CHAPTER 10: THE PROFESSOR

It was early in the morning when Devon went to the house because we will go to school together. It was nice to see him waiting for me sitting on the couch while drinking the coffee that my mom made for him. It only shows that he is not mad at me and we are still friends after what happened yesterday. 

“Good morning, you look good today,” He said in front of my mom when he saw me getting out of my room, with my backpack. 

“Good morning too, handsome” I greeted him with a smile while looking at him.

“Are you ready to go to school, my majesty?” He asked. I didn’t answer but I nodded. I looked at my mom to see her reaction and I blushed when I saw my mom smile at him.

“We will go now, my queen,” He said to my mom and bowed like a gentleman after finishing his cup of coffee. My mom laughed at him and said,

“Okay, keep safe to the both of you” I kissed my mom goodbye. Same with Nana Salve and we left.

We were walking to school when he tried to hold my hand but I refused because I was not in the mood. I am still thinking about what happened yesterday. I feel like I don’t have a face to show to the people that we pass by on the street going to the school. Especially to his friend. I feel like what happened yesterday is so embarrassing because the people wouldn’t understand about it because they didn’t know it. I feel like I put him to shame even though he is not mad at me. He tried to hold my hand for a second time but I refused and I know he noticed it. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked but I didn’t answer. 

“Look, if you’re thinking about what happened yesterday… don’t worry about it because it’s fine,” He said.

“You don’t understand,” I said. He stood in my way and I stopped walking and I looked at him because he was looking at me. 

“I understand and I accept you. I used to see things too when I was a kid, that is why I smoked weed to ease it. I smoke as my therapy” He told me and I was surprised by what he said because I didn’t know it. 

“See?” He asked while still looking at me.

“I am like you before but mine just… gone”

“How did it happen?” I asked

“My mom brought me to the psychiatrist”

“So the psychiatrist cured you?”

“Yeah”

“But why are you smoking weed?”

“Because I don’t want it to come back… every time I feel it coming back”

“What? who? Who will come back?”

“The pain that I felt when my only sibling left...when my brother died”

I looked at him again and I feel sorry for bringing it out because I didn’t know but I know the feeling of losing someone dear to you. I don’t know what to say to him either because I was surprised by what I heard. That is why I held his hand as my “sorry” for being insensitive. He held my hand and we continued walking.

“That is why don’t think of anything because I understand you and you are not weird for me and you’re not putting me to shame,” He said to erase my worries because that is what I worry is to put him to shame. 

“Just squeeze my hand if you feel something supernatural again… we will sit next to each other,” He said. My worries are gone because of what he said. He gave me lightly by being my torch in the dark. He gives me the courage to face all the things that are happening to me with my head up high and because of him. I am eager to know about the girl and what happened to her.

We reached the school by walking and we went inside the room to attend the class of  Sir Ross. We sit next to each other while waiting for the professor to come. We hang our bags in the chair in front of us. I remember what happened yesterday. If it is a premonition or not it doesn’t matter; what matters is I need to warn him.

“About what happened yesterday… I saw a car crash when I saw your friend’s white car and it got burnt and explode” I started and I continued when I saw him listening while sitting beside me. 

“I am not sure if it is my premonition but I want you to be careful because I saw a man burned inside the car and I don’t want it to be you… so please be careful” I told him and begged him to be careful. I know I am not his girlfriend; though I sound like a girlfriend by warning him because I don’t want something bad to happen to him. He smiled at me and told me not to worry because he will be fine and always be fine. 

After a few minutes of waiting; the professor finally came with his bag that he put on his desk and some of the brown envelopes that he was carrying. He took a handkerchief inside his pocket and wiped the sweat on his forehead and put it back inside his pocket. He inhaled and exhaled first and then he greeted us.

“Good morning”

“Good morning, sir'' We greeted each other. He pulled his chair out but before he sat down the lights blinked and it was kind of unusual because our lights in the classroom never blinked. He looked up and waited for the lights to stop blinking but it didn’t stop blinking. That is why he went to the switch and turned the lights off for a second and turned it on again before he went back to his chair and sat down. I held Devon’s hand and squeezed it because I saw a man standing behind our professor when he sat down. Devon looked at me when I squeezed his hand and he looked back to the professor while I was still holding his hand. There’s a man standing behind our professor and when the lights stop blinking the men are gone. I looked at it clearly and yes, they were gone. I let go of Devon’s hand and he looked at me and asked me.

“What’s wrong?” In almost a whisper. I looked at him and I shook my head. I don’t want to tell him here. I will tell him if we are already in a mango tree.

The class starts and the professor discusses “Crisis” A simple word but hard to solve. He discussed how the crisis started. What is the cause the crisis can give to a country? When did the crisis start? What country is the most suffering from a crisis? and how can we end the crisis? All of those questions; we need to find answers except for the information and ideas that he is discussing now in front of us.

“You need to research more about this,” He said while pointing to the whiteboard and showing us the things that he wrote there and he started discussing a new topic and it is about democracy. He stated that there are some countries that have a democratic government and one of these countries is the Philippines. He also discusses the difference between democracy; the advantages and disadvantages of it and while he is discussing the light starts to blink again and this time the blink is faster than the first one and it is longer too. I looked around and checked everybody, they were busy taking notes about today’s topic. As if the lights are not blinking. I carry my chair near Devon to sit closer to him while the lights continue blinking. I hold his hand again. He looked at me and he looked back at the professor. 

