IDENTITY: FOUR

ALEX POV

I was waiting for Maica outside my boarding house. Even after what happened to her, she still dared to walk alone. I didn't know where she got her bravery. Speaking of her, I could see her now. She's walking in my direction with a smile on her face as if nothing happened to her yesterday. She waved the moment she saw me and ran until she reached my spot.

"Are you okay, Maica?" I greeted her, looking at her smiling face. She's so energetic today.

"Why? Is there something wrong with me?" she asked, shifting her face into an agitation.

"Not... nothing. I just noticed that you're exceptionally happy," I answered, and then Maica smiled. It's just the right time for Sky to come out of the door and head towards us. As usual, he still wore this stoic face.

"Shall we?" Maica invited, and I nodded. To be honest, we couldn't think of any place to go or anything to do now. We already achieved our weekly goal yesterday. So, this will be an impromptu outing.

"Since you're new here, Sky, is there a place you'd like to visit?" Maica asked the quiet guy walking by my side.

"Nothing specifically. A recommendation would be nice," he replied.

"Good because I know a perfect place," Maica excitedly said. And so, our tour guide adventure with Maica began.

Our first stop was Maica's favorite place, the Terraria Garden, where you could see all kinds of flowers and plants. This place was as huge as a university, divided into four different ecosystems: a desert, a tundra, a rainforest, and a tropic. It was free, so many people visited.

Next, we went to the Arcade. All sorts of games were there - from joystick-type to PC-type. Everything was here, so students often hung out and cut class. We also visited the famous mall in the area. It was twice the size of Terraria Garden, and everything was available there. It was a bit pricey, but what you could buy was worth it.

We were in the cinema now, watching a "now showing" movie, and it seemed like the two of them were enjoying it. I was sandwiched between them, and it looked weird with Maica smiling while I had a serious face. I didn't seem to enjoy our outing today because what happened to Maica and what she might do still bothered me. It always bothered me, as if whatever diversion I did, the incident kept coming back to my mind.

"You don't seem to be enjoying," Sky suddenly commented, surprising me. I looked at him, and the first thing I noticed was his eyes. Even in this dark cinema, his eyes were shining. It's like a galaxy was trapped inside them. "Staring in my face makes me uncomfortable," he complained, which made me avert my gaze from him.

"Sorry." I turned my attention back to the screen and tried to enjoy the movie. But I noticed he was still looking at me. What's wrong with this guy?

After watching the movie for an hour, I don't know why we chose to watch it, it finally ended. We were on our way to a fast-food chain for lunch since we weren't satisfied with the popcorn and snacks we bought earlier at the cinema.

When we reached it, we quickly looked for an empty seat and ordered. Since it wasn't a restaurant, we had to go to the counter to order. Unexpectedly, Sky volunteered to order, leaving Maica and me at our table.

"He's nice," Maica suddenly commented, referring to Sky.

"You like him, don't you?" I teased.

"What?! No way! Though he has the look," she defended, making me laugh. But then, I remembered what happened to her yesterday. The smile instantly turned into a frown. I thought it was just me, but when I saw Maica, my sadness deepened.

She bowed her head again, with her hand forming a fist. I held her hand, and I could feel her trembling out of anger.

"Maica."

The moment she heard her name, her trembling stopped. Her fist started to release, and her body began to relax. "Yes?" she faced me with a smile on her face. Without a reason, I suddenly felt a chill. I never knew that pretending would be this creepy.

"Shall we eat?" Sky suddenly interrupted us, carrying two trays of food. What's more surprising is that these trays are full of food, and he's not struggling at all. People are looking at him, too.

"Jesus, Sky! You could have asked for help," I reminded him and quickly took one tray. I was even more surprised when I found out how heavy these were.

How did he manage to carry two of these heavy trays!?

"I don't want to disturb you guys," he said with a deep voice. I just smirked and placed the tray on the table. Sky sat beside me and slowly placed the tray he was holding on the table. I never thought he would buy this much. It's like it's for an entire family.

"Geez, you ordered so much, Sky. Looks like I'm going broke here," Maica joked.

"Don't bother. It's my treat," the guy declared, surprising both Maica and me.

"That can't be. We'll pay," I refused.

"I'm serious. Really. This is a payment for having great tour guides like you." I paused in lowering the food from the tray when I heard what Sky said. Even Maica was surprised by his statement. But what's even more surprising is when I saw Sky's smile. It's so genuine. It's the kind of smile you can stare at all day.

"And you got something, Sky!" Maica suddenly shouted, bringing me back to my senses.

Jeez, I've been staring at him for a while.

"What? What did I get?" Sky asked in confusion.

I looked at Maica, who was also looking at me. She was smirking as if she had some mischief in mind. "Never mind. She might leave."

"I don't understand you, Maica."

"You don't have to. Let's eat! I'm so hungry!"

Damn, this girl.

"Alex? Are you okay?" Sky asked me. I am now looking down to hide my reddening cheeks. I slowly raised my face and looked at him. I hope he didn't notice. "Are you okay? Your face is turning red. Do you have a fever?"

Shit~!! He noticed!

"He's fine, Sky. It's just his reaction," Maica covered for me.

You're a lifesaver, Maica!

After that embarrassing scene, we finally ate. I ate quietly while the two of them chatted. It took us two hours before we finished. These two, 20% eating, 80% chatting.

