Five minutes late to her first class wasn’t a good way to make a first impression on anyone. Not only did Mr. Thantos have a scowl conveying annoyance on his face when she interrupted his lecture for World History I, but she also was thrust into the spotlight. She nervously fingered the collar of her shirt, promptly stopping when she remembered she didn't want attention drawn to her neck. She scanned the room for a place to sit—preferably somewhere close so there would be less time for everyone to gawk at her.
Her eyes searching, she found a familiar face among the fifteen other students in the room. It was hard to miss Anj as he waved his right arm back and forth at her excitedly. He motioned for her to sit in the seat in front of him, which was conveniently empty. Quickly, she sat down and pulled out a notebook. She was there to learn. However, it was difficult for her to bring herself into that frame of mind when all she could do was stare at Mr. Thantos's back.
Protruding from it, and through his rather expensive and stylish black suit, were a pair of delicate, black feathered wings, which had previously been covered by his clothing. What was even more interesting about them was that they were ripped, torn, and otherwise broken beyond the point of ever being useful again. They were beautiful and depressing at the same time. He must have been a magnificent creature when they were full and in their prime.
“Now that we are all done staring at a new student—because we all know you have never seen one of those before—I believe we can now take our test.” Mr. Thantos said dryly as he walked over to his desk in the front of the room. He paused his speech, picked up a stack of papers, and proceeded to hand them out one by one. “Or I should clarify, you will be taking a test, and I will be watching you to ensure you are not cheating. Not like any of you would do that. You are all smart enough to know better.”
He stopped at Cheyenne's desk and stared down at her. She risked a glance up at him and was greeted with a rather menacing image. His crumpled, dark wings painted him as an even more intimidating man than his cold heart did. She was almost afraid to even think it, but he looked evil. She shivered and quickly stared down at her desktop. For the first time, he showed a real and unexpected emotion: sadness. He hid his deep frown quickly and resumed his rather stoic appearance.
“Miss Loveless, I am well aware you are not yet familiar with our curriculum. However, I want you to participate. I do not want to backtrack an unnecessary amount with you if I do not have to, but be assured it will not affect your grade,” he explained.
Cheyenne nodded at him slowly, glancing over the questions quickly. The front page was entirely multiple choice. She felt as if she stood a chance at doing well enough not to look dumb. Still, she was nervous. Anj gave her shoulder an unexpected gentle squeeze, as if he sensed her discomfort. It helped her feel a small bit more confident in herself.
She carefully picked up her pencil and went over the questions slowly in her mind. She did her best to answer them. She was familiar with some of the material, but much of it was new to her, and soon she found herself stumbling over dates and names. She didn't even know it was time to leave until Anj tapped her on the shoulder, snapping her out of the blank gaze at the questions she still had to answer.
“Welcome back to the real world,” he said with a tiny smirk, brushing a hand over his eyes gently in an effort to move some of his hair out of the way. After doing this, he scratched the top of his nose. “I believe class time is done. What's your next one? I’ll be sure to escort you there personally so you won't be late this time.” He made a motion for her hand, a rather grand one, as if he were purposefully trying to attract more attention to them.
Grabbing onto it awkwardly, she took in a deep breath as all eyes turned to them, and she tried to keep from having a panic attack. She gave Anj's hand a tight squeeze, praying silently it wasn't misinterpreted. She only wanted support for this next leg of their journey. She blushed slightly and glanced his way. He stood casually, his body relaxed. She caught some of the students whispering to one another as they watched the two get ready to leave.
“Is this all part of your master plan to make your ex jealous?” she asked him quietly, her voice just barely above a whisper.
He smirked, keeping his stare ahead of them and looking as blank as ever. “But of course. One thing you'll learn about this school is the students here have nothing better to do with themselves but gossip. It’ll spread like wildfire, and she’ll pounce my storage locker in a rage in between the next set of classes. Don't worry—you shouldn't be anywhere nearby. I don't know about you, but I always enjoy giving people something to talk about.”
“I prefer to not be the center of attention,” she mumbled under her breath. She took a shaky step forward, eager to get to her next class. Only one thing—or rather, one person—stood in her way. Mr. Thantos was leaning against the door frame and watching her, his dark eyes never leaving her. He made it blatantly obvious he was waiting for her to pass by him so they could talk.
“I think I'm in trouble,” she whispered to Anj.
