Chapter 3 - Psychopath

COLLEEN

HAD it not been because of the man running past her shoulder that made her lose grip of the bottle of wine?

What's worse was that she didn't even know where her friend had gone. Heck, she had just gone for the glass of wine hidden especially for her from the basement, heard a commotion, and clambered up the stairs and reached the living room . . . only to see that she had disappeared! Jostling through them, she had only managed to see a speck of light disappearing before she got pushed back by someone, breaking the wine in the process. Now she looked down, gritting her teeth as the pain coursed through her leg, the blood dripping in small rivulets.

Great, now not only would she have to worry about her, but she'd also need to worry about the gash. And no one had seemed to care about her—not even a single apology from that idiot—since they'd only scampered away as if there was some freakin' psychopath in the house. Thankfully for her, the glass shard didn't stick on her flesh; otherwise, she would freak out as if there indeed *was* a psychopath in the house.

"Hey, the party is still not over!" She gritted her teeth, feeling the pain biting her leg. *How wonderful . . .*

Yet they still ignored her. With a devastated sigh, she gazed at a blonde girl stooping near Cole while helping him to get up. "Cole, let's get out of here," she heard her say.

"Kate, what happened?" she asked.

"Geez, I don't know, Colleen, but I just don't wanna disappear like your friend!" And she continued to force his boyfriend to get up. "Get up, Cole!"

Her forehead creased as confusion got the best of her. She tried to look for Aliza, but she couldn't find her. Maybe the laughter, that commotion, was all about her, making her run away. Now she would surely have to endure all the pain to get on moving.

*Just great.*

Yet before she could start moving, she couldn't help but notice a man wearing a weird orange outfit just standing at the spot where she had left Aliza.

She bid him no mind, but her head managed to perk in front of him . . . Who was he? Did that man just magically appear inside her house? He seemed familiar to her, though. He was looking at his hands—*Weird*—and was quivering.

Now she observed how his hair was like grass; his hair was rising to multiple directions. She tried to near him, but the pain forced her to stop. Seriously, who would even dare to have a hairstyle like that? If she were to be a man, she wouldn't have one like that.

"Colleen, why are they running away?" Mandy shouted from behind.

Her blue eyes bore into Mandy's, her face etched with disappointment. "I don't know . . . Where have *you* been?! Why did you leave her?! I told you to stay with—"

"I know, I know." Mandy stared at the living room, only to see Cole starting to get up with his girlfriend's support. Eyeing their gaze, she followed the direction each of their gazes had locked with, until she could come up with a man. "Wait, Colleen, who is that?"

"Who knows! Maybe he's just a homeless man crashing into my house to party. Oh, and you know what's more interesting? It's finding Aliza!"

Colleen looked at the man whose back was still facing her. She slowly drew her feet forward, trying to get the man's attention despite the pain. Oh, the pain was infuriating her even more. "Hey, you!"

The man turned, his eyes wide. "Where am I?" A soft, yet masculine voice resonated off his mouth, a voice so familiar. She ignored it and just focused to the context of his words.

"What do you mean, 'Where am I'? Look, have you seen a girl that has violet eye color?" She said, her voice urging him to answer while trying its best to be calm.

"I don't know." Scratching the back of his head, he bent down so that his face was leveled with hers, and pointed his forefinger at her. "Who are you?"

That man, who happened to have a voice that was similar to . . . someone, was giving her the creeps, and she couldn't help but cringe. She wondered why he would ask that like it was nothing. Asking for someone's name after intruding in a party? Well, not in her to-do list!

Now Cole got up, waving his hands like a wheel and flexing his neck sideways. She averted his gaze away from the stranger, thankful that she didn't have to look at that eerie dude, and stared coldly at Cole, now pissed. "I'm sure you have something to do with this! Where did she go?"

"The fuck—how is it my fault? She just vaporized in the air like a freak she is!"

"What are you two even talking about? How can just someone 'vaporize' into the air?"

