"I see enough dudes walking around in their shorts, it would be nice to see some girls for a change, take Stacy for example..." The young man said, closing his eyes and sighing as he gripped his head phones.
"I wish you the best of luck Alim, but I don't think that will be enough." Noah said in response, while the young man shot him a smile that was tinged with self-doubt.
"Maybe you're right, but a guy can dream, right?" He said, getting up to turn off their light. "Anyway, I'm going to bed man. Just give me a heads up next time you do something reckless again." The young man said, vaulting himself into the top bunk, while Noah tossed his book aside and clicked off the desk lamp.
"Yeah, I can't take that away from you--not that I would if I could." He chuckled as he stripped down and crawled into bed, as there wasn't any sense in staying up and studying at this hour. The young man's dreams often centered around the sorts of strange ideas that he often ran too during particularly boring lectures. In one he was performing on stage, doing what he loved for a living rather than what his parents had heaped onto his shoulders. In another, he traveled through space and time, guided by currents of cosmic energy. He even had a dream that featured Amy, and for once it was a pleasant dream, a dream where she wasn't trying to kill him so much as he wanted to talk to her. He was traversing a snowy mountain pass, blowing snow drifts aside with a wave of one arm, while holding the reigns of a yak with the other. They were to meet at a cozy temple, and upon his arrival, he saw that she was dressed in the same bulky layers as himself.
"Oh man..." He mumbled, as she peeled away her layers to reveal a simple dress that was cinched at the waist with a belt. He draw her close, her arms over his as she pulled him to the ground, their clothing cushioning their fall when she leaned over and whispered into his ear.
"It's about time you got what was coming to you, Ibenez..." She said, though the voice was no longer her own by the end and sounded more sinister than sultry. Noah was back in his room, t-shirt and shorts, hearing the sounds of a struggle from the other side of the room, while a person loomed over him, his world dark and upside-down. The person looped a cable of some sort around his neck and held him with a vice-like grip.
"Dude! Not. Cool." Noah gasped and choked, seeing that Alim was struggling near the window, tape over his mouth while he struggled to keep another assailant away. They both had bandanas tied over their faces, and he could have sworn that the other person had on a pair of goggles. He planted his feet and twisted at the hip, driving an elbow into his attacker's solar plexus, loosening the grip for just long enough to slip away and turn the tables. Noah grabbed the person by the back of his shirt and drove him into the other assailant, tangling the two long enough for Noah and his roommate to restrain them using the very materials they had brought along.
"What the hell is this? You think this is payback for today's meet?" Alim asked, massaging his cheeks from removing the tape only moments ago. He looked to see that their door was slightly ajar, a small object lodged in the entry for the key.
"No way. The Tennis Club would be too busy licking their wounds to do something like this. I don't recognize these two either--" He nodded to the two that were tied up, while Michel burst into the room, panicked and half-dressed.
"Noah! Noah! Oh, Alim is here too..." He said, fidgeting and wringing his hands as he entered the room.
"Gee, thanks Michel. Good to see you too." Alim said, folding his arms and staring at the young man.
"I ran here as quickly as I could, since these guys were trying to climb through my window, but my roommate called the RA, and they ran off, though I think they're--" He ducked as another youth sprung from the hallway and swiped at him with a quilted mitt. "--behind me." He said, crawling behind the two young men who shoulder charged the new challenger into the hallway, knocking a cork board off of it's mounts.
"Michel, pants." Noah said, as if he were asking for something simple. "Alim, you get some of the gang together and check on Stacy--and you might want some pants as well." He mentioned, as Michel tossed them both pairs of black slacks.
"Yeah, I'll check on Stacy while I'm at it--this could be my big chance and all..." Alim grinned as he slipped into a pair of flip-flops and bolted down the hall. Noah threw on a white, short-sleeved shirt, his chest exposed as he slipped on a pair of sneakers.
"Good. Michel, you're coming with me. We're going to pay our friend a visit." He cracked his knuckles as he left his room, his thoughts on who was behind this particular night-time raid feeding into his anticipation.
"Friend? You don't think that she's behind this, do you?" Michel said, his voice quivering a little more, as the relative silence of the floor was jarring.
"Maybe." Noah said, as he and Michel snuck out of the building using the emergency exit. They were soon on their way to one of the other residence halls, one where Amy was bunked with another student.
"It could be trap to draw you--us--out. You think she would do that?" The young man mentioned, looking behind him to make sure there weren't any more masked men or women out to get him.
"Maybe." Noah said, himself becoming wary as they entered the residence hall from a side entrance, moving quickly, but quietly towards the young woman's room.
Meanwhile, a pair of masked students unlocked the door to Amy and Jeanne's room. They wore large goggles to shield their eyes, and scarves or bandanas over the lower halves of their faces. Their clothing was dark, and they even wore gloves. They crept into the room and approached the young women, who they believed to be sound asleep in their beds.