Sitting on a bench in front of a big, fairly new built, building where two people.

One had light brown hair, which would be considered long for a boy and a, not yet fully grown, beard. He wore a long, green overcoat with blue Jeans and white shoes and he looked really pissed.

The other one, presumably a friend of the other one, wore a beanie, which covered most of his head, only his glasses, mouth and beard were visible. His black cardigan, combined with a pair of gloves, kept him warm in the cold season.

“I have to say” John, the one with the black cardigan, a friend of Steve and participant in the study group, started “this is the first time I actually saw someone getting thrown out of the library. I am impressed; I only ever saw something like that in movies. I never thought it would happen in real life.”

“Can we not talk about that?” Steve asked, still annoyed “I know that I fucked up, you don’t have to tell me.”

“I mean, come on, it was hilarious. Who would have thought that you would throw a dictionary at Julius after just; wait let me check, an hour? I’m not even mad, I am impressed.” John said, not even trying to hiding his amusement.

“That was his fault, not mine.” Steve tried to justify himself “I knew it would be a bad idea to go to the study group. I mean I already can’t stand him in the lectures, it is only obvious that I would find him even more annoying in private.”

“Yeah, but annoying enough to throw a fucking dictionary? I did expect some friction between the two of you, but that it would escalate like this? Now that was unexpected.” His friend answered, now laughing.

“Hey, I tried to hold myself back there.” He said with his hands in his overcoat and shrugging his shoulders “But even I can only take so much.”

It started to snow lightly.

John finally managed to catch his breath, took a deep breath, and answered “It’s alright. Even I was mad at him in the end. I mean, it is one thing to joke around with others, but what he did was straight up insulting you.”

“It would be one thing if he only insulted me, but no, he had to go for Jen too. Arghhh, only thinking of it makes me angry.” He said, grinding his teeth “That little, slimy, annoying fucking bitch! Fuck, am I angry? I want to punch something.” Steve said, standing up and pacing in front of the bench.

“You can punch whatever you want it’s like free real estate out here. Just don’t punch me, or throw a dictionary after me, and we are cool.”

“Not helping.”

Putting his hands in his pockets, and playing with his lighter, John replied,

“I’m not trying to. Besides, I am also angry. And not just at him, but also at you. Because, different from you or mister annoying, I needed that study group. You know that I already had trouble keeping up last semester and, again different from you, I haven’t managed to keep up this semester, at all” his amusement replaced with a scowl.

“… Hahh, yeah I know.” Shoulders slumped Steve continued “Sorry dude, I am really sorry. I won’t make any excuses; I know that I fucked up. I will arrange another study group, ok? I know someone who had the course already last year; I will ask her for help, sounds good?”

“It’s alright. I will manage somehow. Besides, I can just call you or Lu when I need help. But I have one question.”

“Yeah?”

“Why didn’t you invite the person who already had the course last year? I mean, that would have helped us out a lot.”

Steve suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked at the ground right in front of him, “Well, you see.” He started, still not looking at John “I don’t know her all that well we see each other a few times on the campus and talk a bit, nothing more. It would’ve been awkward to ask someone I barley know for help. Besides, she probably has no time to help us. She has her own studies to do after all.”

“You just didn’t want to ask her for help, because you couldn’t be bothered to ask, am I right?”

“That’s one way to put it.”

John took a deep breath, and from the deepest part of him came a deep, long, and annoyed sigh, “God dammit Steve, you have to work on that. You can’t just be nervous and awkward around people. That won’t do you any good when you start to work.”

“I am not awkward around people. In fact, I am one of the most charming people in this world, everyone loves me. It is nearly impossible to hate me.” Steve replied with a smug expression, to which John answered with, again, a long drawn-out sigh and took out his cigarettes.

“Cigarette?” John offered.

“Yes, I know.” Steve answered.

“…what?” John was confused.

“What?” And now even Steve was confused.

“I asked if you want a cigarette.” John said.

Steve simply nodded, took one and waited for John to pass him a lighter.

“You know” John, now with a lit cigarette in his mouth, began “sometimes I have absolute no idea what goes through your head.”

Steve, who got the lighter from John, lit his cigarette and took a puff “Of course, that’s only natural. No one can say with certainty what another person is saying.”

“That’s not what I… you know what? Forget it. I probably don’t want to know. Anyway,” John said, in an effort to change the subject “what is Lu taking so long?”