She just grunted and turned around, knowing that he and Kate, and that weird man, were surely of no help. She walked through gritted teeth, only to hear Mandy shout: "Oh my gosh! What happened to your leg? Oh my—don't worry; I'll get the first aid kit."

"No time for that, Mandy. We need to find her!" She took one step, a sting on her legs.

"Wait!" Mandy held her hands, making her stop.

"What?!" In Colleen's peripheral vision, the couple were starting to leave. "Cole, let's go; that dude might be Aliza's dad," she heard Kate say, rolling her eyes for saying something so vile.

Mandy, watching the couple as they finally got outside her house, stared at her, but she didn't say anything.

"What?"

Then she drew her face close to her ears. Colleen's ears tingled from her short breaths, but she didn't mind.

She whispered, "Colleen, that man looks familiar, doesn't he? And his voice, did you notice it?"

Colleen stared at the stranger, who was staring at them intently, too, as if he hadn't seen someone as pretty as her before. Well, she didn't blame him.

Wait, it was *not* the time for her chuckle at some stranger. Not the time to get cocky. He might look funny and retarded, but he was still weird nonetheless. Or maybe that's just an act? "Why are you here? Who are you?"

Mandy neared her mouth to her ears even more. "I could have sworn I saw him somewhere . . ."

Not answering, he still stared at them, and he only started to respond seconds later, as if he was a dysfunctional robot: "I don't know why I'm here."

Sighing, Colleen rubbed her temples. "It doesn't matter. You, if you don't come out of my house right now, I will call the police! I don't know what kind of trick you're pulling off, but it's not working! So if I were you, I would just get the hell out of here. I have other things to think about."

Yes, indeed. The man before her was indeed familiar. She was just not sure who he was. And she didn't want that man to get in the way. Her hands now traveled onto her back, reaching her phone from her pockets, slightly shaking. Time to call for the police. Though she still had to look for Aliza despite the sting on her legs, this good-for-nothing stranger would surely get in the way.

What else could happen at this time of day?!

Now a sound of footsteps reverberated near them, making her turn around, her phone now falling back onto her pockets. "Andy, where have you been? We need to find her," she whispered, sparing that stranger a furtive glance.

Andy hunched his back forward, breathing heavily. He raised one of his arms. "I've been . . . What happened to your leg?"

"Just forget it!" She held the hand of Mandy, who was now having a staring contest with that man, dragging her away.

"Well, I needed . . ." Andy continued.

"You needed what?" Colleen almost shouted, still maintaining a hushed tone, still keeping her eyes at him.

" . . . a restroom. Mandy and I have been chasing me . . . until—"

And he stood, stunned as he watched the man behind her. "—oh my balls!"

She raised her brows and her heartbeat went rapid, preparing for the worst case scenario as she followed Andy's full gaze. She knew it would land on the stranger. Landing her gaze, she sighed when that weird man didn't do a thing. Looking back at him, she could see Andy's finger pointing at him.

"You look like, you look like," he stammered, making her, as well as her sister's, anticipation rise.

"What?" Mandy asked.

Yet he only gazed above as he seemed to think of something. "What's his name again?"

And the anticipation plummeted . . .

Well, that was embarrassing for him, Colleen thought, rolling her eyes. Mandy just laughed, shutting her eyes closed in delight. "You're such a doofus," she could hear her say.

"Guys, we don't have time for this!" She turned around and tried to force the stranger—while being extra careful—in shooing him out of the house, yet she couldn't find him anymore. And her heart skipping a beat went in sync with the audible gasp around her, from her friends.

*Oh shit* Wide-eyed, she turned around again, and she screamed when she saw him now in front of her a hair's breadth away!

"You're bleeding," the stranger said, looking down at the blood on her leg.

"The hell you care!" She staggered back, bumping her read on the floor. "Ow . . ."

"Are you, are you . . . ?" Andy stammered, again.

Gazing at her stammering friend, the man chuckled a bit as he scratched his head behind. "I'm Goku!"

