She did the most stupid thing she could think of. She followed him.
Grace quickly gathered her things and went out of the library just to see him rounding the corner. She quickened her pace and rounded the corner in time to see him in a crowd of fellow students as he went down the stairs in the main hall.
She tailed him for two more minutes. He was now on the basement floor and she was following 20 meters behind. He rounded a corner, and 20 seconds later she followed him.
But he wasn't there anymore. The hallway was empty. "What the fu*k?" she thought as she tried to guess where he could be. Unexpectedly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around sharply and found him. "Looking for me?" Edison asked seriously.
He was watching her intently, a small smile playing on his lips. She cursed herself mentally as she tried to look nonchalantly and get the hell out of there.
She did the second most stupid thing she could think of. She ran.
"Wait! Stop! I want to talk to you!" Edison screamed as he ran behind her. Grace ran up the stairs, looking for a crowd. Everyone was already in their classes, so Grace decided that the safest place to be right now was to be inside a class. So she entered a classroom that she did not belong to and sat.
Her heart was beating wildly the whole time. She berated herself. How could she be so stupid? What did she hope to accomplish by tailing him? And yet, it had felt good. The thrill of the chase� the fear of being caught� the rush of adrenaline as he realized She was following her. The realization that she had enjoyed the little 'hide and seek' game with Chen fascinated and terrified her.
An hour later, the bell rang. Everyone started to gather their things, and Grace did the same. She looked out of the hallway for a sign of Edison, but finding none, ran to the bathroom. She felt hot and had sweated like a pig from the race. She looked at herself in the mirror, hating what she saw. What was she doing? What was she trying to accomplish by trying to find Ruby's killer herself? What was wrong with her head?
Grace bent over the sink and splashed water on her face. The water seemed soothing and relaxing. "I'm just imagining things, it's just my imagination," Grace thought as she opened her eyes and once again looked at her reflection in the mirror.
Only to find Edison Chen standing behind her.
"FU*K," she screamed. She was about to run out of the bathroom when he pinned her against the sink and put his hand over her mouth. She was terrified when he whispered, "Shh, girl. You are going to get me in trouble! I'm not supposed to be in the ladies room. My girlfriend finds me here and I'll be in big trouble," Edison said with a boyish smile on his face as he took his hand off Grace's mouth.
"What are you doing here?" Grace whispered as she struggled to find her voice. The sink was digging into her back, and Edison realized it, so he took a step back. "Looking for you. Mind explaining me why you were stalking me?" he said with humor. "Stalking you? You were following me!" Grace said with as much courage as she could muster, praying that some girl will come to the bathroom.
"Okay, let's forget about who was following who. here, I was trying to give you this," Edison said as he gave her a folder. Shit. She must have let it fall when she was running away from him. It was Grace's folder with all the news articles about Ruby Lin. Grace took it, but it slipped out of her hand, slipping the contents of her file on Ruby into the floor. He bent down to pick it up like a gentleman, but Grace noticed with apprehension that he took one of the articles with Ruby's picture on it and started reading.
"What's this?" Edison asked as he stood up and showed her the article. Grace said the first thing that came to mind, "I'm doing a short documentary about Ruby's case, about runaway girls." Grace stuttered as she took the article from his hand and put it in the folder, which she quickly tucked inside her backpack.
"Ruby� god," he whispered. Grace looked at his face in time to see his eyes tear up. That raised a flag on her head. Seeing her questioning look, Edison said, "I knew her."
Edison knew Ruby.
Ruby knew Edison.
And he had a XT-500 camera.
Not good. Especially since Grace was trapped in a bathroom with him.
"Really?" was the only coherent thought Grace managed to articulate. "Yeah, she was my girlfriend's best friend. They worked together and even took most of the same classes. I hanged a lot with Ruby. I miss her. We all miss her," Edison said softly. He wiped his eyes before a tear fell out. Grace was shocked that she was almost compelled to soothe him. She knew now why every girl was crazy about Edison; he was downright irresistible.
