Archive of Our Own

Eggchan loved being a student assistant. 

Well, at first... he only did it for the extra credits that MinuteTech exclusively offered to his history class. No one else wanted it because they thought Minute was gonna work them to their bones, but Eggchan had no choice. 

He was absent for most of his classes because he accidentally injured himself and had to stay at home to recover from his surgery. If he didn't want to fail any subjects, especially as someone who's running for latin honors, he simply had to do it.

And it wasn't bad.

Like at all.

He actually enjoyed the experience. Not only did he get more than enough credits, he also ended up getting an internship recommendation from Minute. The professor thought he did well. It was honestly such a win-win situation for Eggchan because student assistants get paid too. Oh, how he loved getting extra money to buy more books to supplement his upcoming research for his final year.

So when he came back from his internship to start his final semester in Unstable University, it didn't surprise him that he'd get recommended again.

"But professor..." Eggchan hesitantly cut off Minute's enthusiastic news about him getting recommended to be Manepear's student assistant for his final year. 

"Egg, I know you're hesitant because you think you can't handle the workload, but I promise you, Manepear won't ask for much. He just needs a little assistance with some of his duties because he ended up taking too many."

"But Sir..."

"Listen Egg, I know you. You're an exemplary student assistant. You know how to manage your time well and I also know how important school is to you. I will never send you to someone who'll get in the way of your studies. So please, Eggchan. He just needs someone who will actually do some of his work."

Eggchan remained silent. He's heard of rumors about Manepear's assistants from fellow students as well. Apparently, the professor was too much of an odd man and well... a free spirit (?) that the students who take up his work end up neglecting their duties because Manepear never tells them off nor removes them from their duties. It was honestly such a hot topic for a while because they started calling the professor a total pushover. 

"Please... Eggchan?" Minute asks again, trying his best to sound pitiful but Egg couldn't look at him at all. 

He really wanted to help out since Minute has never been anything but nice to him. Without the professor's help, Egg didn't think he'd be able to bag an internship at all, having applied late due to his injury. But no matter how thankful he was, Eggchan also wanted to come home earlier for his final year, to focus more on his research. 

It was his last year after all, he had to leave a mark in this university by creating a ground-breaking research. 

"Manepear has connections with the Unstable publishing company, I'm sure he wouldn't mind recommending your work if you become his student assistant?" Eggchan's head snapped back to Minute so fast.

Well, consider him Manepear's student assistant I guess? 

Maybe this could help him get over his researcher's block too, right? I mean, what else is a better motivator than a future opportunity?

"Where's professor Mane's desk again?" asks Eggchan way too excitedly. Minute facepalms, murmuring "this kid is such a menace" while pointing towards the last cubicle in the office. Eggchan thanked Minute and headed towards that same spot.

While he walked slowly and quietly to Manepear's desk, he saw Wifies waving at him from another cubicle. Wifies was his fellow student assistant, but he worked for professor Branzy. After Eggchan gave him a subtle wave back, Wifies continued talking with professor Branzy again. 

When he reached Manepear's desk, what greeted him was the sight of an overly decorated space filled with books about... combat? And a bunch of polaroid pictures of Manepear holding what looked like a spear. Most of the pictures were black and white.

Maybe he just liked that aesthetic? Even though it was pretty old school, and well… edgy?

Eggchan thought that Manepear and Minute weren’t that old though. They were probably around their mid 30’s if Eggchan had to guess. 

He even saw some pictures with Minute in it and the rest of Unstable's faculty. The remaining pictures had different people with Manepear doing silly poses with them. They looked like old students. 

Eggchan's eyes landed on one single picture whose student's face was blackened with a marker so angrily, it was the only picture that was not black and white too. 

How sad. For a picture so colorful, it seemed so hated, he thought. For some reason, it made him uncomfortable to be snooping around so he just simply turned away from that creepy picture. 

The professor who was supposed to be entertaining him, was leaning back on his chair, while his eyes were covered with a pale yellow sleeping mask. Eggchan weakly called his name. Manepear's body jolted, like he was so shocked someone was even near him.

He immediately removed his sleeping mask and replaced it with his reading glasses while squinting at Egg. He did hear about Manepear's sensitive eyes. Most of his classes were conducted with a projector in auditorium rooms instead of the usual classrooms. 

Not that he ever had to go to one of his classes, of course.

When Manepear realized he was a student, he immediately sat up straight and started acting like a professional. He gave Eggchan a strained smile, "How may I help you, dear student?"

"Uh.. well professor Minute---" without even letting Eggchan finish, Manepear snapped his fingers repeatedly. 

"Oh you're the student assistant! Welcome! Welcome! So sorry you caught me looking like a mess--" Manepear hurriedly tidied his desk, swooping empty juice boxes and snacks away from his books, straight down to a mini trash can.

When Manepear noticed the creepy picture that Eggchan saw earlier, his face had a weird expression but quickly masked it back with his professional smile. He grabbed the picture and crumpled it with his hands like it had offended him, then threw it sneakily in the trash. 

"Anyway, I'm so sorry. I'm about 100% sure Minute roped you into this. You're in your final semester, right? You must be busy," Manepear looked apologetic. 

"It's fine," Eggchan says quietly, trying to get a feel of what Manepear is like. He did look actually sorry. 

Eggchan gave Manepear a quick scan while the professor yapped about how sorry he was and how much of nagger Minute was. He had seen the professor in the passing before but he realized he’s never actually taken a good look before. He was expecting Manepear to be a scrawny old man like your typical professors, but he wasn’t. He was well-built and looked like he worked out too.

The spear, huh? What an odd hobby.

Heck, he looked like he could take down a bear if he really wanted to. So why the hell were the students calling him a freaking pushover then? If it were Eggchan, he wouldn’t dare mess with a man that’s built like a truck and can knock him out cold.

"Well--Uh.. wait let me see. Oh! You can choose which one you wanna do," Manepear points to a sticky note. When Eggchan saw the list, he couldn't help but cringe.

He immediately understood why Minute had to beg him to do this, these tasks were not a one-person thing. 

When Manepear saw his expression, "Don't worry! You only have to choose one. I'll handle the rest or find someone else who can help me do it." Eggchan just nodded and took the sticky note to give it a read. 

Eggchan scanned the tasks that interested him the most. 

• Filing school documents (seemed tedious)

• Encoding student grades (Egg doesnt like seeing someone else's grades, much less computing it)

• Front-desk management shift (Eggchan hates people)

• Campus tour guide (No. Just no)

• Assistant librarian 

His eyes shone at the last option. He remembered wanting to do this back when he was still Minute’s assistant but the slots were filled and a student named Parrot beat him to it for the last spot. He also remembers feeling down because he had to do another task that was so boring he almost fell asleep everytime he had to do it.

