Run

The week had gone by quickly and soon, it was time to attend the university once more.

Avery got off of his car and started walking inside the campus. It is now his second year but he still couldn't figure out where to look when he walks around. Even for someone like him who grew up getting used to fancy places, Anka University is top of its league.

Aside from the extravagant architecture, It is the university of the best and most gifted students in the country, taught by the best professors and instructors around the world. He has been fortunate to possess both brilliance and influence that his spot in the university has been secured.

He managed to come to his first lecture a few minutes early. He sat down in an empty seat at the corner and settled in. He sees familiar faces coming in little by little, he waved and smiled at them. He never really had a close friend so far.

Avery would regularly talk, and even go out with his colleagues, but that is most likely the extent of it. He has none that he considers as a close friend. He feels like he somehow repels people into getting closer to him, just the same way as to how he shuts himself away from them. Like he was only meant to be adored far away, and not to get discovered deeper.

All except Lucia.

Soon, the lecture started and it featured a topic that keenly caught Avery's interest.

"Scent goes as far as just a scent. It shows emotions and even links to memory. Every scent can have the possibility to stir our emotions and even recollections of our consciousness. It is widely used for several therapies…"

Avery quietly takes his notes, these human discoveries are as fascinating as the fact that he knows scents can go beyond that, that it could carry their own memory and share it to the one who can smell it. At least, that is how it is to him, due to his enhanced sense of smell. He began wondering how animals' sense of smell goes. Since they are much enhanced than humans.

Avery subtly looked around and made sure no one is watching, he saw his classmate spray an expensive cologne and leave the bottle open on her desk that is about one seat away from him. He cautiously tilted his head downward and activated his ability. He glanced at the bottle and tried to focus on its scent. The cologne is strong enough that people around could lightly smell it.

Avery lunged into the cologne's memory, he could see the essential oils mixed into it, how its prominent scent, lavenders, had been juiced out to extract the scent. He saw fragments of his colleague purchase it, and use it now.

He then stopped looking into it. Someone might look in his direction and he would cause a ruckus. It's just that the topic rose his interest to test his abilities.

He suddenly remembered the locket he possess. Avery felt it right in his pocket as he placed his hands in it. Whoever is the mysterious person who sent this must be well aware of his abilities. But no one ever knew about it except the people in the orphanage, which makes him even more uneasy.

'What if the people I escaped to long ago finally found me?'

As much as he didn't want it, the memory of his escape filled his head.

That is until they were dismissed and the people's chatting and walking away overthrew his thoughts. He immediately picked up his things and went out. He sat at the staircase at the side of the building where people rarely pass. He then took out the locket and gave it a good look once more.

There doesn't seem to be anything alluring or special to this particular piece of metal, but it has already left him unsettled for a week. He tried to feel its sides and to his surprise, the locket opened.

He gasped and held his breath as he discovers blinking dots inside. "I knew there's something to this!" he blurted out.

"Nice watch, mind if we go talk about it for a while?"

Avery immediately hid the locket and diverted his eyes to the one who spoke.

It was a thin guy, just the same build as him, but with golden blonde hair. The man was grinning at him while he suspiciously stood up from the staircase. "Who are you?" he nervously asked.

"It's Cassian, I think you deserve to know the name of the man who would kill you at the very least." he proudly said, "I've been trying so hard to find you, thankfully, I managed to get you first."

Avery's eyes could get any wider as he shakily stood up and took a few steps away from Cassian. The latter is enjoying the fear in Avery's eyes, he drew a knife to scare him even more. "Look at you, how pathetic. I'll give you a headstart. Run."

Avery hesitated for a while but when Cassian looks like he means it, he clenched his jaw and made a run for it. He turned around and ran to a public area as much as he can. He was gasping, slightly screaming as he run but all he gets are suspicious looks. It is truly a bit bizarre that a person of his status would be assassinated in broad daylight, and in public. He tried asking for help from random passersby but they would only refuse and even think he was crazy.

He began being puzzled, it's as if people cannot see he's being chased.

He looked back to see if the guy is there. To his surprise, he managed to grab him by the shoulder. Cassian is smiling like a lunatic, but for the other people, it only seems like two friends playing with each other.

Avery yelled and freaked out after his shoulder has been grabbed, he managed to immediately shake it and continue to run. His body is fortunately light with long, slender legs so he's a quick runner. Surely, Cassian is just as agile as him, but Avery is visibly faster as he managed to form a distance once more between them.

He reached the main entrance of the university. But he swiveled in a different direction. He decided to just try to lose him by passing in an alley in between two buildings. He ran as fast as he can but he lost his focus when someone seemed to be calling his attention.

"Wait!"

