I quickly snapped out of my daze from Howard's good looks and glared at him with displeasure.
"If you keep staring at me like that, I'll think you want something thrilling..." He didn't finish his sentence but took a moment to glance at me.
I immediately got what he meant, blushed, turned my head away, and cursed in my heart, 'Shameless.'
"Do you know that because of you, I'm about to become the enemy of all the girls at school?" I vented my anger while looking at the students passing by.
He looked at me with some confusion.
I told him about the campus post. The reason I faced so much hostility was because of him. I wasn't going to keep my grievances to myself.
I wasn't sure if it was my imagination, but Howard's face seemed to darken after hearing it. "Leave it to me. I'll help you resolve it."
That was exactly what I wanted to hear, so I didn't hold back.
The car stopped at the gate of the neighboring university. Since unfamiliar vehicles weren't allowed inside, we had to walk in.
It hit me that I had no idea where Matthew's classroom or dorm was. When I came to study, Matthew had already gone abroad. We only reconnected after he returned, and I had never been here before.
Not knowing where to go, I decided to take the simplest way—ask someone.
I approached a pretty girl under the shade of a tree near the teaching building. "Excuse me, do you know where Matthew..."
The girl was super friendly. Before I could finish, she jumped in, "Are you talking about the guy from the class of '19?"
I quickly nodded. "Yes, that's him, the handsome and smart Matthew."
Of course, smart people are famous wherever they go. Matthew, who had been excellent since childhood, was also outstanding at this university.
"Although I don't know where he is right now, I can help you find out, but I have one condition." As she spoke, her eyes were glued to Howard, sparkling.
I immediately sensed something was off and was about to say something when the girl took out her phone and handed it to Howard. "Can I get your contact info?"
Just as I thought, there was no such thing as a free lunch. Meeting someone who knew Matthew and was willing to help us out was way too convenient.
Howard didn't answer but looked at me.
I didn't respond; I just pouted and looked down, pretending not to notice. Actually, my ears were perked up, curious to see how he would handle it.
Howard seemed to chuckle when he saw my reaction. "Sorry..."
Before he finished, he suddenly pulled me into his arms. "My girlfriend is here, so it's not really appropriate to add other girls. Sorry."
The girl was stunned for a moment, her eyes flicking between us, then she laughed heartily. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize you were a couple. I thought you were siblings."
She then apologized to me warmly.
"It's okay."
Facing her enthusiastic apology, I felt a bit embarrassed for some reason.
To make it up to me, the girl asked her friends about Matthew's whereabouts. "You might have to go to the boys' dorm. I heard from his friend that he didn't go to class today."
With this solid info, I immediately dragged Howard to Matthew's dorm.
It was lunchtime, and the boys' dorm was bustling. My eyes were almost dazzled.
I couldn't sneak into the boys' dormitory, so I had to let Howard find him.
"Howard..." Before I could finish, a puzzled voice came from beside me. "Are you Karena?"
I was stunned and instinctively looked at the speaker. Standing there was a clean-cut guy with black-framed glasses, looking very scholarly.
I was sure I didn't know him, but he seemed to know me. "Do we know each other?" I asked.
The guy realized his mistake. "Sorry,, I forgot you don't know me. I'm Barry Myers, Matthew's roommate. I saw your photo on Matthew's phone before, and you looked familiar from a distance. So I came to say hi."
I didn't expect Matthew's roommate to know me, which made things much easier.
"So you're Barry. Sorry, I didn't know you were Matthew's roommate since we hadn't met before. I'm here to see Matthew. Is he around? I tried calling him, but he didn't answer."
Barry frowned immediately. "Didn't he tell you? He went out last night and hasn't come back."
"That's weird. Matthew never skips class."
He went out last night?
I immediately sensed something was wrong and looked at Howard. "Could something have happened to him?"
Ivy came to see me last night, and then Matthew's missing. I suspected she might have taken him.
"Let's talk in the car." Howard pulled me away, and I quickly waved to Barry.
Barry waved back, looking puzzled. "Is that her boyfriend? Did Matthew get dumped? I told him to express his feelings first."
Back in the car, I asked, "What should we do? Matthew must have been taken by Ivy. Where do we find her?"
The world is so big that finding them would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
I could only pin my hopes on Howard. "You've got some way to find him, right?"
He snorted lightly and flicked my forehead. "Do you think I'm as dumb as you?"
Why did he have to flick my forehead while talking? I rubbed the sore spot and glared at him.
"I marked him with my tattoo. As long as he's alive, I can track him."
I was overjoyed and quickly praised him. "Howard, you're amazing. I totally underestimated you. Hurry, let's find Matthew."
I was really worried about what might happen to him in Ivy's hands.
Seeing my impatience, Howard didn't bother to expose me. "Buckle up."
The car roared to life and sped off.
Thanks to Howard's tattoo, we quickly tracked down Matthew's location.
But when the car stopped at the gate of a house surrounded by a forest, I felt a shiver run down my spine.
The old gate was weathered and peeling, covered in moss. The light in the woods was dim, and the wind made the gate's ring creak eerily.
"Is this the place?" I couldn't help but whisper, hiding behind Howard.