Wrong Arrow

5 : A Mellow Whisper

Pearl's Pov

Tap.

Tap.

Tap.

I just had a long talk with Vaeri an hour ago. She went on and on about the possibility of the school being hunted. She also mentioned about a cute spirit seen here and there.

At the moment, The only thing that can be heard is the clicks coming from my keyboard. I've been sitting like this for the last thirty minutes. The sun has now vanished from the sky, replaced by billions of hot gases and the massive circular object we call a moon. The breeze causes branches to rattle and dance, gracing their tips alongside my window. Every now and then, I can hear distant wolves howling and cars driving by.

I drag my glasses up the bridge of my nose, fingers working progressively. But despite the silent and calm nature of the room, the ends of my hair keep rising every now and then. The feeling of being watched lies on the tip of my head. I don't want to think about it, but the constant reaction of my body keeps pulling my concentration away.

There.

It happened again.

I pause to check my arms- seeing a bunch of goosebumps crawling around my skin. I have an essay due tomorrow. I shook my head, forcing myself to focus on the assignment in front of me. Silence reigns for the next five minutes before something falls over and hits the ground. I raised my head up, staring in the direction of my desk, where I had a bunch of pens and school textbooks piled together. My gaze then travels to the ground, seeing a single pen lying there. I don't think too much of it and blame it on the wind before looking back at my laptop.

This time, when the chair across the room moves slightly, I pay no mind to it. As the tip of my fingers meets tip to buttons on the surface of my keyboard, soft taps surround my room.

A gush of wind suddenly graces the empty side of my bed, coaxing me to look up. This one felt cold and eerie. But at the same time, I don't know why it feels...peaceful too. I slapped myself across the face before shaking it. I have to focus. I close my eyes and take in steady breaths.

"Get a hold of yourself, Pearl. You either finish this today or not." I have to get my head straight and out of the gutter. I flinch when the stand beside my bed shifts slightly.

"Okay." I dragged the word with a horror-struck but calm expression. "Maybe I should get some sleep. Yeah. I'm obviously tired. definitely tired. But my assignment." My words ended with a slight whimper. I check my phone once again and noticed it was an hour before midnight. I sigh leave my mouth. That eerie feeling I felt a while ago seemed to have melted away from my system.

How long has it been since I’ve gotten myself a decent night's rest? Grey circles compliment the lower portion of my eyes. It’s been there for as long as I can remember. But I’m trying my best to get enough sleep every night. That’s what is important anyway, right?

Trying.

The moon looks pretty tonight. I wonder what mom and dad are doing right now. The different time zones don't allow me to call them just any time. They're probably in a meeting right now. And by the time they're done, I'd already be asleep. I'm not sure when they'll be back given that their schedules keep changing.

At this rate, I might even get to see them by next month. I frown falls on my face just thinking about that.

The glowing light from my laptop reminds me of my homework.

I don't want to waste much time staring and thinking and forcing my gaze to land on the screen in front of me again.

I'm on a mission.

A mission to have this done before nine. I'll need all the sleep I can get for tomorrow.

The word 'physical education' suddenly echoes inside my head. It leaves off a bitter reminder.

Let's just say, although considered as the simplest subject at school, it's the extra physical movement our teacher requires us to do that makes me hate it.

I nibble the bottom of my lip. I've heard one of my classmates say we'd have to run for ten minutes straight around the court.

All of a sudden, a tingly sensation tickles the side of my ear, bringing my fingers to a pause. My breath halts for the slightest moment. What the heck was that? It almost feels like someone had just brushed their finger across my ear. Blinking my eyes, I shook my head to disperse the thought.

Maybe…

I poke the inside of my cheek, gaze fixated on my screen. After a moment, I reached to the side to grab my phone from the nightstand.

The light makes me flutter for a few seconds before I check the time for the second time in the last hour. It's late. Maybe I should just call it a night. What I'm working on isn't that hard anyway.

"I...think it's better if I go to sleep." I muttered mostly to myself. Something in the corner of my bed rustles as if someone had slightly sat on it.

I don't bother staring at it, instead, calmly place my phone down and allow my fingers to glide across my laptop once again.

I'm required to write a three hundred word essay regarding economic problems and I'm already half way through. I'm sure I can finish it tomorrow morning.

I'm pretty sure I can. Yeah. And if it happens that I'm not able to accomplish it on time, I can always ask my best friend Vaeri for help. She'll know what to add for sure.

With that thought in mind, I gently set my laptop on the side after shutting it down. Then I slither under the cover, allowing my eyes to close.

Before sleep engulfed me fully, I was able to hear a mellow whisper saying "Good night" to me.