Anj let out a tiny snort of amusement. “It's how he always looks at people. You'll get used to it after a while.”
“Yes, you will get used to it,” Mr. Thantos said as they stepped nearer to him. He motioned for her to come closer, stretching his gloved index finger toward her in a beckoning gesture. “And yes, there is a reason I am waiting here ever so patiently for you, Miss Loveless. I would like to have a brief word with you about the test. And I do mean brief, as I would hate for your next professor to feel disrespected if you were to show up late for yet another class. I'd like to schedule a meeting with you where we can compose times to catch you up on course material. I do not suppose you will have time this afternoon after you get done with your last class?”
A deep and frustrated sigh escaped her lips unintentionally. “I can't, I have a brief appointment with Dr. Warhol. She apparently has more things she wants to discuss with me.” She almost added how much she was not looking forward to it, but her annoyed tone must have given it away. “Maybe afterward? I don't know how long it's going to take. Probably an hour, since that's our scheduled time.”
“Or I could be merciful and write a note for you explaining how imperative it is for you to attend this session today. Throw in one of my famous 'diva fits,' as they have been deemed by Mrs. Orinda, and I should be able to get you released for the afternoon.” He cracked a small smile in an effort to show he was making an attempt at being funny, almost as if he was trying to prove to her he could be nice.
“That'll work too,” Cheyenne managed. She couldn't think of anything else to say. What was she supposed to say? She knew she should have probably fought him on it, but spending time with him was more appealing than subjecting herself to the torture of another session with Dr. Warhol. “How will I—”
Mr. Thantos cut her off. “You will be informed upon your arrival at her office if my performance was successful or not. If it is not, there will be a note with other possible dates and times matching your schedule more fluently. Now run along, or whatever you kids do these days, and go to your next class. Mr. Willam, while the gesture is noble for you to escort her so you ensure her prompt arrival, I hope you are well aware of the fact that your next class is on the other side of campus. In fact, I do believe it is off in another building. You will be late.”
Anj gave the teacher a coy smile, obviously not intimidated. “I'll just tell Mr. Rutherford I fell down the stairs on my way over and lost my cane. I’ll tell him my mother told me to conserve my magic for important things. I only have so much, and who knows when it will run out.”
“All you are missing are tears,” Mr. Thantos said. He rubbed his chin and then proceeded to shake his head. “I did not hear a word of that. In fact, I know absolutely nothing. Go before I change my mind.”
“You're most gracious, sir.” Anj bowed slightly. He gave Cheyenne's hand a firm tug and led her out of the room hastily. “One thing I'm sure you already know about Mr. Thantos is you should never question a thing he says. He will be either your greatest ally or worst enemy here. Most students don't like him. I can't possibly imagine why.” At first Cheyenne thought he was being sarcastic, but as she watched him frown it dawned on her he was being serious.
Cheyenne scowled in surprise. “You don't get it? He's…” She glanced over her shoulder and checked to make sure they were farther down the hall and out of Mr. Thantos's hearing range. The man didn't appear to be anywhere in sight, but she couldn't be too careful. She waited until she and Anj began to climb a nearby marble staircase before continuing. “He's creepy.”
Anj stopped short on the stairs, holding up his index finger. “One second please, I must reposition myself. Given my condition, it shouldn’t be difficult for you to imagine I don’t enjoy stairs much. However, it would be best to avoid the elevators today. Just a suggestion though.” She was about to ask why when he quickly returned to the topic at hand: Mr. Thantos. “He's not creepy. He's an angel of death. For an angel whose life revolves around something so morbid, I’d say he's quite balanced and kind, wouldn't you? I think he's funny.”
“He's an, an…” She stumbled over the word in shock. “An angel?” She wasn't sure why she was so surprised. She'd seen so many other unbelievable things since she arrived at the school.
“Yes. Did you think those wings on his back were put there solely for decorative purposes?” He gave her a wry smile and motioned for her to continue up the stairs with him. “He's an angel of death, but he wasn't created to be an angel of death. That's the story I heard, at least.”
She waited for him to continue, making it a point to stare at him until he resumed talking again. This sounded like a good story to her, and one she wanted to hear sooner rather than later. Especially since it would help shed some light on what to expect from Mr. Thantos. She wanted to be as comfortable with her teacher as Anj was. Remembering he was blind, she realized staring probably wasn't going to achieve much. Instead, Cheyenne let out a deep sigh. “So are you going to tell me or not?”
