Everyone instead of talking about the content, schedules and dorms, they're talking about the freshmen party that the seniors have prepared, a gift, a salute they said... Lydia received a flier in her hand about that party... but she was hesitating whether to go, socialize and hype up a bit or stay at her dorm, in her comfort zone.
The flier seemed thrilling enough; the "LET'S PARTY!" spelled in huge, golden letters, although ridiculous, felt funny and homely. It was unclear whether the party was going to be any fun, however. The autumn scents lingered in the air like an old memory, and it seemed unfair to waste a beautiful evening in a crowded, noisy mess of wild sweaty strangers. The thought made her shrivel. Though it would be a waste, she thought, to stick toin her room. She remembered finding one or two decent people in such events; someone who can pause , or someone who "knows how to behave like an idiot", if that made any sense, and a medical school's campus is bound to have at least a few respectable humans, isn't it? *Well, in the undying words of the ridiculous golden letters, let's party*, she decided.
The party was at night and she came back from college tired and overwhelmed by the plenty events loading her schedule as well as those who were fighting to get the first seat! She decided to take a nap, setting her alarm to wake and dress up for the party. And while she was tightly sleeping, detaching from this world and escaping to another, she had a vision of young ladies her age mourning over a female corpse who is supposed to be another roommate, they were carrying her in the shroud out to her coffin, the atmosphere was scary and there was no secret told about how she died or who she was. Lydia approached as she heard the corpse talking, she was almost sure it wasn't any of the other ladies carrying it, she thought the corpse was mistaken for being dead, she uncovered it and she saw the worst scene ever. She woke up panting and gasping like she was in a dire land, no water and no plants. A roommate saw her and approached.
"What's wrong?" She asked her.
"Nothing", she paused, forced a smiled and said "just a strange nap dream, happens all the time". Lydia nodded, trying to sound confident. Her roommate, unconvinced, nodded and left it at that.
Lydia went to the bathroom and washed her face with cold water. It penetrated her skin, harsh and stinging, but she remained frozen in the drunker terror she awoke from. The dream was too lively, too real. *Well, maybe if you were part of the real world more often, not every fragament of imagination would feel too real*, she tried mocking herself into forgetting what she saw.
She prepared herself for the party, donning her beige dress and a touch of makeup. Her roommate was too tired to go, so she had to leave alone. The main hall was still quiet; the vast, well-lit room merely held a few small groups.
"Are you lost?" Asked a young man who noticed her first.
"Somehow, yes", she responded as she was showing the flier she got early this morning.
"Ah! Medical student. Sorry, but this party is for the literature department, we will discuss poems, novels and movies down here, you're welcome to stay of course, but your party is there, nearby the cottage".
Though she really wanted to stay but still she needs to built a community in her faculty, she went where the guy showed her and then she had another vision, a vivid dream...
As a soft breeze blew as she slowly advanced to the cottage. The twilight sky shone red and orange; a few scattered clouds hung in the distance, their light forms slowly melting into the darkening horizon. She observed her surroundings, her heartbeats growing faster, her thoughts more disoriented... (Poem by the great, Amine Touami)
Everyone thought medical school is for the elites, but judging by how they orchistarized their party, none is vigil, all are drunk, doing drugs, and making out,
It's barbaric, inadequate and unsettling.
Their entire existence seemed to go against everything medicine seemed to preach. But wasn't that perhaps the last straw that drove everyone to pursue a path of madness and pleasure? Tight leashes keeping them tethered for the better part of their days, driving them to sniff every frgament of freedom they can catch? Or were they still uncapable of understanding the weight of their duties, followomg the "just let it be" mentality? She was unsure.
The cottage was silently looming, calling her to take a peek. She thought for a moment, and suddenly decided to follow her urges to check it out. She walked faster and faster, her heartbeats quickening, hardly able to breathe. She finally reached the door, and knocked once. There didn't seem to be anyone nearby or inside; she looked through the window to the darkness inside, then pushed the door open.
Far in the horizon, a green dot shone and came closer to the window. Lydia watched it, facscinated, and patiently waited.
A green cat materialized before her feet, and sang:
Near the cottage we all live quietly,
Laughing and dancing under the stars.
Near the cottage the girl came boldly,
Laughing and dancing under the stars.
And we all donned a color to celebrate her fortune,
Laughing and dancing under the stars.
And when my lady firend came peeking,
We ate her and laughed and danced under the stars. (Poem by: Amine Touami)
The cat vanished as soon as it sang the last verse. Lydia looked at her feet, tears filing her eyes. *Is it still that godforsaken dream? What on earth was that critter whining about?* She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and shook her head. She looked aroud....
There was nothing awaiting her there but an old doused chimney, wooden chairs and a tiny cozy room that seemed recently used, although, nobody was there, there was a newspaper on the bedside table she picked, "Find Maria, a sophomore medical student that went missing since last October nearby the cottage where two farmers/loners inhabit", "rumors say the couple are complicit but there's no enough evidence against them, perhaps they're just frowned all the time and not that transgressive, who knows!".
Lydia left the cottage in terror, shivering as she was thinking someone would find her and she might end up in misery just like Maria... She closed the door and headed to the celebration, she was offered some drinks but she rejected, she preferred staying in a corner, looking right and left until her shiny eyes were laid down on something reddish beside her, two meters away, looked bloody, she thought it was a fruit smashed on the floor but her curiosity drove her closer to see what it really is. It's a jaw! A rotten human jaw, and she's the only witness. She took a photo of it and tried to ask for help but everyone was drunk, and after she called the police to check the place up, there was nothing left to be seen. Someone might have noticed that the jaw was witnessed, but Lydia was steps ahead from him.
At dawn, when everyone went to sleep, she sent the photo anonymously on the telegram group, where it went viral and everyone was panicking and severely terrorized. The doubts about the cottage arouse more than the beginning.
A day later the couple arrived to the village, Lydia went there again to check the place, she thought it might not be inhabited though the furniture looked tidy and nothing there was dusty, but this time the old lady opened the door, she tried to communicate in sign language but Lydia didn't understand, her husband came out.
"What do you want?" He yelled, while chewing something harsh,
Lydia pretended she lost something during the party.
Hence, he left her behind and closed the door making her sure that he hates medical students.
The principle posted in the group that it might be a fake jaw and someone wanted to mess with the freshmen and announced that whoever expose the sender will be rewarded with a good amount of money, making the challenge harder on Lydia from now on.
*****
This collaboration was as much inspiring as positive from all aspects between me and my friend Amine,
Amine is a dear friend of mine, and a great Algerian writer, known for his "fate of tooj"
And "the scattered feather of an unknown bird", and his charming powerful poems as well as imagination surely added and will add volume to our collaboration. This was chapter 1, hope you guys have enjoyed. And stay tuned for more.
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