The Unexpected
1990 Words
...continuation...
As soon as they arrived in the main campus area, the teachers gathered them and comforted them. One of them stepped forward. He is a man, probably forty years old and he has a steady breath around him that makes people comfortable. Cellestine recognized him as Mr. Carlos, one of her parents' friends and the school's vice administrator.
"Ladies and gents, I know some of you were shocked about what happened and we sincerely apologize for that. Some of your seniors from the engineering and technology department were doing an experiment on the lake last night and they were not able to remove the instrument just yet. They were not expecting a malfunction in the device, which resulted in the lake water being disturbed," Mr. Carlos explained.
Right after he spoke, a bespectacled young man with black-brown hair and a sophisticated appearance stepped forward and stood beside the teacher. He has an amiable smile on his face, but looking closely would reveal his unfathomable eyes behind his glasses, which will make you think twice if he is really in a good mood or it's just a facade. At least that was what Cellestine thought.
"Good afternoon everyone. I'm Earl Rye Collins, from the College of Business, your student body president. The leader of the experiment is my friend and on his behalf I would like to apologize for the disturbance earlier. We assure you that before the evening, the instruments on the lake will be removed and you can still go back and enjoy the scenery of the lake like before."
When Earl Rye's voice sounded, there seemed to be a very slight suggestion that resounded in her consciousness as if lulling her to believe every word that came out of the speaker's mouth.
She instantly snapped out of her daze and looked around. Her friends seemed like they were not affected and she breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at the other students though, some of them seemed to have been affected by the suggestion and they dazedly nodded to the student president.
She doesn't know if she just did not recover from what she saw earlier and she is just imagining things. But the intrusive thought just now felt so real.
Confused, she looked at Earl Rye's direction again. Nothing's changed. He is still smiling like the most approachable senior schoolmate. Then he looked in her direction and she was sure there was a slight surprise in his eyes before he recovered his expression.
Earl Rye was surprised that among the group of younger students in front of him, three girls were not affected at all and one actually snapped out of his mental suggestion.
He was taken aback but he quickly recovered from his gaffe. There was expectation in his heart. This new batch of kids would be interesting, he thought.
---
Earl Rye sat in his office chair facing a grumpy Luke who was glaring at him.
Their family relationship is a bit complicated. They are cousins but they are also not. When Luke's mother was still a baby, she was kidn*pped and was sold by traffickers.
Earl's grandfather happened to be the chief investigator who was in charge of cracking down on this group of traffickers. When all the children were rescued, they were returned to their parents. But no one came to claim the poor baby girl.
Duke Collins, Earl's grandfather, cooperated with all the police precincts in the country to try and look for a missing baby report that would match the description of the baby they rescued, but there was no success.
That time, Duke's wife was just one month pregnant with her third child and she felt very sorry for the little girl. So, the husband and wife did what they could to get custody of the child and adopt her.
This way, when Earl's mother was born, she was so attached to her adopted sister, who was Luke's mother. The siblings have always been close, even after Luke's mother was finally recovered by her family when she was fifteen. Earl and Luke, as their children, were also very close friends and, even though there was no blood connection, they still treated each other as cousins.
"Chill out, Luke. I didn't expect her to be so sensitive about my mental suggestions. She must have a strong mental ability once she fully awakens," Earl Rye stated while smiling teasingly at his cousin.
"She must be strong. That's for sure. But at the moment, she is the most vulnerable. Please tell everyone to be careful around her and don't deliberately follow her around," he said. Worried.
"Dude, you know you're whipped, right?"
Luke just shrugged and made a helpless smile. "Once your time comes, It'll be my turn to laugh at you, Earl."
"It's true, I guess. Once a guy is in love, the brothers must step aside," Earl said, feigning hurt.
Luke just raised an eyebrow at him.
"You're no fun, Luke. She must find you boring."
"My entertainment skills are not for you," he said, smirking. Then he stood up. "I'm out. Just let them know my request."
"I can be in-charge of this matter. Don't worry. Sir said to just let you be. Just know your limits."
"Thanks, man," Luke said before finally stepping out of Earl Rye's office door.
Earl Rye picked up his cup and drank his coffee, which was already a bit cold. He then stood up from his office chair to stare at the floor-to-ceiling window.
His office is located on the ground floor of the administration building, facing the school grounds. It's not the place with the best vantage point, but it's enough for him to catch a glimpse of some of the students on the schoolground going about their normal lives.
It's just, how long can this normal life be?