"I'm full. How about you, Alex?" Maica suddenly asked, surprising me. Why does she keep asking suddenly? I just nodded and managed to give a smile. It's still awkward for me after what happened earlier. I feel like I want to leave and avoid these two before things get worse.

"Oh no! I'm late!" Maica suddenly shouted.

"Late for what?" I asked in confusion.

"I have an appointment regarding what happened yesterday. I was supposed to have a check-up," she replied.

"Then let's go!" she invited.

"No need, Alex. I'll go alone because I'm passing by the market afterward. My mom asked me to buy something."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure, Alex. Don't worry. If you're worried that something might happen to me again, well, it's not gonna happen again. Ever," she reassured me and smiled at me. Although against my will, I had no choice but to let her go. "Okay! I'm leaving! Take care, Alex. You too, Sky. Enjoy your date!" Date?! This girl is really crazy.

Maica ran off, leaving the two of us, Sky and me. I looked at Sky, who was looking at the departing Maica. Up until now, I'm still stunned by his eyes.

"I'm starting to get insecure because of your stares."

Damn!

"Sorry."

How many times have I said sorry, Alex?

"So... what's next?" I asked him. We started to walk towards who knows where.

"I don't know. You're the one who knows more about the place, right?" he pointed out.

"Oh, right." I started to think about where we could go next. I knew a place, but it was exclusive to me. There's probably nothing wrong with bringing him there. "Let's go. I know a place."

---

"Where are we going?" Sky has been asking me incessantly since earlier.

"Just follow me." After several turns and hours of walking, we finally reached the place. It was an abandoned house. For some reason, every time I come here, I feel so light. It felt like I was home. "Welcome to my secret place. Well, it's not secret anymore."

"Why here?" he asked, still examining the condition of the place.

"Well, to be honest, I couldn't think of anywhere else to go and this was the only place that came to mind."

"Is this your-"

"No. I don't know who owned this place." Sky scanned his gaze around the place, seemingly trying to figure out what and who owned it. "Sorry if I brought you here."

"It's actually relaxing. This place is so light. It's so calm in here." It seemed like I was not the only one.

"Yeah. That's why I come here to relax and calm my mind." I closed both of my eyes and savored the silence of the place. It's been days since I last visited here.

"Do you hear that?" Sky asked, waking me up. I saw him staring at the ceiling as if listening to something. I did the same. After a few seconds of silence, I heard it. A knocking noise coming from the second floor.

A thief?

I looked at Sky, who was also looking at me. He gestured for me not to make noise and then walked towards the stairs to the second floor. Even though I was scared, I managed to follow him towards what seemed like death. We walked as quietly as we could.

The knocking continued. But unlike earlier, it was louder now, probably because we were close to its source. We reached the second floor, and I got the chills when I saw the hallway, just like in horror movies. There were three doors, and we headed to the nearest one.

The door was already open, so we could enter anytime. But what puzzled me was that the guy in front of me seemed unafraid. He was calm, and his hands were still in his pockets.

"The noise stops," Sky suddenly said, making me jump in surprise. Then I realized he was right. The knocking had stopped. But he continued.

We passed the first door, and there was no one. The second door was also empty. We continued with Sky and headed to the last door. It was the only closed door, and I thought someone was trying to break in.

"It's useless. If they can't open it, then you too," I pointed out.

"We'll see about that." Sky let out a smile and tried to turn the doorknob, but nothing happened. He twisted it a few times, but it still didn't open. It remained closed.

"Told you."

"Then, you try," he suggested.

"Can't you see?" I reached my hand towards the knob. "If you couldn't open it, I wouldn't be able to eith-" The moment I put my hand on the knob, a mechanical noise escaped it. I quickly removed my hand from the knob and stared in shock at the door, which was still making a strange noise.

We just stood there, staring at the door until the noise stopped. Sky and I exchanged glances, and damn, that guy was still calm, while I was about to pee myself out of fear.

"Open it, Alex," he commanded.

"Huh?! Why me?"

"You're the one who made that noise," he argued.

"That was just a coincidence! You do it." I kept my head down and waited for him to open the door. But he just stood there. It seemed like he was waiting for me to voluntarily open the door. "Argh! Fine!" Even though I was scared to death, I approached the door, trembling, and held the doorknob slowly and shakily.

Don't break! Don't break! Don't break!

When my hand touched the knob, I closed my eyes, expecting something to happen, but nothing did. I let out a big sigh and then looked back at Sky.

This guy is really annoying. Still calmly in his pockets!

Sky signaled me to open the door, which annoyed me.

Why did I even come here? Why did I think of bringing him here?

I took a deep breath and slowly turned the knob. This time, my heart pounded louder, and I was shivering more. Unbeknownst to me what was inside, it could be a monster, a serial killer, or a trap. But despite the possibility of being killed, my body seemed eager to continue.

I pushed the door, and it screeched, making the scene scarier than before. I still couldn't see inside since it was so dark. But as I slowly opened my eyes, I was disappointed with what I saw. It was just a narrow empty room. Nothing else. But what was more surprising was how this room still had working lights. There shouldn't be electricity here because it's abandoned.

"I finally found it," Sky said.

"Found what?" I asked with a confused frown.

"Answers."