It was like he wasn’t even asking but just thinking out loud and she happened to overhear it.
“That jerk? Hell no!” she shook her head, disgusted by the mere thought.
“Yeah,” he looked down, scratching his head, “I know he’s a bit crude, but…”
“A bit?” Mina corrected him. “You mean very crude, right?”
“I mean, he has this bully-ish front, and is an asshole sometimes, I’ll give you that, but we’ve been friends for years and, trust me, there is more to it than just this persona that he is showing everyone.”
Mina didn’t need to think about it, not even for a second. Raphael was a bully, plain and simple. Maybe he wasn’t as bad as the twins but he was disrespectful to anyone he couldn’t benefit from and that meant that he was a nasty person. That was all she needed to know to stay away from him.
“I didn’t convince you, did I?” he asked.
“Not really,” she shook her head. “You probably won’t, so just stop trying. The guy’s a douchebag. I’m glad he’s treating you well and all, but I’ll just stay away from him. And not because the creepy twins told me to but just because I don’t want such people around.”
“Well, okay then…” he smiled. “I tried.”
“I don’t see why you’d even try,” she eyed him strangely.
“Oh, nothing... I gotta go. See ya later,” he was quick to go, leaving her alone.
She wondered why Raphael would even come up in conversation. Why wou
ld Renwick play his advocate? She sighed, deciding that it didn’t really matter. She needed to get this assignment done and then she could maybe roam the library a little and see what interesting things she could unearth.
Chapter 11
When she was done with her project, Mina realized that it was much later than she thought it’d be. She wrote the conclusion to her essay and put all the books back. She found her way out much more easily than on the way in, as this time, it was a conscious effort.
The cold mountain breeze chilled her to the very bone as she was standing outside the main building. She rubbed her upper arms a little, trying to warm herself up, but one blouse and a light sweater wouldn’t do the trick. She looked around and noticed that there weren’t many students out on campus. It was Friday, so she figured they were either in their rooms or in the Bunker, at least those who were lucky enough to be invited to join.
The Bunker was apparently just an old bunker-like hole in the ground on campus, which was a makeshift club and bar, only there were no alcoholic drinks, just the stuff you could get at the cafeteria and maybe some snacks someone managed to sneak in, but no one was willing to get expelled over booze. Mina had been planning to go there for a while now but, apparently, you couldn’t just barge in. It was invitation only, which meant that someone who was already a member of this unusual club was your only way in. They’d have to walk you in the first time and vouch for you, then you were in. Also, there weren’t many people invited. She heard that the group was very small. There were about thirty people who were granted entrance to the Bunker, so she was sure that they were all special, one way or another.
Mina had no idea if Reeba was a member or not. She hadn’t gotten the chance to talk to her about that yet. Besides, it was something to be proud of, so Mina was sure that Reeba would have mentioned it, if it was true. Right now, she was too focused on waiting for the Witches’ Sabbath. Mina had big plans for that but there was still time. She tried to figure out if there was anyone else who could get her in to the Bunker so she could snoop around a little, maybe ask a few questions which she couldn’t ask in the hallways but no one popped to mind.
As she was lost in thought, pulling the sleeves of her thin blouse down to her hands, she saw a silhouette approaching her. Illuminated by lamp light, it looked ominous. As gravel crunched underneath his shoes, for a second, she felt threatened, simply because that was her usual state of mind under such conditions. Alone, in the dark - she was usually forced to fight whoever was approaching her in the darkness so menacingly. However, here, she had to think twice and keep her guard up but pretend like she wasn’t scared or anxious.
A second later, the silhouette was a few feet away from her and he raised both his hands to pull down his hoodie. Her heart immediately skipped a beat, when she realized that it was Hendrik.
“What are you doing out so late?” he asked, instead of a greeting.
His earring sparkled as it caught the light. She noticed he didn’t have his sketchbook on him, as he usually did. Where was he headed?
“I was just at the library, finishing my history project,” she explained. “I guess I didn’t realize how late it was.”
“Well, it’s Friday anyway. You should chill a little,” he smiled, raking his raven black hair with his bony, artist’s fingers.
“Yeah, I think I’ll just go to my room, take a quick shower and enjoy a good book,” she nodded, feeling a little fidgety.
“I’m always for a good book,” he continued, “but, this time, I meant something else.”
“What?” she wondered, as they stood there in the same spot, facing each other.
There was still no one around and their meeting almost felt like fate, like she was destined to be in this spot, at this time, with him. Her heart skipped a beat every time he’d start talking, hoping he’d say something nice to her, something nice about her. She couldn’t believe she liked him this much.
“Wanna go to the Bunker?” he asked, casually, as if he was asking about some homework they had.
“With you?” she chirped, a little more joyfully than she wanted to.