Remember to lock your doors... (239 views)

Daphne stared vacantly up at the ceiling, the rain so loud outside that she could hear the steady drumming of it on the other side of the door. Normally the sight of this corridor filled Daphne with delight, even at night when it was almost closing time. But now, with only a cloud shrouded moon to illuminate the crevices of the building, Daphne no longer felt at home. The light cast shadows she’d never seen before on the halls. The woodwork of the flooring seemed darker.

Daphne pulled her arms around herself and turned around when she heard another person approaching. Outside, lightning flashed and illuminated the shadows of the trees outside, which moved like dancers across Daphne’s perplexed expression. Normally she did not show emotion, but in this instance she knew nothing. She felt very foreign again – she was in a land she did not know very well, locked in this building until morning (unless a back exit could be found), and would likely face repercussions detrimental to her stay here if she was found.

Though at least the person with her was Giovanni, a college student and instructor whom she admired and got along with all right.

’I do not know. I believe we were locked out. The usual instructor, he was not the one with key.” Daphne said slowly, as though choosing each word carefully. In her current state of panic, it was hard for her not to just fluently curse and rant up a storm in French. She did not completely do so – but she mumbled a few French swears under her breath. ”I did not know the time. I could not hear my music well. And now we are locked in,”

Daphne slammed a fist on the door, as though knocking would help. The loud sound faded with another gush of wind, which shooed the clouds away from the moon outside and cast a bright light right onto her first. If she wasn’t so pissed off, she might have found the moonlight seeping in despite the raging storm artistic.

”How will we get out?”

Sure, there was a temporary hope. Daphne watched with wide eyes as Giovanni rustled in his bag, praying that he had a key. She could not stay here. Simply could not – she wrapped her arms around herself, clenching the fabric of her hoodie with her long fingers. Another flash of lightning scorched the sky and lit up the defeated expression on Giovanni’s face when he realized he didn’t have the key. Daphne felt her chest deflate as she took a deep breath, trying to calm down from the panic she felt building.

She didn’t like change, didn’t like the unexpected. This was both of those things. While Giovanni seemed realitively composed about it Daphne was not. She stared down at her feet as her face paled. There may have been no use in freaking out but Daphne could not. She pondered if they could crack open a window. The second floor options were out, but surely there had to be some way of opening the window! If they opened it and left it so, the misdemeanor would be blamed on the idiot who closed up shop. Daphne would have had no part in it. The warm smile of Gio’s was wasted on Daphne as she didn’t even look up. She only stirred when she heard a mention of fire keys. A fire exit might sound off an alarm – but there had to be backup keys inside somewhere!

”The director’s office. It may have them. Smart idea.” She said, accent coming across as thicker due to her anxieties. Daphne took long strides down the hall. The echoes of her shoes on the walls sounded ominous to her. She tried not to think about the consequences of being here after curfew. She walked with her head held high, trying to keep her composure in front of a colleague. It was much easier to do when she was facing away from him. She expected Gio to follow to the end of the hall, where the director’s office was.

Seeing Giovanni look at his own phone for a signal, Daphne held hope that perhaps she had a signal. She had no friends who would take it upon themselves to come and get her out of this situation, but she did have the dance instructor’s number! If she called him, he’d let them out of here, easily!

But like Giovanni, Daphne found herself without a signal. Her brow twitched as she slammed her finger on the touch screen with too much force. Damn it all. Daphne glanced up to look at Giovanni, his face briefly shadowed by the light of his screen. There was no signal because of the storm – normally, Daphne had good signal in here. Perhaps, there could be a wifi connection? But – no! If there was no cell service, data would be out. And the school’s wifi was likely down, too.

”The thunder will not hurt you. It is in the sky.” Daphne said. If anything, she found lightning more worrisome than thunder. After all, lightning could strike any point on the ground. Thunder was just a rumble. Safe inside as she was, though, she felt no fear.

