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	At least the woman, who Mila was close to putting a name to, wasn't going to get on her case about napping in a study room. Her classmate seemed more or less absorbed in his phone so she assumed it wouldn't bother him. She felt strange sitting there listening to the conversation of the two but sleep would claim her soon. When the woman addressed her, Mila absentmindedly responded, [color=orange]"You two are fine. I've gotten used to napping in loud places."[/color] The small bit of warmth from the crack in the table seemed to help in hastening her departure into sleep.

[hr]
[center][b]1:27 PM[/b][/center]

	The grumbling of her stomach, along with the muffled sounds of chatting, slowly drew Mila from her rest. Upon opening her eyes, Mila saw that the crack was slightly larger. Well, there goes the theory that she was sleep-deprived. Hearing the voices more clearly, Mila looked over to see a group of students studying. Barney and the woman seemed to be long gone. With a nervous wave to the other students, Mila checked her phone to realize her nap had nearly become full-blown sleep. She had been laying on this table long past lunch and her stomach was sure to let her know it wasn't happy.

	Unfortunately, she definitely wouldn't have the time to get an actual meal in. Mila gathered her things and began making her way to her apartment. Thankfully, her last class of the day was near the end. Mila at least wanted to have the appropriate textbook for that class. There was also the need to grab the paper for her English class.

	The trek home was much less stressful than it had been earlier in the morning when she had to rush to campus. Entering her apartment, Mila really wanted to just lay back down on the couch but responsibilities would deny her desires. She quickly got her paper printing and put together a sandwich so she wouldn't be running fully on empty. There was a note on her coffee maker reminding her of her rushed morning. She hadn't even drunk the coffee she made this morning but at least Garcia seemed to have enjoyed the drink. Mila was about to head back to campus when her phone began ringing.

	Without looking at the caller ID she answered instantly regretting that decision. "Hey, Mila. How've you been?" Mila had to fight the sigh that wanted to escape her lips. [color=orange]"I'm good, Leon. Just classes and work."[/color]

	"Are you sure? I know you want time to yourself but you're always free to come home for help?"

	[color=orange]"I said I'm fine. Look, I'm sorry I didn't come home for Thanksgiving. I was just tired from working."[/color] There was an uncomfortable pause from the siblings. A sigh came through the phone followed by, "Alright, just make sure to visit home soon. Everyone wants to see you again. We're even having a movie night Saturday. You could've picked the movie we watched if you came home last weekend. I have to get back to work. See you Saturday." Mila tried to cut him off but her brother ended the call to put a strong point on the message. [color=orange]"Fine! Home on Saturday. Whatever."[/color] The young woman let out a groan. She then felt tears threatening to fall. Ignoring her own thoughts Mila ate her sandwich, grabbed her paper, and rushed out the door.

[hr]
[center][b]3:50 PM[/b][/center]

	Her final class of the day, Media Law and Ethics, was finally over and she was done for the day. She was thankfully able to get her paper in a few minutes before her English professor's office hours ran out. The awkwardness of today wasn't quite over though as Mila hurried to extricate herself from the classroom. All throughout the hour, she caught a few glimpses from Ricky, a coworker, and caught the vibe he had something to tell her.

	But as today had shown to her, luck would not be on her side. Ricky easily kept pace with her and not too far outside of the building he was able to reach out and grab a hold of her. [color=orange]"Let me go Ricky. We agreed not to talk at school."[/color] The man took a look around and then gently guided Mila off to the side. In a hushed whisper, "I know. I'm sorry. But Oscar said he was going to contact you soon and I wanted to warn you." Mila kept a near-perfect poker face up as she looked at Ricky, but a slight ting of worry was there.

	[color=orange]"Do you know what he wanted?"[/color]

	"No, well- Uh, no. He just sounded kind of mad. I don't think he was mad at you. But that really doesn't mean much."

	[color=orange]"Does it have anything to do with the job?"[/color] At that question, Ricky started to visibly sweat a bit. Mila crossed her arms and stared down at the man who was much taller than her. "Okay, I'll tell ya. But first, I did a bit of digging. Apparently, he's done a bit of work for the guy. Many times. He actually went to talk to Jeremy, which is when he came home very pissed."

	Mila's calm facade was entirely gone now. She began pacing trying to understand what she had just been told. What did all of that even mean? Those two already knew each other? [color=orange]"Did he say anything else? Are they friends or something?"[/color] Ricky shook his head, and lightly put a hand on Mila's shoulder. "I doubt they're friends. Oscar just tends to keep in contact with clients. I doubt he told Jeremy anything about you since you've been paying on time. He might ask for more though. That's probably why he is gonna call you."

	[color=orange]"He knows I barely have enough to pay him as is."[/color]

	"He might try to pressure you to -"

	[color=orange]"I KNOW, Ricky. [i]*sigh*[/i] Thanks for the warning, but can you please go. I need to think."[/color] Mila then sat with her back against the building. The young man in front of her began leaving but then turned, "Uhm, please don't tell Oscar I talked to you. He'd beat the crap out of me." After a few moments of silence, Ricky took the hint and walked off.

	Mila sat there for a bit with the occasional passerby giving her an odd look. It didn't take very long before her phone buzzed. Regretfully she pulled it from her pocket to see a text from a blocked number.

[quote=Unknown Number]
Hello Mila. No need to fret but we need to have a chat. For unforeseen reasons, money isn't gonna suffice anymore. Come by whenever or during your next shift so we can talk. Eric will let you in.[/quote]

	Mila brought her hands to her face. What was she getting herself into? Was it even worth it at this point? There was no way she'd get him to tell the truth. She was just digging her hole deeper now. The young woman slowly stood up and in a short flash of anger mixed with fear, Mila kicked over a nearby trashcan. With sudden clarity after her release of frustration, Mila looked up to see the few bystanders staring at her awkwardly. Looking at what she'd done, Mila quickly became flustered and began trying to clean the paltry mess. She soon paused upon lifting the trashcan to see another one of those odd cracks on the ground. This one, however, was much larger than the others.

	Almost as soon as she saw it, the crack began spreading. Almost as if stretching out after a deep slumber. She looked at the people around her but none of them seemed to pay any mind to the crack forming. She didn't know why but she felt a desire to follow the growing fissure. Forgetting the mess behind her, Mila darted off in the direction of the pattern in the ground. She wasn't running for all too long, but it was enough that she was a tad short-breathed. The crack, which was giving off such a strange warmth, had lead her to the waterfront. Following it to the end she found herself just outside of a gazebo at the end of a pier.

	As she climbed the stairs, Mila was surprised to see Barney there. She was confused to see another figure sitting near an odd collection of the cracks possibly filming them. Not really sure what was going on, or why she had even come here, Mila watched the two from the stairs trying to decide what to do.