Zein's Point of View
I pushed away everything that was bothering me and tried to focus on what our teacher was saying. I would go crazy if I kept thinking about all that. Notably, there was an oversized wall clock in the middle of the room that our classmates had been staring at for a while. With every passing minute, it got darker and darker. I could feel the tension building around us; even our teacher couldn't teach properly because she was constantly glancing at it.
"6:15," Mia whispered, still looking at the clock.
Our departure time is 6:30, so we still have fifteen minutes to get back to the dorms before Bloody Night starts. I think that's not enough time for everyone to get home. I can only imagine everyone running for their lives. I looked outside. The darkness had completely engulfed the surroundings. What else would happen tonight? Whether it's dark or bright, this place is not safe for anyone. But in the darkness lurks all the heinous events. Which innocent person will be implicated now?
"I'm just going to the CR," I said, saying goodbye. Vanessa and Mia glared at me.
"You're really stupid! You know it's dangerous outside, and you're really just thinking about your bladder!" Mia yelled at me.
"Do you really want to die, Zein? Just tell me, okay? I'll stab you myself!" Vanessa joked, though she was clearly giving me a hard time.
I held my stomach because I had been needing to go for a while and it was already hurting. There was no CR here in the classroom, so I frowned.
"I'll join you, Zein. Let's go?" Matt offered his hand, which I immediately accepted.
"Oh my! It's up to you!" Vanessa said.
"Just be careful," Dave reminded us.
We just nodded before saying goodbye to our teacher. "Hurry up. It's dangerous outside and, as much as possible, don't let your curiosity get the best of you," he reminded us.
I just nodded. Matt held my hand tightly. It was very dark in the hallways, with only the few lights from the classrooms serving as our guide.
"Do you think, Matt, that we will be able to get out of here... alive?" I suddenly asked.
"Hush. Don't talk like that. Of course, we can get out of here, okay?" he tried to convince me. I just nodded. I really hope so.
I entered the CR while Matt stayed outside to watch for me. I noticed the clean floor; it seemed like they knew how to clean here. I went straight to a cubicle. Silence reigned around me, and all I could hear was the dripping of water from the faucet. I felt a sense of dread, so I hurried. After washing my hands, I ran toward the exit. I was about to call Matt's name when he covered my mouth with his hand.
"Sshhh. It's me. Don't make any noise, Zein," he whispered. Not far away, I could see shadows—there were many of them. "Come on." He grabbed my arm.
"Matt, this is not the way," I whispered.
"It's 6:30, Zein. I'm sure everyone is heading back to the dorm. And besides, they've surrounded the entire HU. We need to avoid them."
I wanted to ask who he was referring to, but no voice came out of my mouth. We walked without making a sound, using the darkness to hide. He was right. People in black masks were scattered everywhere. Bloody Night hadn't started yet, so they didn't seem aggressive; it was as if they were just scouting out who they would prey on tonight. However, we'd rather not show ourselves to them. Matt and I had no choice but to hide, stopping frequently to avoid the masked pedestrians.
"We're safe as long as the bell doesn't ring—"
We were stunned when we heard the ominous bell. My hair stood on end as I realized it was Bloody Night. Matt's grip on my hand tightened.
"Hold on, Zein. I'll take care of you." At least Matt's words eased the tension in my chest, but it still wasn't enough to calm the shaking in my knees.
Matt pulled me behind a large trash bin to hide. A battalion of masked men was approaching, holding knives. It looked like they had targets. Now I saw them more clearly. Their masks only covered half of their faces, but it was enough so we couldn't recognize them. Their masks were black, and their necklaces of nails were striking.
I covered my mouth when I realized something. They were members of the Black Blood Gang who, like Nicky, have the nail as their symbol. They were looking around as if searching for someone. I felt Matt squeeze my hand, making me look at him. I smiled at him to tell him I was okay. He just nodded, our eyes serving as our only communication. I noticed that they were all heading in the same direction, as if heading to a meeting.
Matt and I stood up once they were gone. Matt was about to pull me away, but I remained standing. His forehead wrinkled in confusion. I swallowed. "Are we going to hide again?" I asked.
"What if this is our chance to gather information?" I continued. "We've already been caught by the Bloody Night. Why don't we be braver and discover their secret?"
"Zein..." He looked at me intently. "Please, not now. We'll be ruined. If they see us, we might end up like Rouge Silvenia or worse. Zein, please... we have no weapons. If they catch us, we have no way to fight."
I bowed. "Sorry..."
He stroked my hair before taking my hand. "We need to get back. As the night gets deeper, it gets more dangerous outside."
As we ran, I felt someone watching us. It wasn't just two or three of them; there were many eyes. "If you're looking for information, I'm ready to tell you everything I know. Just don't do what you did before," Matt added. I felt even more guilty for my stubbornness. All I wanted was information to get us out of this hell.
"Ahhh!" I stopped walking when Matt suddenly fell to the ground.
"Matt!" I knelt down and realized there was a nail stuck in his leg.
"Are you okay?! Matt! Can you still walk?!" I asked worriedly. I heard footsteps getting closer. "My leg is numb. I can't walk anymore. Run, Zein! Save yourself!" he shouted.
"No, Matt! I won't leave you! This is all my fault!"
I removed the nail from Matt's foot, but he still couldn't stand. I held his hand tightly as the men in black masks approached us. "Zein, run away!" Matt tried to push me away. I couldn't think straight; all I knew was that I would never leave him.
The masked men stopped when someone blocked their path. A man now stood elegantly in front of us, his back turned so I couldn't see his face. The men in black masks seemed startled and took several steps back.
"One... two..." Before the elegant man could count to three, the black-masked men ran away.
His presence was so heavy. Who was he? Why were they afraid of him? He faced us, and I almost backed away when I saw his red mask. One of his eyes seemed to be bleeding from the redness. He came straight to us and picked up Matt, who was now unconscious. I followed him, my tongue retracted in fear.
His walk was gentle, even on Bloody Night. He didn't seem to care about his surroundings. We encountered more people in black masks, but they ran away the moment they saw him.
Before I knew it, we were in front of the dormitory. He laid Matt down on the floor.
"Bleed his wound. Rinse it with warm water to get rid of the tetanus," he said without looking back. I blinked, and he was gone. Jerome and Dave helped me carry Matt in while Vanessa and Mia bombarded me with questions.
The next day, I spent my time wondering about the man in the red mask. "It wasn't just a nail. It contained a combination of poison and tetanus. We're just thankful someone helped you," Jerome said.
"Lesson learned, Zein. It's better to hold your urine than risk your life," Vanessa advised.
I stayed behind to watch over Matt while the others went to class. When he finally woke up, I helped him sit up and served him food. We ate together in silence until I saw him eat three red peppers whole.
"Matt! Why did you eat those?!" I shouted.
"It's what kills the remaining poison in my body," he joked, making me laugh.
Later, we sat on the swings in the park. "Zein, thank you for not leaving me," Matt said softly. "I'm sorry you almost got hurt."
"It's nothing. It was my fault we were there anyway," I replied.
"Before I lost consciousness, I saw the man blocking the way," Matt said. "Red mask. He is one of the Devil God Warriors. Based on the fear in their eyes, he could be Raze Silvenia—the leader."
I remained silent. Why did the leader save us? On our way back to the dorm, we bumped into a woman who dropped her books. When we helped her, she looked at us with pure terror.
"Please don't," she whispered before running away.
Matt and I looked at each other and shrugged. Weird.