The Serial Killer

"Wait, she's a what?"

The following morning, Ruka sits on the living room couch while I pace back and forth in front of her, bringing her up to speed about Kurokawa Yuki, my dating app match from last night.

"A serial killer," I reply.

She blinks at me. Then bursts out laughing, clutching her stomach.

"Come on, little bro. I was a high schooler once myself. Girls like to gossip. I'm sure she's probably normal and your friends are just exaggerating."

My sister crosses her arms behind her head and sinks into the couch, humming and bobbing to imaginary music.

"Okay, first of all," I say, "I don't have any friends. The rumors came from random students in the halls."

"Wow. The fact that you said that so confidently makes me worry for you, baby bro," my sister cuts in as she cracks one eye open, condescending as ever.

"Whatever," I huff. "I just don't feel safe with this."

Ruka sits up. "Don't get your underwear in a twist, Kenji-kun. I still don't think anything's up with this girl. But even if there is, she's just one match. I saw you swiping like a maniac last night. You must have matched with, what, like a dozen other girls, right?"

I look at her like a deer caught in headlights.

Her smile drops. "Wait. You didn't match with anyone else?"

"Nope. They all rejected me." I grumble, gazing off to the side.

My sister slaps a hand to her forehead.

"Jesus Christ. You're hopeless."

"That doesn't make me feel bad at all," I mutter, crossing my arms.

"I mean, at this rate, you might realistically remain a virgin forever. I told you those photos made you look dorky. But did you listen to your big sister? No."

"Hey. Let's focus on the task at hand, alright?" I stare at my phone on the table. "How do I unmatch with someone?"

My sister blinks, then remembering what we're discussing, slips back into coaching mode.

"You can just block her. Or ignore it. Since—wait, did you message her yet?" Ruka asks.

"No," I reply.

"Cool. Then as long as you haven't interacted, there's nothing to worry about. The only problem is if she sees your profile and takes interest." Ruka then flashes a devilish smirk, no doubt recalling my recent string of rejections. "And we both know that isn't happening anytime soon. Am I right? Ayyyyyooooo!"

My sister gets up and slaps me on the back in celebration of her own joke. Frowning, I refuse to laugh with her.

My phone pings. The notification lights up the screen.

We both freeze.

Slowly, I reach for it.

A message from her. Kurokawa Yuki. Though her name on the app is CrimsonRoseKiki.

"Hey. You go to my school, don't you? I recognize you."

What?

My blood runs cold, my heart skipping a beat.

She recognizes me?

What does that mean?

Was it from yesterday, when I saw her licking that strange liquid off her finger? Did she recognize me from that? Or has she had her eyes on me this whole time?

Am I...? Am I her next victim?

"Uh... big sis?"

"Yeah?"

"She messaged me."

"Hot damn, really?"

Ruka leans over, throwing an arm around my shoulder. She reads the screen, letting out a low whistle.

"Okay. Maybe I was wrong."

"You think?!"

"Yeah, maybe there's a chance. Maybe you might not die a virgin after all."

I push my sister off me for her lack of seriousness. She falls back onto the couch on her butt.

"What? I'm just horsing around." She raises her arms.

"Yeah, that's the problem." I shoot back. "This is serious."

"Okay, okay. Serious mode Ruka, on." She looks at me. "But for real though, she probably only wants to talk. You know, test the waters. It's fine. Just... don't say anything weird."

I stare at the message. My thumbs hover over the keyboard.

Should I actually do this?

I type:

"Yeah. I think I recognize you too. Kurokawa Yuki, right? Second year."

Message delivered.

I wonder if she knows I'm aware of the rumors surrounding her. Will she want to talk to me knowing all that?

Her reply comes half a minute later. Actually, replies. Multiple. Not singular.

"Good."

"Meet me later today behind the school gym."

"Before classes start."

"It's quiet there."

"Nobody will see us."

"Come alone."

"If you don't, I will find you."

"..."

My eyes widen in terror.

My stomach drops.

What the hell? She'll come find me if I don't show? What the heck kind of suss response is that? She's basically not even trying to hide it.

I stare at the screen, jaw hanging open.

My sister leans in to inspect the message.

"Player," she announces, beaming with cheers. "Congrats, my dude. From not having any girls to maybe hitting third base on your first date? That's a big leap, little bro. I mean, I feel like we're moving a bit too fast, but what do I know, right? Kids these days."