It was a no brainer for this book-loving history student. He had to choose the last task. Who doesn’t like working around books? Especially when you have to do your research? That’s free access to the best source materials ever.

It was basically like hitting two birds with one stone, or working in heaven (but in land) for Eggchan. 

“I want to do the assistant librarian task, Sir,” he says with gusto, unable to contain his excitement.

But Manepear looked taken aback. No, he didn’t look too happy and Eggchan couldnt help but wonder why. There was something unusual about that reaction.

The professor went silent for a good minute before he smiled at Eggchan. “Are you sure? This is a veryyyy demanding task, it’s not really recommended for graduating students. I recommend this–” Manepear pointed to the front-desk management shift, “--instead. It has short work hours. It’d be perfect for your schedule as a history major.”

“Oh.. I'm not that good at dealing with other people,” Egg weakly says. Mane kept recommending another task, probably annoyed because Eggchan kept declining with an actual valid reason.

There’s no way I’m letting this chance go, he thought.

Manepear looked conflicted for a minute, staring hesitantly at his desk for another while before he looked at Egg again, “Are you really sure you want this? This is at the old library, you know.”

“Yes. I was thinking about making use of the books there as my source materials. Is… there anything wrong?” Egg asks the professor who’s so set on convincing him to take another task.

“No—no.. not really. It’s just… have you never heard about the rumors about the old library?”

That got Eggchan thinking, he did hear something about ghosts on the passing from Theo, his roommate.

“That it’s part of the seven mysteries of the university?” 

“Yeah, that rumor.”

He remembers Theo’s vivid story telling, even whipping out his violin for a more “scary vibe" when their power went out one time. Theo mentioned something about seeing moving figures, mysterious noises, and something about creepy eyes from the student assistants who worked there.

Eggchan calls bullshit though.

“I don’t really believe in ghosts,” he deadpanned. It was the truth, he doesn't believe in anything not backed by science, that’s for sure.

“Ghosts, huh? It’d be good if it were just ghosts,” Eggchan heard him whisper to himself. 

“Were you concerned I’d get scared?”

“Yeah. Most of my assistants left the work pile up there because they left the task midway, saying they got scared or that they can’t do it anymore.”

“Ah.. you don't have to worry about that with me. I don’t get scared easily, professor.”

“Really?” Manepear says in a weird tone as he meets Eggchan’s eyes through his glasses, making Egg feel a little intimidated.

“Yes, sir.”

“I really hope that’s the case,” he says again with a vague tone, making Eggchan scrunch his brows together.

“Huh?”

“Anyway! Are you really sure about this? Because I will give it to you if you are. Just letting you know in advance that it might be a little hectic compared to the student assistant jobs you’re familiar with. There haven't been as many volunteers there unlike before.” Probably because of the stupid ghost rumor, Eggchan figured. 

“I’ll survive. Thanks, professor.”

“Alright. Thank you, Eggchan.” Manepear gives him a brimming grin, a stark contrast from his serious expression not a while ago.

What an odd man.

Or overall, that was an odd conversation.

When Eggchan left the faculty room, holding a spare key for the old library, he silently wondered. How did Manepear know he was a history student?

He doesn't remember mentioning it during their conversation.

He brushes it off, thinking maybe Minute briefed him about Eggchan’s information. He was a graduating student after all, it was important to know about his major and how busy he can get.

“C’mon bro, just this one time bro. You’re graduating soon..” Theo whines at him, even giving him the puppy eyes.

Eggchan rolled his eyes at his dramatic roommate, “If you didn’t mess up that one test because you were drunk, maybe we could’ve graduated together—and maybe went out after that like normal people.”

“When are you gonna stop bringing that up man, I know my mistakes already, okay?” Theo said as he buried his face in his palms while kicking his feet on the bed.

“And yet here you are, begging me to go with you again to get drunk. I wonder, did you actually ever learn?” 

“Man–” Theo then went on a rant about how he was such a killjoy, but honestly, Eggchan just had a fun time teasing this guy.

Theo was a nice roommate, probably the best if he were being 100% honest, but he’ll never say that out loud. Eggchan never had troubles with him. Theo was a music major and Eggchan only ever had one rule.

No violin playing when he’s inside the dorm to rest or to study. 

Theo respected his wishes and so Eggchan respected his too, which was mostly to turn off his lights at 10 PM because Theo was an early sleeper and the light disturbs his sleep. 

When he first heard about being roommates with a music major for four years, Eggchan lowkey accepted and signed away his fate that he’s gonna have a noisy college life. But surprisingly, it was the opposite.

Well, it was still noisy, but in a different way. There was less violin screeching and more shared laughter. He ended up becoming good friends with Theo. The only complaint he had was that Theo was too much of a social butterfly, and that way too many people have asked him where Theo might be. Egg swears Theo knows at least one person in every circle in this damn university. 

He’s pretty sure Theo could just bring someone else to this party or whatever, but he thought Eggchan needed to have more fun. 

He was looking out for Egg, in his own way.

“Fine, I’ll go with you. Just this time, okay?” Eggchan tells him, still not looking away from his drafts.

Eggchan still remembers Theo’s beaming smile to this very day. 

“Let me guess, Theo got you,” Wifies says with a small smirk, holding a drink as he sat beside Eggchan who was squinting at his drafts from how dim the lights were at whoever’s house they were currently in. 

Eggchan looked up at him, “And so did your friends,” smirking back as he made more space for Wifies. 

As usual, the moment they got inside, Theo immediately went to the louder part of the party and Eggchan went to the quieter side of things. He just grabbed a can of beer and worked on his drafts. He was pretty surprised he even saw Wifies. Egg knows Wifies was also a bit of a hermit despite being so popular.

“Damn right,” Wifies says, looking at his barely finished drink with disdain. 

Oh, that’s why he doesn't go out as much. He has low alcohol tolerance, not that Egg can relate of course. His older cousins are heavy drinkers. They “trained” him with wine ever since he became a teen.

“There’s a lot of dangerous people who will get you drunk first, Egg!” He remembers their warnings. They probably shouldn't have let a teenager drink alcohol that young but hey, at least his alcohol tolerance isn’t that bad. He actually likes alcohol from time to time.

He just hates parties because it has too many people. Like sure, he can hold a conversation… but he genuinely prefers not to. He can’t pretend that he cares about what they’re talking about when he really doesn't. 

