18 Meeting A Familiar Stranger

"Mr. Cage! What brings you here?" Vivian asked a nervous tone lacing her words.

She was partly blocking me from the man that we bumped into, so I peeked from behind her and I halted in place as I immediately made eye contact with the person.

In front of us, was a tall looking man that looked as if he was in his late thirties? He wore an all-black outfit that consisted of a black trench coat, plain black shirt, and a pair of black skinny jeans. He wore a pair of combat boots and I noticed a satchel dangling from his right shoulder.

"I'm heading to the office, what are you doing out here miss Vivian and don't you know that it's forbidden to run around the halls? Just because school hasn't started yet doesn't mean the rules are inapplicable," he said.

His voice was gruff and cold that it sent uncomfortable chills down my spine.

I unconsciously looked up at his face, only to see that his eyes were fixated on mine. Suddenly, a wave of familiarity washed over me as I stared back at him. It felt like freezing cold water got dumped into my entire body.

And just like that… I had one strange thought circling my mind unexpectedly.

'Have I seen him before?' I thought to myself.

I thought hard, trying to remember where it is exactly that I've seen this person before.

'I would certainly have recognized him, seeing that I have barely interacted with anyone for the past 16 years of my life,' I wondered.

What made it even more confusing, is that the sense of familiarity is not that f just pure acquaintances, but it felt strangely deep. I could not quite describe it, but I was certain that I should know him.

Just then, I could see a glimmer of something flicker in his eyes as he looked at me back. But, before I could distinguish what it was, he turned away from me and looked at Vivian. A stern expression etched on her facials.

'Scary,' I shivered in place.

Vivian scratched her head and laughed nervously.

"Ehehe, sorry Mr. Cage, I wasn't paying attention earlier," she says with a nervous tone.

The man named Mr. Cage just grunted in response and gave me a quick sideways glance before speaking.

"I can see that, Miss Vivian. And… who is this?" he asked giving me another look.

His glare was slowly getting on my nerves, so I glared at him back.

His expression was unreadable that it was making me a bit frustrated. The way he asked about me sounded like it was almost a demand and that it also sounded like it was said out of disgust.

"Oh—Uhmm, this is Levi, she's a new student," Vivian blurts.

She holds up my shoulders and reveals me to Mr. Cage.

I nervously looked at Vivian before giving Mr. Cage an uneasy smile.

"H=Hello, sir… I'm Levi D'emillo, I just got here a few days ago," I said anxiously.

I don't know if it was just me, but I think I saw Mr. Cage's eyes slightly widen at the mention of my name.

'Curious…'

But as I blinked, his face was as stoic and hard looking as earlier.

"D'emillo…?" he mutters to himself.

His expression suddenly scrunched a bit, after a moment of looking directly at me.

"Hmph… I guess as a temporary teacher here, I must welcome you to the school as well… Welcome Miss D'emillo, to DR Academy," he says.

His tone when he stated my surname sounded a bit deeper and almost sounding of malice. My brows furrowed at this feeling my rage building up to its peak, but I quickly regained from it and almost reluctantly thanked him for welcoming me.

"Hmph… since all the formalities have been exchanged, I suppose I should go. The head mistress is waiting for me," he mutters.

'That woman…' I have regained the most part of my memories and I can clearly distinguish that particular woman.

'How annoying…' I thought harshly.

Vivian nodded obediently whereas I just avoided looking at him in general.

"You girls shouldn't wander off too carelessly, Miss Vivian; I hope that you keep your excitement at bay. Your behavior is too straightforward and reckless," he says as he starts to walk past us.

He gives me a side-ways glance with an uninterested look in his eyes.

'The feeling is mutual, bub,' I thought in irritation.

"I hope to see you soon, Miss Levi," he mumbles to me.

The way he said that made me feel a chill of discomfort travel down my spine.

As soon as he was about a meter away from us, I followed him with my eyes.

'Creepy…' I thought.

Though I was annoyed beyond belief, I still couldn't shake the feeling of familiarity.

'He really does look and sound so familiar… But, I'm almost certain that I've never seen him before… Strange,' I thought as I watch Mr. Cage's figure disappear through the lengthy corridors.

My train of thought was cut short as I felt someone tugging at my arm. I turned to look at Vivian only to see her cheery expression back in commission.

"Hey, come on, we still have a lot of places to go to," she said as she continues pull my arm again.

For a moment, I seemed to have been out of it, but I eventually succumbed to her wishes and just nodded at her. Taking that as her green flag to wistfully drag me wherever it is she wanted to take me to.

As she drags me along, I couldn't help but have my mind wonder elsewhere.

'He looks so familiar, it's beginning to get frustrating,' I anxiously thought.

I bit my lip and shook my head back to reality, 'no, I don't have time for this. It doesn't matter whether I know him or not. I'm not planning on hanging around for too long; I must find a way to get out of here.'

"Let's skip the other floors of the main building for now. It's all just boring rooms that aren't even that important," she says, a slight waver in her tone.

Though I wanted to know what was wrong, I didn't have the chance to speak. In the end, I just let her drag me along to wherever she wanted to go.

Quote of the Chapter!!

"There will always be a reason why you meet people. Either you need to change your life, or you're the one that'll change theirs."

-Unknown-