*What?* She didn't know how to react. It was either to laugh for being a big faker or to be afraid for her friends' sake. For all she knew, he could have just snuck behind her to make her believed that he really teleported. She slowly stood up, the pain being a huge bitch, and narrowed her eyes. If he was saying the truth, then he could surely help them find her. But first, he had to prove it. She had to let him show them that he was truly the protagonist of her friend's favorite anime show.

No, she'd just call the police. That'd ought to be a better option. For all she knew, he could be a psychopath waiting for the perfect time to strike. Especially when she had this gash on her knees. She shuddered, trying hard to be discreet.

The twins just gawked at that man, frustrating her, concerning her. And the man just scratched his head more, making her roll her eyes. Did he really think he could fool her?

"Are you really Goku? Like, 'Dragonball' Goku?" Mandy asked.

"Oh man! I'm a huge fan!" Andy stared at him. "But," he began, pouting his lips, "how could this be possible?"

Quivering, her hand finally grabbed her phone as she didn't pay attention to their conversation. She quickly tapped, her fingers not aiming right. Her breath quick yet restrained, she slowly widened her eyes when she was about to finish typing "9-1-1," but someone had snatched it away from her.

"Andy!" She glowered at him.

"What are you doing? He's not a threat, Colleen."

Coleen gazed at the "innocent" onxy eyes of the man. Her eyes trailed down to his blue boots from his orange shirt—fighting gi, was it? She couldn't deny it. His face was Goku's. But she wouldn't let herself fall for his trap. It was better safe than sorry.

Well, she could give him a chance . . .

"Follow me," she said, showing no sign of weakness despite the hellish pain. Splotches of blood on the floor she once stood was left behind,.

Reaching the white-tiled sink of her kitchen, she spun swiftly and drew the knife she now held in front of "Goku." The twins recoiled at the sight of the blade, but she paid them no mind.

"You know what? If you want really want me to believe you, then prove it!" she challenged him.

"Colleen, she teleported from behind! Isn't that enough evidence?" Andy protested.

"He what?" she puzzled. She processed his words . . . Looking at him, she didn't saw him flinch either when she flicked the blade knife him. So was it true all along? No, there had to be an explanation. Her grip of the blade's hilt tightened. "That's not enough!"

"If you want, I could heal your wound," "Goku" offered.

His words perplexed her. How can that idiot even convince her with that? And that made her inquisitively lower her knife. As he stepped near her, she drew the blade again, alarmed.

"How can you even heal this?"

"Goku" neared her even more, and her two hands now gripped the knife tighter, the knife now inches away from his neck."With this."

*A bean?* How could a bean possibly heal her gash?! He must be joking, she thought. She stared at her friends, who were encouraging her to eat it.

She slowly picked the bean from her rough hands, the hilt still in her grip. She slowly drew the bean closer to her mouth, and then she slowly ate it. At first, she didn't feel anything, which was a good thing since she didn't want to be poisoned. But a few more seconds, and the gash suddenly disappeared like it wasn't there at all. The pain was gone!

Her eyes grew wide open, facing Goku in disbelief. So he truly was him. She wondered how he got here . . .

But then again, where was Aliza?

Minutes had passed, and she finally understood when Goku explained to them what happened to him, but at the same time, she didn't. He's actually not a psychopath after all. She placed the knife at the sink. With all these information in mind, one question still remained.

Where was Aliza? Where'd she gone off to?

She had gone quiet, now sitting on her couch while contemplating . . . until a knock on a door broke her thoughts. "I'll get it!" Mandy heard her say.

When she got back, Colleen felt reality hit her. Now she was walking very slowly, carrying huge piles of boxes together with her friends and bringing them on the table, some of them on the couch.

How could she forget it? How were they going to eat all of that now with no more visitors? She grunted in annoyance, furious at the thought.

"Wow, is that pizza! It looks different in your world too!" Goku chimed.

Now they ate, but she kept getting distracted at Goku's noise when eating. Yet her friends seemed used to him doing it. Perhaps that was included in the show. The way he munched and gorged each whole pizza in two to three bites each was bemusing her. Well, she guessed the pizza wouldn't go into waste after all . . .