“We have a few minutes. I can give you a CliffsNotes version of the tale, but it might only make you more interested.
“Once upon a time our professor was a guardian angel. While I'm told his assignment was a man of little significance, the story goes that Lucifer himself chose this man as a key role for one of his most devious plots. Some say it was because he wanted to employ Mr. Thantos and his partner, as angels always work in pairings of two, if not more. Others say it was poor circumstances. Personally, I lean more toward the former, simply because I could see how Mr. Thantos would make for a powerful ally.
“Whatever the case may be, one day while on the job, Mr. Thantos and his partner were attacked by Lucifer himself. The devil has a sword named the Sword of Vile, which puts a curse onto anyone who suffers from its sting. Both of the guardian angels were struck with it and changed from angels of light into angels of darkness. His partner joined with Satan and helped attempt to persuade, if I may say so delicately, Mr. Thantos to do the same. Eventually they gave up and left him be, but the scars of the attack are still evident. I'm sure you've noticed the damage done to his wings alone.” Anj paused a moment so Cheyenne could take the time to let all the information sink in.
She tried to picture the details in her head. She'd seen the shreds remaining of Mr. Thantos's wings. The thought of having them become that way as a result of torture made her shudder.
“The curse leaves him unable to touch for the rest of eternity. Everything he touches dies. which is why he wears the gloves all of the time,” Anj said quietly. He paused again, and this time it added more drama to the story. “He has been like this for over a thousand years.”
Anj was certainly a good storyteller. He was right when he had said she would want more once he finished his tale.
“Well?” she prompted him, hoping maybe he would continue. Instead, he changed the subject.
“Do promise me you'll stay out of the elevators today? It's not a good idea, but for some reason I feel like I have to repeat it to you again.” He stopped walking and placed both of his hands over both of hers ever so gently, making her look him in the eyes.
While normally a gesture like this would make her uncomfortable, she didn't feel that way with him. His hands were hot, unnaturally so, and his blue eyes seemed to glow. Actually, Cheyenne was almost certain he didn't have blue eyes naturally. His brother had dark eyes, and she was still positive the two shared the same eye color just as much as they shared all of their other good looks. Any time she'd noticed them being blue before, they had also been glowing. When the glowing ceased, they were always brown again.
“I know you don't like to be trapped. I just want you to be comfortable. It's not dangerous, I don't think. I guess I don't know, which also worries me. I don't like where that path goes.”
“What are you talking about?” she asked quietly. Now she was uncomfortable enough to actually break contact. “What's wrong with…”
“What's wrong with what?” He returned his right hand to his cane and his left went into the pocket of his jeans. “Don't pay me any attention. It's probably nothing.”
“You can't just bring something weird like that up without explaining it. You never start something unless you intend to finish it.” She then poked him in the side to emphasize this point. “Not like you have anything to worry about. I hate elevators anyway. But if it will make you feel better, I promise to try.”
Anj jerked away from her jabbing finger and let out a tiny laugh. “Trying is good enough for me. Now if you don't mind, can you please keep your hands to yourself? I don't want to get distracted and then get lost.” He moved his hand out to poke her back. “Only of course we wouldn't, but it’s—”
“Fun to play the guilt card on people?” Cheyenne supplied for him.
“Sometimes, but more like it's fun to watch people jump.”
Jump. That was a good word to describe what Cheyenne was doing. She always felt on edge with Anj, not knowing what to expect from him, and she liked it. She enjoyed the unpredictable element. Even more so because it was a game she could play.
“Why? Because you're a sadist?” She was only half teasing.
“But of course,” he replied with a light laugh. “I'm not sure if there’s a term for it, but I achieve a lot of joy from actually using my brain and ridiculing those who don't use theirs. If that makes me a sadist, then I suppose that's what I am, but I'm not afraid to admit to being an elitist. I think it sounds much more ominous, don't you?”
She couldn't help but start laughing. She was starting to get a grasp on his humor.
“The fact you aren't appalled with me for saying so tells me it's good I like you.”
“Liking me could never be a bad thing. The fact that you don't make me feel nervous and overwhelmed is a good thing. It means I like you. I don't always do well with people I first meet. I guess we're even.”
