Four

Yes University

Chicago, United States

Terra, Gaea Solar system

Neutral Free zone

January 14th 2019

 For the rest of her courses in the early afternoon, Sam took her time to think about the advice Dr.Dingle had given her. Mending the relationship with her Aunt was something that Sam had always wanted. But for some reason, she just hadn't gotten to it. After she was done with her class for the day, Sam decided to go to her dorm. She didn't feel like returning to Henry's apartment, and she wanted to get the pills that Stella had sent to her. Unfortunately for Sam, she had forgotten her key to her dorm room. Luckily for Sam, her roommate was there to let her in. Sam wasn't surprised to see Aria Fields in her black nightgown robe, her jock of a boyfriend propped on the sofa by the tv. It seemed they were watching some kind of movie, and Sam had interrupted them.

"Shouldn't you be at your boyfriend's place?" Aria said. She was right. Sam normally spent most of her time at Henry's place. The few times she was here, Sam had needed essentials like her pills, which Stella normally picked up and shipped over here for her.

"Sorry for the interruption," Sam said as she left the living room to go into her own separate room. Sam froze, looking around the room. The last time she had been here was the night of the incident. Her bed was covered with clothes and piles of comic books. The last issue of the Tower of Fate that she was reading was open for her to see the images that she loved. Sam remembered that she had not finished it and that later issues had come out recently. Sam was a big comic book fan..mainly because she loved the experience it gave her. Sam wished she could pick it up and start from where she left off... But it was the red-stained green rug that she found herself staring at. The memories of that night came rushing back. It had been the anniversary of her Dad's death, and the day had felt so suffocating that she had forgotten to take her pills. The result of that decision was not pleasant. It was not something that Sam liked to look back on. Sam searched her desk, moving aside the ripped sketch papers on it to see if her aunt had sent the new pills. Sam was nearly out of the ones she had left at Henry's place. Henry... Oh my god. Sam was supposed to keep in touch with him after she was done with classes. She checked her phone, and sure enough, there were missed calls from him. Sam listened to the first voicemail, and she couldn't stand the worries she could hear in his voice. It pissed her off that Henry thought that she was so fragile. So weak that she could break anytime. Just like Stella. You suffered a horrible trauma, Samantha. I don't deny that. But I wonder, have you dealt with the traumas? Was that why she appeared weak to Henry and Stella? Because she hadn't dealt with the death of her father. Or even her Mother, whom she never even knew. Was Dr. Dingle right in saying that this was all just a result of her not dealing with it? But what about the other one? The things that Sam dared not speak out. The shadows in the night that used to frighten her as a kid. The voices and colors that were there, but no one could hear or see but her. Was that all in her head too? This was too much for her to just think about. She had to do something. Her sketchbook was right there in front of her. So Sam did what she always did in situations when her mind felt too crowded. What she was good at? She drew. Sam grabbed her pencils and colors and closed her eyes. And just like that, she began to draw. By the time she was done, the sun was setting, and her head felt kind of clear. It had been a long time since she just sketched an image that popped into her head. Sam looked at the book, and it was the same figure that she always sketched. Her Imaginary Champion. He was as handsome as ever, with a chiseled face that came with strong and sharp cheekbones and jawlines. Yet there was something about the face that held both youthfulness and maturity combined in one. It might have been the eyes that she had painted a luscious beautiful blue. Sam wasn't sure about the color of the hair. Sometimes she was struck between making it a darkish gold or bright gold. Sam went back through the other ones that she had sketched since her father bought the sketchbook for her. She remembered the story she had made up of the prince who fought monsters to get into a castle to save his princess, but it turned out that the princess didn't need saving. Father had asked her to sketch it out, and Sam did. Ever since then, it was something Sam did to calm herself. Sam glanced at her phone and was surprised to see how late it was. She was supposed to be at the art gallery for the gala. Sam jumped up, swearing as she rushed to get ready.

