HOW MANY LETTERS ARE IN THE ALPHABET?
"How many letters are there in the Filipino alphabet?" Lia asked, sounding unsure of her own question. She turned to look at her companions who, like every other graduate inside Louie's Hall, were all still staring at the red screen where the word 'wrong' was written in all capital letters.
Vince immediately shook his head. He was about to speak when Ally objected to the idea as well. "The question is in English."
"But does it really refer to the English alphabet?" Jerome asked.
"We can't say for sure. It could be how many letters are in the Filipino alphabet, for all we know. Or any alphabet of any language. They might have just purposely removed some words so we couldn't answer it," Hailey argued.
"Or maybe we're just overthinking this," Ally said in the same tone but there was still no life in her eyes. "Maybe it really is how many letters are in the phrase: the alphabet. If it is, then the answer is eleven."
The former Student Council secretary was about to object again when the screen suddenly turned green. No words came out but everyone was silenced when the double doors of Louie's Hall suddenly opened.
"It really is eleven," Ally whispered absentmindedly, looking at the speakers instead of the door. She herself was also surprised that her answer was correct. Moreover, she was able to confirm that whoever is behind everything that is happening could hear every word that they say.
For a moment, no one moved and everyone seemed to be waiting for someone to tell them what to do, or for just anyone to go first and take the risk of suddenly falling on the floor and losing life. A few seconds later, Ally looked away from the speaker when there was a sudden stampede at the door. Everyone is jostling to get out first. Only their group was left standing in their position.
"Stop pushing each other!" Kingsley shouted then ran towards the chaos. He pulled the first man and woman he reached but they immediately went back to crowd. "Stop pushing each other! Calm down!"
"Stop panicking! Hey!" Hailey also shouted. Although she also came close to the disturbance, she stopped a foot away from those who were pushing each other for fear of being pushed as well.
"It's not closing," Ally uttered while seriously looking at the door. She felt Vince standing next to her and her eyes widened at what he said.
"It's a trap."
"Wait a minute!" Noah shouted. He was about to come to help Kingsley when someone almost flew in his direction. He immediately supported the young woman who was pushed out from the screaming graduates. "Are you okay?"
The panting woman just nodded and seemingly absentmindedly went back to pushing.
"Miss, wait!" Noah was about to pull the woman but he turned around when he heard someone yell a familiar name.
"Ally!" Paul hurriedly approached the young woman who had also joined in pulling their fellow graduates away from the door. He did not join in the crowd that are trying get out so he was accidentally pushed towards the back where the leading group was. "Ally, you might get stuck!"
"Paul, help stop them too! Come on!" Ally looked at the young man in panic. "They might die!"
Arkin, Jerome, and Lia seemed to come to their senses with what they heard. Images of what happened to the first batch of pairs that came out of the cubicles before the task was finished quickly flashed in their minds. They also came quickly but every person they pulled just went back to fighting to get out first.
More than a minute passed, only Kingsley's group was left inside Louie's Hall. The former president of the Student Council came to the door panting, and it was as if a thorn had been pulled out of his chest when he saw the other graduates celebrating because they were already out. "They're alright..."
"Kingsley, don't step outside," Hailey warned strongly.
Even though the young man didn't turn around, he stopped just a step away from the jamb of the open door. Kingsley took a deep breath and suddenly stiffened to his feet.
Hailey screamed, even Ella who was sitting on one side with Terrence did. No one spoke. Ally slowly stepped closer to the former leader of the Student Council and Noah and Paul automatically followed her. Before they were even close enough, Kingsley turned to them.
The three stopped walking when they saw the appearance of the former leader of their Student Council. The white polo shirt he was wearing had almost turned red due to the splash of blood from outside. Even on his face and the glasses he was wearing, the red liquid that hissed from more than a hundred young people lying outside Louie's Hall was dripping.
"T-There are others..." Terrence's voice trembled. Everyone turned to him. He started sweating.
"What do you mean?" Noah asked.
"I'm... I'm sorry! They blackmailed me! They have my sister, I'm sorry! I'm really sorry! I didn't know what to do! I was so desperate! I'm sorry!"
"Terrence..." Ella called almost in a whisper. She could not stop her feet from slowly stepping back, away from their class representative who was already crying. "Terrence, what did you do?"
"Tell my sister, I'm sorry," Terrence pleaded. He raised his right hand with his fingers as if shaped like a gun. Everyone just looked at him in wonder, confused at what he was doing.
Meanwhile, because he was still standing near the door and also because he was wearing thick glasses that were still stained with blood, Kingsley was able to see the glint of what looked like metal between the wrist and the sleeve of Terrence's jacket. His eyes widened. He rushed to run closer.
"No!"
Kingsley stopped. He did not go any further. He couldn't. Everyone was stunned again when they did not even hear anything, but Terrence fell to the floor, lifeless.