Alex was still feeling guilty, and there was only one person on his mind: Debbie.
He needed to find her. Only then would he be able to calm down.
He knew she was most likely to be in one of two places: her dorm room or the villa in the Green Island Garden District.
After everything that had happened, she probably wouldn't be at the villa, but Alex decided to check there first.
Maybe he was just stalling while he worked up the courage to face her. Or maybe he was hoping for a miracle. Perhaps she had already forgiven him and was waiting for him inside.
When he arrived at the Green Island Garden District, he was both hopeful and worried. He walked toward the villa, taking one step at a time.
He opened the door, but there was no miracle.
The villa was empty.
His heart sank. Just thinking about Debbie's current attitude toward him made him feel awful.
He returned to Preston University. If Debbie wasn't at the villa, then she must be in the dorm.
Although he was worried about how she might react to him, he felt worse when she wasn't around. Even if she yelled at him or hit him, that would be better than not seeing her at all.
He waited until no one was paying attention, and then he slipped into the girls' dormitory.
When he found Debbie's room, he pushed open the door and rushed inside.
"Debbie!" Alex called out anxiously. But Debbie wasn't in the dorm, only Maddison and two other girls.
"Get out, you pervert!" Maddison pointed at him angrily.
"Where's Debbie?" He was really worried about her. Where had she run off to?
"That dog, Debbie? How would I know where she went scrounging for food?" Maddison drawled. The other two girls looked at each other and laughed.
"Tell me where Debbie is!" Alex shouted. He could see that they knew where she was, and they were just making fun of him.
"I already told you." Maddison shrugged. "Where do dogs go to eat? We don't know. Are you deaf, or simply stupid?" The other two girls laughed even harder. "Get lost. You're stinking up our dorm." She started to push him out the door, and the other two girls stood up, ready to help.
Alex was furious. He grabbed Maddison's hair and pulled hard. She yelled in shock, and the other two girls came over to attack him. He shoved them away and kicked at the door, breaking its hinges.
Maddison stared at him, clearly afraid.
"Tell me! Where is Debbie?" Alex asked fiercely. If Maddison teased him again, he wouldn't be able to control himself.
"She dropped out of school!" she said, panicking.
Alex was stunned. He had never considered that. How could someone like Debbie drop out of school?
"Nonsense. Where is she?" he roared, giving Maddison a little shake. "If you don't tell me, I'll beat you to death!"
"She really dropped out of school," Maddison said, eyeing him warily. "Our teacher told us. If you don't believe me, you can ask anyone." She was afraid Alex would get even more violent.
His gaze shot toward the other two girls huddled on the floor.
"Yes, it's true," one of them said, cowering.
"The teacher told us," the other girl added.
Did Debbie drop out? he wondered. Why? She doesn't know anyone in New York, so where is she?
"When did she leave?" he asked.
"Last night, around midnight," said one of the girls carefully. "She packed up her clothes, but I wasn't really paying attention. I didn't know she'd dropped out of school."
Alex let go of Maddison, who quickly moved aside, looking at him in fear.
He turned around and walked out, his heart heavy.
"Hey! What are you doing in the female dormitory?" The dorm manager had arrived. She glanced at Maddison's room and said, "Your room is a mess. Did this boy cause it? I'll inform the school authorities and write up a report."
"No, it has nothing to do with him," Maddison said, running her fingers through her messy hair to tidy it.
"Really?" The woman said, confused. She scowled at Alex. "Get out of here. As a young man, you have no business being in the female dormitory."
"Maddison, why didn't you tell her about Alex?" one of the girls asked, rubbing at her sore wrist. "He stole money from Mr. Morgan. If we tell everyone what he did here, he'll definitely get kicked out."
"If we get Alex thrown out, then how would we get revenge?" A trace of a cold smile appeared on Maddison's face, and her voice grew positively icy. "Besides, the Kappa Alpha Society is in trouble. If we report this to the school, then everyone will laugh at us."
**
Alex called Debbie, but she didn't answer.
