PECULIAR HEIRLOOM

She looked back after noticing someone followed her, and it surprised York to see that it was, in fact, is Thea.

"York?" She looks helpless with her usual innocent look, despite her totally different appearance. But she runs away petrified, open, and locked the front door of their boarding house, leaving York outside.

She opens her room startled, with all the mess that she saw. She sat down at the side of the bed, anguished with every unexplainable situation that's going on with her life right now. Besides having but a monster boyfriend, the weird scenarios of waking up everywhere with the unconscious, half-dead bodies nearby then now finding herself dressed like she's not she. She remembered how she woke up inside the motel with an unconscious stranger on the bed, awhile ago, half-dead, just like how she gains consciousness in the camp with the insensible bodies of Nerie's friend lying on the ground. Prompt her to leave the camp in no time and unannounced.

She's awake all night cleaning up all the mess inside her room and flop her body to the nearest bed after. She woke up hearing a beep in her phone indicating a message received. She grabs her phone to read a message from an unknown number, which now she knows that it's from York, and decided to change the name.

(York) I'm sorry if I failed to disclose everything to you in advance. Now that you know the real me and it may seem so unfathomable. I want to tell you that I'm not a monster. I may look like one, but you have to know or at least give me a chance to let me show you what's truly inside me. Because what's inside is the real me.

She paused to contemplate for a while, and curiosity grows into her. What if everything that happened to her is part of what she really is, her being out of herself for some time, her dreams, and even York. What if she's also a freak herself?

Behind all the strange happenings going on in her life presently. She still doesn't have an excuse to suspend her daily commitments, as a student, as an employee. After a little nap, she cleans herself up, wears her usual Thea style of getting dressed. Inside the University, she ambles along the long corridor towards her classroom. Flabbergasted when every person she passed by hand her a rose. The first time in her life to be noticed to this extent. She reached her classroom with a bunch of red roses in her hand. Did she expect to see York? Is it his idea? Except that as she travels her eyes to the entirety of the classroom, there's no sign of York.

She shrugs and walks to her chair, followed by the questioning eyes of her classmates. But no one dares to ask her about it, not even Nerie who's eyes widened in snoopiness and envy. The class started without York. Glancing over the bunch of roses that she now placed in York's vacant seat. She heeds none of the teacher discussion but contemplating to whom the roses came from. She stops pondering after someone pokes a finger on her hind shoulder to call her attention, passing a small note that's folded neatly and tied with a lacy ribbon.

"Do you like flowers? If you think you can give me a chance to show my true self. Please meet me at the rooftop after class." signed; York.

Yes, she thinks, there's also something that she wants to know about herself and why can't she give York a chance? She still loves him despite being scared of him.

She chose to use the stairs to the rooftop and avoided the crowded elevator while still carrying with her the bunch of slightly withered roses. She doesn't want another group of people looking at her this time. She got her fell a while ago.

Every particular step she takes, there some slow and hush steps echoing hers. She initially discarded the idea of someone following her. Those second steps she heard seem just stealthy and imaginary ones; since this stairway is too quiet and secluded, it's probably normal for even a little sound such as her footsteps to echo. Yet, regardless of how she makes her steps slower and delayed, the echoing step becomes more distinguishable. It doesn't synchronize her footsteps anymore. So, she decided to move a little faster, and with a sudden stop and duck, she covered herself behind the banister. Now together with more swift and stealthy footsteps, some shadow of a person beginning to emerge, reflecting the wall.

_______________________________________________

Few minutes before Thea arrived at the University.

Nerie's mincing along the school corridor when she caught sight of York talking and handling roses to random students standing by the hallway.

She verges on York while mincing exaggeratedly, trying to get his attention. "Hi-ya, how's it going?"

"Oh, hi!" He nods, giving Nerie barely a glance.

Knowing that York and Thea have some misunderstanding lately, she had observed what's going on in the camp. She can discern that whatever York's been doing right now is for Thea, to win her back. But then she's not the kind of person who will give up on something, especially someone she wants.

With a light touch on his waist and batting eyelashes, she says. "Is there something I can do to help?"

"Yes, definitely, and thank you so much for asking. Nerie, can you please hand this note to Thea? I'm planning not to attend the classes; I will wait for her, and thank you so much." With a wink, he goes forth after. Making her more disappointed, however, she still accepts the note half-heartedly.

Musing on what York responded to her, Nerie thinking about plans, where she can get York's attention or preferably to make him fall for her, but it seems that whatever way so far to captivate him didn't work. He's really unto Thea.

She takes out something from her bag with her antagonistic look, studying it with attention to detail. At first look, it's just a common transparent glass tincture bottle; there is some glittery smoke in pastel color inside, regardless of how simple does it looks. She knows it is not an ordinary keepsake. It's Thea's keepsake, and with her gut reaction, she believes that she can use this thing to win against her. While staring intensely at it, all of a sudden, it flickers and hastily covers it up to avoid being noticed, and she looks up to see Thea coming. Now she can descry that this thing reacted to Thea's presence.

Remembering York's favor, she opens the note and reads it. On the spot, she crumpled the paper and replaced another one with her own writing.

_______________________________________________

Sneaking on to follow Thea, Nerie moves slowly, lurking, intending to keep herself undetectable. After a bit, she lost track of her. She might be hiding somewhere.

Thea realized that someone's following her positively, she runs fast upstairs to find York, thinking that if ever she will be attacked, at least York is there to help her. But she doubts again what if it's York himself, he can also be an attacker or not. Still, she has to make sure. She reached the rooftop without a single person in there except for the one who followed her. She turns back around to see Nerie sneer.

"Why are you running? Are you scared, ugly bitch?" Nerie, Sounding sardonic.

"Why are you here, and where's York?" Thea may be confused and anxious, but she's trying to feign firm.

"You look scared. Why? Don't worry; I'm just here to show you something." At the same time, she takes out the little flickering bottle and shows it to Thea.

"Oh my G**, Please take care of it, it's my father's. don't drop it, please." She was taken aback. Anxious, tears forming from her widened eyes. Sliding down to her face and to her shaking hands that partly covered her lips, shaking as well.

*****

Flashing back to the moment with her father in his death bed. He handed the bottle to Thea with his death wish. " Please take this and take care of it with your life; it's part of who you are. However, you should not lose it or break it, or even try to open it. just keep it to safety."

*****

Thea doesn't know how that simple bottle became part of her life, but she believes in her father. If there is one thing, she's sure how special that bottle is. When she tried to open it slightly, some pleasant and magical scent came out, and she lost her consciousness at that time. But then, It was also that moment that she started dreaming about York.

But Nerie is unswerving. With her insolent and sarcastic laugh, followed by her twisted smile. Slowly and intentionally, she dropped—the bottle.

Running towards Nerie, Thea let go of all the flowers in her hand, trying her best to catch the bottle. Nevertheless, she failed, and she fell on her stomach, with the sight of the scattered shard on her face. Splinters of that tiny delicate bottle shards splattered on the floor with its glittery content spreading, joining the thin air. The pleasant smell that Thea used to recognize seems to deviate totally. The scent is more than just simply awful; it's nauseous. In fact, it made Thea and Nerie lose their consciousness.