"Well, we better get out of here," Grace whispered as she walked fast toward the door. She got out of the bathroom and went into the hallway, only to hear Edison's footsteps close on her tail. "You are still following me," she said softly. "Yeah, but I got two good reasons for it," Edison said with humor.
Grace turned around. There were other people in the hallway, she was safe for now. "What do you want?" Grace asked coldly. "First, I want to help you with your documentary about Ruby. It's the least I can do for her," Edison said sincerely.
"I already have everything I need, but thanks," Grace said sharply. "What about an interview? Those types of report need interviews with family and friends� I can get them for you. I can also help you edit. I just want to help," Edison said looking directly at her eyes. God, he had beautiful eyes.
"Who do you have in mind?" Grace found herself asking. "Me," he said sincerely. He knew she was interested, and he couldn't stop himself from smiling at the mysterious girl.
"Why you?" Grace asked. "Well, I knew Ruby well, yet I'm objective about her. I was with her family during her disappearance and search. I kept in touch with the case. I can give you hard info and yet you can use my emotional attachment to the case," Edison said softly. He looked so sincere that Grace couldn't help but nod.
"Alright. I'll interview you," Grace whispered. "Fine, tomorrow at 1. We'll meet in C-10. You can use my camera in case you don't have one," Edison said as he showed her the camera bag. "Good, what was the second thing?"
"What's your name?" he asked with a smile. "Grace. Grace Yip" she said shyly. "Honey, what are you doing?" Grace heard a sexy female voice say. A girl appeared behind Edison. Grace knew who she was. Who didn't! It was none other than Vicki Zhao.
"Hey, Vics," Edison said sweetly as he put his arms around her shoulder. Vicki kissed him passionately, but looked at Grace the whole time. Grace felt chills down her spine with Vicki's stare. Her sister had been right. This woman was not to be messed with.
"Grace, this is Vicki. Vicki, this is Grace. Grace is doing a report on Ruby's disappearance," Edison explained. "Really? Isn't that a bit, old news?" Vicki asked coldly. "It's still interesting. Well, I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow," Grace said as she nodded to the couple. She knew that tonight she had found a new limit to her stupidity.
"See you tomorrow. What does that mean?" Vicki asked Edison, her hands on his hips. She was fuming mad. "Relax, Vicki. I'm going to help her with the report," Edison said a little angry. He was tired of Vicki's jealous fits. So very tired.
"Well, you better behave! I won't have your eye roaming over the little nerd," Vicki said as she took Edison by the hand and walked out of the hallway.
******************
7:00 PM
Yip Residence
"Oh my god, Grace, he's a dream," Lillian whispered as she watched from Grace's window. Professor Louis Koo stepping out of his Audi convertible and walking to house door. Grace was too busy buttoning up her shirt to notice.
"Oh my God, Lillian, he's my teacher! Nothing will be going on between the two so get that stupid grin out of your face and meet him downstairs. I don't want Dad giving him the 'so-you-are-going-out-with-my-baby-cakes' speech," Grace said cynically as she finished preparing.
When Lillian left the room, Grace stopped brushing her hair and just looked at her reflection on the crooked. The truth was that she didn't want to get out of her room at all tonight. The whole deal with Edison Chen had rocked her to her very core. But she knew there was only one reason why she kept her date with Prof. Koo. She didn't want to be alone. She was too afraid to be alone. And the only person she could share her fear with was the same one she was too angry to talk to.
Grace went out of her room and walked downstairs. Louis was on the doorway talking amiable with her father and Lillian. When he heard her coming, he turned his smile toward her. "Gracie, just in time," her father said as he took her hand and gave her a kiss on the cheek. However, Louis didn't take his eyes off Grace's face, and the realization made her blush.
"Our daughter spoke very highly of Professor Lau, Mr. Koo. I'm very sorry for your loss," Jackie said as Grace gave Louis a shy smile. "Thank you, Mr. Yip. He was a good man. it is a loss to all of us. Are you ready, Grace?" Louis said with a sad smile. "Yes, let's go. I'll see you later," she said to her family as she walked with Louis to his car.