“You still with professor Branzy this semester?” asks Eggchan while taking another sip of his apple flavored beer.

“Yeah,” Wifies says with a soft smile. “He’s really nice and gives me a lot of extensions if I can’t do most of the tasks.”

“I’m surprised. Aren’t you in your final semester as well? You’re not busy?” 

“Ah, I finished both my internship and research this summer. I basically have so much free time now and I felt bad if I had to drop professor Branzy.”

Gosh fucking damn, curse these top students bro. Eggchan was so jealous, he had the same plan about finishing his research and internship early but he had to get injured. 

“So lucky..” Eggchan murmurs gloomily that it made Wifies laugh. 

“C’mon, Egg. It’s not like you can’t juggle your work. You’re practically famous for being an octopus, the perfect role-model amongst student assistants,” Wifies says with glaze but Eggchan shrugged it off.

There’s nothing commendable about not finishing your work early and having to juggle your work because you were irresponsible.

“But I'll admit, I thought you were gonna quit after that semester. I was surprised to see that you’re willing to take on another term with Minute,” Wifies continued.

“Oh I'm not with Minute this time.”

“Huh?”

“I’m with professor Manepear.”

Wifies almost dropped his drink. “What? Wait—you’re busy.. professor Manepear is famous for having so much backlogs too. Are you okay?” Are you trying to kill yourself? That part was left unsaid.

“Don’t overreact, he just made me choose one task because he’s planning on getting more student assistants.”

“And what’s the task?”

“I’m gonna be an assistant librarian at the old library.”

Wifies let out a scared shriek, making Eggchan look at him weirdly. 

Wifies knows about Eggchan's obsession with books, having talked about it multiple times already. He’s also mentioned to him how he really wanted that particular task and how Parrot ended up taking the spot. But still…

“But Egg…”

“What?”

“It’s the old library, you know?” Wifies says with a grimace, probably pertaining to the ghost stories surrounding it.

If Wifies was famous for being a good student assistant and for being a top student, he was also famous for one thing. This man was a huge scaredy cat. He’s heard multiple rumors about him leaving so early during group projects because he was afraid of going home too late. 

Egg remembers teasing him about it, saying how this is silly for a med student, but Wifies only told him that “Even science can’t explain some things, Egg.”

“You know I don’t believe in ghosts,” Eggchan tells him.

“I’m not talking about ghosts, Egg.” Wifies lowered his voice, “I’m talking about the missing person case.” 

“You mean the missing student assistant?” He brings his face closer, his voice just as quiet.

“Yeah. He was last seen there, but don’t tell anyone about it. It’s… a sensitive topic for the professors.”

Mapic. Clown’s missing student assistant. Eggchan can barely remember it but he’s seen the police and detectives snooping around the university once. In fact, the investigation is still on-going because they just couldn’t find the student.

And he was last seen inside the university.

Clown ended up getting a work suspension, for unknown reasons. Most students chalked it up as the university’s management wanting someone else to take the blame.

“Mapic’s task last semester was the same as yours, Egg. He was last seen entering the old library before he disappeared. There’s cctv evidence too and that’s exactly why they suspended Clown.” 

“Oh is that why there’s less volunteers there?”

“Exactly. I don’t really want to overstep but.. you should drop the task, Egg. I don't know, a part of me is just worried.” 

Wifies had told him before that the old library makes him feel unsettled, not that Eggchan gets it though. 

“I mean, I appreciate the concern, man. But… I can’t back out. I already signed the agreement, got it notarized, and then sent it to the faculty.” 

“Oh..” Wifies slumped on his seat, realizing Eggchan had already signed his life away there.

“Yeah..”

“You’re gonna deal with a ton of backlogs too from the past student assistants. I think, right now… only Parrot and Saps have signed up for the task.”

Huh. Top students too huh, they know the real deal about the library. Seems like the library will be a hot spot for fellow research material-hungry students.

“There’s no point in making me feel more hopeless bro, I can’t back out…” Yeah, well maybe Eggchan was starting to realize he did take more than what he can deal with. There’s only three students to deal with a five-person task, not even including the piled up work.

But Wifies had a determined look in his eyes, “I'm friends with you and Parrot, and I know Saps well enough. I can’t leave you there three all alone.”

“What do you mean?” Eggchan looked at him all confused.

“I haven't passed my task agreement yet. I’m telling Branzy I’m taking the same task as you.”

“Wait but aren't you–” Is Eggchan drunk, is he really hearing this from Wifies? Is his alcohol tolerance lower than he thought? Did he drink way too much?

“A scaredy cat? I am. But at least the four of us will be in this together.” 

“Well, well, well. Look at who it is,” Saps had a sarcastic grin on his face. But honestly, Eggchan just thinks that’s how he is. He has a resting bitch grin, that’s what.

Not because he’s an actual bitch or anything, or not that Eggchan knows him well enough to confirm that or not.

Parrot had a blank look on his face, “Saps,” he just said as a greeting.

“Do they hate each other or something?” Eggchan whispered to Wifies.

“Not really, I think they’re good friends. They just like roleplaying that they hate each other because everyone expects them to compete for the best student assistant title,” Wifies whispers back to him.

Great, now Eggchan had to deal with roleplayers.

They just introduced themselves like usual and hurriedly split their work between each other. That’s what he likes about grouping with fellow achievers, they get the work done very quickly.

Unfortunately, Eggchan was assigned to tidy up the outside portion of the old library. To his dismay, he couldn’t familiarize himself with the old library’s layout to quickly find the materials he needed. But the librarian did reassure him that he can take a break inside the library and read the books there if he wanted to.

Wifies wanted to switch tasks with him because he knew all Eggchan wanted to do was read the books but Egg knew he’d be too scared to do things alone outside. 

So there he was, trying to weed out grass outside the library, seeing Saps and Wifies laughing together as they re-arranged books from the window.

Was this even actually a student assistant task? This was hard labor! 

“This is genuinely modern day slavery,” he whispered to himself while pulling out stubborn grass from the ground when he heard a splash.

He flinched from the sudden sound and turned his head towards where he heard it from.

The sound came from a pond.

To be honest, Eggchan never knew the school had a pond, much less a pond of this size. It was massive. Who knew something like this existed? 

The pond was surrounded by a field of zinnias, its colors ranging from purple to yellow. This place looked like a hidden paradise.

But for some reason, Eggchan just couldn't help but to feel something was off. 

Like something was looking at him.

He shook those thoughts off, he’s not about to get affected by Wifies’ scaredy cat tendencies.