She slaps me on the back again, completely missing the terror on my face. "Just pack some protection from the store on your way to school, okay? I'm not ready to be an auntie yet."

She bounces off to the kitchen, whistling, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

Ruka, you oblivious idiot. You clearly don't see what's happening here. This girl wants to do something to me. Otherwise why threaten to find me if I don't show?

I stare at the screen, heart pounding.

Should I...?

Should I call the police?

***

My walk to school that morning is consumed by thoughts of her. Kurokawa Yuki. And not in the romantic sense.

Instead I run simulations in my mind of what might happen if I actually meet her. She wants me behind the school gym. Does she want to bury me alive? Shank me and drink my blood? Cut me into tiny pieces and stuff me in her locker?

Or am I overthinking this, and she simply wants to talk? Maybe even confess her feelings or something. Like they do in those rom-com anime. Behind the school gym is a classic lover's confession spot, after all.

I doubt that is the case here.

I mean, this is Kurokawa Yuki we're talking about. Given her alleged reputation? Murderer. Animal killer. Suspected vampire. I really question if any of her motives are going to be completely pure.

Plus, there were her messages from earlier. "Come alone." "Nobody will see us." Yeah, definitely not the words of a psycho killer.

I shouldn't do this.

I really shouldn't.

But does that stop me from going?

Not quite.

...

The back of the school gym is deserted and quiet. Just as expected. This early, classes haven't started. I have time to burn. And honestly? My desperation for a girlfriend won out over the practical part of my brain telling me to stay the heck away.

I scan the area and eventually spot her. Kurokawa Yuki. Like a gray and black statue standing ominously in the distance, she somehow drains the color out of everything else around her.

I swallow hard.

I can't believe it. She actually showed up.

She hasn't noticed me yet. Just stands there waiting, facing my direction but not quite seeing me.

Hold on, this is actually perfect.

I duck behind the corner of the building, watching. I need a few seconds to observe. Make sure I'm not walking into a trap.

Kurokawa doesn't move. Instead she occasionally tilts her head left and right, those red eyes scanning the perimeter like some kind of robot.

For a moment I actually feel bad. Maybe she really just wants to talk. Get a feel for who I am and see if we actually match like the app claims.

I don't know why I'm second-guessing this badly. I don't know why I let rumors cloud my judgment about a girl I haven't even met.

Damn it.

I step out from the corner. Let's go meet her, shall we?

I begin walking toward her, and that's when she sees me.

Across the open space, Kurokawa's red eyes lock onto mine.

She starts moving toward me.

Don't freak out, don't freak out. She's just a normal teenage girl looking for romance, probably.

Yes, she's your senior, but that makes it hotter, right? I've heard about guys who are into the whole older woman thing. Honestly, I might be one of them. So don't panic. Just play it cool.

When the distance shrinks and only a few steps remain between us, Kurokawa reaches into her handbag and pulls out a knife.

Because of course she does.

And they say don't judge a book by its cover.

"..."

The blade catches the morning light.

"..."

I stop dead.

"..."

My eyes go wide.

"..."

My breath catches in my throat.

"..."

But why?

Kurokawa Yuki.

Why would you do this?

I really thought you were just a normal girl.

At the very least, I thought you were simply misunderstood.

But now I understand that I was wrong.

Seeing that I've stopped, she halts too. She just stands there. Holding the knife. Expressionless.

Then she takes a step closer.

Nope.

Screw my desperation for a girlfriend.

Screw all of it.

I am not getting murdered today.

I spin around and bolt, not looking back. I was a fool to think I could trust you, Kurokawa Yuki. You are the very definition of a walking red flag, and I want none of that.

...

Later, while swapping books at my locker before the next class, I run into her again. A shadowy presence looms over me. I glance over my shoulder, see nothing, and relax, pushing the metal closed.

Click.

She's right there. Kurokawa Yuki. Standing beside me the whole time, her face previously hidden behind the locker door.

My heart nearly stops. My stomach twists into knots at the sight of her porcelain features. She steps closer, and my entire body shudders. My chest pounds so fast it threatens to leap out.

She stares at me with those blood-red eyes. Specifically at my neck, where my Adam's apple should be.

What is she doing? Looking for my carotid artery or something?

From the corner of my eye, I spot the knife still clutched in her hand.

Hell no.

Not today, death.

I bolt again, leaving my things behind.

...

