When Min was in a hurry for anything, she usually had a blackout. She wouldn't remember how she came from one place to another. This was the second time this happened to her.
She found herself on another side of a hallway, with a few students coming down the stairs across from her. The classrooms were also empty. It all felt like closing in on her.
Min quickly patted around her body to feel her purse and pulled out her phone to call Jo. 2 bars of signal. She tried one last dial, but still an insufficient signal.
Though running was not a bad move. The more she thought about it, the more she regretted not running away sooner. Sure, there were security cameras, but what would they find? A woman who ran away from the professor, holding a harmless sketch. A girl supposedly called Sarah Miller - a fictional name at that - who is possibly not even registered in the university. Min should be fine.
Jo should be fine too. She got what she needed, her friend saved the day or saved her life from an extra amount of student debt. All Min was left to do, was to successfully leave the premises.
Min decided to follow the remaining students coming in the same direction. She made a run across the hallway, hoping that when she came down, she would see Henry the security man by the entrance and exit. If not, at least she could have enough bars to contact Jo.
She got neither but an entire lobby. Min looked like she was inside a huge glass polyhedral cube from all the windows surrounding her. She wouldn't have thought that the downstairs looked this way from staying up the classrooms. It'd almost pass as a fancy airport, but what it truly felt was like she spawned into a maze for the first time. Min was speechless. The glass windows that divided each other into parts reflected in Min's eyes. She couldn't stop looking around her. It was a sight to see.
"Yo?"
Min noticed a girl almost Jo's age staring at her.
"Are you high?"
"N-No." She glanced back to the window where a large tree was seen with students hanging out by the grass beside it. "It's just all so cool."
The girl crossed her arms in interest. "So, you are high?"
"Lost." Min corrected, "This place is like some university in... somewhere else."
"Would say close to Reykjavik." Brigitta rolled her eyes, mumbling to herself. "Lukas never shuts up about it."
"Never been there." Min being self-aware, awkwardly shifted her posture to blend in more. The girl looked like she was definitely judging her like Mrs. Sunna was.
"You must be new." The girl extended her arm. "I'm Brigitta. You can call me Bri."
Min took Brigitta's hand to shake it. "Aww, like that girl from The Sound of Music!"
Brigitta frowned. "Don't start, we're not close."
"Okay," Min immediately let go and smiled. Someone was finally going to help her. "Uh, where is the exit again?"
"Leaving already," She assumed. "Weren't you here during the freshmen orientation?"
"Hardly remember," Min tried to hide the panic in her voice.
Brigitta was looking at her like she was the dumbest person alive. "You don't get out of here 'til five. General security rules."
"Aren't you— we in college or something?" Min tried not to yell out of frustration. "It's not like our parents are waiting for us outside to pick us up." It was an insanely stupid rule for Min. The students here were treated like elementary schoolers.
Brigitta only shrugged in acknowledgment. "Yeah, but there's a high school department, and we all leave close to five anyway."
This is where she should have really fainted. She couldn't find Jo, she was still going to buy some food for the cat, and the place had to be this huge to be lost. Luck was truly by her side.
Min still wanted to be sure. She thought that security Henry would be in a good mood. "I still wanna know where the exit is. I forget."
"I have a class in ten, so I can't show you. It's going to be quite a walk." Brigitta held both straps of her backpack. "But it's about in the opposite direction of where I'm going."
"The important places here are apparently far," Min said dryly. The girl smirked in agreement.
"See you when I see you." Brigitta turned the other way to the lobby's escalator. Everyone on it was walking up by the left and standing by the right like all things should be: Rule-abiding. Min thought it was refreshing at the sight. The airport or the mall could never follow this simple instruction. She watched Brigitta until she could only see a blob of her. She was amazed at how big this place really was. You'd never think you'd see a student that far off inside it.
No, it's not one of those places where the more you hang around, it gets smaller. It's so big that a person who's been studying for two years would still get lost. Min knew she would. This Mr. Weiss certainly outdid himself — as annoying of a professor as he was.
Min started walking where Brigitta pointed, her eyes switched to scanning the vicinity in hopes of finding Jo. Min thought that it shouldn't be too hard to do this. This time, she'd be able to go back to their apartment. She checked the bar signal, but it still wasn't enough for her to call anyone.
