I was in a fluffy warm haze when I walked to the campus in the morning, still riding the high from a pleasant night spent with Ethan and my anticipation for more to come. It didn’t, unfortunately, last long.

It hit me as soon as I entered campus- the thick tension of anger and fear. The quiet, empty courtyard, the huddled groups of whispering students- it was familiar in a way that had dread curling in my stomach, sharp and cold. I expected to be harassed at any time, accused of something else I didn’t do, to be blamed for whatever the newest disaster was.

Being allowed to walk to the building where Professor Douglas held his lectures without being stopped or assaulted felt like both a blessing, and a curse; it was like they were holding back, waiting for the right moment to turn on me.

In the hallway, where students felt safer to idle and talk, I got the first hint of what had happened. Somebody else had disappeared and the campus had been thrown into chaos again. I slowed my pace, trying to get more information without risking hanging around too long. 

“Did you hear what happened? Nobody is surprised, but everybody’s terrified!”

I paused, my gaze finding the guy who seemed to have a poor grasp on a ‘whisper’. The brunette had a couple of other students hanging off his every word as they gathered around him. They were too focused to notice me hovering just past the fringe of their group.

“He was stirring up all that trouble- remember the scene outside the dorms?” 

For a horrible moment, my stomach dropped, and I half expected to hear a name that might break me.

“First Collin, and now Oliver- leaving campus has turned into a death sentence!”

Any relief that it wasn’t Ethan’s name out of his mouth was spoiled by the heavy realization that Oliver had disappeared. How had I made it so far onto campus? They all knew Oliver hated me- he’d made it very clear since Collin’s disappearance. Shouldn’t I be their prime suspect, as always?

I put my head down and walked away quickly, before they could realize I had been listening. Nothing made sense, but I was counting my blessings as I managed to make it to the professor’s office without being stopped. I hovered outside the door to collect myself before knocking firmly. Waiting for his call to come in, I hurried into the room and shut the door on the suffocating anticipation; it was only a matter of time before everything went wrong again. 

Professor Douglas was on the phone in grave, hushed whispers. He ended the conversation, sighing as he looked up at me with dark circles under his eyes. “Another student’s missing. I suppose you know all about it though.” Just as I was feeling a defensive wave crash over me, he sighed again. “It’s all over school, and with the company you keep,” he glanced at me sharply, “I’m sure you know more than you let on.” 

“I don’t know anything.” The harsh response was automatic, helping to cover my confusion. The only person I spent time with was Ethan. If anything, I was the problem, not him. I took a breath, reminding myself the professor only wanted to help, and I’d snapped at him plenty the last time we talked about a disappearing student. “I mean it. I didn’t even know Oliver was the one who disappeared until a couple minutes ago, and I didn’t get into a bar fight last night. I really have nothing to do with this!” 

Mr. Douglas’s brow furrowed in confusion. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with that young man, Ethan Lennox, haven’t you? I thought you were…” he cleared his throat, giving me a knowing look, “close.” Taking a deep breath, Mr. Douglas scratched at his beard, fidgeting. “Something of a relationship where a professor’s assistant might want to be a little more careful and discreet? No?” 

“What?” It was all I could manage, blank and lost. “I don’t know where you heard that. But even if that rumor were true, it has nothing to do with Oliver’s disappearance.” I tried to sound sure and confident. He expected me to be a competent assistant; I didn’t want to cause him any more trouble. 

There was sympathy on his face, perhaps realizing I was being earnest. “Lyn, from my understanding it has everything to do with Oliver’s disappearance. Ethan was witnessed getting into a fight with him last night. Has he really not told you?” 

“That’s not possible,” I said, shaking my head and swallowing the nervous urge to laugh. Ethan had been with me all night, from the moment we left campus until he’d watched me walk inside my front door. There wasn’t any time for him to go off and start a fight. Unless… I smothered the sliver of doubt. I trusted Ethan, and if anything had happened, I was sure he’d have told me. I refused to believe he was the one making people disappear. “I’m sure it’s just another baseless rumor.” 

“That’s not what I heard,” he said, his eyes downcast. “In any case, I’m sure you’ll clear things up with him. Just...be careful, Lyn. I don’t want to see you getting mixed up in something you’ve already worked so hard to distance yourself from. You’re still young, and I don’t want you to get hurt or have your career suffer.” He gave me a slight smile, trying to be reassuring. 

The cold weight had settled in my stomach again as I faced the professor’s concern. He’d always wanted the best for me- fighting him over this wouldn’t be fair to him. So I swallowed down the desire to defend Ethan. “I understand. I’m sorry I keep worrying you, and I promise I’ll be cautious.”

My words were enough to satisfy the professor, and I was able to distract his attention to the lecture and the materials we needed for it. It was always a relief to be able to concentrate on the work he gave me, and I thought I had found my footing by the time we walked into the lecture hall. But it all slipped away as soon as I saw Ethan.

I wasn’t the only one staring; whispering students shot him hostile glares across the empty seats that surrounded him. I tried to ignore it, to focus on the lecture. But with every spare second, my gaze was inevitably drawn back to Ethan. I was worried over how he was faring with the rumors turning on him so suddenly, and couldn’t help wondering if there was any truth to them.