December 20 | Friday #13
“Are you serious?” he snarled, and a shadow crossed Danny’s face. Will rarely spoke in such a tone. “You think I’d kick you out?”
“Will… It was just a joke.”
“No. It wasn’t a joke and you know it. Yes, I have new friends, but that doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. You’re my best friend. Even when you’re being a complete asshole,” he added resentfully, getting up.
“Hey, Will…”
Having no desire to continue the conversation, Will left the room. Dan called something after him, but Will ignored it. After getting dressed, he left the house without even checking when the next bus was.
After nearly fifteen minutes of freezing his ass off and a short ride in pleasant warmth, Will got off at the shopping mall. With some time to spare, he wandered around the shops before returning to the main entrance right at two p.m., where Oscar was already waiting for him.
They went to the movies. They chose a film that was starting soon so they wouldn’t have to wait, and ten minutes later, they were already in their seats.
The choice turned out to be terrible—the so-called romantic comedy was so unfunny that Will was practically grinding his teeth in frustration, and the romance boiled down to embarrassingly crude lines.
Oscar laughed once. Probably out of pity.
The first half of the movie was so awkward that Will wanted to sink through the floor. He thought with regret that if things continued like this, his first date with Oscar would also be his last.
But then Oscar whispered something in his ear about one of the actors, and for the rest of the movie, they turned into a two-man peanut gallery, having a great time.
The good mood stayed with them after they left the theater.
“I can’t believe it.” Oscar was laughing uncontrollably. “Show me again.”
Will replayed the video on his phone of a cute Labrador dancing to mariachi music.
“Jeez. I didn’t know you could train an animal to do that,” Oscar snorted. “I have to try that with my Boris.”
“You have a dog?” Will asked.
“No, a guinea pig.”
Will looked at him in disbelief, and then they both burst into loud laughter. This fit of giggles lasted until they sat down at a table in a coffee shop.
“You have to send me that,” Oscar said.
“Sure.” Will smiled brightly, but then he realized a crucial detail. “Except… I don’t have your number.”
“Really?” Oscar seemed surprised. “I thought I gave it to you.”
“We were supposed to exchange them once or twice…” Or five times. “But it just never happened.”
“Wow. We need to fix that.”
He finally got Oscar’s number and he should have been happy about it, but he felt uneasy.
Maybe because the absurdity of the situation hit him: he was finally on a date with a guy he’d kissed and flirted with multiple times, and he just got his phone number.
Damn. Did Oscar really have such a bad memory that his various declarations just slipped his mind? It wasn’t like he was shy.
“So, what are you in the mood for?” Oscar’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. “My treat.”
“Thanks.” Will offered a weak smile. “Tea with lemon is fine.”
Oscar placed their order.
“It’s gotten cold, huh?” he asked.
“Yeah, really cold.”
Oh my God, were they actually talking about the weather? AWKWARD!
…even more dramatic, however, was the silence that fell after this less-than-inspiring exchange.
“Too bad we don’t have Tech class together,” Oscar said, clearly trying to save the situation. “It’s almost time for projects, and I don’t have a partner.”
“It’s cool that you get to choose. In Lorne’s class, it’s always random.”
“That sucks.”
“Yeah.”
SO. AWKWARD.
The waitress brought their teas. Will smiled uncomfortably.
“You don’t use sugar?” Oscar asked him.
“Uhh…” Will was going to. He really was. The thing was, first he’d been overwhelmed by the awkwardness of the whole situation, and now… Now Oscar’s hand was suddenly on top of his, and he had no idea how to react. “No,” he said, blushing slightly.
“I didn’t know you knew Liam well,” Oscar blurted out suddenly.
Will looked at him, surprised.
“I wouldn’t say well,” he corrected him slowly. “We just hang out.”
“He’s pretty handsome,” Oscar said, watching his face intently. “And it would be cool to date the captain of the basketball team, right?”
“Should I tell him you’re interested?” Will joked.
Oscar laughed freely.
“No. Are you?”
At that moment, Will was only interested in one thing, and it definitely wasn’t the gentle brush of Oscar’s fingers on his hand. His mind went back to their passionate kisses, to Oscar’s hands creeping under his shirt, to their tangled tongues and breaths.
