The next day, she got ready from school as fast as she could. She was unsettled and anxious. She was going to make sure that Mike guy regretted messing with her.
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Her aunt had left early and Regan drove herself to school. She still couldn't shake the look that Vesper had given her. When she arrived at school, Vesper was nowhere in sight. Regan took a deep breath and walked to the first class which was math. Vesper was already there, scrolling through her phone.
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"Good morning," Regan said and sat beside her. "Morning," Vesper replied, not looking up from her phone.
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"So have you seen that Mike?" Regan asked, curiousity getting the better of her.
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Vesper gave her a look, "Never mind, I'm going to tell him about it. You don't have to worry, Reg."
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"But what will you tell him?"
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Vesper left the phone on the desk, "That you're not interested and that he should stop doing it."
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Regan took a deep breath. If he was involved in this, then she was more than grateful that Vesper was helping. But the way that rose was placed in the room, its scent and its thorns....it was way too conspicuous.
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The class passed in a blur and Regan couldn't shake the nag in her head. She looked at her hands, at her scratched fingers from the rose's thorns. On contrast, Vesper's hands didn't have a scratch. The red roses looked like they had been a....warning. She didn't know what to think.
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At lunch, her eyes searched for Mike, but she couldn't even remember his face. It wasn't like she looked people with much of detail. She was sitting alone at the table, just when Vesper appeared.
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"It's done," she said, sitting on the chair, "I sorted it with him."
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"Thank you, I guess," Regan said, tried to shake the weirdness out of her voice. She was still thinking about it, when she felt a tap of her shoulder. She turned to see Olivia standing there with a wicked smile on her face.
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"Hey scar, what's up?" she said disdainfully as she leaned on her palm on the table.
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Regan frowned, hating getting called 'scar'. She had been called before and she still loathed it.
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"What do you want?" she coldly retorted.
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Olivia's expression took a twist of a sneer, "Oh, just wanting to play a little game." In a swift move, she poured her coke into Regan's burger.
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Regan stared, dumbfounded back and forth at the burger and at her. She couldn't believe her eyes. The lunch was ruined.
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"What the hell did you do?!" she yelled.
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"I ruined your lunch, scarface," Olivia laughed, followed by everyone else.
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Regan looked at Vesper, who was looking down the table, her expression unreadable.
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"You're an idiot," she hissed at Olivia.
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"And you're a freak," Olivia retorted, laughing.
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Regan turned to leave but one of Olivia's friends moved their leg to trip her. As she didn't notice, she stumbled and fell on the floor.
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Again, they all laughed and her blood boiled hot. Her jaw clenched and she gritted her teeth. She could feel everyone's gaze burning at her back. She could feel their laughs pierce through her soul.
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Slowly, she stood up, her face tight with anger. She didn't want to show that they had succeeded in making her feel bad.
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In a moment, she didn't know what had gotten to her but she expanded her palm and, "Go burn somewhere," she said through gritted teeth.
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As she said those words, a strange sensation coursed through the air, making her fingertips shake. Suddenly, sparks seemed to dance around Olivia's hair, and before anyone could comprehend what was happening, a small flame erupted from there.
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"Olivia watch out! Your hair!" everyone yelled in shock.
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"My hair what? ARGH!" she cried out as she realized, "MY HAIR IS BURNING!!! WHAT ARE YOU ALL LOOKING AT??!!! COME HELP ME!!!" she yelled at everyone who was just staring and gawking not comprehending what just happened.
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Regan felt as if she gone numb, she couldn't move, she couldn't fathom what was happening. Maybe some seconds later, teachers started rushing over to extinguish the flames, and the commotion drew the attention of the entire cafeteria.
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She stood frozen, her mind racing with confusion and disbelief at what had just occurred. She couldn't understand how or why it happened, but she knew she had to get out of here before things got even more out of control. Without a word, she turned and hurriedly made her way out of the cafeteria, leaving behind the chaos she inadvertently caused.
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Vesper, who was shocked as well, saw her leave. She saw that the fire was subsiding and then disappeared from the scene like a shadow.
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As she kept on her track, she saw Regan was walking out of the school. She followed her suit, finding herself in the school's playground.
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Regan felt her heart pound rapidly, and her mind swirled with different confusing and weird thoughts. She couldn't comprehend how Olivia's hair had caught on fire and she didn't ever want to think she might have been the cause of it.
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The playground was a quiet and better place to stay. The air was fresh and clear, filled with the sounds of birds chirping and voices of the guys playing basketball in the distance. Regan found a set of swings and sat down, trying to collect her mind.
