Third time's a charm

Things change

The scene was almost straight out of a horror movie; two lovebirds making out in the backseat of a car when suddenly they hear something rustling. 

"Wait, what  was that?" The girl detached herself from her boyfriend, craning her neck to peer through the window. Her boyfriend, seemingly too enraptured with the thought of keeping their make-out session, is quick to dismiss it as enough and dives right back for her lips. Another sound, and this time the girl was positively freaked out. "Matt, I swear I heard something." 

This time the boyfriend wasn't as quick to dismiss her fear. He'd specifically picked this spot to avoid any prying eyes. Sighing, he disentangled himself from his girl and opened the car door. The Costco parking lot was empty, with nothing in sight. He told the girl as much but assured her; he'll check the perimeter just in case. 

The girl stayed in the car waiting for his return, but as the minutes ticked by and he still hadn't shown back, she grew antsy. After twenty long nervous minutes, she decided; that she'd had enough and exited the car. "Matt?" She called out to her boyfriend. In the corner of her eye, illuminated by a light pole, she noticed a weird red trail starting abruptly and going all the way to the corner of the building. Following it, she let out a strangled cry of horror as she discovered her boyfriend. Lumped against the wall, eyes wide open with blood leaking from a gaping hole in his throat, stood Matt. 

The girl took off running, not noticing that a few feet away, hidden by the dark of the night, stood a figure watching her run away with a content smile on their lips.

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Calliope sprung upright in terror. Disoriented, It took her a few minutes to even out her erratic heartbeat. She could feel the sweat on her forehead and her sleep shirt clammy against her back. Another nightmare, no, 'nightmare' wasn't the right word. When they'd started, Calliope had been unsure of their nature, but she suspected they were memories, glimpses of sorts.

With her heartbeat back to normal, Calliope passed a hand through her hair. She hadn't seen her in her dream in the last two years, but from time to time, she would dream so vividly of what could have only been actual events. They were always murders, some more graphic than others. With each subsequent nightmare came a new sense of dread, one of withering hope. 

A quick glance at the electric clock mounted to the wall told her it was barely 4 in the morning. The room was still plunged into the dark, with the red LEDs of the clock, as the sole source of light. Sighing, she got out of bed quietly so as to avoid waking her bunk partner. A few minutes later, she was out of the door.

Running laps around the track close to the training center always helped her sort her thoughts. With the cold Normandy's air hitting her face, she could finally breathe easier. She ran until her body tire from exhaustion. Only then did she lie down along the track. Calliope closed her eyes, enjoying the quiet before everyone else woke up. Living amongst hundred others was nothing but hell for something that; for the longest time, only had to contend with her family. Oh, how she missed those days. 

She got back to her room at 6. Her bunkmate shot her a curious look as she entered. They weren't close by any means. Truthfully, Calliope wasn't close to anyone at the center. Wherever she went, the young woman could feel their gaze follow her, could hear her name being passed down in hushed whispers. It was more annoying than anything else. She wasn't here to make friends, anyway. No, Cal was there out of pure survival. So what if her twenty-something bunkmate didn't like her? 

She ignored everyone's unsubtle gaze as she made her way through the cafeteria, finding her usual spot in the back corner of the room. Calliope mindlessly ate the bland food as someone loudly banged their food tray on the table. She knew who it was without the need to look up.