Chapter Fourteen (Part 2)
1000 Words
Chapter Fourteen (Part 2)
I swiftly caught the pen and pin it on the table before Tangent's hand can get it. I slowly turned my chin up to stare at Nimsan who is in front of me. Her round-shape eyes are directly staring on my hand that is currently jailing the poor pen. Her eyes glimmer with a brief spark of surprise.
I then sharply gaze at Tangent sidewardly without moving my face, just my eyes. Tangent's hand is a few centimetres away from my hand that's holding his pen as if it would catch the the pen if not only because of me.
An inexplicable smirk stretched across Tangent's face. I creased my forehead at him before nonchalantly returning the pen to him which he gracefully caught with his hand.
"Next time, aim accurately..." I whispered coldly.
His smirk widen even more. I was about to ask about his smirk when it suddenly vanished. His face became blank... or shocked? He straightened up from his position like he just heard something shocking even if you cannot hear any noise inside this room aside from the occasional incomprehensible whispers coming from the other officers.
His head shot up on the far corner of the room... where Miss Quen is currently talking on the phone. I knitted my eyebrows and I found myself also staring at our adviser and I was started when I saw her eyes widen while listening to the phone caller. Her palm violently clasp her lips as if shocked about something.
Wait... What's...
Miss Quen's fingers trembled causing the phone to slip out if her grasp as it fell on the called floor, defenseless and broken.
The loud thud of the phone on the floor caught the attention of everyone. I felt their heads turned to the same direction where I am currently staring at.
Pure horror was stretched across the face of Miss Quen. Her empty hand was still frozen beside her ear despite the absence of the phone. Her other hand tightly clasp into a fist while trembling.
"M-Miss Quen? W-What's the matter?" One of the officers dared to ask our adviser.
Miss Quen's lips opened and moved as if uttering something but no sound came from it. It was as if she was too shock to even utter something comprehensible.
"M-Miss?" Jeniry tried to call the attention of our teacher who looks like someone who's undergoing in a horrific trance.
Miss Quen frozen hand fell limply on her side before turning her flabbergasted eyes on us.
"C-Cathrina... s-she's dead t-too..." her voice croak as she uttered the painful words.
My eyes widen a centimeter when I processed what she just said. Cathrina? The hysterical girl with Vanessa inside the greenhouse?
"Oh my gosh. M-Miss? Is that true?" Gasp and shocked reactions filled the room.
My lips gaped a bit too because of the sudden news. She's dead? How... how come?
Some of our officers pulled a nearby chair and assisted our adviser to take a seat in order to calm her flabbergasted nerves. Miss Quen sat limply on the chair. Grief is blatanly plastered across her face. This must be a big blow to her, she just lost two students from her advisory class and she is the type of teacher who values her students like her own child.
I bend my body a bit so I can meet her eyes.
"Miss, calm down a bit. Can she a get some water please?" I ordered some of the nearby co officers and they immediately heed my command. We handed Miss Quen a bottled of water which she accepted with a still shaky hands.
"Miss please tell us what to do. We're worried about you." I gently asked her, still bending a bit in front of her.
She shook her head a little while wiping her eyes behind her glasses. Then she tried to straighten up her posture as if trying to compose herself.
"I'm sorry... I-Im just..." her words faltered in the air. She closed her eyes for a few seconds before heaving a deep sigh. Then she wiped the stray tears on her eyes.
"I'm sorry. Don't mind me. Continue with the task I gave you. I need to get going now." She said before standing up in an exhausted posture.
"I need to talk to Cathrina's parents about this. You guys should inform other students about the shorten period."
"Are you sure you're okay now, miss?" I inquired in a careful tone.
She gave me a trembling smile.
"Yes. I'll handle this."
AND WITH that, we did what we are told. The news about that Cathrina girl's death flooded my mind as I walk to the final classroom where I need to announce the shorten period.
I did not see this coming... that girl is the only remaining link to the crime and now she's dead... before she can even spill any information. Why did she die?
I did not noticed that I was already standing in front of the classroom because of my active thoughts. I breathed deeply as I fixed myself while raising my fist in the air in an attempt to knock on the door when I noticed another hand doing the same thing.
I stared at the owner of the hand with knitted eyebrows and I was mildly surprised to see who it was.
"Tangent?" I acknowledge his presence dubiously.
He withdrew his hand from the door and used it to fix his glasses instead.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know that you are also on your way to this classroom. My bad..." his voice is void of emotions as he said that.
Our eyes met in a rather intense contact. The sun's ray was reflected on his glasses as his hawk-like eyes welcomed my cold stares.
"Then, might want to announce the memo together?" I offered, not withdrawing my eyes from him.
"Alright then..." he answered as the soft air blew off his hair.
-C. N. Haven-
- Writer