When they reached the director’s office, only to find it locked, Daphne bit down on her lower lip. The prospect of breaking in worried her, but… there really was no choice. She knelt down, unzipped her bag, and fished around for her things. She muttered in French underneath her breath as she did so, eventually pulling out a bobby pin.

”Here.” She said smoothly, handing it to Giovanni. She was not going to pick the lock – being an accomplice was crime enough. Though if they got out of this, she supposed this minor problem would be excusable.

It was unnerving to watch Giovanni get into the office. Daphne hated the feeling of breaking and entering and it made her feel like a horrible person, even considering doing this to the people who she danced for, the instructors of Metric… but she was trapped and had no choice.

Feeling very much like an accomplice in a crime, Daphne wrapped her arms around herself and stared out the window. She could still hear the pounding rain and the scrapping of trees on glass. Part of her was hoping that she’d see a teacher coming back, having forgotten something – but alas, her hopes were mute. When Giovanni succeeded Daphne felt a mix of glad and anxious. She led the way into the room, her footsteps ceasing to echo as they entered the more closed-quarters of the office. She hoped there were no security cameras in here, though she had a feeling there likely was.

Daphne looked around and eventually came across a safe, one that she knew had to contain the spare key! But she didn’t know the combination. No one knew it aside from the dance instructor, and a select few teachers. Daphne knelt in front of it and bit her lip.

”Is locked. Do you know? Know how to unlock this, this, this thing?” She hissed the last part out though it was not bitterness towards Giovanni. She punched the door of the safe, and when that didn’t work, she punched it a few more times. She growled as her heart continued to race. ”Is pointless! These locks, they will not let us try! Not more than… what? Three times? Before it is completely locked! For the whole night! Is stupid, stupid, stupid!”

She hit the safe again. Needless to say, it remained sturdy and shut.

”Yes but an alarm,” Daphne said, frustrated. She sighed and played with her ponytail, trying to think of some way to get out. The phone on the table was off, of course it would be. Who on earth would even pick up? The campus was closed now, and Daphne stared at the sky through the window, watching as the wind sliced through the rain drops like a scythe. The warmth of her bed was waiting for her – and she wouldn’t be able to get back to her house without drowning! If she even got out of here.

Daphne then got an idea and grabbed the teacher’s chair, rolling it over towards the window. She adjusted one foot securely on the thing, held tight to the windowsill, and then hoisted her other foot up. She clung to the high window for dear life, the wheels of the chair beneath her skittering on the floor. She swore under her breath. This building was probably the only building on campus she, one of the tallest girls, had trouble reaching the windows on. Daphne was not used to this position and awkwardly clung to the sill, pulling her phone out of her pocket. She held it to the window – close as she could get it.

”Ah! A sig—“ Daphne lost her footing and thankfully caught herself before she fell, but the signal as lost. She frowned, and tried to get the position again, to no avail. She then looked at Gio, defeated.

”But what if they catch us? What if they suspend us? I cannot have a tack on my record. I am a good student. A dancer. I am not a trouble maker.” She said, practically pouting, as she got down off the chair and reluctantly rolled his back. ”Are you sure they will not be angry?”

Daphne listened to Gio and when he sat down she too descended to the floor, arms wrapped around herself. She supposed he had a point. This was not their fault. But what if somehow they made it their fault? What if messing with the safe got them in trouble? Perhaps that would be the straw that got them suspended, not being stuck here after hours? Daphne wondered if that would listen to her if she tried to explain. She ran her fingers gently over her arm.

That was one of her biggest worries: that she’d have to explain the situation. Though her English was very good she always worried that it wasn’t good enough. That no matter what she said or tried to say, it would come out wrong or she’d say the wrong thing and get in trouble. Gio said to leave it to him, but as much as she wanted to, she hated to reply on others. Especially in such a foreign place. She wanted to stand on her own two feet.

”If setting off the alarm… what if they don’t believe us? What if they believe we tried to rob the safe?” She had never had a class with Mr. Audet sitting in, and knew nothing about him. What if the headmaster banished them? Her dreams of dancing, her career… she didn’t want it gone. ”I… am worried for not being believed…”