“Even in what?” He closed his eyes and when she saw them again they were a dull and dark-looking brown once more. “I don't suppose you want to take this flirtation to a different level? Say, more publicly at the Old Union, which, I should add, is off campus. While I'm aware it's a school night, I think it would be good for you to get a chance to see the town. Mostly though, I think it would be good for showing Jewl a thing or two about chemistry. Among other things.”
“You're really hung up on her.”
“A simple yes or no will suffice.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yes. We can go out tonight.” The idea of getting off campus excited her. She hadn't explored any of the town around her and had no clue what it would be like. She hadn’t been certain they were allowed to leave the school grounds. This gave her hope. It had been only a handful of days and she was already starting to feel trapped. The campus was large, but it was the principle of the matter— it was as if she was still stuck at home.
“We're at your class. You have a minute to get into the room before you’re considered late, though your professor for this class is much more understanding. I think you'll enjoy it a lot. I did, at least. Mythology has always been my favorite though. You never know which parts of it are fact and which parts are fiction. I'd love to stay and make sure you settle in okay, but I need to head off to my own class. I'm sure you'll find someone in there who can help you out.”
“Thanks.” She offered him a small wave before turning toward her next classroom. She stood outside it for a moment before stepping in.
Anj was right. This class had a much different feel than Mr. Thantos's room. There was a lighthearted ambience to the room. The students stood in small groups and spoke quietly among each other while their professor sat at his desk preparing the lecture. He was a kind-looking man in his mid-forties. His hair was dark with a few sprinkles of silver, and when he smiled at her from his desk, his face wrinkled.
He approached her with his arms outstretched. She wasn't sure if she should expect a hug. “Welcome. I'm going to assume you're Cheyenne. It's good to have you here. We were waiting for you, and we have a spot saved just for you by a friend.” He put an arm around her and motioned for her to take a seat in front of Zes. “Now that we're all here, who wants to tell Cheyenne what we just covered in class?”
All of the students took their respective seats, but no one said a word. She couldn't feel anyone looking at her, thankfully, but she knew they were thinking about her, and that alone made her uncomfortable. After a few moments, she could feel the air rush around her as Zes shot his hand up.
“We were learning about satyrs, Mr. Matthys.” Zes sounded excited and started to spit out every piece of information he had on the subject. “Satyrs are often depicted in ancient art as part goat and part human and originate from Greek mythology. In those stories they play music, drink, chase women, are lighthearted, and—” He stopped midsentence. Cheyenne glanced back at him, wondering why, and found him looking down at his desk. He mumbled something under his breath, but no one was able to hear it.
“You've covered a lot of the key points to the mythological side of things,” Mr. Matthys said. He gave Zes a gentle and proud smile. “We haven't quite finished our lesson on them. We still have to cover what they are truly like. All mythological creatures have stories that have misinformed their listeners for thousands of years. Welcome to Mythology I.”
Mythology I was an exciting class. There was so much information and so many stories told, Cheyenne found herself putting down her pen and simply listening to her teacher talk instead of actually taking notes. He was a fantastic storyteller with an engaging voice and personality.
“Satyrs have often been described as being cowardly or shy,” Mr. Matthys said. “But let me tell you, this is not always the case. Satyrs are so in tune with nature they are often perceived as cowards because they appear so passive outdoors. However, they have a lot of the qualities inherited from their goat biology.”
A chorus of giggles exploded from most of the students. Mr. Matthys shook his head. “Laugh all you want, but you'd be surprised at how honorable a goat is. They are loyal and obedient, knowing when it’s good to fight and time to flee. More people should acknowledge their great level of intelligence. They are much more clever than anyone gives them credit for. Like most of the mythological creatures we'll be studying, you'll find they are just as average as anyone else.” His eyes made contact with each student as he spoke.
“And as I said in my first lecture, and I'll repeat it so the new students can hear it as well, everyone here is a mythological being. Everyone here has no doubt heard stories of their ancient kin and scoffed at some of the silly ideas presented. The purpose of this class is to get a general overview of what these myths say and provide some insight on reality.
“There is so much to learn and discover. I hope to see you in Mythology II, and I hope even if you can't squeeze it into your schedules, you'll keep challenging the stories to know more, to know the truth, about where we come from.” He faced the chalkboard and wrote a page number from their textbook. “But as I was saying, satyrs are not cowardly or shy. They're cautious, which you'll see in this article written about a rather famous satyr.”