She noticed stalls and an open café full of students with their own laptops and scattered papers. Most of their bags hang on the back of their chairs. There are little problems inside each screen. Min smiled at the thought. She could remember her college days when she was still studying with Ben, and how it all ended once they graduated. There is something about graduation that makes a mark on you in different ways. For couples, it could be seen as freedom from each other. No one was going to tease the two people anymore, because that's how it all started anyway: Snickering and bickering from others until the two of you believe that your feelings for each other are real. Min cringed at the thought. The simple truth was, that they were both alone; desperate for any kind of attention because they hardly had one.
Min came across what seemed to be an event hall filled with different booths. She somehow found this familiar until she knew where she saw it on their website the first time. One was a film booth, the other was a booth filled with homemade baked goods by students, and another that read "Robotics Club" in the sign. Almost everything reminded him of Ben.
Min spotted the aviator glasses guy by the side of the booth, eating a cupcake in one hand, having the time of his life. Min also noticed this tall, familiar lanky-looking dude. Before she could recognize him, her phone vibrated in her pocket. She took it out and appeared on the screen as Jo holding an ice cream that covered her one eye. Their college days.
Min tapped the green circle. "Jo! Where are you? I am super lost right now, and I need help—"
"This is Josephine's emergency contact? I think she left her phone." A stranger's voice spoke.
"Where are you right now?" Min hoped it was anywhere near where she was. Better if it was beside the exit. "Can you give it to the security guard by the —"
"I'm currently in class. I can give it to you by five though."
Min winced. "Do you know where her next class is? She's in Multimedia."
"We're starting. I'll just see you after class!" Before Min could have another word, the call dropped.
Min gritted her teeth and her nostrils flared. Instead of the growing urge to throw away her phone, she carried on walking. Everything seemed to be getting worse until she saw an exit about ten miles away. Her walk became brisk and into a sprint until she reached the outside air.
The smell of grass and trees filled her nostrils. Her senses immediately calmed. She closed her eyes for only a moment to take another breath. Then, Min's eyebrows scrunched together. The air was somehow too fresh. Most importantly, it was too quiet. The outside should smell like smoke and the sound should be the deafening vehicle engines.
Min snapped her eyes open before gaping in shock. The place was a medium-sized grass field where most of the students would sit and have their study picnics. Some of them were seen to hang out on a subtle mound and gossip. The rest sat on the concrete edges where the benches were, laptops on their laps. Behind them was a hallway that surrounded the grass field for an alternative route to class. She realized it was a hang-out area for students.
Min took in the view. The greenery perfectly coincided even with the grayness of the buildings. Their uniform was prettier in this place. It just needed good lighting after all. Most things do get prettier under the sunlight.
Jo would definitely hang out in a place like this. A spark of hope came over Min and started looking for her. As she realized no one of them was her, she unknowingly started to look for a space to sit. Despite it her circumstances, this place felt the safest. She planned to stick around but there was no proper space for her. It would be weird since she had nothing with her. No person by her side, not even a bag by her side or books to "read". The place looked like you needed to be doing something school-related to stay. It's a social pressure for Min, even in cafés.
She noticed one particular couple by the grass studying together. The girl was on her back, her head resting on the guy's lap as they both read. The girl giggled a little and glanced up at the guy, who smiled down at her. Min watched closely, thinking the boy looked so familiar. At a moment, she saw Ben and the girl became her in the same exact position. She rapidly blinked her eyes many times until the couple were strangers again.
She took a last look before leaving at the same door she came in. Min continued her depressing march inside the air-conditioned school grounds. A memory came to her mind, her and Ben walking around their university at the time. They held hands with books tucked by their other hands on their sides; sometimes swinging their arms together like kids. She smiled at the thought, raising the phone on her hand to see Ben's most recent message. She could use his help to find Jo; it wasn't their first rodeo of "babysitting" her. It could just be Min's lamest excuse for her to see him again. She held her cell with two hands, her fingers were so close to typing a letter.
Min heard faint music from afar. A familiar, nostalgic song she slowly walked. It wasn't long until she averted her gaze from her phone exactly when the aviator specs kid spotted her.
"Hey!" He was practically jumping up and down like a child — probably because it was so loud on his side. "C'mere!"