He went near the pond, trying to look to get a feel of how deep it is. He stared at the water, realizing it was still.

Like too still. 

He knows an active pond when he sees one. Besides books, he’s basically obsessed with fishing. The water was missing those tiny glops of water that indicate that there are fishes living in it.

“Such a shame, you would’ve been a wonderful fishing spot,” he laments.

So where did the splash come from then? If there weren’t any fish around?

Then he saw it. A statue not too far from the pond, where more zinnias accumulated on its foot.

“What are you doing so close to the pond?” A voice spoke from behind Egg, making him jump so hard he almost fell to the water. Thank god, Parrot was able to catch his hands, pulling him back with ease.

“Jesus christ, Parrot. You can’t just do that.” Eggchan tells him, flustered. His heart thrummed heavily, his adrenaline through the top. 

“Sorry, did I scare you?” Parrot laughed a little, trying to ease Eggchan’s mood.

Well, it’s not like Eggchan was that mad. Parrot just… surprised him, that’s all.

“Not really. But you surprised me, bro. I could’ve fallen into the pond.” 

“But you didn’t,” Parrot tells him, an odd smile on his face.

“Well… yeah, I guess.” Eggchan felt uncomfortable.

“Hmm.. why were you staring so hard at the statue?” Parrot asks, walking closer towards the statue with his hands on his back. Eggchan followed him quietly, somehow drawn to the mystery.

“Uhh… well. I didn’t know there was a pond here, much less a statue.”

“You didn’t? There’s like two other statues beside this one.” Parrot pointed to the statue when they got near it.

First, the statue was tall. It was basically the size of a human but with an added four foot boulder as the figure stood atop of it. But Eggchan could tell pretty quickly it wasn’t really a human because the creature had elf-like ears and horns.

“Really?” Eggchan said while he looked at the statue with awe. It was a man with a ponytail, his head had a crown while his hands held two weapons that looked like a giant hammer. 

Eggchan’s not gonna lie, at first he thought this was like a Thor rip-off project (because he looked like he was from a movie or a game) but the more he looked at the statue, the more drawn he felt. 

It did give him regal vibes. Especially his clothes. He looked like royalty with those Victorian sleeves.

For some reason, it also reminded him of the piece that Theo always plays whenever the exams are nearing. Not that he minded of course, he liked that piece.

“An old art professor sculpted them. There used to be four, but...” Parrot looked solemn. 

“But?”

“It disappeared. They think it got stolen.”

Eggchan doesnt get why a statue would get stolen but… okay? I mean it’d be pretty hard to move too. I mean, he doesn't even get why Parrot would feel sad for a statue.

Well, I guess that’s an art major for you.

“He looks well-maintained at least.”

“There are cleaning staff assigned to them, that’s why.” So that explains why there was weed all around but somehow the statue didn’t even have a single moss in it despite being near a pond.

“Hmm..” Egg looked at the statue. Noticing the pose the man was in. He looked frozen in time. It looked like he was reaching for something and stepping towards it. Eggchan couldn’t help but to look at where the statue seemed like moving to.

Not too far from where the statue was, there was a blue zinnia on the ground.

“Egg?” Parrot asked him when he stepped towards that direction.

Eggchan crouched and inspected the flower. That’s weird, blue zinnias aren’t natural. So someone must’ve dyed this specifically. It also didn’t have a stem anymore, looking like it fell to the ground.

The wind hit his face. Oh, did the wind blow this away? Eggchan grabbed the flower and carefully placed it on the statue’s foot.

“Here you go,” he whispers while looking at the it. Satisfied with his work, he turned to Parrot who had a shocked look on his face. That quickly warped back to his smiling face, though. 

“Something wrong?” Eggchan asked.

But before Parrot could answer, it started raining. Realizing they were still outside, Parrot spoke, “We should head back. Wifies and Saps wanted to go to a cafe to celebrate our first day. We can’t afford to get sick too.”

So they went inside. Before going inside the library, Eggchan couldn’t help but look back as he watched the statue get slowly drenched by the rain. 

Maybe it was just Parrot’s sentiments rubbing off of him, but the statue looked so alone outside.

“Wait… so you volunteered because of Egg?” Saps said while laughing at Wifies.

Eggchan quietly poked at cheesecake while he watched the sky turn from purple and orange into a deep blue. He sat beside Saps because the business student refused to sit together with Parrot nor sit across from him, so Eggchan ended up sitting across the weird art student instead. 

“Yeah. I was just paranoid, you know.” Wifies says while sipping at his coffee, noticing the table grew more quiet after the implication.

“I feel bad.” Eggchan flatly said, making the three laugh because they know he didn’t mean it one bit.

“Don’t feel bad. If anything, I’m glad you brought them closer to me,” Parrot said the last sentence so weakly that only Eggchan heard it. Their eyes met but Eggchan quickly broke away.

Who? Wifies? He probably meant bringing Wifies closer because they’re friends, right?

“Do you actually believe in ghosts?” Parrot asked while he munched on his croissants. 

“No.” Eggchan quickly said.

“Yes,” Wifies said with guilt.

“Yeah,” Saps said, which surprised the three of them. Saps looked like a guy who wasn’t scared of anything.

Well so did Wifies, but like…

“What? It’s normal to get scared. But like, I’m more scared of humans than ghosts,” Saps added.

They all nodded, agreeing. 

“But… I'll come clean. I was really hesitant to take this task again because of what happened, you know?” 

“Mapic?” Parrot responded back, his tone of voice hadn't changed even once.

“Yeah,” Saps’ face looked… unsettled.

“I just can’t believe he’ll disappear just like that…” he continued, his face looking more strained.

“I forgot you guys knew him,” Eggchan says, empathetic, for once.

The two of them nodded, leaving the mood awfully sullen.

“They still haven’t found a body, not anything—” Wifies says but he was cut off by Parrot.

“We don’t know if he’s dead. He could still be alive,” he says far too quickly.

Welp, sensitive topic. Eggchan shot Wifies a look, warning him to say anything else.

“Anyway! Don’t you guys think it’s getting late? We should head home.” Saps said while looking at his smart watch. 

Eggchan looked at his phone, noticing it was 8 PM already. Okay, maybe he had more fun than he originally thought because he didn’t even realize it was so late already. 

Eventually, Wifies and Parrot ended up going the other way because their dorms were further out on the university while Saps and Egg headed in the same direction. Turns out Saps and Eggchan’s dormitories were so close to each other. 

It was a quiet walk back save for the small talk, until Saps’ tone became serious.

