The boisterous din of the classroom greeted Tess's ears before she even set foot inside. The raucous chatter of her classmates filled the room, with some lounging on their desks and others clustered in groups. It was a typical scene when their homeroom teacher was absent.
As Tess entered, a guy with tousled blond hair locked eyes with her. He didn't appreciate that she didn't immediately seek him out, instead moving to her seat like she was the only person in the room. He broke away from his group and strode over to her.
Smack! —echoed through the room, causing several students to jump. But Tess remained unfazed by the white hand that slapped onto her desk. She knew it was Jeremy. He was the only person with his skin color in the entire Academy. Due to Tess's white hair and gray eyes, like him, she stood out like a sore thumb. He was also the only one with the guts to pull a stunt like that and not get his nose broken.
She looked up to meet his blue eyes. "What's the big idea, Jerm? And why didn't you respond to my messages?"
Jerm was the nickname she gave him years ago. He kept looking down on his hand flat out on top of her desk.
"Guess what I got?" he asked with a smirk.
Tess followed his gaze to his hand, which he slowly lifted to reveal a shiny blue and black card with letters. Her eyes widened with anticipation as she recognized the Pro-Syb-victim concert pass.
"You got it!" she shrieked.
Several students in the room jumped from the loud outburst and looked back over their shoulders annoyed. But after seeing the source of the sound they darted their stare elsewhere.
Warren lounged in his chair with his legs stretched out, grinning as he declared, "We're sneaking out at lunchtime."
Brenda spoke lively for once as she said, "This concert is gonna be a killer."
Tess's mischievous smile grew wider as she studied the card in her hand.
"See, I told you I'd get it," Jeremy said, settling onto the bench behind her.
As her friends began to speak among themselves, Tess turned to face them, ready to plan their escape.
"I hope you ladies are ready to venture into the Male's bathroom," Warren said, a sly glint in his eye.
Jeremy leaned closer to Tess and whispered, "That's our escape route, so get ready."
Brenda sighed. "Well, I guess it has to be. Those nosey MS offs and their stupid surveillance system. They barred the windows in the geography rooms and so no one can use them to escape."
Tess nodded in agreement, her mind already envisioning their route. "Remember, it's the loosened grille behind the window. You can't miss it."
"Remember, it's the loosened grille behind the window. You can't miss it."
Tess, too excited about the actual event, changed the topic. "I already have the coolest idea for a mask—" The suffocating silence fell over the classroom and forced her mouth shut. She turned around in her seat.
Like a ripple effect, the other students began to sense the unwelcome presence at the door and turned to face it. In walked their homeroom teacher, and the room instantly transformed into a picture of perfect order and discipline.
The morning sessions seemed to drag on endlessly. Tess knew it was because she had something important planned for lunchtime. During the last class before lunch, a male teacher caught her attention.
"Tess Cruchang, please come to my desk," he called out.
Tess looked up from her work, slightly confused.
Jeremy, her group partner, whispered to her as she got up. "What did you do this time?"
"Chillax," she whispered to him. "I'm the queen of deception, remember. I'll be at our spot at lunch so we can ditch this hell hole. Don't pee your pants."
He rolled his eyes. "Sure, Tee."
As she walked away, she glanced back at him. He had one hand over his forehead as he leaned over his tablet on the desk, looking annoyed with her. She couldn't help but smile. He looked adorable when he was angry. She stopped at Mr. Shrill's desk in the center of the room.
The classroom was divided into two halves, facing each other like opposing armies ready for battle. The arrangement made it easy to keep an eye on everyone, ensuring that no one turned into a blood-thirsty monster without being noticed.
Tess cleared her throat to announce her presence, but Mr. Shrill remained oblivious, his back turned to her as he fiddled with the smartboard. When he finally spoke, he did so without turning around.
"Tess, please report to the dean's office."
Her calm composure evaporated in an instant, her brow furrowing in annoyance. Was Shrill getting fresh with her why he couldn't turn to face her? Talk about no manners!
"Yes sir!" she shouted with a salute, and marched towards the exit.
The low growl emanating from Mr. Shrill's direction was either from his annoyance or his growling stomach. Tess could bet her boots that it was the former. If only she cared.
She pulled the classroom door open, and stepped through, but she didn't leave right away. With a mischievous glint in her eye, she peeked inside the room to catch a glimpse of her classmates trying to keep in their laughter. When Mr. Shrill turned his head in her direction, she let go of the doorknob and dashed off with a grin on her face.
The empty corridors echoed with the sound of her footsteps as she made her way towards the dean's office. As she reached the door, she paused to adjust her back-length white hair into a neat bun and tuck her shirt into her skirt. There, one thing out of the way so she could get the hell out of there faster.
Satisfied with her appearance, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Come in," came from the voice box outside the door.
She turned the knob, pushed the door aside and entered. "Sir, you requested to see me?"
"Yes," the dean replied, gesturing towards the empty chair in front of his desk. "Please close the door behind you."
Was he not going to tell her to have a seat like he usually did? Damn, these authority figures were tripping. Speaking of tripping, she didn't remember tripping any MS offs recently. If only she knew why she was there.
She sat and the dean began to speak with twitching brows. That unusual body cue was a cause for concern, but she quickly cast it as a side effect of lack of sleep. Poor Mr. Dean could use some coffee. She was going to fill his desk drawers with coffee beans next teacher's appreciation week. Her stone face contrasted the devious plot in her mind. The mention of her home and guardian being under investigation sent chills down her spine.
"...I received news about your home at the clinic and your guardian Ms. Petra Cruchang." He shook his head with heavy brows. "As you know, these kinds of events always take us by surprise. Your home and the clinic are currently under investigation and we're not sure how long it will be under lockdown but it is—"
Her eyes pop with alarm. Her chair screeched as she pushed it back to spring to her feet.
The dean's calm composure broke with a bark. "Young lady!"
He sprang to his feet and stretched one hand over the desk to grab her. Tess pulled her hand back, so he missed. In another blink, she had pulled the door open and escaped.
As she ran through the empty corridors, her mind raced with a flurry of emotions. Fear, anger, confusion, all competing for dominance. What did he mean by her home was under lockdown? An ordinary Sybervirian attack couldn't have caused that.
Tess gritted her teeth, her pace quickening at the thought of those useless MS tools. She wouldn't let them get away with this. But what could she do? Her mind raced with ideas, each one more desperate than the last. Thoughts of the illegal and top-secret information of the lab wrenched her heart with fear for Petra's safety. What if they found out?
Tess's heart pounded in her chest, each beat thudding in her ears as she rushed down the empty corridor. Her frail reflection on the metal locker stacks zipped by with her, taunting her with her own ghostly presence.
As she approached a four-way intersection, the sunlight beaming through the windows ahead dimmed with a passing cloud. Tess's home at the clinic disappeared from her forethought as her boots screeched across the smooth grounds to stop at a four-way. Crap!
She only had three options since she could not go back the way she came. Not with the dean and several other teachers yelling after her.
Tess took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. She knew what she had to do. She stood up straight and closed her eyes, focusing her mind on her ability. As she gained enough focus, she opened her eyes wide, revealing her steady gray irises.
EDITED