Chapter 1

Sweet Aphrodite's POV

I opened my eyes from my dreamless sleep when I felt a tap on my cheek. Stella's face blocked my view, with no trace of emotion like the usual.

I blinked and covered my mouth before speaking. "Thank you for being my human alarm clock," I uttered with my still hoarse voice. After pushing the blanket away from my body, I then sat and stretched my arms.

I am not surprised anymore when she walked out of the room without saying anything. She's always like that, not fond of speaking.

I got up and did my daily routine. After taking a bath, I began fixing myself. I brushed and dried my long brown hair. I pushed the few strands out of my face and put it on the side with a hairpin. To remove the small crease on my uniform, I gently ran my palm on it. It didn't remove the crease but it helped for it to become less noticeable.

I took a last glance of myself in the mirror before walking out of the room. The apartment is not that big that's why it is a few steps from our room to get to the dining area. Stella is already sitting in front of the island countertop while Irene is in the small kitchen. I immediately helped her readying our breakfast.

We are all living here together, sharing the bills for rent, electricity, food, and water. We are also responsible for different house chores and strictly follow the schedule of our tasks. We are all civil to each other and fortunately, everything is working fine.

I washed the dishes before we all left for school. We study at the same university but with different courses. Although I am the only scholar among us. From here, we ride public transportation to bring us to school.

Irene bid her goodbye when we are already inside the university. She's nice to everyone but we are not that close because she has her own circle of friends. I shrugged it off when I realized that Stella is already gone when I looked at her side. I'm used to her habits. Unlike Irene and I, she's usually void of emotion and quiet.

"Good morning, Sweet!" A senior said with a lopsided grin.

"Boo! What a simp!" One of his friends said, followed by mocking remarks from the others.

I politely smiled at him, greeted him back, and didn't stop walking.

Some students with familiar faces smiled and greeted me. I'm surprised that there is some unfamiliar student that knows me and puts effort to greet me. I shyly gave it back to them as my appreciation.

"Hi, Sweet!" Aaron, my classmate, greeted me.

"Hi, good morning!" I greeted him as I walk towards my seat.

I smiled hesitantly when I noticed how noisy my classmates are. Our ages are ranging from 19-21 but a lot of them are still acting immaturely.

I saw Aaron who is already few steps away from me, immediately sat when our professor stormed into our room. The noise suddenly died down giving a deafening silence. My classmates went back to their original seats and fixed themselves.

"Good morning." His baritone voice filled our ears.

He stood in front of us giving an assertive vibe. His eyeglasses made him, even more intimidating together with his large physique, perfect posture, and neat uniform.

"Good morning, Sir Pablo," we answered in unison with our practiced intonation.

He just nodded and checked the attendance. Right after that, he sat at the table, facing us. He eyed us critically.

"Have you heard the news?"

I shook my head and glanced at my classmates, waiting for their answers. Sir Pablo seems serious with his question and when he noticed that we are all clueless about it, he shook his head disappointedly.

"There are dead bodies found. Ten bodies, to be exact."

Some gasped in surprise, some seem cannot understand what is the big deal about it. It's painful to think that hearing news like this isn't surprising anymore. Thousands of people are dying every day.

"What's surprising about it, Sir? I mean, with the authorities abusing their power over ordinary people, this happens a lot..."

"The dead bodies that were found lost every drop of their blood and they have those pair of small holes on their neck as if something pierced through their skin."

The class reacted loudly. Curiosity and fear took over us. Different theories about it caused the noise that was immediately silenced by Sir Pablo.

"Now, is that still not surprising?"

I am almost absent-minded while walking. After the class, all of us immediately searched about the news and it is now trending all over the country. Skin so dry and wrinkly, the victims look like their blood was drained out of their bodies.

Two holes are also evident on each body's neck. I can't imagine how horrifying their deaths felt.

Who would do that? How did they do that? But thinking that humans did that kind of killing is hard. Is it possible that wild animals did that?

I massaged the side of my forehead while walking to the comfort room. Thinking hard makes my head ache. I directly went into a cubicle to pee. I washed my hand after and looked at myself through the mirror near the sink. I am about to wash my face when the light suddenly went off. I almost jump in shock but I calmed myself.

"Relax, Sweet Aphrodite..." I whispered to myself and regulated my disturbed breathing.

I am scared of darkness. Every time darkness surrounds me, my mind would begin in thinking creepy things. And the realization that I am alone here is pushing me to the edge. I just need to relax and get out of here. I would not be trapped here like what usually happens in horror movies.

I gathered my things and with big steps, I march towards the door. My eyes widened when I heard the doorknob clicked and locked before I could even reach it. My breathing becoming shallow as I twist the knob, trying to open it. I slammed the door as loud as I can to get someone's attention from the outside. Why did they lock me here? Didn't they know that someone is here?

"Open the door! I am here! Please!"

Breathing became hard for me when my heart started thumping that I could feel it in my throat. Beads of sweat are building up on my forehead. I can feel the fear in my guts.

"Open this!" I shouted. "Please open thi-" I choked with my word when I heard a thudding sound behind me.

I was stupefied for few seconds when I remembered that I was alone. Am I alone? I slowly looked where the sound originated. I held my breath when I saw a little movement in the dark. And with the help of the faint light from the small window, I confirmed that I am with someone.

I almost sighed in relief but I froze when I saw the manly built of the stranger. Can not find my voice, I reached for the knob again and twisted it, trying to open it. Tears clouded my eyes when I heard his low growls. It doesn't sound humanlike.

It is walking towards me based on the loudness of its growl. My knees weakened that I fell on the ground helplessly. Hot tears cascaded down my cheeks. I am want to scream but there's no sound coming out from my mouth. My body began to shake in fear when I saw its eyes after a faint light hit his face again. What terrifies me more is the sight of his bloody sharp fangs.

He leveled his face in front of me and growled louder after he inhaled sharply.

"What an enticing smell..."

He raised his hand in front of my face and I am frightened when I saw his long nails with a hint of blood.

"N-no, d-don't touch me," I uttered under my breath.

My brows furrowed when he's suddenly out of my sight. Then I heard his groans like he's in pain. I was confused about what's happening but I was taken aback when I saw silhouettes.

A stranger is holding my attacker on his neck that his feet are already above the ground. Then the man squeezed the monster's neck. My lips parted when I saw his head fell to the ground.

I felt like my life went out of my body after I realized what just happened. I sobbed silently while my body began to feel numb because of the overwhelming emotions. I covered my ears when I saw the stranger threw the body away like it's nothing.

I shook my head when I saw him making his steps towards me. What is he gonna do now? Did he save me or he just wants to kill me? And what are they? I have a theory about the one who attacked me earlier. But on this man, I don't know. I just know he's not human. He's too strong to be a human. He ripped the monster's head by just squeezing it.

I froze when he kneeled in front of me then wiped away my tears with his thumb. "Hush now, my innocent Sweet..." He whispered gently. I don't know how but my system immediately calmed down, following his words. "You're safe now."

I looked at his face but I can't see it clearly. But one thing is for sure, he's wearing a black half-mask.

"I'll always protect you. I promise."

As if hypnotized, I nodded. He touched my cheek before he slightly slanted his face and then he claimed my lips.