By the time Sam was ready-She had thrown in a long sleeve silk shirt with pleated trims and navy blue jeans with combat boots- Aria's boyfriend had gone, and she was by the dining table skimming through a gossip magazine. She looked up at Sam as she grabbed her coat from the coat closet.

"Something came for you while you were out." She said. Was it her refilled pill? Aria grabbed a letter from the table. Sam took it from her and saw that it was a letter from the school. And that was when she remembered about applying for the Harvin fellowship grants for Music students. This was her first time applying for it, and finally, they got back to her. Should she open it...she was nervous..too nervous to even open it. Sam put it aside in her coat pocket. Tonight was about Henry. She had to get to the art gallery.

****

Henry was definitely mad when she finally arrived. She could tell, not by the muddish red aura that surrounded him, but by the way his smile was fixed on his face. He was surrounded by a group of people in a black tux. They were sipping champagne and laughing at whatever Henry was saying to them. Henry smiled at them and waved her over. Sam held her shoulders high as she let Henry pull her into his embrace.

"Gentlemen, You all remember Sam," Henry said. They all smiled at her, their eyes ogling her all over. Sam could actually smell the lust that was oozing off from them. This meant that her meds were wearing off. Damn it. Not now. Not right now. Sam smiled at them as she pulled Henry away.

"Excuse us, please," Sam said. She didn't wait for their answer as she pulled Henry over to the other side of the room by the wall to a painting.

"Where the hell have you been?" Henry hissed. "I've been calling you."

"I'm sorry. I was preoccupied." She said. "I went over to my dorm and lost track of time."

"You should be wearing the dress that I picked out for you," Henry said. Sam rolled her eyes at it. Of course, he was worried about the clothes she wore. But Sam didn't have time to argue with him. She had to get her pills in order to deal with her affliction.

"Do you have your keys with you?" Sam asked.

"My keys. What about yours? Are you OK, Sam." Henry said.

"Yes, I'm fine. Can I just have your key to your apartment?" Sam said. "I forgot my keys in my dorm room." 

"Are you leaving already? You just got here." Henry said. " First, you come late and totally undress for the occasion. And now you want to leave. What's wrong with you."

"What's wrong with me? What's wrong with me." Sam hissed at him. "I told you I didn't want to come here." Sam could feel Henry fighting with his anger, pushing it down. The aura around him was fluctuating, and it made her feel dizzy. Sam needed her pills right this second.

"I can't believe you. I seriously can't." Henry said. "I can't do this right now." He walked off back to his group of admirers who were checking out a painting. Sam grabbed a glass of champagne and drank it all up at once. She was improvising since alcohol was the best next thing. She grabbed another one as she noticed the painting that Henry's admirers were looking at. It was her painting. Her Star of Melody painting. She had painted it weeks before the anniversary of her father's death. Sam had no idea where the inspiration for the painting had come from. All she knew was that she had put a lot of thought and focus into completing it before the events of that night had caught up on her... She felt the itch on her left wrist again. Damn it. She didn't want to think of it. She needed to drink some more. Sam was on her fourth glass of champagne when she saw him enter. At first, she couldn't believe her eyes. Sam thought she was crazy. Crazier than she had been acting lately. But he was right there. Dressed in a black trench coat and black pants. His hair was pure gold. He also had the tan olive color she had imagined him with. Everything about his appearance was the same. He walked around, quietly maneuvering against other people while staring at each painting. Sam could tell from his face that he was bored. Couldn't blame him for that. She had been to this event more times than she could count, and she was always bored. He looked around the room some more before he settled on her painting. Sam felt her legs pulling her towards him just as he walked over to it. She looked around, and no one seemed to notice him or her as she approached him. What should she say to him? Should she even talk to him? And that was when she felt it. The aura surrounding him. There was something about it that just drew her in, like a gravity force beckoning her to its center. Every part of Sam's being was pulled towards him, her cells igniting just glancing at him. It was like the strings of fate connected them to each other, and there was nothing Sam could do to stop it.

