Zein's Point of View
"Go ahead. You might be late for your next class."
"But, Supremo, I still have so much to finish—"
"Just go, Zein. I'll handle it."
I walked out of the SSG office with my head down. Was I even still his secretary when he kept taking over my work, even though he already had too much on his plate? My thoughts were interrupted when a hard slap suddenly landed on my face, sending me crashing to the ground. My face went almost numb, but I still managed to look up to see who had the audacity to do that.
"N-Nicky?"
"You're ruining everything!" she hissed, her eyes burning with rage, before slapping my other cheek.
This time, I couldn't lift my head, barely feeling my face after two consecutive heavy blows. What did I even do to her? Why was she just going around slapping people? Why was she so furious? I did everything I could to make sure I wouldn't do anything that could get me in trouble, but this was what I got. A scream escaped my lips when she grabbed my hair and violently yanked me up. She forced my face to meet hers, still not letting go of my hair. My scalp felt like it was about to get ripped off.
"What the hell did I do to you?!" I screamed right back at her. My knees went weak when I saw her holding a nail. Her hand was shaking, and I knew she was capable of stabbing me with it if she wanted to.
"You didn't do anything, and you're not going to do anything else except stay away from Supremo!"
"Are you stupid?! Who are you to dictate what I—" I froze when I felt the cold metal of the nail against my arm, knowing that a single prick could paralyze my entire body because of the toxins and venom laced on it.
"Stay away from Supremo or die. Take your pick, Zein Shion."
I shook my head firmly. I promised Supremo that I wouldn't follow anyone else but him, and I had no plans of breaking that promise. "Just kill me," I answered bravely.
"Zein Shion, I don't want everything to go to waste just because of your stupidity—yours and Supremo's. But fine, go ahead. Keep staying close to him and feel the pain when you both come crashing down." She heartlessly threw me down before leaving.
Slumped to the ground, I felt completely drained. What was she even talking about? What was I ruining? How could I ruin anything when all I did was to let myself be happy with him?
I went to the clinic first to get some ice to bring down the swelling on my face. I was treating myself while Nurse Cha just stood there watching. "Who did that?"
I wanted to scoff. Why did she care, and since when did she start caring? She wouldn't even treat us if we were dying. "What's going on between you and Supremo?" she asked next.
I paused for a second but immediately went back to what I was doing. What was going on between us? Nothing much, really. "I'm just his secretary," I answered shortly. I mean, it's the truth. I'm his secretary.
She chuckled, making me look her way, then sat down beside me. "Don't play with me, Zein. I know there's more to it than that."
"And so?"
"Just make sure Supremo doesn't see what happened to your face or find out who did it. You'll just start another mess."
I didn't bother replying. Shit. Nicky really slapped me hard. My cheeks might stay swollen for a week. "It's just that... I've never seen Supremo like that before," Nurse Cha confessed. "And I know I'm not the only one noticing it." I stayed quiet. "The way he lets someone under him boss him around."
I finally scoffed. "I'm here for peace of mind, not to talk to you."
"Why are you so straightforward? Is that what Supremo likes? Is that what he saw in you? I thought he was picky."
I almost wanted to laugh while holding up my middle finger. Did she really have to rub it in that I wasn't the kind of girl people expected Supremo to fall for? But then again, Supremo blatantly admitted what his ideal traits in a girl were: gentle, caring, soft. Sad to say, he chose me, and I didn't give a damn about what anyone else said. Annoyed, I put down the ice and was about to leave when she said, "Believe it or not, I know what really happened when you guys got poisoned during the acquaintance party."
That made me stop in my tracks. Suddenly, the memories from months ago came flashing back. I walked back toward Nurse Cha. "Really? Then tell me," I dared. She signaled for me to sit down, so I did. Her expression turned serious. I wasn't sure if I should believe her, but there was no harm in listening.
"What you drank wasn't illegal drugs. It was poison."
"Poison?"
Nurse Cha went to a drawer and pulled something out. She showed me a small bottle filled with black liquid. Just looking at it, I could tell how potent it was. "This poison could freeze your heart to death within ten hours without an antidote."
"Ten hours?" I asked, confused. "What kind of idiot would try to kill us with a poison that takes ten hours to work? Isn't that way too slow? They could've used something stronger that could kill us in a minute." Why would they choose ten hours? There were poisons that could kill in seconds, so why drag it out?."
"Unless..." Nurse Cha took a deep breath. "It wasn't actually their intention to kill you."
I frowned at what she said. It was possible, but why? "Why did the poison hit me so hard? I barely drank anything, while Dave had a lot," I followed up. That was the weirdest part. It barely affected Dave, even though he drank more than me. It just didn't make sense.