“Listen, Egg… I don't care if you think I’m weird for this–or if you start thinking I'm a shitty person but I swear to god I usually don't talk smack behind other people’s backs. But I would just feel bad if I didn't tell you this.”

Eggchan looked at him questioningly but urged him to continue.

“You shouldn’t get too close with Parrot,” he uttered with so much seriousness that it made Egg silent.

“Do you guys actually have beef?” He managed to say back.

“What? No! Not at all. We’re actually.. friends. We used to be really good friends, but not anymore. I mean… we still talk but, it’s unlike before.” Saps said while waving his arms slightly around.

“Then why are you telling me this if you’re friends?” Eggchan couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at that.

“It’s just… before Mapic disappeared, we three used to be the closest trio amongst the assistants. But when that happened, Parrot just changed.”

“Changed how?”

“I can’t explain it even if I wanted to.. but Parrot isn’t the Parrot I knew before,” his eyes looked distant, like he was actually talking about a person from the past.

“...”

“And… we didn't tell the professors about this because Parrot was afraid we’d both get investigated but—I left them both alone in that room because I had to do something,” Saps spoke too quickly, like he had waited so long to get this out. To finally tell someone.

“What?”

“That night… when Mapic disappeared–”

“---Parrot was the last person with him.”

Eggchan couldn't sleep. He wondered why Saps would even tell him about that information. I mean Egg’s typically not the person you tell your secrets to.

Theo had long turned off the lights but Eggchan was still wide awake from what he had just learned. Seriously, how can one sleep after hearing that?

Mapic, the student assistant who disappeared.

Saps and Parrot who were with him the night before he disappeared.

Wifies, who was literally Parrot's best friend… but somehow how the hell didn't he know about this?

Or maybe he did? And just didn’t tell Eggchan?

Maybe that’s the reason why he felt bad for Eggchan and—

Okay that’s enough overthinking, as he turned yet again in his bed, hoping he can finally sleep.

Eggchan was a pretty smart guy. Usually, when people tell you to stay away from someone, they have a good reason to. You know what they say, there’s no smoke if there’s no fire.

So he did just that. 

He did it so smoothly that Parrot didn’t even notice he was acting weird. He’d talk to Parrot if he had to and joke around with him, but he especially avoided being alone together with the guy.

He thinks he gets Saps now. Not totally, but slightly.

Parrot, from what Egg can remember, used to be a really cheerful person. But now, he was… less loud but more intense. He doesn't even know how to describe the change, but it’s there. Can a person even change by that much in the span of a year?

Maybe he just matured? Maybe he was traumatized? Egg doesn’t know exactly, but the guy is pretty weird right now, that’s what he can tell you.

Sometimes he’d catch Parrot staring at him, weirdly smiling at him and then going back to his work.

Maybe that’s just how art students are?

Like… weird?

Nah, that’s an unhealthy stereotype.

Anyway, most of Egg’s days went pretty smoothly. He’s almost 80% done with his weeding out task so he found quiet joy in sitting near the pond and bringing his own foldable chair as he worked on some of his assignments.

Sometimes, he even brings his own fishing gear, but he does release the fish back after he catches them.

But huh? Wait? Fishes? I thought this was a dead pond?

Yeah, that’s what Eggchan thought too. He was proven wrong the morning they came back though, literally right after the night where Saps and him went home together.

At first Egg thought he was just sleep deprived but there were fishes.

In the pond.

Like way too many fishes.

Parrot and Saps told him there’s always been fish in the pond.

“The staff make sure there’s always fish there. Some of them come here because fish-watching relieves their stress,” Parrot told him.

But Eggchan vividly remembers the pond being so still.

Maybe they were asleep when Eggchan visited? Heck he doesn’t even know. He’s pretty sure fishes still breathe even when they’re asleep. 

But yeah, who cares at this point? At least he gets to fish. 

Another new thing in his routine was that he just sort of started talking to the statue near the pond.

One sidedly, of course. It’s not like the statue can talk back. Eggchan thinks this is pretty crazy, especially if someone catches him doing this but… it just happened.

Maybe it was the growing stress about knowing such obscure information (that he couldn't exactly tell anyone) but since he couldn't really stand thinking about it anymore, he just started venting to a statue.

Literally.

I mean, what can the statue even do about it? Tell the police?

It can't.

That’s the point.

So Egg did just that. Every time Parrot, Saps, and Wifies would leave the old library, he’d sit near the statue and fish while ranting to the statue.

The statue even has a name now, Princess. 

Purple zennias, which filled the statue’s surroundings, were also called purple princes. So he thought, why not call the statue Princess? It was a silly name (maybe a mean one too ‘cause the character or whatever the hell it was, is obviously a man), and he did realize that the statue’s crown was not a crown, but a tiara.

So it was the perfect silly nickname for a silly rant buddy.

At first he ranted to Princess about Saps and how his nights have been more sleepless because of what he told him. 

Then he ranted about his research.

Then he ranted about his random stuff.

And eventually, he just started telling the statue his daily life. Like what he ate, what he thought about this one movie–literally the most random shit ever.

It was basically a podcast but with nature and the statue as his audience.

It actually helped. Eggchan started sleeping better at night, and his stress accumulated less, because he’s actually not bottling up things that he wanted to say, for once.

This was a pretty crazy thing to say but… doing this made him feel like he had a new friend too. University life can be pretty lonely. With his family being away, and his childhood friends going into a different university.

He was friends with Theo and Wifies, sure, but Eggchan dislikes bothering other people to talk about random stuff.

So if he can tell it to an inanimate object, he won’t be bothering anyone, right?

Eggchan’s days went by peacefully. He went to his classes, went to the library and weeded more grass, fished, talked to Princess, and then went back to his dormitory.

Life was great. 

Until the first pin dropped.

“I’m so sorry, I can’t do this anymore,” Saps told the three of them. The mood was so down that Eggchan even considered throwing a joke or two to make things better.

Apparently, Saps had been experiencing exactly what the students have previously reported around the area. Footsteps at night, weird sounds, and a pair of glowing eyes. 

Eggchan thinks he just scared himself shitless because he was frequently left alone in the library, having taken the most late shift.

“Is there anything we can do just to not make you leave–?” Parrot asked seriously but he was cut off by Saps.

“No, nothing at all,” he firmly responded. 

It’s no use. He looks too determined, Eggchan thought.

“But what about the task fee cancellation–” Wifies added, grimacing because the fee was basically their semester’s worth of salary. 