"I call it Star of Melody," Sam said. He turned around, and Sam was smacked with a bolt of lightning. At least, that was how it felt. Now that she was closer to him, Sam could see how beautiful he truly was. Compare this to what was in her sketchbook... Sam couldn't even begin to. It was like he had been sketched by the gods or maybe even one God himself. His features were sharper and stronger. His face was chiseled into perfection-if there even was such a thing like that. Wide cheekbones with a broad forehead and a pronounced jawline. His hair was pure gold, bright like the sun. Sam could not believe how mesmerizing he was. And then there was his aura. So bright and warm like the sun, It was gravitating and attractive. She felt just being in his presence alone was enough to burn her. But what truly drew her towards him was his eyes. They were the color of sky blue, so normal and mundane, different from the alienness of his face. But Sam felt like it suited him. There was also something about his eyes, something Sam couldn't put her mind to. She realized too late that she was mindlessly ogling him. But he seemed not to have noticed. Or if he did, he said nothing about it. "Sorry for bothering you, but I couldn't help noticing that it's the only Painting that seemed to grab your attention since you walked in."

"Well, You're an observant one, aren't you." He said with a smile. She felt her legs go all out under her. What an incredible smile.

"Have to be. Part of being an artist, I guess." Sam said. she couldn't believe that she was boldly talking to him. Sam didn't do well when it came to socializing or making friends, one of the reasons why she spent most of her time with Henry. But here she was, talking to a stranger who may or may not be real.

****

After what felt like a long time -but was probably around five to ten minutes of conversation- he was gone like he was never there to begin with. Sam felt awkward, just standing there alone like she had just been talking to herself. She turned around to find Henry staring at her. There was a burning look in his eyes that she recognized as anger. Sam walked over to him to the other side of the room, past some ceramic face sculptures to where he stood. Far away from the music playing in the background and the chatter of the audience.

"What the hell was that?" He said. Sam was surprised at the sharpness of his tone. She had never seen Henry this mad before.

"What? What happened." Sam wondered. 

"Did you take your meds before coming here?" Henry whispered. There was some kind of urgency in his voice that she didn't like.

"Why would you ask me..." Sam froze. Understanding dwelled on her... no..no..no... She turned back to stare at her painting. It hadn't been real. It had all been in her head...no...no...Not now.. not now... She tried to shut it off, but they came, images of her lying on the floor....blood out of her wrist... the darkness fighting to claim her...and her fighting back against the pull of it. 

"Are you even listening to me, Sam? Samantha-"

" I can't do this. I... just can't.." Sam ran out before he could say anything. She plunged into the outside, gulping as much fresh air as she could. Her knees were shaking, and she bent over as she threw up on the pavement. She needed her pills. But she couldn't go back in there and get Henry's key. Which meant that she had to go back to her dorm to get the key Henry had lent her. But she didn't have the strength to stand up. People walked by, staring at her, probably thinking she was drunk. Her head felt lightheaded, her stomach grumbled, empty after she had puked her guts. And that was when she felt it. A splitting headache tore through her head, images upon images flooded her eyes, forcing Sam to let out a scream. Passerbys moved away from her while some began whispering, their phones pointing towards her. But Sam didn't pay attention to them. She was still frozen by the images she had seen. It looked like some kind of fight in an office space. A space that looked familiar. Her sight landed on a pillar of light that had pierced the sky. The pale light pierced through the sky, the shockwave cleared the night sky of the clouds, and yet no one around her noticed it. She was the only one who had seen it. Sam knew...instinctively deep down, she knew that the light was the source of the pain in her head. And just like that, Sam began running towards the light.