As the light blinked I saw the men again standing behind the professor while the professor was discussing the lesson. As the light blinked I saw the men standing beside my classmates who were sitting four seats away from me. I squeeze Devon’s hand because I can see the men clearly now. They are the men that I saw who is chasing me in hell; the men with a stab on the waist and the other one has a gunshot on his head and both are bleeding and I don’t know why they are here. They are looking at me with their angry eyes. I am so scared now because the more the lights blink, the more they get nearer to me. I squeeze Devon’s hand tight because they are now standing in front of me and they are staring at me. Their blood dripped on my desk and wet the paper on my desk. I wiped it but their blood kept dripping. I hold Devon’s hand tightly. The men open their mouths and they make a sound like “Aaaaahhh” I close my eyes and cover my ear with my other hand because of the sound that they make. Irritates me and makes me dizzy. 

“Go away, please” I whispered, telling them to go away while I closed my eyes because I don’t want to see them.

“Go away, please” I whispered again and opened my eyes but they were still standing in front of me and still making the irritating sound. That makes my headache more.

“Go away”

“Go away”

“Go away”

The light blinks fast like Christmas lights and the sound they make is getting louder and louder. I feel like they are near to my ears because the sound that they are making is echoing in my head, echoing in the whole room. I looked around but they were all quiet and listening to Sir Ross. They didn’t hear the sound. They didn’t see the lights blinking. I shake my head to avoid the sound but I cannot avoid it because it makes me more dizzy that I feel like I will pass out. I didn’t notice that I was already squeezing Devon’s hand many times and I was squeezing tightly.  

“Please stop,” I whispered, begging them to stop.

“Please stop,” I begged again but they were still making the sound.

“Please stop,” I whispered for the last time.

My head starts spinning. The whole room is spinning too. I can’t hold on, I can’t take it anymore. I am so dizzy and I fall beside Devon but he is fast to catch me not to fall on the floor. He hugged me close to him and looked at me. My face is so close to his face that he can almost kiss me. I passed out. 

I woke up lying on the bed inside the clinic and Devon is sitting beside me waiting for me to wake up.

“Hello,” He greeted. 

“You passed out,” He said

“How’s our class?” I asked him. I checked what time it is and it is almost lunchtime

“I already submitted the list of our names in our team for the documentary project” He answered while looking at me.

“And who’s in our team?”

“No other than… you and I… just the two of us” He proudly said with a smile. 

“Ah I see,” I said while nodding.

“The nurse asked me if you were pregnant because you passed out… and I said ‘yes’” He said and then he laughed when he saw my eyes grow wide and my jaw dropped. I felt like I wanted to punch him. 

“I am just kidding… I said you are just dizzy” He said after laughing hard.

“Come on, let’s have lunch now,” He said and he helped me stand and we both picked our bags on the chair and left the clinic.

We went to the cafeteria and there I heard the students whispering and murmuring about me and about Devon.

“She passed out,” One of the students whispered to her friend who is sitting beside me

'Why did she pass out?’ the other one asked

“Weird,” The other one said in his head while giving me and Devon a side glance as we walked to find a vacant place to eat. 

“Is she the Lazarus of the campus?” One of the students asked inside her head when she saw us sit beside the water dispenser because it is the only place available. 

“Are you okay?” Devon asked me and put our bags on the table. I nodded.

“I am just hungry,” I said 

“Don’t mind those students… they are just insecure to you because you are unique and cool” He said that comforts me and makes me smile.

“I will get us lunch,” He said and he stood up and went to the food pantry to check for the food while I was sitting and guarding our bags. 

I see Sir Ross. He is here at the cafeteria to check for the food. I stare at him and I feel an instant connection between us. I feel like I already know him and I already met him. I just forgot where and when. Carrying his bag. I watched him walk away and vanish in the group of students walking inside the cafeteria.

After a few minutes. Devon went back with a tray and food on it. I removed our bags from the table so that he could put the tray and he sat in front of me. We transfer the food from the tray to the table. We have fried chicken with rice and buttered corn and delicious orange juice with cucumber for our drinks.

“Thanks for the treat,” I said 

“You are always saving my life” I added

“Because you will be my future wife,” He said. I looked at him because I remember Jayvee when he told me that I will be his future wife but the accident happens. That is why it will never come true. 

“You think I need to seek help for my situation?” I asked him while we were starting our lunch. 

“But I don’t like seeing a psychologist… I mean it will be my last option” I added before he suggested that I seek help from a doctor. 

“I think you need to be healed… because being in the accident that killed your friends and your boyfriend is not a joke… especially when you come back from life,” He said while eating.

“What if God gave me this ability to avoid another freak accident and to help other people too?” I asked him but he is not answering because he is busy eating. I sipped my juice and looked at him.

“What if those that I saw are just a premonition or they are lost souls that want to rest now?” I asked him again and ate my food, and then sipped on my juice.

“Anything that will help you,” He said and finished his food and his juice.

“I am just here if you need me,” He added. 

“Hurry up! Let's go to the mango tree,” He said.