Like a gentleman, he opened the car door for her. After that, he jumped inside and they rode off to the funeral home.
"Your family is great, Grace. No wonder you are a good kid. Although I think your father was worried that such an old man had come to pick his little girl," Louis joked. "He always worries. Where's the home?" Grace asked. This was too close to 'date talk' for comfort.
"Just around the corner. It belongs to Andy's cousin," Louis said as he parked the car and got out. Before Grace could get out, he had come to her side and opened the door for her. "Thank you," she said a bit surprised. "What is it?" he asked. "Nothing. I have never met such a gentleman before, Professor," Grace answered sincerely. Louis only smiled and placed his hand gently on her back, guiding her inside.
***************
Lau Funeral Home
8:00 PM
"And that's who Andy was for me. An uncle. A friend. A teacher," a young man said as he stepped out of the podium. Two or three individuals had already given eulogies in honor of the deceased. Now, it was Louis's turn. "Wish me luck," he whispered to Grace. She nodded and smiled softly to him as he got up from his chair and walk to the podium.
"Good night. Thanks for being here. My name is Louis Koo. I was a colleague of Andy in the university, but we actually met when we were together at NYU 15 years ago working on our studies. Andy was a good student, a bright young man, whose life was shortened due to his disease. But his disease never stopped him from living his life to the fullest. Andy was a volunteer mentor for different organizations. He participated in meal rides every weekend. He was a volunteer in his church. We should all learn that from him: He never let his shortcomings stop him from helping others. I know I have learned that from him."
"Andy has changed the life of many. He changed my life when he stopped me from dropping out of school 15 years ago. He changed his students' life with every word of wisdom he shared with them. He changed each and every one of your lives at one point or another. Always remember this, always remember him, as long as we remember him. Andy will live in our hearts," Louis said. Grace watched speechless as a tiny tear left his eye and traveled down his cheek. What amazed her is that he wasn't ashamed or quick to wipe it off. He didn't mind others to see that he was weak that he cared.
Louis walked back to where he was sitting and sat down next to Grace. Without knowing why, she took his hand in her own. She felt she could trust him and she wished with all her heart that he would listen to all the horrors she had witnessed these last two days. He looked at her, his eyes full of tears, and she couldn't help but put her head on his shoulder and cry and cry and cry and cry. She cried for Professor Lau, for Tse, for Edison Chen, and for Ruby Lin, the girl that haunted her dreams, the girl that kept begging for her help. And Louis just held her close to his body, kissing the top of her head. "Shh, it's okay. Everything will be all right," he kept saying over and over.
But she couldn't tell him that nothing was going to be all right. How could she tell him that she had been the one to discover Andy's body, only to steal from him and not telling anyone else about her discovery? How could she tell him that Andy had been watching the murder of Ruby Lin� that she had in her hand the answer to the Lin's question: Where's our daughter? That the answer to that question was the most unspeakable act she had ever witnessed?
****************
9:30 PM
Louis stopped his car in front of an old building and turned off the engine. He turned to Grace and touched her cheek gently. She seemed to awaken and suddenly realized she was at the address she had told Louis to drop her off.
"Hello there," he greeted. "I'm sorry. I kinda phased out," she said apologetically. "Don't worry about it. I can't think of a better company than you. Thanks for being there," he said sincerely. She smiled. It was nice being with someone that was so pleasant to her; a nice change from Psycho and his incessant teasing.
Louis's face suddenly grew very serious. "Grace, I feel I can trust you. Andy trusted you; he told me so himself. Grace, I think Andy's death wasn't quite incidental." Louis said softly. Grace's heart jumped a bit, and for a moment, she forgot to breath. "Why do you say that?" she asked nervously as she turned around to face him.
"Don't get me wrong, Grace. I saw the body. The coroner declared Andy had died of an asthma attack that had caused a cardiac arrest, and I believe that. I just think there's something more to that story," Louis said seriously.