“That’s… a really good question. No idea. Wasn’t she just going to grab her stuff and come out?”

“Yeah, or at least that’s what she said. What is she doing so long?”

“Don’t know. Maybe she just had so much stuff that packing takes a while. She could also be angry at Julius and give him an earful, or she had to take a sudden shit.”

“I bet she is talking to the librarian.”

“Nah mate, I don’t think so. The librarian is so not her type. Besides, this would be a bad time to flirt with him. Believe me, I am an expert.”

“At what?”

“Si”

John simply smiled and shook his head, “That wasn’t what I meant. She is most likely explaining the situation to him.”

“Why?”

” So that you are allowed in the library again.”

“Ahhh, ok, I get it… But why?” John looked at him puzzled. “I mean he won’t remember my face. If I just stay away from the library for a week or so it should be fine.”

“Yeah, MAYBE he won’t remember your face, but what if he does? It is better if the situation is explained now, rather than later. And who knows, maybe we can get some learning done today. I am open for surprises.”

“Wouldn’t it be better if I explain it?” the alleged dictionary thrower asked.

“Would you be able to?”

“…Good point.” He simply said, nodding to his friend.

The snow was getting heavier. They both finished their cigarettes, thrown them on the ground, and made their way to the entrance of the library, to see where the last member of they little group was. Because the front part of the library was made of glass, you could see directly in the library, but the only thing that could be seen from outside was the reception.

So, both of them stood at the front, put their faces on the glass and looked for their friend.

After about 30 seconds of not finding her, they decided to look for her inside, because the snow was starting to get stronger with every passing minute, and they both wanted to be in the warm as soon as possible.

John looked at Steve and signalised that he would go look for her, while Steve was pissed that he had to stay outside, in the cold, waiting, to which John just replied with a shrug of his shoulders, a grin and the words “Sucks to be you”.

To which Steve simply replied with a “Fuck you too”, his raised middle finger and a friendly smile.

.

..

…

While Steve waited outside, all alone in the cold, he thought he heard something. It was hard to make out because the snow didn’t settle down, quite the opposite, it started to get stronger.

Normally he wouldn’t have bothered with the sound because he would have thought it was the wind or something, or he wouldn’t have heard it at all because he usually would listen to music, but not this time. This time he heard something and it gave him the creeps.

It sounded like a growl, a very low and quiet growl. But that sound alone was enough to strike fear into him. A fear he never felt before.

He never heard something even remotely like this, something so threatening, something so dark.

Every muscle in his body stiffened, his breath stuck in his lungs and his eyes unblinking he stood there for what felt like hours, waiting for the thing that made that sound to come out.

The growl started to draw closer, and his body tensed even more than before.

Whatever it is that made that sound was moving, and from the sound of it, it was coming his way.

The snow was getting stronger, and his heart started to beat faster.

His eyes wide open he gazed in front of him, not blinking once, for he feared that if he blinked, even if it was just once, he would be dead.

There was no rational explanation why he felt that way, it just happened.

With every second that passed, he could hear the growl getting closer.

While it was nothing more than just a silent growl, that could have been easily mistaken for the wind, in the beginning it was now starting to get clearer and clearer.

He could also hear something breathing.

And from the sound of it, it wasn’t that far away from him.

Here he stood, legs shaking, ragged breath, eyes wide open and a heart that beat twice as fast as normal.

There he was, outside in the snow, fearing for his life and yet he couldn’t move. It was as if he was paralysed, as if some invisible hand held him in place.

The only thing he could do was waiting.

He didn’t have to wait long.

There it was, some 10 meters in front of him.

He couldn’t really make it out because of the snow, but what he saw was enough.

In front of him stood a creature, he didn’t know how else he could describe it, for he has never before seen something like that.

The creature had things that looked like three legs, five arms and no face, but a skull with horns. The eye sockets were an empty, black hole, and just like a sabre-toothed, he had two teeth that protruded from its mouth.

And its eyes were telling him everything he needed to know.

That thing wasn’t here to make friends, it was here to eat.

-

--

---

That thing wasn’t normal, it wasn’t supposed to exist.

Not in this world at least.

And yet it did.

A being that wasn’t supposed to exist in this world stood right in front of him.

It stood in front of him, and glared at him and one thing was certain.

That thing wasn’t here looking for friends, no it was angry.

Angry and hungry.

And it just found its prey.