"Because the poison wasn't in the liquor. It was in the ice." She showed me a glass with ice cubes and stirred it. "You drank yours when the ice had already melted and the poison had spread, whereas Dave downed his shots immediately before the ice could melt." I suddenly remembered how I picked up my glass from the table, not knowing how many minutes it had been sitting there.
"I get it now. Somehow..." I muttered. And for some reason, I knew she was telling the truth. "Why are you telling me this?"
She swallowed hard and turned pale. Suddenly, tears started falling. "I'm sorry for everything I've done to you guys. My job is to help whoever needs it, but they threatened me. I feel like I don't even have the right to be a nurse anymore. I've failed my duty so many times. I'm so sorry."
I didn't say anything and just kept my eyes on her. Those monsters had her backed into a corner, which explained why she did it. I couldn't help but feel a bit sad at the thoughts of the threats that must've forced her to comply.
"I hope you can forgive me. But from now on, I promise to help you. I'm so tired of being a puppet. I know that in the end..." She gave a bitter smile and wiped a tear from her cheek. "They'll kill me anyway."
"What if you get hurt because you're going against them?"
"I told you, they'll kill me once the formula is complete. Once I'm no longer useful. If they're going to kill me, fine—I'll die leaving them with the mark of my revenge." Her fist clenched. "This is the only thing I can do after they killed my sibling."
My hands curled into tight fists. Monsters. "Oh, before I forget. Someone asked me for that poison before the incident happened."
"Wh-who?"
"I can't remember the name. But wait, let me get the logbook," she said, standing up.
Who? Who would do something like that to us? I jumped a bit when Nurse Cha sat back down beside me. We both scanned the logbook by date. "Here's the date," she said, and we went through the names of people who signed in. Her finger stopped at a name that was incredibly familiar. My heart thumped against my chest as I bit my lip hard.
"It's—"
"No!" I snatched the logbook and threw it across the clinic. "You're wrong! It's not him."
I didn't want to accept that he could do that to us. I could never accept that he was behind the poisoning. "But he was the one who took the poison." My fists clenched. I've already failed to trust one of my friends once. I wouldn't let that happen again. There must be a reason. Right! But I knew his handwriting, so I couldn't be mistaken. Either Nurse Cha was lying... or it really was him. But... Why?
Out of all the people in this hell, I expected many to try and take our lives... but not him. It would be easier to accept if it were anyone else. But him? I didn't know how to handle that. "He's one of your friends, right?"
"Shut up!"
I stood up and bolted out of there, my steps heavy and fast. I didn't even know where I was going. I must've been walking aimlessly for minutes before exhaustion finally caught up. "Hey!" I almost jumped out of my skin when someone suddenly startled me—Jerome.
I didn't feel like smiling, but a small one slipped out anyway. This guy wouldn't betray us. He wasn't the type to be a traitor, and even if he was... he must have a reason. I was tired of jumping to conclusions. I already blamed Matt once without knowing the truth, and I wasn't going to repeat that mistake.
"Can we talk?"
"Now I'm nervous. Sure."
We quietly made our way to the dorm. No one was there, which was better for what I had to say. Jerome slumped onto the sofa with a wide grin on his face, while I sat beside him, thinking, Whatever happens, I will try to understand him.
"Why did you do it?" I asked Jerome directly.
The smile vanished from his face. "You already know, huh?"
"You poisoned me and Dave at the party. Why would—"
The door suddenly slammed open, cutting me off mid-sentence. I swallowed hard. Our four friends were standing at the door, and their expressions told me they heard what I said.
I guess this was better. At least we could all get to know the truth at the same time. "Y-you? Jerome?" Mia asked in disbelief. I screamed when Matt suddenly lunged and punched Jerome in the face, knocking him onto the sofa. Matt wasn't satisfied and kept punching him. Jerome just took the blows and didn't even try to fight back.
"Fuck you! Asshole!"
"Matt!" I tried to pull him away, but Matt wouldn't budge.
I looked at Dave, who was just staring blankly, seemingly unable to process what he just heard. He eventually snapped out of it and helped me pull Matthew back. "Let me go, Dave! This bastard is a traitor!" Dave hugged Matt from behind. Matt struggled, but Dave wouldn't let go. I looked at Vanessa, who was just staring seriously at Jerome. She looked like she was in disbelief, disappointed, and above all, hurt.
Jerome sat up properly and wiped the blood from the corner of his busted lip. "Yes. I was the one who poisoned you." Vanessa slapped Jerome hard, so I quickly pulled her away from him.
"Everyone, just calm down!" I shouted in frustration.
"Calm down?! He's a traitor!" Matt yelled, still being held by Dave.
"Explain yourself, Jerome. Clear your name with us," Vanessa said coldly. "Just make sure your reason is acceptable, because if not..."