The path that Sam took to get to the light was familiar. She had taken one of the redline trains that took her all the way to downtown. And just like she suspected, she ended up in front of her Therapist building. Arriving at the building, a sixteen-story skyscraper located around the South Loop area of Chicago, Sam felt nervous. The pale light was gone, but the pain in her head was still lingering. Sam wondered if the Dr. was in her office. Dr. Dingle sometimes worked late into the closing time of the building, and right now, it was just a quarter after seven, which meant that she might still be in there. Jakob, the security night shift, was not at his usual place by the desk, which faced the building entrance. He normally was there all the time and would let her in those times when she came to see Dr.Dingle late in the night. But this time, he wasn't. Strange. Another strange thing...Sam pushed against the door entering the building. Doors like this one were supposed to be closed around a certain time when most tenants of the building were gone. And then Jakob, with the press of a button, would let her in, but he was not there, and the door was unlocked. Sam shrugged it off, maybe he had left it open for me in case she came. He was kind and considerate. Sam turned to her left to get to the elevator, but then she stopped. The gate bar that needed a card to be scanned to let one pass through was open. Another sign something was definitely wrong and out of place. But then again, Jakob could have left it open for the cleaning crew to get to the elevators to clean. Stop overthinking things. No....No...She wasn't overthinking things. Something was wrong. She could feel it deep within her bones. Her head still felt sore, like a drill was still drilling its way into her brain. She took a deep breath and proceeded to take the elevator to the fourth floor, where Dr.Digle's office was. She walked slowly to it, wondering what the hell was happening. As she breathed in and out, cold air came out of her mouth. There was a cold chill in the air, a cold that crawled all over her skin like the stampede of tiny bugs. Sam noticed that a wisp of black smoke was coming out of where Dr.Dingle's office was. Was it fire? She ran as fast as she could to the office. The door was wide open, and then the smell hit her. It was the smell of death and rotten eggs. Sam felt her stomach try to empty itself, but there was nothing to empty as she had thrown up everything outside the gallery. But her stomach was still tired no matter how empty it was. She walked into the office, where the smell was stronger. There was no fire but an aura of black smoke hanging around every corner of the office. The calming presence that used to fill the office was gone, replaced by a malevolent feeling that scared the fuck out of her. The office was in disarray, the shelves with all the books broken, the books spread across the floor. Glass from the white chandelier was scattered all over the floor. It felt like a storm had passed through here, large holes filled the room, and long claw marks covered some parts of the wall. Sam felt like there had been some kind of fight here. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Sam was so confused and dazed out of her mind that she stepped on something that felt hard and squishy. Sam pulled her right leg up and saw what looked like a blackish tentacle, yellow pus flowing out of it and burning a hole right through the floor. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. Has she completely fallen off the rails? Was this all in her head? No. This was real. This was reality. She could feel it deep within her bones. Which meant that... she didn't want to think of it. A pale light within the room forced her eyes to land on Dr. Dingle. She was by her desk, sitting on her chair. Her body was laid across the desk. When Sam got closer to her, she could see the blood that was on the floor close to her desk. The blood seemed to have spread from the desk to the floor. She should leave. She should run and get help. Above the body, hovering in the air, was the source of the light that had called to Sam. The source of the pain that was trying to tear her brain apart. But Sam gritted her teeth, enduring it. What was going on? What the hell was this shard of crystal?

"Dr.Dingle," Sam whispered her name. Leave Sam. Get the fuck out of here. But Sam didn't. She had to make sure. She seemed to be just laying her head on the desk like she was taking a nap. But Sam knew that wasn't what it was. She touched her shoulders and pulled her back to reveal her face... "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" And just at that moment, the crystal shard above the Dr. shot straight at Sam's chest. Sam leaped backward but lost her footing as she fell on the floor by a pile of files. The crystal vanished as it entered her body, the pain in her brain exacerbated, flowing all over her body. The scream ripped out of her mouth. The smell of shit and urine didn't help. She probably fell unconscious for a minute or two because the next thing she knew, she was lying on the floor next to the piles of files. A picture got her attention. It was her picture across her name on the file. There were a bunch of other ones, but her's was the only one that was unsealed. Sam turned back to Dr.Dingle, her eyes burnt to the socket, a silver dagger stuck in her gut. What the Fuck had she stumbled onto. She pressed her hand on her chest, feeling to see if anything had happened to her. But nothing seemed to have changed. Sam grabbed her files and ran. The image of Dr.Dingle's dead body burnt into her mind for all of eternity.