There were different speakers in each booth, simultaneously blasting out music to attract people. Students started to glance and look at where he was waving. Min wanted to melt like that witch from Oz. Min hated any form of crowd attention. If she also wanted to leave without a trace, she needed to avoid attracting attention.
It was only getting worse when she caught Mr. Weiss observing her from the booth just beside the Robotics sign. For a few moments, he gave a knowing look before casually waving at her. The utter mortification had taken over Min as she walked closer to the aviator boy.
"Hey, dude! I didn't catch your name back in class!" Min yelled against the loud noise.
"I'm Zeke!" He shouted in reply. "And you're Sarah!"
What? Oh. "Yeah!" Min grinned as she yelled back. Time to ask where to pinpoint her escape. "D'you know where the exit is?!"
Zeke gave a perplexed look as if he no longer could comprehend longer sentences over the noise. "What?"
"Exit!" Min slowed it down so she could also mouth it to him. "Where?!"
Zeke caught up with her. He pointed in the same direction Brigitta did then his fingers pointed to the right. He continued to shout the directions, but Min could barely hear it. The noise had also overstimulated her too. She was losing hope.
Min had a familiar feeling of somebody looming over her again, she saw Zeke's face drop into a polite smile as he looked up.
Mr. Weiss was looking down at her, bending over to her ear.
"May we speak somewhere else?"
Min stood there in defeat. All she did was follow him to a corner.
He stood in front of her, hands in his pockets, his head down as his eyes scanned over Min. The what-am-I-going-to-do-with-you face from every teacher to a mischievous student.
"I am coming clean." Min held her breath before sighing it all out. "I am not a student here."
The professor's eyebrows raised for a moment and shifted his weight a few times. Min felt the heat coming up her cheeks.
"What I did was a jerk move." She couldn't look back at him. "I - funny story - I went to my friend and gave her the missing page of her thesis. I knew it was her submission day for the hardcopy."
"So, you wore your friend's uniform going here?" His eyes were moving from left to right before he focused back on Min.
"No," Min almost shouted and became embarrassingly self-aware. "It was an accident; I was in a hurry. I couldn't take it off, it'd look too casual if I did."
"And you continued to put up with the act?"
"I thought I would be able to get out sooner," Min mumbled, putting her head down. "This place is pretty strict with security too."
Min could only hear him quietly stifle a laugh in reply. Weirdly sounds like the laugh of an entertained friend. Weirdly relieving for Min. She swore this guy had an annoyingly, calming presence.
"Then my friend left her phone to a random student here and now I have to find her in this..." she looked around, even the corner was swallowing them whole. "... big place."
Min finally turned to look at Mr. Weiss. In his eyes, it was obvious he was hiding his amusement like he secretly wanted to hear more. For a moment, they locked eyes. They were both thinking. Who knows what Mr. Weiss was thinking? Maybe reporting her to that headmistress? Tell Henry? Min, however, was thinking of a proposition. She was more worried about Jo this time now everything is out in the open.
"Would you help me find my friend? She can't come home without her phone. It gets bad when she loses it."
There was silence. The professor's face seemed like he was arguing with himself and proceeded to look at his watch.
Min's eyes widen. "Oh no, I forgot you have classes to teach!"
He put down his wrists and looked at Min, slowly forming a more obvious smile as if he had decided.
"I have time." He finally replied.
Min was so caught off guard that she regretted her choices. She wanted to take it back and just hang out by the exit until dismissals. It was much better if she went with this alone without any sort of insider attention.
"But shouldn't you be preparing or have meetings in between hours?" She hoped he didn't have any time at all. Min could have just called Ben.
He raised his eyebrows before dropping them back down, feigning a thought. "Nope, not for today."
"So, you're not weirded out or even rat out on me? I mean I could be a psycho."
"I'll be around to stop you." He started walking past her.
Min crossed her arms. "Why won't you just report me?"
"Do you want to find your friend yourself or not?" He retorted, walking without looking back. If one would catch up and look a little bit close on his side, you would see the widest smile spread across his cheeks. Min never saw it.
"Fine." Min caved and followed along. She fast walked until she was about inches behind him. "So where are we going?"
"Cafeteria. I'm starving. I'm sure you are too?"
Min placed a hand on her stomach and felt a rumble. Now she felt two emotions at that moment: starvation and worry for Jo's cat who was probably as starving as her — at least soon enough.