Unfortunately, he had to be content with just this small gesture today, because although they spent a little more time together, Oscar eventually had to get going. He promised he would call. Will tried not to get his hopes up, but as usual, he couldn’t help himself.
As he was leaving the mall, a poster on a window caught his attention.
A conspicuous headline read: MISSING. Below it was a picture of a young girl identified as Lily Wayne.
Will swallowed nervously, his thoughts returning to the scene in the forest. It was so terrifying and at the same time so unbelievable that he almost felt as if he had seen it in a movie, not in real life.
Maybe that’s why he had been able to push it out of his mind earlier. He couldn’t now.
It wasn’t the same person, though. The girl in the photo had short, red hair and looked much younger. Sure, the picture could have been old, but it was unlikely anyone would use an old photograph to search for a missing person.
He walked on. When he got to the bus stop, he decided to call Norma.
“What’s up, Magneto?”
“Excuse me?” he mumbled, confused.
“I’m trying to find a cute nickname for you related to your powers. Zappy? Sparky? Nah, nothing sounds quite right.”
“Have mercy, I’m begging you,” Will groaned.
Norma snorted with laughter.
“Okay, so why are you calling, really?”
“Do you know what happened near your house last night?”
“Mmm… Besides an awesome party? Oh, wait. That was at my house, I forgot. Anyway, you took off pretty quick.”
“I’m talking about what Liam and Blake found in the forest,” Will added in a low voice.
Norma went silent for a moment.
“I didn’t know you were there for that.”
“I stumbled upon it by accident. Was she a girl from our school?”
“No, a uni student from New Wing. You probably didn’t know her.”
“Do you know who did it yet?”
“No. We’ll find out, it’s just a matter of time. Like I said, we handle problems in our community ourselves.”
“And what if it wasn’t one of us who did it, but… you know… a regular person?”
“Either way, we’ll handle it ourselves. If someone messes with us, they’re asking for trouble.”
“Can I help somehow?”
“I really appreciate the offer, but you’d be a bit of a hindrance at the moment,” Norma confessed, and Will immediately understood what she meant. “You’re still not quite in control.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“It’s a tough situation, but you know what? When we’re dealing with something smaller, I’ll let you know and you can come with us. So you can see how things work.”
“Thanks.”
“Ciao for now, Buzzy.”
“Buzzy?” Will repeated, snorting in disbelief.
“Well, yeah. ‘Cause everything around you goes bzz.”
Will rolled his eyes.
“I’m never calling you again.”
“You’re just jealous of my creativity!” Norma laughed. “See you Monday.”
“Bye.”
They hung up, but barely a minute later, Norma was calling him again.
“Any more ideas?” he asked, answering the call with a dramatic sigh.
“One, but it’s about something completely different,” Norma replied, sounding more serious than usual. “Until we figure out what’s going on, you shouldn’t really go out alone. I mean, going out during the day or to crowded places is fine, but you should probably avoid evening walks, okay?”
“Why?”
“Well… Someone is clearly targeting people like us, so…”
“Wait,” he interrupted her. “This wasn’t the first murder?”
“No. The third.”
Will froze, shocked by the information. How was it possible he hadn’t heard anything about this?
The world of vampires, werewolves, and witches was starting to terrify him more and more.
December 5 | Thursday
Although the teachers were still tormenting them with quizzes and tests, most of the students were living for the upcoming holiday break. The atmosphere at school had gotten lighter, and everywhere you could feel the impatient anticipation for the much-desired time off.
As was tradition, the school designated a day for representatives from various companies looking for interns to visit.
The main hallway had turned into a veritable gallery of advertisements.
Every significant company had its own table, decorated with its logo and posters.
Usually, two representatives sat at each one, answering any and all questions with a welcoming smile.
There were also flyers and application forms that you could fill out on the spot.
Will wandered between the various booths, though none of them caught his eye.
It was no wonder. He still had no idea what he wanted to do in the future, and what else was he supposed to base his choice of internship on?
Possibly the earning potential and the company’s reputation, but his grades weren’t good enough to get into the prestigious companies.
Despite this thought, he stopped at the most crowded booth—the one for Kubrick Corp., of course. He had already passed it twice, but he hadn’t wanted to push through the huddle of students, and now it had thinned out. It was the only company that truly interested him.
“Can I help you with anything?” a representative asked politely.
“No, thank you,” Will answered shyly.