Avery looked back and saw a lady, wearing a red hooded coat and sunglasses, running towards him. He tried to run even faster, trying to run away from the girl too. Cassian did mention that he's with someone.

'Why am I suddenly being chased?'

He ran inside the alley, he slightly glanced behind him and there's a mix of panic and fear seeing the lady be so close to him already.

He's about to reach the end of the alley but his collar was grabbed and he instantly fell to the ground. He held his hips out of pain, but the pain was immediately brushed away as he sees the woman standing in front of him.

Physically, there is nothing remarkably scary to her, but her aura, he can tell she's not ordinary. He shut his eyes tightly and pleaded to her.

"I'm here to protect you." Avery opened his eyes, his expression calmed down. He finally managed to look at her, he stood and composed himself. The lady asked if he has the tracker, he immediately showed it to her.

"I'm Alana." she then removed her sunglasses and he saw her glimmering red eyes. Flashbacks of the kids in the orphanage immediately came to him. He knew she was one of his friends that escaped that night. "A… Khalil." he chose to introduce himself using his real name, hoping she would recognize him.

However, Alana did not react like his name was familiar to her.

"Alana, we met again quite quickly."

Avery and Alana looked at the other end of the alley and saw Cassian. Alana faced Cassian in a fighting stance, covering Avery behind her. Cassian chuckled as he slowly walks towards the middle of the alley, "I really admire you, Alana. I wonder how long you could last against me."

Alana scoffed, "If you have just fought instead of talking, you would have known by now."

Cassian smirked, "Now don't get too excited, I'm waiting for my sister."

They didn't have to wait long after that, Cassio walked right behind him, unimpressed with Alana and Avery, "Are we really gonna fight them?"

"Are you both just gonna talk?" Alana clapped back. Avery lightly pulled Alana and worriedly whispered, "Should we just run? There's two of them now and I can't fight any of them."

She glimpsed at him at gave him a little smile, "Don't worry. But you can grab something to make yourself more comfortable."

Avery ran a little at the end of the alley. With that, Cassian and Casio started attacking. Alana immediately tried to hold them back, she had never seen them talk but due to their movements, Cassian is clearly targeting her, keeping her busy so Cassio could get through to Avery.

They were playing a little game of tag until Alana managed to kick Cassian in the gut and he abruptly flew a few meters away, gasping for breath. She pulled Cassio's hair at the same time and entangled it around her arms. Cassio held her arm and twist it by maneuvering her own head around.

Alana dropped to the ground and let go of Cassio's hair, the latter stood up straight, tightly twisting Alana's arm.

Cassio held a victorious smirk until someone poked her shoulder. She looked behind her and all she saw was Jolene's silver eyes. Clearly, it was too late to regret it.

"Fight Cassian," Jolene whispered close to Cassio's face. The lady did not want to concede to it but she knows that ability well enough, and that she can't do anything against it. She let go of Alana's hand and walked directly to Cassian who just managed to stand up now.

"Oh no…" Cassian muttered as he saw Jolene's silver eyes and Cassio's upcoming attack towards him.

Jolene immediately helped Alana to stand up, then he referred to Avery, "Come on!" she said. Three of them immediately ran away.

"You're eyes… who are you?" Avery asked Jolene in amazement as they ran.

"Cassian can't be the only one who will bring a sister, right?" Alana answered. All three of them smiled.

They slowed down when they think they'd gone far enough. There, they met two boys waving at them, sitting on a public bench.

Alana and Jolene rushed towards them. "Owen! Are you alright?" Jolene asked Owen as it holds his face in pain.

"I found him unconscious in some back street, he still won't tell me what happened," Kiel replied.

"Hey, didn't I tell you to keep it to us only?" Owen is shaking his head, everyone looked at him in confusion so he had no choice but to explain. "I thought I found the love of my life, for real. Turns out she's just one of the people chasing us." Owen dramatically said. Jolene and Alana immediately realized he was talking about Cassio.

"Well, to be fair, Cassio is beautiful." Alana teasingly commented.

"You've seen her?" Owen expectantly looked at Alana, but it quickly changed when he saw her laughing, "Stop, I knew now it was way too good to be true."

"Are these guys… Are you all from the orphanage that escaped that night?" Avery started putting the pieces together.

That is the only time Kiel and Owen actually noticed him. Both their jaws almost fell out, "Jolene, Alana! You found him!" Kiel burst out in happiness. "What's your name?"

"Khalil." he paused, "But I'm much known as Avery now, you can call me that." all four of them nodded. "I have so many questions to ask all of you."

"We don't know much but go ahead, ask them," Jolene says.

Avery looked up at his watch, by this time he had already missed his next lecture. Either way, he wouldn't want to go back to the university after what happened.

"Do you have a place to stay?"