The late 9pm evening of the great Academy institute was disturbed with a loud crash of broken glasses and a silent thud.
Many academics hurried out of their quarters and into the brightly-lit hallways. At Side 4e, one could clearly see a breach in the transparent windows, which served as a parallel wall to those containing their rooms.
The academics were gasping and making shocked speeches as someone aimed a torchlight at Levi's body, which was sprawled on the ground two floors below the point of fall. The security team and some bystanders below had already rushed towards the body.
An extremely loud scream was heard from a girl in the hallways. Everyone turned and looked up to her to know why she screamed in this situation. But, in front of her, hurdled to a corner, was a woman with her mouth wide open, a huge blade was stuck in the middle of her head and one of her arms was mutilated. She was dressed in an inner black attire and a white apron on top. The blood flowed from her forehead through the side of her nose and unto the dress as the eyes stared at nothing.
---
Levi's eyes slowly opened, but his vision remained blurry. He blinked repeatedly until everything came into focus. Above him, he noticed a white ceiling illuminated by bright lights. As he looked down, he could see the doctor, seated on a tall stool, diligently scribbling notes on some files.
Levi lifted his head to survey his surroundings. This wasn't his room, it must be the clinic, he thought. The lady noted his efforts and immediately got up to help; putting her arms under his, she helped raise him up to a sitting position.
"How are you now?" She asked with smiles.
Levi nodded and added, "Alright, I guess." Although his head throbbed painfully, the rest of his body felt fine. "What happened?" he inquired.
She poured a glass of water and handed it to him. "I myself have no idea what happened," she said, stroking his hair. "I'm just here to take care of you."
Levi quickly drained the cup as they locked eyes. He handed her back the cup before she sat beside him. "So, how are things going for you so far?", she asked. When she noticed the confusion in Levi's expression, she clarified, "I mean here in The Academy. How are things going?"
"Not so bad," Levi replied. "I met an old childhood friend of mine, so... it's not that bad."
"Good. Good," she said as they both smiled. Their smiles slowly faded, and a moment of silence followed. The lady stood up and walked to a coat hanger in the corner. She slowly removed her white coat, hanging it up. Levi was stunned; without the coat, she revealed an attractive feminine figure with curves accentuated by her inner shirt and trousers, showcasing perfect thighs.
She walked back and resumed her seating position next to him. Levi could see her astonishing red hair as it made a bob right around her cleavages. She gently took his hand and nestled it beneath hers for a while, before placing it on her lap.
Levi let out a silent, "Ma-"
"You can call me Meera," she interrupted softly. "In case you need anything, anything at all, you can come to me okay?" She said sweetly as she kept on fondling his hand into the warmth between her thighs.
Levi nodded slowly. The tension between them abated with an impatient knock at the door. Meera sighed before getting up and putting her coat back on. She adjusted her hair before opening the door.
Levi still couldn't understand what just happened. He has never been so close to a woman's sheath before in his life. Hell, he has never been close to any woman or girl in his life at all.
The Dean emerged from the door, his gaze meeting Levi's and then Meera's. He gave her a stern look and said, "I remember ordering you to inform me when he awakes."
"Yes, you did, and you received no information. So, why are you here?" she asked coldly.
He turned away from her and walked towards Levi on the bed, with his arms crossed behind his back. "I couldn't wait until sunrise; he has a fixed schedule," he remarked.
Meera scorned and folded her arms before heading back to her file work.
The Dean smiled at Levi. "You look alright, no scratches," he nodded approvingly as he approached closer. "Despite it being a two-floor drop, still, not one scratch."
Levi, in his usual confusion, asked, "Two floor drop?"
"Yes, why do you think you're here?" The man paused and sat at the edge of a table. "Not only that, we found the dead body of one of our maiden workers." He held up one finger, "Not just any dead body. A mutilated arm and a stabbed forehead dead body".
With the news, Levi sat up straight, his eyes widening and his eyebrows furrowing diagonally. "Are you saying that I... killed her?"
The man frowned and continued, "There is no eligible proof yet. All the cameras around there disconnected unexplainably at the time of the incident. But, yes, you are the number one suspect, of course."
Him? The number one suspect of murder? He couldn't even remember what happened.
The elderly Dean interrupted his thoughts, calling him back, "Let me take a wild guess, young man. You can't recall a single thing, can you?"
Levi shook his head slowly.
The man turned to Meera with his arms folded, "Tummerman? Report?"
Meera handed him a file with 'Nine' written on it in bold and started explaining, "As per the findings, I could see signs of excessive stress in his brain neurons with an unusual pattern of breakages and mishaps in their connections. It appears as if his brain was overloaded or something. However..."
The Dean interrupted with an understanding look. "You used to be in rehab, boy?" He asked Levi, who sat silently, eagerly awaiting an explanation.
What? Were they saying he was a psychopath? That he killed that woman and jumped two floors down in his crazy exploit?
Yes, he had been to rehab. But for a totally different reason. He was in rehab because of his ailment. Wait, was it his illness that caused this? Levi thought. Was a psychotic break and short memory loss additional symptoms? Perhaps, it was, Levi concluded. "Yes", he answered sadly.
"That settles it," the Dean said with a sigh as he rose to his feet. "Come, I'll walk you to your room."
Levi subsequently got out of bed and stood on his bare feet. As they made for the door, he asked the Dean, "Wouldn't you arrest me?"
The Dean chuckled, "Arrest? Don't make me laugh, please. Come, you still have three hours of sleep left before it's 7 o'clock."
Levi turned back to take one last look at the doctor, and sure enough, she was looking back at him as the door closed.