Cheyenne took this opportunity to glance through her textbook. The articles and pictures on its pages were much too fascinating for her to ignore. Mr. Matthys caught her doing this, but he didn't seem to mind. He continued with his lecture as she paged through the book, reading and soaking up the random bits of information. She had just stopped on a page about nymphs when Zes tapped her on the shoulder.
“Ch-Cheyenne, it's time to go. Class got done five minutes ago.”
“Oh, right.” She closed her book and put it into her bag. She threw it over her shoulder and gave him a smile. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” he replied as he made a hasty motion for her to follow him out of the room. “You got lunchtime next, right? Of course you do, stupid question. We have to be on the same lunch schedule if we just got out of the same class. Do you want to eat now? We have about two hours, or we can not eat together, I mean, whatever makes you more comfortable. I don't want to intrude or anything, but I thought I'd ask and…” He glanced down at her as they stepped into the hallway. “I'm rambling again,” he whispered and then let out a sigh. “I do that a lot. I should probably stop before I talk your ear off.”
“No, keep talking. It's okay.”
“R-really? Because Anj says it's kind of annoying. He says I shouldn't talk unless I have a point. Though I do have one. It's hard to get to because I'm sort of on edge. Class was more or less embarrassing. Mr. Matthys likes to talk about all of the different creatures that make up the students, which is cool, but I don't like he started with mine. Especially now that you're here. It's awkward.”
She watched his face as he spoke, taking in how expressive it was in comparison to his brother's. Zes smiled a lot more, and he held his body in a much looser way and used lots of hand gestures. He didn't have the same kind of confidence his brother did, but he held his own all the same. She liked how he didn't hold back for the sake of being “cool.” His honesty was different than Anj's, much more pure. The two were a lot alike, but as many ways as they were the same, there were just as many ways they weren't. She nodded at him in an attempt to silently encourage him to continue talking.
“Well, you're a nymph.” He paused a moment. That was supposed to mean something to her apparently, but she didn't know what. “Satyrs are known for their lustful passions,” he explained. He swallowed hard. “Their object of desire is usually a nymph.” Again, he looked at her as if it was supposed to mean something, but no light bulbs were going off in her head.
“I'm half satyr,” he said at last. “So I'm kind of embarrassed.”
“You don't need to be embarrassed though,” she said. “It's like Mr. Matthys said. It's all stories. They're not straight-up facts. That's why they're called myths, right?”
“Yeah, you're right. They're just stories.” He glanced down at her again. “I mean, not that you aren't cute or anything, because you are. But I don't think that just because of my genes—and did I just say that out loud?” He put a hand to his face. After a minute, he made his way to the elevator. She, however, didn't follow. “What's wrong? If it's because I—”
She waved her hands back and forth at him. “No, it's not that. Your brother said something about staying away from the elevators. He said they weren't safe. He made me promise to not go near them.”
By the way Zes raised his eyebrow and smirked, it was clear he must have thought she was joking around. She stared back at him with a straight face to show him how serious she was being, and he started to laugh.
“He always says stuff like that. He likes to be overdramatic and think something bad is going to happen with this door, or that room, or some food, or whatever. Every day it's different. Sometimes he's right and he gloats about it, and other times he'll make up some lame excuse about how it’s just not meant to be, or how his timing was off and to still beware.” Zes wiggled his fingers at her as he said “beware,” his voice taking on an overdramatic and ghoulish quality. “I bet the elevators are fine.”
He grabbed her arm lightly, so lightly she could barely tell she was being touched. He was so gentle. How could someone like him lead her to harm? He brought her to the elevator and then they waited in silence.
They could be quiet and at the same time be comfortable, which was something Cheyenne liked a lot and was also rare to come by. He didn't make it seem as if she had to say something to keep his interest. In fact, it was almost as though he wanted her to stay quiet, and not simply so he could do all the talking. Not that she would have minded if he did. He was just as interesting to listen to as his brother. But she liked how it felt as if he understood her not wanting to talk. There was peace in their quiet, and no expectations for either of them to be anything. The doors closed, and they started to move down.
“See? There's nothing wrong,” Zes said with a triumphant grin. “I bet he told everyone to stay away so they wouldn't be crowded. We have a lot of lazy people here.”
“Like you?” she teased, and she couldn't resist poking him in the side. Anj had been comfortable with the gesture, so she hoped he would be too.
He didn't react right away. At first all he did was stare down at her finger, and then there was a delayed laugh. “Not the point I was trying to make.”
