"Heyyyy! Pabs is tha' you!?…" a familiar voice called out from behind.
They both turn to see Ibrahim with a glass of wine in his hand. He looked half drunk as he walks up to them.
"Oh, you're here wid your hot friend," He said, whispering the last part of the sentence.
He then laughed absurdly at his own words, before clearing his throat when he realized they weren't laughing.
"Nice party… not every time you get an invitation to a dope party like this," Ibrahim said while switching his empty cup with Pablo's full cup.
They chat for a while before Pablo and Alexa left the party and head to a park.
"I don't think it's a great idea to get on a roller coaster immediately after drinking. I don't wanna throw up," Pablo said.
Alexa looped her hand in Pablo's and shift closer to him while pulling him closer to the roller coaster.
"Come on, done be a wussy, let's escape reality for a little while," She gulped. "What's more fun than soaring around with your bestie?" She asked with a sweet smile.
"Err… sitting at home having a cup of tea?"
She relentlessly pulled him up on the thing...
....
***
Few days after the party, at the SCP. Pablo sat on a chair, waiting as the security walk the sad-looking Eric forward. He had his face down as he walked forward, his lips were moving as if muttering something to himself.
He looked worse than he was the last time he met with Pablo. He had more wounds on his face and has a bandage covering his left eye. He also staggered as he walked forward, must have been in more fights. Pablo's face falls as he watched Eric sit on the chair on the other side of the glass.
"Don't give me that look," Eric fumed averting his eyes from Pablo's.
Pablo exhaled softly. "I… what happened to you? You look completely beaten up,"
"Duh!… What do you think happened? Now that the other inmates know that the eye turned their backs on me like worthless trash, I mean all trash are worthless, there's no one for me to threaten them with, am guessing you know the rest," He barked, turning to face Pablo, who jolts in fear.
"B-but how'd they know?"
"Well, whatchu think eh?… They finally agreed to work with the eye after all the tales I told them, then you came, claiming the eye doesn't need me anymore. I had to tell them, knowing I will be stuck here forever. Just tell me what the fuck you want, let me get outta here" Eric suppressed his anger. He had his fist clenched as he stared at Pablo waiting for what he had to say.
Pablo looked at the guard behind him and cleared his throat. "It's the same thing I told you last time. I wanna stop the eye, maybe gather dirt on them and report to the po…"
"Forget it…" Eric chipped. "You can't find anything on the eye, talk less about stopping them," He added
Eric sighed and leaned forward, lowering his voice as he speaks. "According to some papers, the eye has been around since hundred of years ago"
"Hundred years?… If I can't find anything about the eye, then where was this heard?" Pablo asked.
"You relentless bastard. The man that recruited me said it… but listen, it's impossible to stop them, what will you look for?" He asked.
"Simple, we could start by you telling me who recruited you."
Eric stopped. He scanned Pablo for a moment before finally speaking. "The same guy I told about you, Professor Cunningham."
He gasped as he let the information sink in. Cunningham is part of the eye? He would have never thought, not in his wildest dream, that Professor Cunningham is a member of the eye. It was a shocking news, that left him frozen in his seat.
"I know… shocking isn't it?" He stopped for a moment before he continued. "When I unintentionally, mistakingly, killed a friend, not really a friend, a guy. They took care of everything, to date, no one knows about it, it's like they made it so that he never existed. Not even his family"
"What are you trying to say?" Pablo asked.
"…After that, Professor Cunningham called me and offered to help keep my secret if I joined the eye. What am trying to say is that they can do anything, make a person even disappear and no one will notice it. Like me for example, have you heard anything from my family? Or the college?" He asked.
Pablo shook his head.
"Exactly. Pablo, just forget about stopping the eye… running is not an option cause they will find you. Just do as they say and everything will be fine."
Pablo shook his head in disapproval. "No, I… I will stop them. If I don't come back here, then know that they got me."
Eric's lips twitches as he held back a smile. "Good luck. You'll need it"
The guard escorts Eric back to his cell, while Pablo head straight to the college. Cunningham should still be there maybe sorting some files or something. He knows he's up for a risky task, and he could disappear just like all the other guys the eye has made disappear. But he has to do this if he wants to get his life back on track.
He gently knocked on the professor's door.
"Come in…"
Cunningham dropped the pen he was holding as Pablo walked in. "Mr. Saez?… Must be something important for you to come to see me now."
Pablo looked between Cunningham and some guy sitting on a chair in front of the professor.
"Yes, there's something I need to ask you."
The professor smiled before turning to the guy in front of him. "Could you give us a moment, please?"
End of chapter.