly brought it out.
Here is the continuation:
"Why are you asking for it?" I asked.
"There must be a place where he mentioned his wife," Jordan said.
"I checked already; I found nothing," I replied.
"No harm in checking again," Jordan said and collected the file. He went through it while I watched.
"Look at this, Heather," Jordan showed me a couple of words written at the top corner of a page. They were tiny; one had to be careful to notice.
"Seek vengeance when I'm gone, Victoria." Those were the words.
"They are couples, after all," Jordan said, and I smiled.