IV - Professor's Card

It's been a week since I landed in a chaotic place. I've been trying to make up my mind about what will be my next step. My prime suspect is still my stepmom. She has every reason why she wants to end my grandpa's life. She was also the reason why I could not get the medical records at the last hospital my grandpa was taken to. All the records there were lost, and I know it was he was doing. I buried my grandpa with a lot of questions, but I will not bury justice with him.

After I took a bath and took a last glance at the papers and pictures on the desk, I went to the university with Alex. I am starting to know more about him because he loves talking and telling stories about himself. While Lara, I can feel something about her. Although she tries to be as happy and carefree as Alex, I can feel that something is bothering her, but she keeps on ignoring it herself. Whatever it is, I am sure she is just trying to be happy and I cannot blame her.

It's been so long since I enrolled at this university, yet I have found no lead yet. Am I missing something? It feels so odd. 

"By the way Alex," I called his attention while he was scrolling for men's abs through his social media, and I couldn't help but chuckle.

He moaned as a response, not throwing a single glance at me, so I continued. "Do you have this kind of card?"

I showed him the card but when he was about to touch it, Lara took it away from me and looked at it thoroughly.

I could see her eyebrows furrowed, and I knew there was something off with it.

"You can't have this kind of card, except if you have a high position at this university."

Alex shrugged his shoulders and continued scrolling through his cell phone and said, "I don't know anything about that kind of thing, I don't even know that type of thing existed, I mean what for?"

Lara shook her head and looked at me with eyes full of worry. "Where did you find this?"

I cleared my throat, took back the card from her and replied, "I just found it on the road, I was curious about it, and so I asked. What's with it though? Why don't students from this university know anything about this card?"

Lara hesitated for a moment, but she knew that I was desperately looking for answers.

"I know this is kind of weird, but you can only have that card if you are from the higher ranks like professors."

"So all the professors have this kind of card?"

Lara shook her head and held my hands. "Only professors that are under the wings of the director."

"What for?" 

Lara swallowed and hesitated. She stood up, which made me leave in full confusion. 

"We had better go, or we'll be late for our classes.'

"Wait, speaking of which, how did you know such things?" Alex asked while preparing his things and that I stopped too.

I looked at Lara, trying to observe her, and she looked suspicious.

"I just happened to find out that."

She tried to walk away, but I held her wrist and looked at her directly in her eyes, but she tried to look away.

"It doesn't make sense."

"I-I just happened to hear the conversations between the professors and knew it seemed to be dangerous, and I don't want to get involved in anything related to it. Why are you so curious about it anyway?"

I withdrew my hands and was taken aback because of her last question. Right, she has a point and I seem to be suspicious in her point of view now.

"Nothing, I thought I had to know since I picked one."

"Okay, let's go before we have demerits." Alex interrupted and clung to the both of us.

Another lead to that guy. I don't know if he has something to do with the case that I'm trying to open, but I am sure he wants something from me, whatever it is. I had better find it out myself. First, I need to know who the Director is.

I tried to look around trying to find a hierarchical structure in this university and that makes it more suspicious. Now that I don't know who the Director is, I am pretty sure I can't easily find him, so I must start with his minions. I must know who the highest-ranked professors are. I don't know if the director is involved in this case, but one thing is for sure, I am on a big battlefield, and I am alone and young. Can I do that? 

I need someone who can tell me the list of the professors I am finding. But I can't ask Lara and Alex again, or I'd be suspicious, and they might start asking for more questions.

I need someone who doesn't care about what I am doing or asking. Someone who isn't curious and who doesn't mind being asked.

Someone like---

"Ouch, that hurts."

I suddenly felt a jolt as someone bumped into me. I looked up to apologize, but my words caught in my throat as I recognized the familiar face of the man I had met a week ago. However, his expression was cold and distant, as usual.

So I just shrugged my shoulders and was about to turn around to keep my distance from him, or he'd eat me alive, but when I was about to, he suddenly pulled my wrist, causing me to fall to the ground, and like how it always looks in movies. Yes, I am on top of him.

I can't help but stare at his eyes full of mysteries, it's like it's pulling me closer. I can't look away, not even blink.

My hands slowly reached for his face, but then I felt a hand pull my hair painfully which made me forcefully stand up and hold my hair.