“Could Jared be poisoning you?” she blurted out.

I laughed once, shocked. “Is that why you two brought me here?”

“Are you two into something we don’t know about? Voodoo-Witchcraft- Satanist crap?” Kim asked.

“What would even make you say that?”I said, my patience thin.

“Just answer the question,” Kim said flatly.

“No. I’m not being haunted by demons if that’s what you’re getting at, Kim.” A part of me wondered if that’s what she was asking. She always seemed to be right on the edge of the truth, and had the habit of asking all the right questions. Beth being there was just a cover. She knew something.

“I didn’t ask if you were,” Kim said. For the first time since I’d met her, she was uncomfortable. I watched her for a moment before she pulled on her coat and grabbed her keys from the table. “Class starts in ten.”

Beth and Kim watched me with concern as I waved them away and walked to class. It was on the top floor, and the decision to take the stairs was regretful by the second flight. My body felt ten years older. Two or three hours of sleep a night had begun to wear on my muscles, my train of thought, and my patience.

My reflection in a trophy case in the hallway caught my eye, and I stood there, amazed. The purplish circles had deepened under my eyes, and my skin was too tired to stay in place. The corners of my mouth hung lazily, and the light in my eyes was gone.

Class was just a few steps away, but my body felt too drained to make the trip. I leaned against the wall. The professor had already begun class, and I listened as intently as I could from the hallway. His words blurred together as he went over the last week’s test, and then lectured for what seemed like an eternity. The reading assignment was discussed in brief before class let out early.

Even as the other students passed, I let the wall support my weight. The walk to campus from the coffee shop, coupled with the energy I’d exerted taking the stairs, had taken everything out of me. Standing upright was the only thing I was capable of.

After watching the last of my classmates leave for other venues, I focused on the elevator. It was half way down the hall, but would take less effort than taking the stairs. I took a deep breath and pushed myself away from the wall. My feet felt like they had been soaking in cement, and towing fifty-pound blocks with each step. My knees began to wobble, and I could feel beads of sweat form on my forehead. Stopping to rest was not an option. If I paused for even a moment, I would have passed out in the hallway.