The next time I see her, I'm heading to the bathroom after computer class. I slip into the men's room, wait a few seconds, then come out.

"Okay, I'm safe. Maybe she stopped following. Maybe she lost interest in the pursuit."

But when I step into the hallway, I freeze.

She's right there. Standing at the far end. A crowd of students separates us, but no one pays attention.

Oh, you have got to be kidding me.

She starts walking toward me.

Crap.

I pivot, taking a different route as I resume running. I glance back. Kurokawa glides through the crowd like a ghost, meeting zero resistance. Students part around her without even noticing what she's actually doing. I guess it's normal for her, being the urban legend and all. But can't they see I'm her next victim?

She keeps moving, determined, knife in hand.

I run faster.

I scan the hallway desperately. Teachers are everywhere. They have to see this. They have to notice a girl chasing someone with a knife.

But no one does anything. No one even looks our way.

What the hell?

I am so dead.

***

At the end of the day, I spend a full thirty minutes in the boys' bathroom, waiting for everyone to leave. I need the school empty before I go. I can't risk running into her again.

I peer into the hallway. Quiet. No one. Not even her.

Looks like the coast is clear.

Good. Very good.

I take a deep breath. Then I burst out of the bathroom, sprinting like a maniac toward the front gate. I exit the school in one motion, sanctuary ahead of me.

Yes. Freedom. Just a couple more steps.

As soon as I emerge through the front gate, I turn down my street.

And I instantly run into her.

Red eyes. White skin. Black dress. The grim reaper. The Angel of Death.

Holy shit...!

Crap!

What the hell?

I stop so hard and fast that I create my own physics—gravity somehow reverses and I crash to the ground on my ass.

But I don't even have time to nurse the pain.

Kurokawa Yuki looms over me like an executioner, the blade in her hand glinting underneath the evening sun behind her, casting her figure in an ominous silhouette.

My whole life flashes before my eyes. This is the day of judgment, isn't it? It is here. It is now.

I try to get up and run, but Kurokawa flings her knife expertly. In a quick motion that almost resembles a blur, the blade escapes her hand and sticks into the ground right beside my head.

A warning shot.

What the actual hell?

Is this girl even normal?

I'm about to die, aren't I?

"Stay still."

Kurokawa speaks in a flat, monotonous voice void of any emotion. This is the first time I've heard her talk, and she sounds exactly like I suspected—a stone-cold killer.

I close my eyes in terror, preparing for the end.

I'm done for. I just know it. I'm going to die a virgin. No girlfriend, no love, nothing.

My killer draws closer to finish the job. I catch a whiff of her scent—weirdly enough, it smells like blackberry shampoo, just like my sister's. But then I hear her, the Angel of Death, reach for her blade and pull it out of the ground, metal scraping against sand.

I wait for the moment of pain. This is it. The end of the road for me.

I wait.

And wait.

And wait.

It never comes.

Instead, I hear shuffling. Like she's digging through her bag for something. A bigger knife maybe?

That's when I hear the sound of tearing—like something sharp slicing through packaging.

What the...? What is happening?

Slowly, I crack one eye open to investigate.

The first thing I see is Kurokawa Yuki. Standing frozen, holding out something to me.

A box.

"Take it," she says.

I blink in confusion.

Huh?

"It's candy," she clarifies. "I saw on your profile that you like sweets. So I bought this for you."

I continue to stare at her like an idiot.

She continues to stare at me like an unreadable vampire robot.

The box is still in her hand. She is still offering it.

I don't know how. I don't know why. But somehow, through all the fear and confusion and terror, I find myself reaching out. To take it. To accept the gift from her.

"And I also wanted to give you this," Kurokawa says, reaching into her handbag again. She brings out a jar of red liquid.

Wait. Is that...?

"It's juice," she clarifies. "Tomato juice. Goes well with the candy. If you want."

Again, I stare at her like an idiot.

She continues to stare at me like an unreadable vampire robot.

The jar is still in her hand. She is still offering it.

"Thank you," I manage, accepting the second gift like I did the first.

I am still not sure what is happening.

She nods.

"See you tomorrow."

She stuffs the knife back into her handbag, her red eyes still locked on me. And after a short while, Kurokawa—the urban legend, the serial killer, the Angel of Death—turns and walks away without saying another word.

I am left utterly speechless on the ground.

And soon, after the adrenaline of the day finally catches up to me, I fall back and faint from exhaustion.