Locked in the janitor’s closet, Kate heard a knock outside. Her fingers trembled as she tried to decide whether or not to open it.

“Kate? Open the door, it’s me.” Trevor’s voice sounded through the door, and Kate breathed a sigh of relief. She opened it up and yanked Trevor in with her.

“What’s wrong? You’re text sounded urgent.”

“The darkness. It’s name is Grant. His name is Grant. He asked me to tutor him a while ago but I ignored it and he said he was mad I didn’t remember him and I agreed to tutor him this afternoon and then as I was leaving I saw the note it said that I better not forget him again because I didn’t want to make the darkness angry and he was laughing so evilly down the hallways and it’s so frustrating!” She took a huge breath.

Trevor stared at her with his mouth open. “Okay.”

“OKAY?? That’s all you can say at a time like this???!!!” Kate was beginning to hyperventilate. Trevor placed both his hands on her cheeks.

“Breathe and relax. At least now we know what it is.” But his reassurance was empty.

“We don’t know what it is Trevor! All we know is that it expects to meet me after school and I’m slightly terrified.” Kate felt silly admitting it but pushed away that feeling considering the things and emotions she had already entrusted to Trevor.

“I’ll be right there with you. Call your dad and tell him what we know, tell him it’s fairly human and has the power to influence dreams.”

Kate nodded silently and flipped her phone out.

The rest of the day went by so slowly. Kate sat in her classes, in the back row staring at all of the students suspiciously. She didn’t participate, which was the norm for her. She just watched for any sign of Grant, or the Darkness. Of course, she didn’t know what she was looking for, so she stuck to sorting scents and counting heartbeats.

When the day was finally over, Kate stepped out of the classroom with a positive attitude. Positive meaning she felt like getting answers and doing whatever the hell it took to get them. She felt her seductive powers collecting at the surface of her soul, as they always did when they needed to be exercised.

Trevor was waiting for her outside of her classroom. His face emulated her mood exactly, and Kate absently wondered if they were more in-tune than she originally thought.

They waited until the hallway was cleared, and then waited some more.

Finally, they heard footsteps.

Not footsteps you hear coming down the hall, but the kind of footsteps you hear echoing against the walls of your mind. Trevor and Kate exchanged worried glances as the footsteps stopped. They looked to the right, and to the left, but when their vision returned to the right, they were startled by a dark figure.