Chapter 48: The Unforeseen Lecture

Chapter 48: Chapter 48: The Unforeseen Lecture

Iris stood in front of the mirror, fastening the final button of her white blouse before smoothing the fabric over her waist.

For the first time since returning to Emerald Heights, she was actually going back to class. The beginning of the final semester should have been something she looked forward to. It was supposed to mark the last stretch of late nights, examinations, presentations, group projects, and everything else that had consumed most of her university life.

In a few months, she would be walking across the stage with her degree in her hands, and the thought should have filled her with excitement.

Instead, she felt tired. But not the ordinary kind of tiredness that came from staying up too late studying. She had barely slept.

Every time she closed her eyes, the same nightmare returned. The same snowy mountain. A dark sky dominated by a pale moon. And that creature....what she has come to know as a Lycan...the enormous silhouette standing against the mountain, dark fur shifting in the wind, powerful shoulders rising and falling as though it were struggling to breathe.

And those eyes...those terrible, glowing red eyes. The creature would lift its head toward the moon and howl, and every time it did, Iris felt the sound somewhere deep inside her chest.

Last night had been worse. She had awakened more than once with a scream caught in her throat, her heart pounding so violently that she had needed several minutes to convince herself she was lying in her bedroom and not standing barefoot in the snow.

Whatever these dreams were, they were beginning to frighten her. Iris glanced at herself in the mirror again. Her wavy black hair fell loosely around her shoulders, framing her face naturally.

She had kept her makeup simple, only enough to make her look less exhausted than she actually felt. Her yellow skirt, patterned with delicate flowers, fell almost to her knees, while the fitted white blouse gave the outfit a neat, feminine appearance that suited her perfectly.

She tilted her head. "At least I look awake," she murmured, but her tired reflection did not look particularly convinced.

She reached for her phone and checked the time. She still had a little while before she needed to leave.

Her eyes drifted toward her flatmate Zoey’s bedroom door. It had been closed when Iris returned to the apartment yesterday, and she hadn’t seen her flatmate since.

That was unusual. Zoey could disappear into her own world when she was working on something, but usually Iris would at least hear her moving around, complaining about hunger, talking to herself, or muttering at whatever piece of code had offended her that particular day.

Iris unlocked her phone and called her. Zoey answered after several rings.

"Before you ask, yes, I’m alive."

Iris smiled despite herself. "I wasn’t going to ask whether you were alive. I was going to ask where you’ve been hiding since yesterday."

"Technically, I’m not hiding. I’m working."

"That’s exactly the sort of answer that makes me wonder what you’re actually doing."

There was a pause on the other end.

"I’ll explain when I get back."

Iris frowned. "That sounds suspicious."

"Trust me, it isn’t."

"Zoey, don’t tell me you’re doing something again."

"I’m always doing something."

"I hope it’s not something dangerous."

"I resent that accusation."

"You shouldn’t. I know you."

Zoey laughed softly. "All right, perhaps you do. But you’re going to have to trust me on this one. I have a theory, and I don’t want to tell you what it is until I’ve checked a few things first. If I’m right, I’ll show you everything. If I’m wrong, then we can both laugh at how ridiculous I was."

Iris leaned against the dressing table. "That explanation somehow makes me even more nervous."

"Good. It means you’re paying attention."

"Zoey, I’m serious."

"So am I. Don’t worry about me, all right? I’ll be back later."

"What exactly are you working on?"

"I’ll tell you when I know whether I’m onto something."

"That’s incredibly frustrating, because you’re literally not telling me anything solid."

Zoey’s sigh could be heard on the other line. "Don’t worry Iris, I’ll fill you in later. See you later ok?"

"Alright. But be careful." ℯℯ𝑙.

The teasing disappeared from Zoey’s voice. "I will."

The call ended.

Iris stared at the phone for another moment before slipping it into her bag. She knew Zoey. Behind the sarcasm, the jokes, and the seemingly harmless computer obsession was someone who had an almost unnatural ability to find trouble.

Zoey didn’t simply stumble into dangerous situations. She seemed to have a talent for discovering them. Iris sighed and picked up her books.

Whatever Zoey was doing, she would have to deal with it later. She had a class to attend. And apparently, according to the Business Administration group chat, it was going to be an interesting one.

The chat had been nearly impossible to ignore the previous night. Their Head of Department, Professor Harold Whitmore, had personally sent out an announcement informing every student that a new professor would be taking over one of their major courses.

That alone would not have been unusual. What had everyone talking was the fact that Professor Whitmore had made the introductory lecture mandatory.

Professor Harold Whitmore had a reputation for being one of the strictest academics in the university. He was the sort of man who could make an entire classroom fall silent simply by walking through the door, and he was notoriously unwilling to cancel lectures for almost any reason. So naturally, the announcement had sent the group chat into chaos.

Who is this professor?

Why is Whitmore making the first class mandatory?

Do you think he’s some visiting professor?

Maybe he’s from Harvard or Stanford.

What if he’s young? Please let him be young. I’m tired of professors who look like they fought in the Civil War.

Iris had read some of the messages before putting her phone down. She couldn’t bring herself to care. She had far more important things occupying her mind. She grabbed her bag, slipped her books inside, and left the apartment. Whatever mysterious professor awaited them, she would find out soon enough.