"I went to that room Grace, after Andy had been discovered by the janitor, but before the police came. He was staring at the screen, Grace. He had been watching something. The VCR was empty, but it was on. I know he had been watching a tape and someone stole that Grace. Someone was in that room with Andy and took that tape and didn't say anything about it! Why would someone do that, Grace? Unless, unless they got something to hide," Louis said very seriously.
Grace gulped down hard, but managed to put the best poker face she had ever mustered in her life. She knew who that someone was, it was her. She had stolen the tape, she hadn't informed the cops about Andy's death. she knew that the tape contained a murder and yet had not gone forth to the police. Instead, she was playing a cat and mouse game with the likely murderer. Instead, she was playing Sherlock Holmes looking for Dr. Moriarty in the big, bad city of New York.
"I, I don't know what to say." Grace whispered. Louis smiled a sympathetic smile and put his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, Grace. I just wanted you to know so you can keep your eyes open. If you hear any of your students talking about a tape, let me know. I need to find that tape. I need to know if what it contained might be the cause of Andy's attack. I need to know why would someone steal the tape and left Andy to die."
"But he was already dead, there's nothing I could have done," Grace thought. But she just nodded and lied, "I will, Louis."
"Are you sure you don't want me to wait to take you home?" Louis said as he pointed to the building. "Naw, it's okay. This might take a while," Grace said. She was about to get out of the car when once again Louis got up and opened the door for her. "I know this may sound weird, Grace, but I had a good time tonight. I feel that, even when I've lost Andy, I have gained a good friend," he said as he walked her to the building's entrance.
She looked at him straight into his eyes. He seemed so sincere and trustworthy. "I took the tape. I have it. I know what's in it," she wanted to tell him. But something inside told her that it would be a mistake. She would emerge as a thief and a liar. She could get expelled, even arrested. She would put his life in danger. Or she could just keep playing her Agatha Christie game and find out who the killer was before the killer finds the people that have watched the tape. Yes, she will help Louis but in her own way.
"I feel the same way, Louis. I'll see you tomorrow," Grace said as she averted her eyes from his. She just hoped that he would never find out it was her. "See you tomorrow," he whispered. But he took her hand and kissed it softly. With a small smile, he went inside the car and drove off.
She walked up the stairs and rang the bell. No answer. She rang it again and waited a few minutes. No answer. "Shit! Just what I needed. He's not home," she thought as she pondered what to do next. Tomorrow, she was going to meet Edison Chen for an interview. She was going to meet the person she suspected to be Ruby's killer. She wanted his help, needed it. So, Grace decided to sit on the stairs and wait for him.
Not five minutes had passed before Psycho Tse walked up the stairs and found her. "You? I thought you didn't want to talk to me," Psycho said seriously. "I didn't," Grace answered sincerely. "Then what are you doing here?" he said as he pushed his glasses up his nose. "I need help," Grace said softly. "And I'm your best choice? Wow, sad," he said with sarcasm. She didn't say anything, but closed her eyes and lowered her head.
A second later, she felt his hand on her shoulder. Unlike Professor Koo's touch, the touch didn't seem sexual, it seemed more intimate than that. She opened her eyes and look up to find him staring at her. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'll help. Just tell me what you need from me," he said seriously. She couldn't help but smile.
**************
Psycho Residence
Five minutes later
"YOU WHAT?" Psycho asked in a mixture of horror and disbelief. "Shh! Keep your voice down!" Grace said seriously. "You followed the guy with the camera? Are you crazy, Grace? What if he had been the killer? You could have been hurt!" Psycho said with a voice full of worry. She was touched and annoyed at the same time.
"Hey, I remember I told you the same thing yesterday, and you said that it was your own fu*king business," Grace hissed. "Yeah, but it's different," he said slowly. "It isn't, you moron! Girl, guy, it's the same thing! When someone stabs us, we both bleed. Doesn't matter who it is," Grace said seriously. "It matters to me," he whispered as he averted her eyes. She immediately knew what truly bothered him. It wasn't the fact that she was a girl, it was the fact that she was Grace Yip, Psycho's favorite bookworm.