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Vesper reached her, her expression unreadable.
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"Regan, are you alright?" she asked, sitting on the other swing.
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"Yeah....what just happened back there?" Regan asked, her voice slightly shaky.
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Vesper shrugged, her expression still unreadable, "Her hair just caught on fire. They put it out, don't worry. It wasn't very severe burn."
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Regan nodded, although she was still shaken and confused. She remembered how she had felt something weird when Olivia's hair caught fire and how she had extended her palm to her. She didn't know what it was and she didn't want to think about it.
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"I'm not involved in this," she told herself.
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"But you are...." a voice echoed in her mind.
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Her whole body went stiff and she felt a wave of uncertainty wash over her. She had always been on talk with her subconscious but this....this didn't seem as her subconscious. It seemed out of place.
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"Well, let's not think about it. Maybe some fella did a prank or maybe there was some kind of freak accident. We shouldn't jump to conclusions," Vesper suggested.
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Regan nodded, trying to push aside the strange thoughts and feelings that were swirling in her mind. "Yeah, you're right. It's just... so strange."
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Vesper gave her a comforting smile, but Regan couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something more beneath that fire, something she couldn't quite grasp.
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***
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The biology class was finished and Regan was entirely unfocused. She kept thinking about what happened in the cafeteria, the voice she heard, and the red rose. She didn't know what was going on but it was definitely weird.
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Vesper on the other hand, was bored as well, doodling in her notebook and drawing on the desk.
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After the class ended, everyone was gossiping about Olivia and what had just happened to her. Regan and Vesper just listened but no one of them said a thing. They acted as if they were busy in their works.
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Suddenly, a girl turned at Regan and started to accuse her of the situation. Regan felt a wave of anger run through her and she quickly defended back.
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"I didn't do anything to her hair, okay? If you don't believe, there are cameras around where she can go and take a look to expand her dearly knowledge."
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"I know, nerd. But you looked quite weird in the footage. You were standing just in front of her."
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"I didn't do anything," Regan snapped.
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"Yeah, well, you aren't as innocent as you seem to be," the other girl scoffed. The classmates circled their desk and Regan felt her frustration reaching its peak. She stood up, and harshly shoved them all away. Vesper followed her as well.
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Regan only wanted to go home and forget everything that happened here.
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"They're all fools," Vesper sneered, "And that Olivia is a piece of shit."
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Regan didn't answer. She was still shaken with unsettling thoughts and feelings. She collected tampered notes from her locker and stuffed them into the bag carelessly.
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Guilt started to spread through her as she remembered that she had told her to go and burn. She couldn't help but feel bad, so so bad. These thoughts were draining her from inside.
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She made her way with Vesper home and when she arrived, she sank into the couch, drowning in thoughts.
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What made her even more unsettled, was that she still had a feeling like something was following her, watching her.
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She stood up again and lazily climbed the stairs. She left her bag in her room and grabbed her laptop. As soon as she did, her heart sank. There was another red rose, that one on the pillow. It was bloody red, the thorns like spikes peeking out of an abyss. Their smell was like a drug, one that made her mind spin.
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"Oh, God," she said, her voice shaking slightly. What was going on? Why were weird things happeninh? First the red rose, then the fire on Olivia's hair, then the voice and now another red rose. She had liked roses but now she wasn't very sure.
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She didn't know what to do. Tell Vesper about it? No, not now. She couldn't tell her aunt either, her aunt would probably bring that guy from school into it. She didn't know why the hell Vesper had to tell Monica about it.
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She was very hungry so she ordered a pizza. After some minutes the doorbell rang and she froze. She tiptoed to see through the peephole and realized it was the pizza guy. She smacked her forehead for being so paranoid.
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She opened the door, paid the guy and closed it. The pizza's aroma filled her lungs and she knew it was going to help her thought. She took her laptop to see a movie, but a feeling of being watched crept through her.
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When she looked up from the laptop, her eyes widened. It had passed three hours sitting there and her aunt was going to find the living room in a mess. Regan quickly fixed it.
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Her phone buzzed and it was a text from Vesper, asking if she was going to go to her house tomorrow. Regan wasn't sure about it, but replied 'yes', not wanting to seem annoying. Her aunt came and asked her about the day, Regan told it was okay, the lie tasting bitter in her tongue.
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She went upstairs to her room, the crimson rose still there, on her pillow. No, that was definitely creepy. The rose didn't got here by its own. And it certainly didn't land perfectly by 'Mike'. Someone must've entered her room, she realized, and the realization hit like a thunder.
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