"that magic's not here no more and I might be okay but I'm not fine at all"

days went by and the messages kept rolling in. the morning sunlight as i was walking through the campus lit my face, warming it in the autumn air. the night had been rough, but as the new day dawned, i tried to shake off the lingering dread. i had classes today, and i couldn't afford to let the fear control my life. i took a deep breath and walked into the hallway which leads to my class, determined to put on a brave face. i wore a pair of jeans, a white blouse, and my favorite dark red leather jacket. the jacket felt like a small shield against the world, a bit of armor to help me get through the day.

as i walked to my first class, i spotted aubrey. which was weird. i rarely see her because of her basketball practices, and the fact that she doesn't have classes here. she was standing near the entrance of the lecture hall. her presence was a welcome distraction from my racing thoughts. 

"hey, ariana!" she greeted me. "hey, aubrey," i replied, forcing a smile as i approached her. "how are you doing?" she asked, concern evident in her eyes. "good, just tired," i lied, hoping my voice was as convicing as it should be. aubrey studied me for a moment, burning her eyes into me,then nodded. "well, if you ever need to talk or just need a distraction, I'm here." i wouldn't say we are that close yet, but it was a nice opportunity to be. it was still weird. i hope tara didn't said anything to anyoe. "thanks," i thanked her afterall, i genuinely appreciated her kindness. "what are you doing here, if i can ask?" i asked because i was truly interested. "oh geno told our teaches that we won't be in class today so we can practice. maybe if you will have time, you can come and watch us?" she asked me. i thought about it for a minute. i was still scared but i couldn't let the fear control my life and i promised myself that university will be a new start. "i will but bye for now, i gotta go." i smiled and waved her as i started walking to my class.

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after classes, i met up with tara. we greeted eachother with a hug as we started talking about our days. "oh, aubrey asked me if i wanted to watch them on their practice, wanna come?" i asked tara, as i reached for the pocket of my jeans, to pull out my phone then realized i left it on my night stand. "i have afternoon classes. i just left my book in our dorm so i'll there and come back. but after that, sure." she answered. "i left my phone on my nightstand can you bring it to me?" i asked her, and she nodded as she walked away. i didn'T had classed anymore but ethan did so i decided to go and watch the training.

tara's p.o.v

i pulled out my keys from my bag, walked into our dorm, immediately walking to the bedroom. i searched for my book a bit, and i found it slid under my bed. i was beginning to walk out, when i remembered ariana asking me to bring her phone. i took it from the night stand, and thought about for a second. she would probably not like this, but i have to know what's up with her. i hate seeing her like this. i opened up her phone with my fingerprint. thank god she put it in.

i didn't know where to start, it could be anything. her dnd was on, so i turned it off so i could get a better look. this is probably private but what can be something so bad that she wouldn't even tell me? i walked out of our apartment, making sure i locked the door, then i took the elevator. 

something caught my eyes. it was a message from a contact which wasn't saved in her phone. i wasn't thinking, so i opened it. she didn't answer to any of this contact's messaged, and i get it why. these messages are full on threatening and creepy. i decided to skip class for this once and ask her. she'll probably won't be happy i'll just tell her that her dnd was off, and when i picked up her phone, the screen lit up and saw a message. the latest one. 

i arrived to the campus and there was a small amount of people walking around in the hallway. i was hoping i won't meet m teacher on the way to the gymnasium. i opened the door, and there were some people sitting around, but i was searching for ariana. i looked around and my eyes landed on her. i walked over, making sure i won't be in the way to the girls who were passing the balls to eachother, throwing them in the baskets. i flopped down next to ariana. she looked at me curiously. "didn't you have one more class?" she asked me. "the teacher is absent she literally told us the last minute.," i lied. "so i thought i'll join you."

i didn't know how to start to talk to her, but i knew i had to.

"hey ariana. look, i know we already talked it out yesterday, the thing about you being weird, and everything but today when i picked up you phone, a message popped up." i started talking, as i saw her expressions change, her eyes widening. "and i knew it wasn't my greatest idea, but i read those messages. i know. you can be mad at me and i get it. but i wanted to know what's up with you. why didn't you tell me? i'm always here for you and you know that. you can talk to me about anything. you were there for me in my worst times and when nobody did, you could see the best in me. i know that you might be scared and i completely get it why. but i can help you. we can help you. or at least try. these messages are getting out of hand. we have to report it to someone this can't go on. i can't let you live in fear. please. talk to us."

ariana's p.o.v

i don't know what to say. i wasn't mad at her because i know she just wants the best for me and i can't thank her that enough.
"i'm not mad. i just didn't wanted to bring you guys into this. i wanted to deal with it myself because it's really not you guys' problem. but i realised that i can't do it alone. and i wanted to tell you this but i was afraid that this person will start to text you guys too. and i don't want to get you guys into something." i confessed

tara reached out and squeezed my hand. "ariana, we're your friends. we care about you, and we want to help. as i said, we'll figure this out together. and don't worry about us—we're stronger together. that sounded cringe but whatever." she made me giggle. the first one in a while. I nodded, feeling a mix of relief and anxiety. "okay, let's go to campus security and show them the messages. maybe they can help us find out who's behind this." tara smiled, a determines shine in her eyes. "that's the spirit. let's get this sorted out."

we left the gym and walked towards the security office. the walk felt like an eternity. but with tara by my side, I felt a little braver. as we approached the office, I took a deep breath and pushed the door open. the officer behind the desk looked up, his expression turning serious as he noticed our tense faces. "how can I help you?" tara spoke first. "my friend has been receiving threatening messages. we need to report this and find out who's behind it." the officer nodded, gesturing for us to sit. "alright, let's start by seeing the messages."
I handed him my phone, my hands trembling slightly. he scrolled through the messages, his brow furrowing. "these are serious. you did the right thing by coming here. we'll need to document these and start an investigation." after giving a detailed report and answering several questions, we were assured that the matter would be taken seriously. the officer promised to keep us updated and advised me to stay with friends or in a safe place until they had more information.

as we walked out of the security office, I felt a sense of relief wash over me. we had taken the first step towards solving this, and I was proud of myself for being brave enough to face it. and all of those thought amd fears of not being believed dissapeared. "you did great, ari." tara spoke up first, offering me a reassuring smile. I smiled back, thought it was still tingled with a bit of worry. "don't worry. i said it before and i will. keep saying it. i'm here and we'll get through this together." she smiled at me once again. "now let's get some coffee and relax a bit, you deserve it."

we headed out to the café not so away from the campus where the familiar scent of coffee and cookies, murmur of students and adults chatter created a comforting air.

sitting there with tara, I realized how lucky I am to have her as my support system, my strength. and with her help, I knew I could face whatever came next. as the afternoon sun streamed through the windows, I felt a glimmer of hope. this was just the beginning of a long journey, but I wasn't alone. i can handle my shit. and with my friends, i'm a 100% sure i can.