“I’ll pay it—I just can’t do this shit anymore, guys. I really tried, I know how much work we were already doing and I didn’t want to be a dead weight but I’m so sorry… This—this place isn’t normal.” Saps told them apologetically, his voice slightly breaking when he said the last sentence. 

He looked… so scared.

Just what the hell did this guy experience?

Saps grabbed his bag and passed the cancellation contract to the librarian, then turned to the three of them, “You guys should leave too,” he says before closing the door.

That was the last time Egg ever talked to Saps.

After all,  the guy just started pretending he didn't know the three of them existed.

“Egg, since you’re done with weeding the garden, your tasks will be here inside the library. You can start arranging that section—” the librarian told Eggchan all about his new tasks, which was mostly Saps’ old work, to be honest. On the brighter side, the three of them have finished working on most of the old student’s backlogs. They were apparently 50% done with the whole thing, and Eggchan couldn’t be more happier.

That’s top students for you, he cheers and thanks them for their hard work inside his mind.

Well, Eggchan was nothing but excited because he’s finally doing what he accepted this task for in the first place and boy, was he was going to make it worth it.

“So that’s it. I’m leaving this spot–well, no.. I might actually go here when I need a breather, but probably not as often. This place gives me peace, you know?” He says to Princess while proof-reading his research’s first two chapters.

“I mean I don’t know, I just felt like I had to say goodbye. Pretty silly right?” He looked at the statue, then back at his drafts.

It’s not like the statue can respond anyway, but he still wanted to say that. 

“I’m still sad about Saps… and how he’s acting like he doesn’t even know who we are anymore. I don’t know, maybe a part of me got attached to him. Maybe I was getting ahead of myself just when I started thinking we were slowly becoming friends, but that’s life… I guess. There’s nothing I can do about it.”

Eggchan stopped yapping and closed his notebook. He stood up from his seat and started folding it. “Well, I guess that’s it. Uh–thank you, Princess. I’ll see you around when… I have time. Or maybe never, because I'll get pretty busy from now on since it’s midterms.”

Then Eggchan laughed to himself after realizing what he was doing, “Man.. this sucks. Am I crazy?”

He turned his head back towards the old library when he started hearing Wifies and Parrot’s voices coming from the window. Before he could get a word out, a strong gush of wind almost knocked his notebook from his hands, making him panic. That notebook contained important research information that he stayed up so late for—he couldn't bear losing it. He tried saving it and managed to throw it on the ground before he lost his balance and slipped to the pond.

Wifies and Parrot saw what happened from the window and hurried to go outside, panic overtaking their faces.

Eggchan plunged into the cold water. He couldn’t see much from how blurry the water was, but he didn’t really panic the moment he hit the water because he’s an experienced swimmer. 

He literally grew up by the river, he’s so used to getting pushed around by his older cousin as a joke, into the river.

Egg was able to take a big breath before he plunged to the water. So he did what he should do, he tried swimming up.

And he really tried his best.

But something was lodged on his ankles. 

A vine? 

He wondered as he tried kicking away from it, conserving his breath.

But it wouldn’t snap.

Then ir… started feeling more like a hand rather than a vine.

Eggchan kept kicking, feeling like his lung was about to collapse because he was quickly losing his breath from all the kicking and swimming. But he didn't give up, he just did it over and over again–and finally, he was able to swim up, trying to catch his breath as he saw Wifies and Parrot’s expressions while waiting for him by the pond.

Eggchan almost drowned. It slowly hit him when his head was above the water—-but..

He almost died, and that made him hitch a breath.

His parent’s faces flashed in his mind.

Oh, the horrors they would have to face if they realized their son–who loved fishing, drowned in university.

But why was Wifies and Parrot… laughing at him?

He felt his heart beating so loudly, so angry that his friends weren't doing anything to help him at all when he was fighting for his life for at least three minutes down the pond. 

He swam up to the edge and hoisted himself up.

He grabbed all of his stuff and confronted the two, who were still laughing at him, “Why didn’t you guys call for help? Was it that funny to watch me struggling, huh?” Eggchan said with spite, his eyes red from the water. He heaved his breath, feeling betrayed.

“Huh? Egg, what are you saying?” Wifies asked back, baffled that Eggcan was so angry at them.

Eggchan was just so angry, “I was drowning! While you two were laughing at me!”

“What? I mean we panicked at first but…” Parrot looked aghast.

“...when we saw you on the pond, you were smiling and laughing—you were even telling us to get in.”

Eggchan felt cold.

When Theo opened the door, he couldn't help but get shocked when he saw Egg’s appearance while standing on the door and shaking like a leaf. He was drenched all over, only holding his dry notebook and Wifies’ towel.

He looked pitiful.

The moment Theo met his eyes, Egg just couldn't hold back anymore. 

He started crying.

Theo, despite not knowing what to do, he just hugged Egg while he full-on sobbed from what had just transpired.

When Eggchan finally calmed down, he told Theo what happened and his roommate was nothing but furious. He was about to storm Wifies’ and Parrot’s dorm when Eggchan begged him not to leave him alone, his hands still shaking.

It didn’t take long for Wifies and Parrot to arrive, and they both looked… just as distraught as Egg.

Egg stayed in their mini kitchen as they told Theo their side. Theo couldn’t help but believe them too, having known about the rumors about the old library.

Eggchan came back to the living room, awfully quiet. 

The moment they saw him, Parrot just started tearing up too, making Wifies cry as well. Maybe it wasn’t just Eggchan who was traumatised with what happened. The two couldn’t stop telling him how sorry they were, and Eggchan did end up forgiving them—because it really wasn’t their fault.

Saps may really be right.

The old library is weird.

Eggchan ended up telling professor Manepear what happened, launching a full on investigation on the pond because it was a potential hazard to the students. They didn’t tell him the full story, the three of them masked it as Eggchan falling accidentally on the pond while cleaning.

It was just supposed to be an investigation about the vines under the pond, but things took a sinister turn when they found no vines under the pond.

Instead they found a bunch of bones.

It was Mapic’s.

The classes got suspended because of the news, delaying their midterms. Eggchan took that time to meet with Wifies and Parrot, who looked just as sleep deprived as him.

“Professor Manepear isn’t letting me go,” says Eggchan sadly.

“Neither am I,” Wifies sighed, goosebumps can be seen on his arms.

“So am I…” Parrot muffled while he buried his face in his arms on the table.

They all sighed collectively. They all petitioned to get removed from the task but the university wouldn’t let them go. Manepear and Branzy even tried talking to the management but apparently got shut down. Obviously their professors felt very sorry for them, having realized that this situation ended up traumatizing the three students. 