“So what was?” She paused when the elevator went quiet. She had heard the hum of it progressing along the cable and became distracted with her conversation too much to notice when it had stopped. “Are we there?”
“I…” He stopped. “What do you mean are we there?” He frowned when he noticed they weren't moving. “Weird, I could have sworn I pushed the button for the first floor. It's probably confused.”
“An elevator can become confused?” Cheyenne put a hand on her hip and couldn't help but laugh. “Will the doors open? Maybe we haven't gone anywhere.”
Zes nodded and then pushed every button he could find, but to no avail. Cheyenne wanted to suggest that they should have listened to his brother after all, but she held it in. She didn't know much about sibling rivalries, but she figured Zes wouldn't appreciate the comment much. Instead, she watched him push all the buttons again and again. After another minute, he gave up and started to pace.
Cheyenne sat down on the floor and watched him walk back and forth, his brow furrowed deeply. There was so much she could have said, but every phrase she thought up didn't seem as if it would help the situation.
“Will you sit down?” she asked him at last. He did so, but hesitantly. The two resumed their quiet, and she watched him sit. His hands tapped on his knees and he sighed every so often.
“You doing okay?” he asked.
She nodded, though she was much more concerned for him, considering all of his fidgeting. Five minutes passed, and he let out another heavy sigh. Nervous and unsure, she reached her hand up to gently rub his shoulder.
“We're fine. It's probably just a minor malfunction and we'll be moving again soon. These kinds of things happen all the time.”
The last bit was a lie, and she was positive he knew it because he frowned at her. The frown faded into a tiny half smile though.
“Thanks anyway. For trying, I mean,” he said. “I'm giving it another couple of minutes before I start calling for help. I'm starving.”
“Maybe we can try asking it nicely?”
“I didn't know elevators responded to that sort of thing.”
“If they can be confused…” She smirked at him. “Mr. Elevator, can you please let us off? I promise to not ride you again until you're better.”
“Please? I'm hungry,” added Zes, now laughing. “This is kind of silly.”
“I'm willing to try anything at this point.”
Those must have been the magic words, because the doors opened, and on the first floor, no less.
“See?” She stood up slowly, stretching a little, and did her best to be casual in case a student or a teacher were to walk by. She didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. She offered her hand to Zes. He took it and accepted her help up. The two stepped out together.
He slowly withdrew his hand from hers, and his eyes lowered to the ground. “I don't always do well in closed spots, or with being stuck.” He glanced around the hallway to make sure no one was nearby. “I won't say anything if you won't. I don't want him to know. If he does, he'll gloat and talk about how he was right, and I'd never hear the end of it. I think I already said that earlier though, huh?”
She nodded, hiding a giggle with her right hand. “It's fine.”
One thing was for sure—she wouldn't be able to get the Willam brothers out of her mind. They were a wonderful and welcome distraction from the rest of her classes for the afternoon. She was fully prepared to keep using them for something positive to think about during her after-school “check-in” session with Dr. Warhol, but upon arriving she found a note telling her to see Mr. Thantos right away. A wide grin spread on her face and she ran through the hall to the angel's office. She knocked on his door, ready to give him her full attention. Studying was the last thing she wanted to do, but if it got her out of anything with the counselor, she'd take it.
“I will keep this simple for you, because I am sure you have other things you would rather be doing. I know I do,” Mr. Thantos said as he handed her a piece of notebook paper. “This is a list of the pages you should familiarize yourself with by the end of the week. On Friday we will meet again to discuss the content. I would not consider them essential, but they are a part of the curriculum all the same.”
She glanced over the list and was surprised to find it much shorter than she had anticipated. “I guess I know more than I thought.”
“Yes. Did I not tell you that youths today underestimate their abilities? Do not fall into this. You are much more clever than you give yourself credit for. All the same, do not let it get to your head. Focusing on your studies is still important.”
“Thank you. Is there anything else?” she asked.
Mr. Thantos handed her another piece of notebook paper, this one smaller in size. “Yes, Anj told me to pass this on to you. I do not know why he could not do it himself, but I suppose it makes little difference. Now you may leave.”
She didn't wait for him to shoo her out. She left his office gladly and read over the note written in almost illegible handwriting. It took her more than a few minutes to figure out what it said.
“Be in the lobby at seven. We live in the same dorm. We're going out.”