The message left me puzzled for a moment, but then the memory surfaced.
Naomi once told me to use that phrase in case of an emergency.
That was what she told me to say if Hina would've ever put me in danger.
But… she said it to me… out of nothing.
Everything happened so suddenly… and the coincidences were really strange.
Yuna, Haruto… Hina's behavior…
Panic began to set in, but I tried to stay calm.
There had to be a clue about her location.
Then I remembered the forbidden room at the school, the one that had been locked up years ago because of the "sadly famous" murder case regarding two students.
For some strange reasons, that was the first place that came up in my mind… I had the strange feeling that I had to go there.
It was inaccessible to everyone except the people who worked at school.
Thinking about it, that room was the perfect place to hide, or to hide someone.
I decided to head there immediately.
I also knew that I had to be stealthy.
But before walking out and starting the mission, I decided to call Sakura-San.
My instincts were telling me to tell her about the situation.
So I walked into my room to open the drawer below my desk.
And there, I saw the things that Sakura gave to me.
There were the small piece of paper, the GPS watch and the knife pistol.
"…wait a second." I thought.
The things were perfectly placed into the drawer.
But the strangest thing was that the knife gun was there too.
I didn't remember putting it back…
Then, my mind started to race with other thoughts.
"Maybe… Hina… did everything…?" I said to myself.
But there was no time to think.
I grabbed all the things I needed and picked up the phone.
I then searched through the calls , to see Sakura's number and after some minutes I found it.
I pressed the call button and then I heard the electronic ring, signaling that the call was sent.
Sakura-San replied after 10 seconds.
"Oh? Kai-Kun! Why did you call me at this time? Did you want to tell me something new… or were you just missing Mommy Sakura?" She said with a teasing tone.
Well, "mommy Sakura" was unexpected, and despite the anxiety that I was feeling, a small laugh came out from my mouth.
But then, I rapidly composed myself.
"Sakura-San, I seriously need your help." I said, with a direct voice.
From the other side of the call, I heard a disappointed sigh.
"Ah… okay. What do you need?" She asked.
"Well… my friend has disappeared, and she sent me a message telling me that she was in danger." I rapidly said.
Sakura remained silent for some seconds.
"What do you mean? When did this happen?" She asked, with a worried tone.
"I don't know, my friend Yuna told me about this today…" I said.
"Mmmh… do you have any idea of where she might be, Kai?" Sakura asked.
"Well… I don't know why… but the only thing that came up to my mind was the closed school room where the murder case happened." I said , while adjusting my shirt.
"… and maybe you're not wrong." Sakura said with a very cold voice.
"What do you mean?" I asked, negatively surprised.
"Kai, I'm coming. Run towards the school and sneak in from the back. There should be an open hole in the metal net around the school gates." Sakura said
I was surprised , since Sakura knew so well about my school.
Well… according to the stories, it seemed like her dead son used to go there.
"You're talking about the old entrance? But it's sealed!!" I said.
"Trust me, there should be a hole. Lot of students go there to have some particular fun. Enter trough that hole and then walk straight foward towards the corridors and then keep walking to the end and remember to always turn right. The room is on the third floor. Now go, I'm coming." She said, before hanging up the call.
I didn't even have the time to reply to her, but considering her tone of voice and how quickly she ended the call, the situation could be way worse than it could be.
After preparing my self completely , I was finally ready to go.
I put a jacket on my shirt and some kind of protections.
I hoped I wouldn't need to use my weapons, but it was better to be prepared.
The journey to the school felt like a blur, my mind racing with possibilities and fears.
I was walking rapidly but I still tried to don't be suspicious.
I knew that I was being watched from some distance and I had to play the part of the guy who knew nothing.
During my walk , I thought about Yuki Nakamura.
Maybe she could help me, but at the same time I didn't want to be involved with her.
My decision was to help Hina.
I kept walking until I finally found myself at the old entrance of my school.
Everything was actually sealed except the old school gate.
On it , there was a sign that was telling to keep distance since this was a restricted area.
For a class, they closed an entire part of the school.
I kept looking at the scenery in front of me and the sight of the abandoned building sent a chill down my spine.
Darkness seemed to envelop the entire structure, making it look even more ominous.
It was like a totally different building if you look at how modern my school is.
Anxiety was still being my companion during that time.
But I knew that couldn't stop myself.
I had to find Naomi.
I climbed over the rusty gate, careful not to make too much noise, and I found myself in front of a metal net.
I looked around to see the "hole" that Sakura was speaking about and I found it after some minutes.
It was in the right side, hidden by a pile of leaves.
I managed to pass trough and I found myself inside the old school entrance.
I grabbed my knife gun from my pocket and I held it in my hand, prepared to any kind of danger.
I could feel the fear and adrenaline flowing trough my veins.
I couldn't feel my body, but the determination inside me was stronger than my fear.
I walked inside the school.
The door was already opened, maybe a sign of a bad that someone was already inside.
When I was in, a very bad smell of old flew inside my nose.
"Arhhg… disgusting…" I said while having a disgusted expression on my face.
Then, I started to walk.
Despite being abandoned, the lights were actually on.
But those lights were only in the main corridors, lots of the classrooms were sealed and closed.
I kept walking and walking very slowly, trying not to be noisy.
I saw that some classrooms were opened and during my walks, I kept some rapid peeking into them.
The old classrooks were bare and silent, the hallways dark and dusty.
I kept moving cautiously, trying to make as little noise as possible.
The forbidden room was on the third floor.
Every creak of the floorboards seemed like an explosion in the building's silence.
During the walk, I could see used condoms, weird graffitis, strange letters, dust, syringes… too many things…
Lots of people used to come there for had things.
Then, I found myself in the stairs that lead to the third floor.
As I ascended the stairs, I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.
Shadows danced on the walls, and the air felt thick with tension.
When I reached the third floor, I found the door to the forbidden room.
It seemed locked, but I could see that the door was slightly open.
I took a deep breath and tried to force it open.
After a few attempts, the door creaked open with a sinister groan.
Then… I saw something awful.
The sight that met my eyes made my blood run cold.
Naomi was there, tied to a chair, gagged, and covered in bruises and welts.
Her clothes were dirty and ripped with blood and wounds being very visible to the eye.
Naomi's gaze was empty.
But when she saw me, her eyes widened, maybe filled with hope and fear.
I quickly approached and began untying the ropes.
"Naomi, I'm here. It's going to be okay," I whispered, trying to reassure her.
Her eyes darted around frantically, and she tried to speak through the gag, but her words were muffled.
I removed the gag, and she gasped for air.
"Kai, it's a trap," she managed to say between breaths.
Before I could react, I heard heavy footsteps behind me.
I turned quickly to see three men entering the room.
They looked like gang members, with menacing tattoos and hard gazes.
One of them smirked.
"Did you really think it would be that easy?" one of them said, stepping forward menacingly.
At the sound of that voice , my whole body shivered.
My heart was pounding.
We were trapped.