Vanessa and I must be thinking the same thing. We knew Jerome. He was a bit of a playboy, a joker, and arrogant, but he was a real friend. If Nurse Cha and I were right, he really didn't intend to kill us. I mean, really? A poison that would take ten hours?
"Fine!" Matt broke free from Dave's grip. "Explain your fucking side. Make it clear. Acceptable."
We fell into silence. "Yes. I poisoned the two of you," he started, looking at Dave and me. Matt's fists clenched again, so I held his arm to keep him steady and patient. I knew he wasn't angry. Like us, he was shocked and worried. When Matt was upset, he'd completely ignore the person he was angry with and acknowledge everyone else. But he punched Jerome. That meant he cared, that he gave a damn, and my friends must've realized that too.
"I did it on purpose." He swallowed and wiped some more blood from his lip. "I did that to save us." I frowned, a million questions exploding in my head again. But I chose to keep my mouth shut and just listen. "I know you already know, Zein, what kind of poison I asked from Nurse Cha."
Everyone's attention turned to me. "Yes, it wasn't an illegal drug. It was a kind of poison mixed in the ice," I began. "It was in the ice. That explains why I was more affected than Dave, even though he drank more. The ice had already melted into my drink, whereas Dave downed his before it could melt."
My friends seemed pleased with my explanation. Their faces showed that everything made sense. "That poison freezes your heart... in ten hours," Jerome said.
"Ten hours? You could've used a poison that kills in a minute or a second. Was it just stupidity, or did you plan something else?" Matt asked, still sounding irritated but slightly calmer. That was also my question and the purpose of this interrogation. I wanted to know why.
"No. I did it on purpose," Jerome answered, sitting up straight.
"Why?" Vanessa asked coldly, making Jerome hesitate for a second. Out of the five of us, it seemed like he was most afraid of answering her. Afraid of messing up.
"I overheard Madame Violet and Francisco. They were planning to poison all six of us."
"So you just decided to do it yourself to save them the trouble?" Matt asked sarcastically.
"Not like that, but kind of. I was going to tell you guys about Madame Violet's plan, but a girl stopped me."
"A girl? Who?" I asked.
"She didn't introduce herself, but she explained that if you found out about the plan, everything would get more complicated. So, we took action."
"You trusted a stranger?" Vanessa asked in disbelief.
"I didn't have a choice!" Jerome insisted. "I understood what she wanted us to do. We swapped the ice cubes they had poisoned."
"How did you know which ones were being served to our table?" Matt followed up.
"We followed the people Madame Violet and Francisco ordered. We noticed one ice cube container kept separate from the others. They put some kind of liquid in there. We didn't know what it was, but I knew it could kill in a minute."
I swallowed hard. Heartless animals. "We waited for them to leave before we moved. We dumped the contents of their ice box and replaced it with new ice, then we poured in the poison Nurse Cha gave us. Unlike theirs, ours took a long time to kick in, and before we even used it, we made sure we had the antidote ready."
I couldn't help but smile, knowing I made the right decision in trusting him. Jerome could never intentionally hurt us. We owed him our lives. "You really did that?" Vanessa asked, finally smiling. Jerome nodded weakly, finally looking like he could breathe again.
"Was the girl who helped you the same one who threw the medicine through the window?" Dave asked. Jerome nodded, laughing. We were all caught off guard when Matt punched Jerome again. "You idiot! I knew you wouldn't do something like that."
"Damn it, hit me one more time and I'm hitting back!" Jerome snapped.
Vanessa and Dave quickly rushed over to Jerome to help him and treat the cut Matt caused. "Why did you have to make it look like Madame Violet's plan worked?" I asked. I mean, they could have just thrown the poisoned ice away entirely.
"If I hadn't, and nothing happened to us, they probably would have done something much worse to us that night."
"I did see Madame Violet smiling while we were all in chaos. They thought they won," Vanessa chimed in. "Little did they know, one guy had the guts to find a way to save his friends from certain death."
Jerome scratched the back of his neck. "Cool, right, Van?" he bragged.
"Why didn't you drink any?" Matt asked, though I think he already knew the answer.
"If I did, who would have been there to help you guys? We'd all be dead!" he answered, laughing.
I breathed a sigh of relief. My trust in my friends grew even deeper. This place has tested us so many times, but we were still standing strong. Nothing could break us. One mystery had been solved, but my mind was still full of questions. And soon, all these secrets would be revealed. Even the mystery Nicky was referring to. What were they hiding? And Celine—how did she really die? Was the BBG really behind her death? But... Why? What was Celine keeping out of sight behind her back? Why was she shaking with fear? And most of all, why was she asking Supremo for forgiveness?