Parrot especially, took the news hard because he was close to Mapic. He went to his funeral and even met Saps there but apparently, Saps still pretended like he didn’t exist.

The three of them even offered to pay the task cancellation fee out of desperation but it was too late for that. 

The university management wouldn’t budge. Eggchan thinks they’re just getting brushed off because the university was currently getting sued by Mapic’s family, and the staffs were too busy to deal with their petition.

They had no choice but to keep working on the library. They had the idea to skip the duties altogether but because they were graduating students, it was a risky plan.

Doing that could delay their graduation and ground them, making them all lose their candidacy for latin honors.

And they couldn't afford that.

Not them three.

So when the classes resumed, the three of them had two rules.

1. The three of them will always work together while at the old library. 
2. They’ll never leave anyone alone while they’re working. 

And it served them well. They never experienced any of the things Saps told them about while working at the library. No weird sounds, no footsteps, no glowing eyes, nothing at all. 

It was peaceful.

Too peaceful.

Like the calm before the storm.

Days passed until it was the final day of university, with Eggchan having finished his research a week earlier. He ended up receiving a full mark, confirming his qualification for latin honors. 

Manepear agreed to publish his research. So honestly, life was good. Except… maybe for the fact that he still had to do his assistant duties with Parrot, until the very last day of their classes. 

This university bleeds their students dry, he thought.

Where was Wifies you may ask? 

The guy ended up with a fever, trying to survive his finals. Honestly, med students just have it rough. If anything, Egg was just thankful Wifies never left him hanging with the task until the very end, well, until now or course. The dude used to be such a scaredy cat but he braved through that fear for his friends.

He even wanted to push through to the last day, all while running with a fever but Egg and Parrot mutually agreed that that was not happening. They reassured Wifies instead, telling him that they’re bringing in Lomedy, an agriculture student, as a substitute.

When Eggchan got into the library first, he noticed one thing. Princess, yes, the statue, was inside the library. 

It surprised him.

Did they move him here because they’re getting rid of the pond? Eggchan wondered as he walked towards the statue. The outside portion of the old library had basically gotten erased on the school map. It was barren now because of what happened with Mapic. 

To this very day, Eggchan still gets nightmares about the times he’s fished there, oblivious that Mapic’s remains were under the pond the entire time.

Eggchan stopped before he got too close to the statue-–maybe it was his trauma that prevented him from getting closer but he couldn't help but shake and feel the chills when he remembered that day.

The moment where he was drowning flashed back in his mind and he couldn’t take a step more forward. It's like his feet were rooted again to the ground.

Like there was a vine, or a hand, holding him back again.

“It’s been a while, Princess,” he settled by saying that from afar.

“Who are you calling Princess?” Parrot spoke again behind him, making him jump from surprise.

“Parrot, bro. I told you to stop doing that…”

The art student merely laughed, hitting him playfully at his back while he laid his bag and books down on one of the tables.

“That statue has a name, you know,” Parrot says while he was fixing something inside his bag.

Eggchan turned to him in surprise, “What?” 

“You didn’t know? It’s written on the back.”

Eggchan circled around the statue and read the name inscribed on the back. Well fuck, aren’t I stupid? That was there the entire time? Why didn’t I think of checking?

“Wemm…bu?” 

“Yeah, that’s his name,” Parrot said with a smile, sketchbook in his hands as he sat down on one of the chairs.

“That’s a weird name, Princess is kinda better,” says Eggchan, a frown in his face. Like what kinda name is Wemmbu anyway? The fuck?

“You’ll offend him, bro,” Parrot says with a laugh, but Eggchan just started throwing books at him for even joking about offending a statue.

It’s just a statue.

“Wait, didn't you say there were other statues?”

“Yeah.”

“What were their names?” Asks Eggchan while he walked towards Parrot.

Parrot had a nonchalant expression on his face, “It’s Spoke and Flame.”

“And the missing one?”

Before Parrot could answer, Lomedy came rushing towards them, carrying a bunch of coffees that were about to fall down because he’s clumsy. Eggchan was quick to help while Parrot prepared tissues to wipe down the coffee that already fell on Lomedy’s arms.

Eggchan didn’t notice that it was already 7 PM, having become way too absorbed about their conversation about planting. Eggchan had taken interest in a new hobby. 

He found out that he actually liked gardening.

At first he started with easy to grow vegetables but he feels like he’s gotten better at it. He thinks that he has enough skills to grow something harder now.

Something like flowers.

He wanted to grow purple zinnias, because it reminded him of his peaceful times at the university. He’s finally moving out tomorrow (to Theo’s dismay) and he at least wanted a souvenir about his positive experiences during his time here, and not leave with you know, his trauma. 

It also reminded him of Princes—No, Wemmbu, the statue. He has polaroid pictures with all of his friends here, save for Saps and well… Wemmbu.

It didn’t feel right to just take a picture of Wemmbu so why not just grow something that will remind Egg of the silly times he’s talked to a statue?

It was the perfect thing to grow, so Lomedy kept giving him advice about it.

“Should we lock up? It’s too late,” Asks Lomedy while looking out the window. They then heard a looming thunder—that wasn’t a good sign.

Eggchan checked his bag for an umbrella that didn't exist.

Neither did the raincoat that he impulsively bought a month ago.

Wow, he was so prepared.

“Yeah, let’s go,” Parrot responded back as they all tidied the place and their bags. As they walked towards the door, Eggchan gave one last look to Wemmbu before they locked the place.

The rain started pouring hard the moment they got to the hallway. The rain was too heavy for three people to start sharing one umbrella, which was Lomedy’s.

Out of all the times where Eggchan could’ve forgotten about his umbrella, he just had to forget it the day it actually rains.

“Come hop in guys!” Lomedy exclaimed as he pushed his umbrella’s button open. 

“You should go ahead, Lomedy. Eggchan and I can wait out the rain. Your dorm has a curfew, right?” says Parrot, concern written in his face.

“But I just can't leave you two here!” Lomedy shouts at them because the rain and the thunder were getting too loud. 

“Just tell Theo to come pick us up when the rain calms down! He has a huge umbrella in our dorm!” screams Eggchan back. Well, the umbrella was so huge because Theo used it for an outside performance once.

It could fit at least four people there though.

“Alright! Stay put, you two!” Lomedy screamed as he braved the rain. Eggchan was so down to just run towards his dorm but… he couldn’t exactly risk getting his stuff wet, especially his laptop. He still hasn't sent Manepear the final version of his research, but he’ll make sure to do it once he gets home.