"So, who was he?" he asked seriously. He had decided to change the subject; brownie point for him. "Edison Chen," she answered. His eyes were about to drop out of his sockets. "Chen? The Edison Chen?" he asked. "You know him?" Grace asked him. "No, aside from the fact that he is a conceited pretty boy who acts like there's something up his ass," Psycho grumbled. "Hey, that's my description of you!" Grace teased.
"You think I'm a pretty boy?" Tse asked with a small smile. Grace slapped herself mentally. "No, I think you are conceited and you act like there's something up your ass," she replied. Psycho smiled even wider. She had missed his teasing. Ironic.
They stayed silent for a moment, until Psycho grew serious and said, "You know, having the XT-500 definitely doesn't prove he's the killer. I mean, I don't like Edison Chen, but that doesn't make him guilty."
"He knew Ruby. We both know Ruby knew the killer," Grace said seriously. "What? How do you know?" he asked shocked. Might as well tell him of her horrible tailing skills. "He caught me following him. I had dropped some papers I had checked out from the library about Ruby. He found them and asked me what they were for," Grace explained. "Shit, what did you say?" he asked.
"That I was doing a report about Ruby's case. That I was just researching and then he told me that he knew her. That Ruby was his girlfriend's best friend," Grace explained. "Fu*king shit! Then it can be him! That's it, Grace. I won't leave you alone for another second! He now knows you are investigating Ruby! He's going to try to stop you!" Psycho said as he started pacing the room nervously.
"Actually, he's cooperating," Grace said seriously. That made Psycho stop and look at her. "He kinda suggested that my 'report' needed to have interviews with some family or friends. And he kinda offered to be interviewed," she said apologetically. "WHAT? YOU ARE GOING TO SEE THIS GUY AGAIN?" Psycho asked shocked. She nodded.
"Are you out of your fu*king mind, Grace? He might be the one!" he reprimanded. "WHAT WAS I SUPPOSE TO SAY? I couldn't tell him "Hi, I'm Grace and I'm looking for Ruby's killer, a murder that just happened to be filmed with the same type of camera you have in your hand! Did you kill her?" I did the best I could! Besides, what better way to know if he killed her or not," Grace said matter-of-factly.
"Shit, Grace, this is not good, this is not good." he kept whispering over and over again. She thought it was very cute of him to be so concerned.
"That's why I want you to come with me," Grace said seriously. "Run that by me again," he said wide eye. "You are coming with me to the interview! We are going to use his camera, but I need a cameraman to film us. You," Grace said softly. Expecting him to call her a jerk, she was surprised when he said, "Sure. I told you I wasn't going to leave you alone. What time?"
"At, 1:00," she said surprised. "Why so shocked?" he asked. "I thought you were also mad at me. I figure that you'll at least fight with me a bit before agreeing to help," Grace said softly. "Well, I decided to save everyone the time and go straight to agreeing. Tomorrow at 1, I'm going to be the cameraman for Grace 'Connie Chung' Yip," he joked.
"Well, I better get going," she said softly as she got her purse and got up from the bed. "No," Psycho said with authority. "What?" she asked annoyed. "It's past midnight. You either let me walk you home or you stay for the night," he said as he took his pillow and threw it on the floor. "Tse, I don't know who you..." Grace started complaining when Psycho said, "Look! I don't know what's with you and the Wonderwoman complex but this guy knows WHO YOU ARE! What makes you think he's not waiting outside to do to you the same thing he did to Ruby?" Psycho said seriously.
He had a point. It was either that, or he had just gotten her frightened enough to piss her pants. Without another word, he took off his shirt and laid himself on the floor. "Just what are you doing?" she asked surprised. "Going to sleep on the floor. You are lucky. I usually sleep in the buff, but since I have a guest." he said as he took of his glasses and closed his eyes.
