A WALK WITH EVANGELINE

Xinmei and I got into our room, shutting the door behind us. She dropped her purse on the bed and stretched, groaning like we’d just run a marathon. I kicked off my shoes and sat on mine, and put my hand into my pocket to pull out my phone before remembering that it was just collected an hour ago or so.

I sighed.

She walked straight to the window and pulled the curtain back. “Come look at this.”

I exhaled and got up tiredly, walking over to stand beside her. Outside, past the tall stone fence, were houses. Not just one or two, but an entire cluster of them, lights glowing dimly behind windows, people actually moving around.

I blinked. “There are people living here?”

She leaned in closer, squinting. “Apparently.”

I looked past the houses, trying to take in the whole picture. It wasn’t just some creepy abandoned castle in the middle of nowhere. It was… a whole damn town. And now that I thought about it, we had driven for hours to get here. And I thought it'll just be an estate —it really was its own place.

“Now I get why it’s called a mini city,” I muttered, stepping back from the window.

Xinmei let the curtain fall back into place and flopped onto her bed. “Lucy’s probably gonna call me soon to check in. Except—” she lifted her purse, waving it. “No phone. Should’ve sent her a quick text before it was taken.”

I shrugged. “Yeah. Too late now.”

She turned her head toward me. “Did you bring your laptop?”

I shook my head. “Didn’t think I’d need it.”

We both sat there for a moment, thinking. Then I suggested, “We should ask around. Someone has to have a phone.”

She pulled her legs up onto the bed, hugging her knees. “You think that’s a good idea?”

I shrugged. “They said we could look around as long as we don’t go near the main castle.”

She thought about it, then nodded. “Fine. Should grab a coat or something, just in case we get lost and it gets cold.”

I pulled on my hoodie while she climbed down the bed grabbing her jacket. We slipped out of the room, heading downstairs. The hallways were quiet, most students probably in bed by now napping.

Outside, the air was cool . The west wing courtyard was empty, the only sound coming from the trees shifting in the breeze.

Xinmei turned in a slow circle, taking everything in. “This place is huge.”

I snorted. “No kidding.”

We walked carefully, avoiding anything that looked remotely like it led to the east wing or the main castle. Eventually, we reached a gate with a button on the side.

She raised an eyebrow. “Should we press it? Saw them press it when we came in though”

I looked around. “Only one way to find out.”

She pressed it, and after a second, the gate slowly creaked open.

She grinned. “I feel like I’m in a movie.”

We had asked nearly every single person we ran into—like five — and yet, somehow, no one had a phone. Not a single damn person. We couldn't walk down to the other houses we saw as there were far.

Each answer was the same. “I left mine at home.”

“Didn’t bring it.”

“Didn’t see the point.”

One guy even looked at us dead in the eye and asked. “What's a phone?”

They must be shitting me.

I resisted the urge to snap back at him. What's a phone, my ass. It didn’t make sense. All of a sudden everyone forgot to bring their phones out.

We decided to just forget it, it was a two days thing anyway. On our way back, I caught sight of the looming hill in the distance, standing like some dark, evil lair over Eden. I nudged her and pointed at it.

“You see that?”

She followed my gaze and hummed. “jeez that just gave me goosebumps.”

I tilted my head slightly. “What do you think is up there?”

Xinmei shrugged. “Dead bodies? An abandoned church? Maybe just trees. Either way, I don’t wanna find out. I hope you're not the type that gets curious and go on a haunted mission?”

I chuckled. “Scared?”

She shot me a glare. “I just don’t do creepy shit. That’s how people die in movies, don't you have TV at home.”

The place was already unsettling enough as it was.

With a sigh, we turned back, heading toward the west wing. The gate opened just as easily as before, and we slipped inside.

The moment we shut the door behind us, my eyes landed on a figure at the end of the stairs.

Evangeline.

She stood there, hands joined at her abdomen, with a small smile, and relaxed expression.

Xinmei and I exchanged a quick glance before she spoke first.

“We just went to look around,” she said, her tone casual but cautious. “Didn’t go near the prohibited areas, though. Hope that’s not a problem.”

Evangeline’s smile stretched into a wider one. “Of course not,” she said smoothly. “It’s normal to want to familiarize with your surroundings.” Her voice was gentle, almost comforting. I cannot say enough how different she was.

She paused, tilting her head slightly. “You’ll be briefly allowed to make a five-minute call to your friend tomorrow morning. Don’t worry too much.”

We both stiffened.

How did she know that?

We hadn’t told anyone. We hadn’t mentioned it out loud of course.

Xinmei nodded skeptically, slowly. “Okay…thanks I guess”

We turned to leave when her voice stopped us.

“Except you.”

Xinmei turned back around, blinking. “Me?”

Her smile remained. “No. Can we take a walk, Elizabeth?”

I've learned not to question about how she knows things.

Xinmei shot me a look, but I couldn’t tell if it was concern or curiosity. I exhaled through my nose and nodded. “Sure.”

I glanced at her. “I’ll be back soon.”

She hesitated, then nodded. “Okay.”

She gave Evangeline one last look before walking away, leaving me alone with the woman who, for some reason, wanted to take a walk with me.