Taking charge D-51

Chapter three

Blinking awake, I feel Shirley putting my bag on my laps

“What do you think you’re doing?” I ask grabbing my bags off her hands

“Just helping you pick it up” she answers and I ignore her, going through my things to make sure they’re complete

“Like I would steal from you” she scoffs

“You seem to want everything I have so I would put nothing past you” I answer noticing everything is complete.

Before she gets a chance to say anything back, Mrs Rachael announces that we had arrived at our destination

“Good luck writing your exams, that is assuming you actually stay up to write it” Shirley says smiling as she walks out of the bus. I hated the unhealthy smile on her face when she said that so I take two pills out the bottle Heimlich gave me and swallow. Taking deep breaths to relax my nerve, I make my way out the bus like the rest of the students.

Standing outside the grand building, my heart was pounding with a mix of excitement and nerves. This was it- The day had finally arrived. Years of preparation and hard work had led me to this moment, and I was determined to give it my all. I could finally prove to myself and everyone else that I deserved to be a Park.

As I entered the building, I joined a long line of anxious students like myself. The air was thick with tension, and whispers filled the space around us. We were instructed to empty our pockets and have our belongings searched before proceeding any further.

I watched as the officials meticulously inspected my bag, scrutinizing every item within, like anyone would be stupid enough to cheat on this test. The grouchy officer kept staring at me like he was peering into my very soul, judging my readiness for this test. Once he deemed my belongings safe, he directed me towards a row of lockers with automated locks and our student numbers pasted on them. He instructed we put our things inside and change the code before entering the hallway where the test would take place.

Entering the hallway, I see rows and rows of desks stretched out before me, each with a student number neatly displayed. I guess we were supposed to sit at the desk with our student numbers. I found my seat and settled in with an eerie feeling looming over my head.

Immediately we were all seated, an instructor stepped onto a podium at the front of the room and his voice boomed through the speakers, giving instructions and setting the rules of the test. I strained to focus on his words, but the lingering migraine from earlier in the day made it difficult to concentrate.

The pain in my head intensified, causing my vision to blur. What the hell was happening, the drugs should have been working by now. The test sheet was passed around and I waited till mine got across. Looking at it, panic began to rise within me, the words on the test sheet in front of me seemed to twist and dance, making it impossible for me to read or even understand

I was doomed…… Maybe studying till past 4am this morning wasn’t such a good idea. I had become way too reliant on pain killers that it seemed I had grown immune today. Not that I blame my body, I had a total of fifteen hours of sleep the entire week.

Looking down I could feel my hands trembling and the wooziness of my eyes, the words on the sheet were still swirling and blending and my hands refused to move. Frustration welled up inside me and I could feel my eyes starting to tear up…..

There was no second chance for me if I lost this opportunity, the look of disappointment that would cloud my parents faces flashed before my eyes and threatened to drown me

No, no, no, I needed to calm down. Realizing that what I needed was a moment to regain my composure, some time for the drugs I had taken earlier to take effect. I quietly rest my head on the desk, closing my eyes for a few seconds. I hoped that a brief rest would help clear my mind and strengthen me to finish the exam.

As I closed my eyes, I whispered a silent prayer, seeking the strength to overcome this like I overcame my illness years ago. Feeling the wooziness start to ease, I could feel the tension easing and my nerves relaxing

Yes this was exactly what I needed to………..

“Miss park, Miss park, Miss Park” I hear my name and feel myself being tapped on the shoulders

“What” I stir up immediately looking around, there was empty desks and the instructor from earlier looking down on me. I wondered where those students went to? Were they moved to another hallway

“Miss park, Did you hear anything I just said?” Your

“What” I ask feeling confused

“ I said sleeping isn’t allowed in the hall, if you’re done with your test, you can submit and exit the hall”

Exit the hall? Finished the test? But we just started

“ I’m sorry, I wasn’t sleeping, just resting to gain my composure….. I’m sorry did you say finish the test?” I ask to confirm, I know people thought I was a genius, but even I couldn’t be expected to finish a test of this difficulty in less than five minutes

“ Yes, you have about ten minutes left” he says whimsically pointing at the clock

Ten minutes? What was he talking about?

Looking at the clock, I could feel my breakfast about to make it’s way to the surface….. I wasn’t dreaming and this wasn’t a stupid prank, I was sure we were told to start the tests by 12pm and I only laid my head to rest for five minutes, so how the hell was it 1:50pm already

“Miss Park are you okay, you don’t look so good” the instructor asks with concern written all over his face

“ I’m fine, I just need to……”

BLERGHHHHH

I vomited right on the desk where my test paper had been……. No, no, no this couldn’t be happening to me right now

I hear increased whispers around me and students screaming ewww at the sight of my vomit. The instructors scrambling to settle them down and me still not believing or understanding the whole situation

Standing up, I feel the wooziness from earlier overtaking me and the instructor trying to hold me back

I was fine, I could fix this, I just needed a new test sheet…. I could still make it if I…….

I fall flat on my face before I could realize it, my eyes drifting off to a cold unconsciousness. Was this the end? Was I really going to die like this?

The thought of death didn’t scare me as much as the fact that I just messed up my test did……

Arghhh, I hated this so much, this feeling of helplessness as I slowly lost consciousness…… I couldn’t do anything but let the tears I had been holding back start falling slowly.