Eggchan and Parrot watched Lomedy disappear from their line of sight. 

“Wanna leave our stuff here and run to the nearest cafe?” Eggchan says with a playful smile, turning to Parrot but…

Parrot was nowhere to be found.

“Parrot?” He scanned his surroundings even though it was so hard to see. Only the dim solar lamps from the gate illuminated the university.

“Parrot?” His voice echoed through the cold hard walls of the hallway.

His heart started beating faster, his eyes scanning anywhere Parrot may be in.

Before he realized what was happening, he found himself running back inside the university building, screaming for Parrot’s name as he tried to find him, with his phone’s flashlight in hand.

The staff must’ve turned off the light already since it was beyond 7:30 PM. 

“Parrot!” He shouted nervously as he looked at his phone battery. 

3%

Where the hell could this guy be? Eggchan was growing too worried. He felt like his heart was trying to lodge itself inside his throat.

He was fucking scared.

Like Wifies level scared, but he had to find Parrot.

He wasn’t leaving here without the guy.

“Parrot!” He screamed again, getting a little more angry because he thought Parrot was messing with him.

He carefully thought about where Parrot may be.

Did he forget something in the old library? 

He wondered as he started heading towards the library again. However, his footsteps were heavy. Like something was warning him about going there.

But Parrot might be there.

The sudden clap of the thunder made Eggchan flinch, with the lightning illuminating the door to the old library. 

He gulps and twists the doorknob open.

Like he suspected, It was unlocked.

His heart started hammering dangerously.

But that was a sign, Parrot could be inside.

Eggchan opened the door and was met with darkness. The only light inside the room was the occasional lighting from the sky, which can be seen through the window.

I'm not Wifies but there’s absolutely no way I’m going inside in complete darkness, Eggchan thought as he turned the lights on, flicking the switches open.

The first thing he noticed when he did turn on the lights was Wemmbu.

…Has Wemmbu always posed in a neutral standing position like that? He remembers the statue having posed like it was stepping forward, back when it was still in the pond.

Maybe it was just his eyes playing tricks on him. He did have to replace his glasses soon.

Lock in, Egg. We have a friend to find, He shakes off the silly thoughts and starts calling for Parrot’s name again.

He walked across the rows of books, trying to see if Parrot was there.

But no, Parrot was nowhere to be found.

He sighed, slowly getting frustrated.

“Parrot, bro.. we can’t be playing hide and seek during a thunderstorm. We have to get going or else Theo’s gonna be really worried.”

“Your roommate?” he heard someone say from a distance.

“Yeah–” 

Huh? But that wasn’t Parrot’s voice. Eggchan couldn’t help but look at where the voice might’ve come from.

But then, he saw the block of stone where the statue stood. 

The man on top of the statue was missing.

Eggchan felt himself sweating, his heart beating louder than ever. 

Then, he started hearing noises.

Footsteps. 

Heavy footsteps.

And the sound of stone heavily grating through the marble flooring of the library.

Eggchan didn’t even dare look back the moment the power went out. He immediately started beelining for the door, having run faster than he ever did his entire life.

He twisted the door, but it wouldn't budge.

He tried again. Didn't work.

He tried again.

He felt like throwing up.

Eggchan banged on the door, screaming “HELP! Parrot! Please if you’re there you need to help me!”

He banged on it repeatedly, slowly feeling like he was gonna pass out every time he heard the two grating sounds coming closer.

A step.

“Please.”

Another.

“Help me,” he banged on the door with desperation, bruising his hands.

A closer step forward.

“PARROT!” His tears fell down as he banged down on the door again. 

Right before the sound got much closer to his ears, the door opened, making Eggchan fall down on top of two bodies in front of the door.

Through his tear stricken eyes, Eggchan looked up to see a blurry figure of Saps and Parrot looking at him, all worried.

“Egg? What the heck happened to you?” Saps asks him, concerned at his current state.

He started breaking down, unable to get the words out as the sobs and hiccups racked his body. Parrot tapped on his back to calm him down.

The eerie sounds have stopped.

They finally stopped.

“Bro, I’m sorry for leaving you—I saw Saps passing by and I wanted to talk to him,” Parrot sounded so apologetic that Eggchan almost forgot what he went through to find him.

Egg fought the fear blocking his throat. “L-Let’s talk later, we have to get out of here, immediately.” He shook Parrot’s jacket sleeve, hoisting them all up.

Parrot looked at him, questioning, “But why?”

“It’s coming! W-we have to get out of here, NOW. I don’t care if my laptop gets wet anymore—”

Saps cut Egg off with an annoyed sigh, making Egg shut up.

Now that he thought about it, why was Parrot and Saps talking so casually? 

Didn’t Saps hate Parrot? 

Didn’t Parrot say he’d ignore Saps back because he was acting like an asshole?

Eggchan stared at them, dumbfounded. 

Things felt wrong.

He took a step back from them, getting ready to run.. but then he saw Saps’ usual grin and… his eyes.

Saps was looking at something behind Egg’s back. 

“Did you really have to scare him that badly? Wemmbu?”

The last thing Eggchan saw was a pair of glowing eyes.

Purple, like the Zennias he loved so badly.

Wifies got awoken from his fever from a loud banging noise at his door. 

Judging from the way they urgently knocked, it seemed like it was an emergency so he immediately hoisted himself up from the bed to open the door. He coughed, then tried to balance himself because he was still pretty dizzy even after drinking his medicine.

The storm was still raging, so he couldn't hear anything from behind the door. 

He shouted from behind the door “Who’s there?”

But no one answered.

He sighed as he twisted his door open 

Wifies was met with…

Nothing.

Wifies looked around through both ends of his dorm hallway, wondering if he got pranked. He was about to go back inside, annoyed that his sleep got disturbed, when he noticed something.

There was a vase in front of his door, containing a singular flower growing from it.

A blue zennia.

Huh, that’s unnatural. 

Must be dyed.

He couldn't pinpoint exactly where he remembers the same exact shade of this blue, but it was pretty.

Oh, now he remembers.

This looked exactly like Eggchan’s eyes.

Right below where the flower stood, Wifies saw something… yellowish white inside the vase.

He squinted his eyes, trying to look closer.

Is that a stone?

He brushed the dirt off, trying to uncover what it was.

But the more he did, the more he felt himself sweating.

Maybe it was from his fever.

Or maybe because he’s seen enough dinosaur bones to know that this isn’t an animal’s bone.

And maybe because he’s been in enough anatomy labs to know that this was a human skull.