Chapter 20 - An Encounter With The Other Side

Once class finished Rory sighed to herself before glancing at the notebook paper that she had brought out in excitement.

It was utterly void of any words and only decorated with a few drawings of machinery on the sides.

The drawings were very detailed in a short amount of time, however just looking at them filled Rory with frustration. She had entered the class with the curiosity of learning something new only to be dealt a fatal blow; she already knew all of it.

Rory felt depressed as she collected her stuff. It had been a long time since she last dabbled in literature as she was too busy once she had to take over Hill. Therefore, when she found out she had this class she was slightly excited to read for pŀėȧsurė again.

Unfortunately, not only had she already read the book, the teacher was boring beyond repair. This was probably what college students would refer to as a filler class. Rory reached to close her notes only to have them ripped from her hands.

Her eyebrows crinkled in annoyance as she looked down at her now empty hands. The previous Rory never had any records of getting into a fight in this lecture room… did she overlook a troublemaker?

The footsteps of the lecture room becoming more and more empty sounded in Rory's ear. She didn't have the confidence in her abilities to deal with fights without some kind of buffer to lessen the opponent's reactions.

She already made up her mind after exposing Amelia to not be cornered. It was undeniable that she had to either bring attention to herself or get out of the classroom.

Rory glanced up to see the person she was currently dealing with in order to formulate an appropriate plan based on what she could observe.

However, before she could process anything she froze. Goose bumps appeared on her arm at the sight of the ghastly appearance in of her.

The person wasn't speaking at all and only staring at her underneath their long black stringy hair while holding her notebook listlessly at their side.

The ability to breath seemed to escape Rory.

Was this her first encounter with the supernatural world after being brought back to life? Rory's mind hit a wall at the thought, her expertise was logical thought not supernatural.

However, because of recent occurrences she was forced to explore both possibilities.

"Rory! How could you not tell me you were coming to class today! You were all over the academy's social media page. I was so bored without you and you didn't even take the time to text me? Don't tell me you still have me blocked… I'm telling you that guy really is no good and no matter how angry you are I'm not taking it back!"

The outburst caught the attention of the final few students leaving the classroom causing them to turn around and shoot weird looks. It was enough of a confirmation to Rory.

Finally, Rory was able to let out a sigh of relief as she covered her heart in an attempt to calm it down.

At this point it was logical to ȧssume that the object in front of her was indeed a human being. They were also a human being who knew her rather well if they were using such casual language.

Rory's mind flashed to her contact list. The person mentioned that she was blocked, however unless a number is unsaved it should still be there.

In an attempt to cover up her erratic heartbeat, Rory forced a smile. "Hello… Tiffany?"

The girl felt her heart speed up when saw Rory's smile. A crinkle appeared between her eyebrows.

'When did Rory look so attractive? And why was he saying her name so formally?'

She and Rory had been friends since coming to college and occasionally she helped Rory do his makeup. Yes, he was attractive back then, but his soulless face dimmed his over all look. The Rory she was looking at right now seemed different…

Tiffany swung her black hair out of her face and pursed her lips as she stared furiously at Rory's face.

"When's my birthday and the most embarrassing thing we have ever done together?"

"Don't know, don't care"

"…"

Another person became a victim of Rory's straight forwardness.

To Rory, if she didn't know than what was the point wasting her brain power? No matter how much brain power she wasted she couldn't read minds.

It was also dangerous to keep a familiar friendship when she wasn't the real Rory in any kind of way.

Rory side stepped Tiffany to get out of her desk before rescuing her notebook from the girl's hands.

Without a change of expression, she flipped shut the notebook that had half-finished detailed drawings of environmentally friendly atomic bombs in it then placed it safely in her bag.

Her actions were all done fluidly before she turned around and walked away.

The girl had clearly said that they had an argument, therefore it left an opening for Rory to exploit. If any questions were raised their relationship ended due to the unknown argument.

"Y-you! How can you be so mean!" A choked-up sounding voice yelled behind Rory. Following it was the sounds of loud crying.

Rory felt her footsteps falter as her eyebrows shot up in shock. She caused her to cry? Over something so simple?

Rory was used to the cold hard people she met every day in the business world, therefore this sort of show of weakness was inconceivable to her.

Everyone around her knew that she wasn't one to care about the feelings of others and always kept themselves as professional as possible around her. If they didn't, being fired would be the most favorable outcome.

Unable to ignore the loud sounds behind her, Rory turned around.

Tiffany had collapsed on the ground clutching on her long black dress as she cried shamelessly. For the one hundredth time today, Rory felt the twitch in her eye come back.

"Why are you crying?"

"Because you are being mean! I won't stop crying until you swear that you forgive me!" The girl puffed out her cheeks in stubbornness.

"If that's the case you can keep crying." Rory already decided it was best to cut off this unknown variable.