Page 33 of Venomous Desires

I opened the door, got out, and Ivan opened his side of the door and rounded the car.

“So, do you want me to walk you to your dorm? It’s late.” I looked around. Though the place looked creepy at night, I could manage. Moreover, I didn’t want to burden him. He was a sweetheart throughout the night, and I didn’t want to cause him discomfort.

I shook my head. “No, no, I can manage. Besides the area is safe.”

Ivan nodded, and then his eyes raked over me again, like earlier. Something flashed in them, and before I could fully process it, he stepped forward.

“Well,” he leaned and kissed my cheek. “Have a good night.”

For a moment, I stood there. Rooted to the ground. Staring at him without any of my senses working. And then butterflies in my stomach fluttered. And my forced smile turned into a genuine grin.

“Good night to you too, Ivan.” I was sure my cheeks must be burning red. Ivan licked his lips and then waved.

“See ya’.” He said, and I turned around screaming and giggling in my head. Did he just kiss me? I walked forward, hoping Ivan didn’t see the look on my face. Would he find me desperate too?

Just like Judas said. Would I ever find the peace I desperately craved? Like dark clouds over a delicate dawn. A life. I wanted to give it meaning, not to fade like a forgotten song. I didn’t want it to end before I truly saw what happiness was. Before I saw what a real smile looked like on my mother’s face.

I was walking towards the building when I felt it.

A chill ran down my spine.

Automatically, my hold on my cardigan tightened, and I pulled it closer. My legs suddenly felt weak, and I counted in my head.

Just a few blocks, Sera. Just a few blocks.

I took a turn, and my palms started sweating. Was someone following me?

I felt it again. The eerie feeling of being watched. I hurried my steps, almost knocking over the stones. The hair on the back of my neck stood. It took everything in me to not look back. I just clutched my bag tighter, hoping Ivan was still standing there watching me instead of whatever demon was hiding in the shadows. Chasing me.

My steps became urgent, and I would’ve run when I suddenly stopped.

I saw it: a silhouette of a man standing in the middle of the road, blocking the way to the dorm building. My breath caught in my throat. This couldn’t be happening again. The same dark figure, the same unsettling aura. I glanced around frantically, looking for any sign of Ivan, but he was nowhere to be seen. The road was eerily silent, save for the soft rustling of leaves in the night breeze. And that didn’t help either. The breeze brushed past me like a horror-filled melody.

The man began to move, slowly stepping towards me. My heart raced, and I took a step back, stumbling slightly on the pavement.

All the incidents happening in the darkness of night crashed upon me. Assault, kidnapping, murder, robbery… worse,rape. Was I going to be another victim? No, no, no. My last breaths couldn’t be wasted on this cold night.

But the man didn’t stop. He continued to take predatory steps.

I swallowed shakily and glanced around. I just needed to cross this block to reach my dorm. But he was blocking it. And if I turned back and ran, I’d be running away from the only safe place I knew here.

As I raced my head for any chance, he drew nearer, and I could make out more details. His clothes were unlike what I’d expect a homeless man or a thug to wear—a suit and a high-end golden watch sparkling in the falling moonlight. His eyes, though, were different. They seemed to glow faintly in the darkness, filled with a blend of predatory gleam and something else I couldn’t quite place. The rest of him was clad in darkness.

I took a step back, and then another, before running away from the street. My breath came out of my pants and I quickly took a left turn and sprinted down the lane. I did not look back. I couldn’t bring myself to. I didn’t want to see if he was running after me or where he was. One thing I knew for sure was that I would not become another victim.

Gratefully, the lane leading down to the other side of the dorms was just a five-minute walk away. But I managed to cross it in less than two minutes. Adrenaline rushed through my veins as I saw the familiar gates. Relief flushed over me, and I felt tears stinging my eyes for the first time that night.

I didn’t want to cry.

Crying only made us weak.

And I was anything but weak. Desperate, but not weak.

I hurried to the gates and stopped just in time to look over my shoulder. Hands fumbled with the handles.Come on, open, open, open!

He was now just a few feet away, still cloaked in darkness. But he was not running or making a move toward me. And that scared the living daylights out of me.

Without another thought, I pushed open the gates, almost fell on my face, and ran, my footsteps pounding against the pavement. I didn’t know where I was going, or what was going on around me, only that I had to escape, to be away from that man.