When he was about to take another sip of his coffee, Luke, who had already left, came back panting.
"You need to come with me."
---
Today is their last day of vacation before school officially starts tomorrow. Everybody decided that today was a day to be lazy, so they gathered here in her and Karmi's dorm while still in their pajamas. While the others were concentrating on the love-flick playing on the TV, Cellestine decided to step out and walked to the balcony.
Seeing this, the three girls, who Cellestine thought were concentrating on the movie, looked at each other.
"You go, Karmi. You're the cousin." Devonne started. Speaking in a hushed voice.
"I agree with Devonne. Surely she would open up to you," Louella agreed.
"No. You do it, Devonne. You are the serious one. Cellestine must think she could talk to you," Karmi refused to agree.
"Why me? I think what she needs the most is someone who can empathize with her." After Devonne said that sentence, she and Karmi simultaneously looked at Louella.
Louella surrendered to her fate. Who told her to be an empath?
She carefully walked in Cellestine's direction and sat on the floor beside her. Cellestine did not react. She's just looking at the distance. Deep in thought.
Louella put her hands on top of Cellestine's hands and squeezed them, also trying to influence her friend's mood to relax. And by trying, it means that, like all the times before, she still failed.
She can use her abilities to find out how Cellestine feels. But every time she tries to influence her friend's emotions, it won’t work. It's as if there is a natural barrier that protects her.
Cellestine quickly took back her sight and looked in Louella's direction, just realizing that someone actually sat beside her.
"Sorry. Did I startle you?" Louella asked.
"It's okay," Cellestine replied. She looked in front again. Facing her dormitory is the sports field and further is the forest area leading to the mountain.
Cellestine did not have a good night's sleep. She was still bothered by what she witnessed yesterday. She badly needed someone to talk to.
Was it all just a coincidence? Was she just seeing things?
While she was staring blankly at the distance, it felt like her view was magnified and she was actually able to clearly see the flower field just at the foot of the mountain. It was so real, so close, as if she could touch it if she reached out her hand.
That magical moment was broken when Louella squeezed her hand. What was that?
She looked at her friend again and smiled. She squeezed Louella's hand back.
"I'm fine. I know you're all worried about me. I'm just not in the mood. I'll be okay in no time," Cellestine said.
"If that's the case, why don't you play the piano?"
Cellestine was instantly moved by this suggestion. Sure. It would not help answer her questions. But playing the piano would help her calm down and would also help her friends be convinced that she was fine.
It's not that she doesn't trust her friends. But all the things running in her mind at this moment are very unscientific and she herself can't find the logic in all that's happening to her. If she herself can't believe in her words, how can others?
After the four of them changed into more presentable dress, they headed to the building of the College of Music. Although Cellestine and Louella are still both in senior high school, the school grants them the special privilege to have their own practice room in the college building.
It's a simple five meter by five meter soundproof room. There's a grand piano on the left side of the room, occupying almost half of the space. In front of the piano is a small leather couch that can sit three to four people. Beside the couch is a bookcase. Opposite to the grand piano is an upright piano, which is the first thing you will see upon entering the door.
The room is painted in the color beige with note patterns painted in white. All the furniture is also beige with accents of white. And then the two pianos are all shiny black, which is in contrast to the beige and white motif.
The overall color scheme of the room gives off a comfortable and chic feeling.
"It's so nice here. Who decided on the colors?" Devonne asked.
"It's my mother. This used to be her practice room," Cellestine said, feeling a mix of being happy, sad, and nostalgic at the same time.
The three girls looked as if they had just stepped on a landmine again and they didn't know how to move forward or back. Cellestine does not know either to laugh or cry at their reaction.
While shaking her head, she went to open the piano lid and secured it with the lid prop. After doing that, she proceeded to sit on the piano stool.
Usually, when she is practicing for a concert or prepping for a recital, she empties her mind and concentrates on the music score. Her mentor often praises her because she knows how to listen to what the composer of the music wants to do, and what story he wants to tell.
She is a very disciplined pianist, knowing how to use her piano to convey the message and the emotions of the piece true to a point without influencing it with her own emotions. Cellestine is a textbook example of a great interpreter in music.
But this time it was different. Cellestine did not empty her thoughts. She lets her thoughts and emotions direct her music. No music sheet. No music score.
The moment she started to play the piano, it was like being sucked into her own world. In this world, she has the ability to influence all the people in it. In this case, it's her friends.
But Cellestine is too lost in her world to notice.
...to be continued...
- Writer