"Why do you assume I'm going to spend the night here?" Grace asked annoyed. "Because you probably told your parents you were going to stay the night out or you would not be here so late," he said grumpily. Which to Grace's annoyance was true. She had planned on staying on a motel nearby.
"At least let me sleep on the floor," Grace said softly. "Naw, don't worry about it," he said softly. Grace laid herself on the small bed; it was comfortable. She realized it smelled of him, which made her wonder when was the last time he changed the sheets or what he had done on them. "Besides, tomorrow I can tell everyone you slept on my bed," Psycho said. Without a second thought, Grace threw the pillow under her and it landed straight on his face.
"Tse, if Edison's the one, what are we going to do?" Grace asked softly. "I don't know, we'll see," Psycho answered softly. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He looked like a little boy on the floor, his hair falling over his closed eyes, a tiny crooked smile on his face. But of course, she looked up and saw his collection of horror masks and weapons. A little boy he wasn't. She closed her eyes and said a little prayer for this not to be a mistake.
Psycho opened his eyes and looked at Grace. She was beautiful. She had taken off her glasses and had put them on his night table. Without glasses, she looked younger than she was. He really wished he could join her on the bed, but he knew it was impossible. "Grace, can I ask you something?" Psycho asked. "Yep," she grumbled. "Why aren't you afraid of me? Everyone else is," he asked softly.
She opened her eyes and looked at him. Why wasn't she? She was nervous in his presence. She was anxious when he was with him. But afraid? "I don�t know� I guess� I guess you are like The Nightmare Before Christmas," Grace said softly. "How so?" he asked laughing. "You seem terrifying on the outside. All scary and horrific. But on the inside? You are nothing but a softie," Grace replied sincerely. "A softie? Hey, I've killed people for less than that," he teased. "I'm sure you have," she whispered as she closed her eyes. Somehow, sleeping here with him seemed safer than sleeping alone in her room. Ironic.
"Well, hope you like the honor of being the first girl for a sleepover," Psycho said as he closed his eyes. "First girl? What about guys?" she teased. "Hey, hey, no questioning my manliness," he joked. This definitely felt good. Tse had become the 'girlfriend' she never had, although weirder, and sort of hotter.
"I can't sleep," she whispered after a few minutes of silence. "I got something that might help," the half-naked Psycho said as he got up from the floor and opened his closet. She heard him rummaging in it and after a moment, he came out with something on his hand. He threw it to Grace and said, "he might keep you warm."
Grace was surprised, to say the least. It was a small Cookie Monster stuffed doll. "You like Sesame Street?" she asked surprised. "Not really. I'm more of a Powerpuff kinda guy," he joked. "I, I bought it for you," he said softly.
"What?" she asked shocked. "For your birthday last year," he confessed. "But but, we didn't even know each other back then," Grace stammered. "We had never talked, but I knew of you. We have shared the same classes for four years, Grace. I knew you liked Sesame Street because your pencils and notebooks are of them. Even with the whole Elmo-craze, you had your Cookie Monster eraser. I saw that on a store and I thought of you, but I never had the opportunity to give it to you, might as well do it now," Psycho said softly as he went back to the floor and closed his eyes.
"I, I don't even know what to say," Grace said softly. For a second, she imagined how a room decorated with Sesame Street/Horror memorabilia would look like. "Nothing, just hold it tight and think of me," he joked.
They spent a couple of minutes in silence. Grace clutched the doll in her arms as if her life depended on it. She suddenly opened her eyes and called, "Tse?" "Yes?" he replied.
"Thank you. For everything," she whispered.
"Not a prob, Grace. Remember, I have an ulterior motive," he said with a hint of humor.
"Yeah, and what's that?" she prodded.
"I want to get into your pants," he said with a smile.
"If we survive, I just might let you," Grace said with a cynical smile as she closed her eyes, but not before watching Psycho opened his eyes wide at her remark.
"I'm having a bad influence on you, Gracie," Psycho said with a smile as he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.
"That you have, Tse. that you have."