He searched the school and the entire neighbourhood like a madman, but she was nowhere to be found.
At midnight, he walked to the edge of Ramsey Lake and sat down on the big rock where he and Debbie had once shared some food.
The pale moonlight was reflected in the lake. He sat there all alone in the cool night.
Images flashed through his mind: Debbie laughing, looking sad, being shy, eating, walking, reading. The pictures flew by like a slide show, but he had no idea where she was now.
He didn't dare to think about Debbie being out there all alone, maybe afraid, and helpless.
A tear rolled down his face. Then another.
He continued to search for three days, but there was still no sign of her. It was as if she had never existed.
By the fourth day, he was in despair. He was starting to think that he would never see her again.
For the next few days, he wallowed in misery. He refused to go to class and stayed in bed all day. Most of the time, he simply lay there and stared at the ceiling, but occasionally he would cry loudly.
Ben, Joe, and Carl were worried about him. But when they asked what had happened, he didn't answer, so they assumed he was upset about having to repay the stolen money.
They brought him food, forcing him to eat and drink.
Finally, they couldn't take anymore. They knew Alex couldn't go on like this, or he would make himself ill. So, they dragged him out of bed and took him to the bathroom to get clean.
"Alex, you can't just stay in the dorm all the time. In fact, don't come back to the dorm before ten. Go someplace else and relax," Joe said. Then they firmly shut the dormitory door.
Worried about Alex, they opened the door five minutes later to check on him, but he was no longer there.
**
Alex left the dormitory and wandered until he reached Ramsey Lake. After sitting beside the lake for an hour, he realized that Debbie would be disappointed to see him like this.
He took a deep breath and stood up. He walked to the school gate and hailed a taxi to take him into the city.
As he watched the scenery pass by through the car window, Alex thought about Debbie. He hoped to spot her somewhere, even if it was a long shot.
After four hours of simply driving around, the driver's shift was finished, so he dropped Alex off somewhere in the city.
Alex walked into a high-class restaurant and sat down. He had wanted to take Debbie here for a meal, but she had disappeared before he could fulfil his promise.
"Sir, are you ready to order?" the waiter asked, wondering about this sad-looking customer.
"I'd like the fried lobster, some oysters, a seafood platter, pumpkin soup, the lamb cutlet, the steak with black pepper…" Alex ordered a total of more than ten dishes.
"Sir, are you planning to eat all that food by yourself?" the waiter asked with his mouth wide open.
"It's fine," Alex said lightly.
The waiter was still worried, so Alex showed him his wallet, which had enough cash to pay for the meal and still have a little leftover. Satisfied, the waiter left to arrange the food.
Debbie, Alex thought. When I find you, I'll bring you here to make up for the harm I've caused you.
The dishes were brought out and placed on the table one after another.
"Can I have two sets of tableware?" Alex asked.
"Oh, so you're expecting a friend?" The waiter smiled. At least he's not eating all that food by himself, he thought. He went to get the two sets of tableware.
Alex looked at the empty seat across from him and felt a bit depressed.
"Debbie," he sighed.
He picked up a prawn and placed it on the plate in front of him. "Here, have a taste. Well? What do you think? I remember you saying that you like prawns."
Alex picked up the red wine and poured it into a glass. "This red wine is world famous. Try it."
The waiter was dumbfounded. He opened his eyes wide and stared at Alex in disbelief. He rubbed his eyes and looked again. There was still no one else there.
He tried to warn Alex, but he was too busy talking to the air as if someone was sitting in front of him.
The waiter felt chills down his spine. He looked at Alex with a hint of fear. Was he talking to a ghost? What if there's a ghost sitting across from him, he thought. And I can't see it, but he can?
"Oh, he must really be in love," said one customer, watching the scene.
"I wonder if the girl he's speaking to left him or if she died," someone else said.
"That's so sad," came a third voice.
Everyone was watching Alex. They could tell he was missing a woman he loved deeply.
"Damn. Hey guys! Look at this. There's a fool over there talking to himself." A discordant voice came from not too far away.