{10}

“I can see you, you know.” Soah said without glancing up from the piece of assignment that she was working on.

 A soft cough was heard before a figure stepped out from the shadows. “And you tell me that only after a month?”

Soah shrugged, looking up and meeting Youngjae in the eyes. “At first I thought that you’d go away after a while. But now, I’m curious. Why are you following me?”

Youngjae snorted. “I’m not following you, Soah.”

Soah’s brows pinched together. “Okay… Then, are you spying on me?” She tried again.

Youngjae chuckled softly. “I’m not really spying on you either. I’m just making sure that you’re okay.”

Soah softened a little. “Why do you want to make sure that I’m okay?”

Gnawing on his lower lip, Youngjae broke the eye contact that he maintained with Soah moments ago, glancing at the group of girls that sat beside them instead.

The group of girls beside them was constantly stealing glances at the both of them, whispering among themselves. And the moment that they saw Youngjae looking over, they began squealing loudly, not bothering about the fact that it was so damn obvious.

Soah rolled her eyes and shifted her gaze back to Youngjae, who seemed to be deep in his own thoughts.

“I found out.”

Soah’s voice broke Youngjae out of his trance and he turned towards Soah with furrowed brows. “Found out what?”

“That my Soulmate is Daehyun.” Soah answered with a nonchalant voice, as if it meant nothing to her.

Youngjae sat up straight immediately, his mouth slightly agape. “What?” He exclaimed in a low voice.

The ends of Soah’s lips tugged upwards. “That means you knew that he lied to me.”

After Soah has been brought back to her Mum’s place in Rome to recover from her injuries, she had never heard from Daehyun anymore. It's been a month since she last saw him. 

She returned to school after her injuries have healed completely and she was too busy preparing for the summer tests to dwell on Daehyun.  She was really grateful for the timely distraction; it was something she needed badly.

But a few days after she had officially returned to school, she noticed that whenever she was returning from the library late at night, a figure was always following her. Although he was hiding in the darkness, Vampires had night vision so she knew that it was Youngjae who was following.

Soah managed to find out what really happened that night during The Prophet but it wasn’t through any of the Vampires that were present that night. It was through Leah, who foresaw the events a few nights before it happened.

 “Why didn’t you come to me? Since you already found out the truth.”

Soah offered a small shrug. “Maybe me and him, we are the first pair of Soulmates who are not meant to be together.”

That reply of Soah’s earned a loud snicker from Youngjae. “That’s not how it works, Soah. Soulmates always ends up together. It’s just the ending that’s different.”

“The ending?”

Youngjae nodded. “It's either a happily ever after or one of them dies.”

One of them dies. That’s why Youngjae went to a Fate.  Those words echoed in Soah’s mind.

“You should stop staying outside till that late, Soah. It’s dangerous. At least get a friend to accompany you.” Youngjae advised, distracting Soah from her thoughts.

Soah threw a small smirk at him. “Everyone’s too busy shunning me to do anything to me. Besides, I can protect myself.”

Youngjae looked at Soah disbelievingly. He opened his mouth; ready to argue back when his cellphone started ringing. Soah watched as he grabbed his phone from his pocket, answering the call.

Soah watched as the traces of playfulness that lingered on Youngjae’s face after their conversation slowly disappeared, replaced by frustration and annoyance.

“Alright, I’ll be there soon.”

With that, he ended the call and shoved his phone back into his trouser’s pocket.

“I’ll get going then. Don’t stay out too late, you hear me?” Youngjae nagged with a disapproving frown on his face.

Soah smiled and nodded, waving to him as he walked away.

She turned her attention back to her assignment, not allowing herself to dwell on anything else at all.

“Miss, we are closing for night.”

Soah lifted her head up and realized that it was already 12am, which meant that the library was closing for the day. She hurriedly packed all her assignments back into her bag and left the library, not wanting to be in the librarian’s way.

Well, everyone’s a little grumpy after ending work late at night.

She stepped out of the library and onto the barely lighted pathway leading back to her dormitory.

It was then she felt eyes on her. Someone was looking at her, following her and tracing her every move. She let her eyes sweep around while walking, spotting for any figures hiding in the dark.

Youngjae? Is that you? She called out mentally.

Since Youngjae’s power was a mind reader, he would be able to receive her thoughts. She waited for a reply but none came. So whoever was following, that person was not Youngjae.

She swiveled around immediately, feeling that someone was following her. Instead of catching sight of a person, Soah only saw a pair of red eyes. That had no body or whatsoever.

It was just two red, beady eyes glaring right back at hers. Fear coursed through her blood vessels, taking control of her heart and commanding it to beat faster. Soah’s palm was starting to get sweaty as the pair of red eyes continued to stare down at her.

Soah gulped and took a step backwards. The bravery and confidence that swelled in her, when she told Youngjae that she was capable of protecting herself, was dissolving rapidly.

Just when Soah wanted to make a run for it in the direction of her dormitory, the pair of eyes disappeared into thin air. Soah blinked, her eyes still trained on the spot where she last saw that pair of eyes.

Soah hurried back to her dormitory, lest should the pair of eyes return again. She kept her eyes glued on the path in front of her, telling herself that maybe noticing less of her surroundings would be a better idea.

“Soah? Why is your face so pale? Did something happen to you?” Leah bombarded her with questions.

Soah was leaning against the closed door of their room, panting heavily. Leah was looking at her with furrowed brows, waiting for her response.

Soah pointed a shaky finger at the window and went on to explain her encounter with the pair of red eyes that was watching her.

 “A pair of red eyes? With no body?” Leah repeated after Soah was done explaining.

Soah nodded in response.

Leah shook her head, her eyes were unfocused and she seemed to be far away. “That’s why I couldn’t look into your future.”

“What are you talking about, Leah? You’re scaring me.” Soah glanced at Leah worriedly.

“I tried to look into your future this morning but I saw nothing. You said that you saw a pair of red eyes staring at you and it had no body. That wasn’t any regular creature or animal. That’s the Devil’s watchdog.”

“And whoever who sees it,” Leah paused, “They die.”

Dread filled the pit of Soah’s stomach as she stared out of the window wordlessly. Now she knew why Youngjae had to approach a Fate. She wasn’t going to live long enough to have a happily ever after with Daehyun.