The vice chancellor’s office had always carried an air of authority, and a suffocating sense of power. The large wooden desk stood like a barrier, polished to perfection, stacked with neat files and documents that spoke of order and control. Behind it sat the Vice Chancellor himself, grey-haired, stern-faced, and visibly troubled.Jace stood opposite him, hands resting stiffly at his sides. He had been summoned after breakfast, and though he tried not to overthink it, the faint unease in his chest had grown heavier with every step toward this room, knowing that this might be about the recent attacks.The VC leaned back slowly in his chair, his eyes narrowing at Jace as though studying him for the hundredth time.“Sit down,” he said, voice low, deliberate.Jace obeyed, lowering himself into the leather seat before the desk. The VC folded his hands together and sighed. “Jace… you’ve done well so far. More than I expected from any student.”Jace stayed quiet, sensing the weight of a “bu

Jace rushed back into the dorm room, stripped off his gym clothes and swapped them for something cleaner: a pair of dark jeans, a plain shirt, and his jacket. [SYSTEM UPDATE][ Subject: Amos Kellar – Former Security Officer.] [ Age: 42. Resigned the night before Incident-01 ][Last known address: 14 Burnett Close, off Mayflower Drive.][ Affiliations: Unclear. ]"Well, that's not enough information, I swear, but the address is more than enough," Jace muttered. He couldn't shake off the feeling that Amos was more than just a security officer, and the time of his resignation was altogether suspicious.He zipped up his jacket and grabbed his keys. Max had been teaching him how to drive and had let him do so a few times. Today, he intends to test it out on his own, alone."I don't have a damm license," he chuckled,"Hope I don't get in trouble with cops."As he walked out of the dorm room and approached the car parked in its usual spot, a familiar voice called his attention.“Yo, where

That same afternoon, as sun filtered lazily through the tall windows of the lecture hall, painting warm streaks across the tiled floor. Students shuffled their way out after the last class, chatter filling the corridor like the hum of bees. Jace who had returned early for his last class, slipped his hands into his pockets and walked quietly after it was over. His head was lowered, just enough to avoid unnecessary attention, after all, his mind wasn’t even here because thoughts of Amos, the Chief, and the growing noose around campus kept pressing on him.But before he could reach the stairway at the end of the hall, a figure moved into his path. Someone he spent two weeks ignoring, Becky.With arms folded across her chest and lips curled in a mixture of anger and desperation, she said, “So… you’re just going to keep pretending I don’t exist huh? Ignoring all my calls and messages, turn around whenever you see me."Jace sighed, his eyes flicking up at her briefly. Witho

"I'm sorry for ignoring you for so long," Jace replied and stepped back."I felt terrible after I left you in the corner, because deep down I know I liked you... And I know how bad you felt when I ignored you. But I had my reason, very genuine reasons."Becky’s lips curved into a smile, still catching her breath from the unexpected experience."Do you want to tell me?" She asked, but Jace's eyes were fixed on the floor, as though he was ashamed of what he had done to her."Look at me," she ordered, in an authoritative tone, yet her touch on his face was ever so gentle. She lifted his face so that their eyes interlocked once more, and said,"Tell me what it is and I will understand, you don't have to hide anything from me... You see now, Jace, we don't have to hide anything from each other and all this hate, you won't have to face them alone because I will be by your side the whole time.""That's the problem exactly, Becky," Jace retorted, his hand pulling her fingers off his cheeks."

"Thanks, my ladybug," Jace uttered with a smirk. He opened the little black box just enough for the metallic little creatures to fly in, before closing it and placing it down in his wardrobe. He had used it to spy on two students, the one who had attacked him on his way back from the cafeteria after he saw the sign hung on the wall along with Adan's picture. And the second, was the guy who had purposely poured hot sauce on him while eating at the cafeteria. "They are friends," he thought to himself, "That's so convenient, and that explains why they both came after men without a care in the world." While spying on them with the ladybug, he learnt that they were from similar departments, both in their second year and also had a third friend named Adam that completed the clique. "If I could get them to support me," He thought to himself, "That'll be three out of five, but how? What can I even do to make two students who hate me enough to embarrass me, stand by my side?" At the mom