Winter ran through the hallways, eye sharp and steps cautious as she tried not to attract attention.

It was quiet now-the sun slowly reaching to set, its rays passing through the windows, spreading shadows all over them. Her heart pounded with growing concern as she reached the staffroom, hoping to find Karina there.

She peered in, but the room was vacant, and no teachers were there, nor Karina.

"President?" she whispered into the stillness, barely breathing.

Nobody answered.

Winter furrowed her brow, disappointed a little. She called out again, this time louder.

"President?"

Still, nothing.

Anxiety began churning inside of Winter's chest.

Where could Karina be?

Of course, Karina was usually very resistant to any change-especially to plans-and so the sense of urgency spread within Winter. The sun would set soon, and study time would commence, so they hardly had much time left. She couldn't just wait.

Winter decided to run as fast as she could across as much territory as possible; this led her sprinting, her legs pounding the hallways and leaping out into the open campus.

Her mind ran wildly in trying to consider where Karina might be.

The library? No way; not soon enough; the old classrooms? Or perhaps some hidden site she probably wouldn't be found.

Winter's breath quickened; cool evening air rushed past her face as she ran through the garden and around the buildings of the campus. With every turn that she took, she found emptiness. By the time that frustration built up with each passing moment, her worry for Karina overshadowed everything else.

"Come on, where are you?" she muttered to herself as she strained to run faster.

Her mind was running frantic circles, but what if?

For starters, Winter thought of every possible place where Karina might hide or find clues about Mai. The thought of Karina stubbornly going off on her own tightened her chest with a mix of frustration and protectiveness.

She knew how Karina liked to take care of things on her own but still worried.

The sun was slowly setting, its last rays dancing across campus in a golden aura, but Winter couldn't shake the feeling that dread was seeping in with the shadows' lengthening.

She had to find her, and she had to do it now.

-

Karina let out a heavy sigh, frustrated, having wasted nearly 20 minutes of her time hunting among the teachers' desks with absolutely nothing to show for it.

Her nerves were frayed from all the tension of sneaking around and doubled by knowledge of sending Winter packing, leaving that girl angry.

She kept repeating it in her head-it was for the best-but that ache in her chest didn't agree.

She would have quit, pushing the last drawer shut with a little more force than she needed to, if it hadn't been for the soft click of the door opening behind her.

Her breath caught; she swung around quickly, instinctively diving behind one of the desks as Mr. Lee walked in.

Karina was breathing shallowly, her heart thudding in her chest as she crawled low. Mr. Lee sat down, his back to her, seemingly unaware of her presence.

Something was off; he seemed tenser, tighter than usual, but something had been bothering him all day, and now, huddled under the desk, Karina felt the difference even more.

Then his phone rang. Karina jerked but did not move, straining to hear what he was saying on the phone.

"Yes... okay... right. I'll take care of it." His voice was low, nervous even.

She watched him shuffle through some papers, then open the cabinet next to his desk, pulling out a file. He tore out a page, folded it, and stuffed it into his pocket. Without so much as a second glance, Mr. Lee rushed out, leaving the door ajar in his hurry.

Karina counted the seconds until his footsteps faded completely, her racing pulse subsiding gradually. She crawled slowly out from under the desk and looked at the file Mr. Lee had left behind.

Her eyes widened as she saw the list of swimming competition students where Mai's name was written, and a torn page linked to it.

Not waiting any longer, Karina got up and ran out of the room, her brain worked on hundreds of possibilities. Something was definitely amiss.

Out of the staffroom, into the hall, Karina could see that her heart beat faster with every step as she caught sight of Mr. Lee going down the stairs.

Not to waste a moment more, Karina set off running after him. She was light on her feet and quickened her pace, keeping enough distance that he didn't notice she was coming.

She thought fast about what she knew: Mai, swimming competition, Mr. Lee's odd demeanor.
Why would he rip out a page from the file? And why did he sound so jittery over the phone?

Karina's heart thudded loudly in her ears as she followed Mr. Lee down the stairs. He was moving quickly, his own nerves evident in the way his shoulders were hunched forward and his gait almost as though he were attempting to get somewhere without being noticed.

Karina stuck to the shadows, ducking behind a column when he paused to look around the entrance of the building before stepping outside.

She crouched by the door, watching as he walked across the courtyard, his steps quick and purposeful.
In her mind questions swirled.

Was he going to meet someone? Was he involved in something that was dangerous, something to do with Mai?

Determined to know, Karina slipped from hiding and continued the chase, the shadows of the setting sun being long across the campus as she silently followed Mr. Lee, every nerve on high alert.