[26th December]
I gasped for air as I hoisted myself from the bed. It was nine in the morning; I was already tardy for my first period but the great news was,
I finally woke up.
"Johnny! I was terrified you wouldn't make it today either!" Mr. Kim didn't bother berating me for being late as he sped over to my side.
"Is everything okay? I heard your sister called and that was it." I shook my head with a small smile.
"I just had a headache. I'm okay now," I reassured him.
Mr. Kim grinned in relief before motioning for me to take my seat. "Before I forget," he requested for me again.
"You're ought to remain after classes for the English examination."
"Understood." he proceeded with his lesson subsequently, recapping a little so I'd get the gist of what I had missed.
Dylan extended his legs to gently kick my shoes. "Why were you late?" he questioned below a whisper.
"My alarm didn't go off."
"You don't set alarms, Johnny." he squinted his eyes at me before drawing them over my figure.
"Your tie is undone, your shirt is untucked, your shoelaces are untied and your bag is not even zipped. Are you sure you didn't lose a few textbooks on your way?" I mentally cursed his sharp eyes because that was rather embarrassing though he didn't say it out loud.
"Look, I don't know how else to tell you this but I woke up late. Horribly late."
"Your hair is unkempt." Dylan resumed, I scowled at him. He tossed me a comb and a cola-flavored lollipop.
"I assumed you didn't have your breakfast. Suck on that and get an egg toast from Nick next. He couldn't finish his earlier." I grinned, muttering thanks before I discreetly tidied myself in my place.
"Johnny, you were pretty early today!" Silas quipped when he skipped over to my table.
"Oh, shut up." I took a bite off the sandwich Nick had provided me.
"Have you opened the gift yet?" Jay rested his head on my shoulder from behind me. I was taken by surprise and almost choked.
"Not yet," I said.
I literally forgot about the present. If I remembered correctly, it was still seated perfectly on the coffee table...I feel terrible.
"Oh, it's okay." he retracted his head before accompanying Nick on the window sill.
"I'll open it once I get home. I'm sorry," I ensured him. He waved me off with a smile and mouthed that it was okay.
"So, Ethan, Johnny, and we oblige to use the restroom immediately!" Nick and Silas escorted us out of the classroom as the others observed in confusion.
"But we're going to get changed for PE anyway-?"
"Don't you think that was a little shady?" I lifted a brow at Silas.
"I couldn't think of anything else." he huffed before nudging Nick in the arm out of the blue.
"What was that for?"
"You're the more intelligent one. You should've done the talking instead of me." Nick gave him an unimpressed stare.
"We're twins."
"We have different brain sizes." Silas retorted.
"Okay, what did you call us out for?" I asked them. Ethan was restless next to me. He had been clutching onto my blazer sleeve ever since we departed the classroom.
"Ethan, why are you so on edge?" that was a feeble-minded question, come to think of it. Nonetheless, I patted him on the back, his muscles tight.
"It's just...
I can't put a finger on who I had...hurt. Why do they want me dead?"
"Maybe it's the girl you refused like five times!" Silas perked up from beside me. I landed a smack towards his chest. He was not helping at all. The eldest only gulped before frantically searching around for the girl.
"You know that famous phrase in movies? I think it was 'if I can't have you, no one can'. That may be the quote she goes by," Silas casually added. Why won't he shut up!?
"Silas!" I forcefully let out a cough and nudged his shoulder. He lifted his hands as if to surrender.
"I wasn't going to say anything else." why was he taking this situation so indifferently? Maybe telling him was a bad idea.
"So, all we have to do is remain adjacent to this giant shivering over there?" Ethan was indeed a giant, he was the second tallest in the group, after all.
"Yes, for now. Unless something unforeseen occurs," Nick furrowed his brow.
"What do you mean, unforeseen?"
"Like if the killer advances quicker than Sunday. Maybe right now-!" Ethan let out an earsplittingscream and groveled on the ground. We spun around in hysteria.
"Ethan!?" everybody in the hallway was gawking.
"Ethan, I didn't mean to alarm you!" Silas was seriously pressuring Ethan more than before. I yanked him into a hug and waved a hand around to reassure the concerned pupils.
"I don't want to die..." Ethan uttered through sobs.
"You won't, you won't." I brought Ethan to the garden outside, the twins trailing behind.
"Is it really that simplistic? Keep me near you...and that's it?" Ethan sniffled, his nose a bright red. I rubbed my face in impediment.
"Honestly, I don't know. I don't even have a clue on who the murderer could be! Well, we know them to be the guards but...it's really tricky to foretell but I suppose that's all we have and can do for now."
He nodded understandingly as he shifted on the bench. "You'll live 'til you're hundred, alright?" Silas began and Ethan glimpsed at him.
"We'll make sure you survive and stay alive. If you don't, who's going to be my midnight ramen buddy?" that made Ethan chuckle.
Nick turned to Silas and the younger twin immediately crossed his arms. "Don't even try. You abhor noodles, anyway." I gasped. Nick despised noodles!? A shame!
"We can still be midnight buddies for something..." Nick brooded, lips jutting out as if to pout.
"Please! You go to sleep at ten!" Nick opened his mouth but closed it after nothing came out. I sniggered at the twins.
"By the way..." Ethan pulled on my blazer.
"Are you not planning to tell the others?" I sighed.
"I'm still in doubt of the rest."
"Even Jay?" Silas asked, causing me to purse my lips.
"I have my reasons."
As if on cue, the school bell chimed and students from all over began racing to their respective classes. "Oh shit, we haven't changed into our sports attire yet." the four of us exchanged glances before bustling off to get our uniform from the lockers.
"Hm, I really want to go to Ethel's Grandma's store again," Ethan hummed as we made our way to the gym hall. The teacher notified us of his five minutes delay so, we chose to take our own sweet time.
"At least once more before I die-"
"YOU WON'T DIE." the three of us bellowed. The eldest only laughed at us. Wasn't he just wailing about his impending doom earlier?
"Have all the toilets gone to shit except for one?" Dylan removed the lollipop from his mouth, eyeing us as we surrounded him on the bench.
"You can say that," he chuckled before shoving the candy back into his mouth.
"Thank god I don't use school bathrooms." I stared at him, confounded.
"So, you just hold all your shit in until you get home?" Dylan almost gagged on the lollipop.
"Why are you so loud for!?" he blushed a faint red as he glimpsed around. A couple of classmates nearby were holding in their laughter. I was amazed too. Definitely didn't expect my voice to reverberate in the enormous gym.
"No, seriously...do you have constipation?" I teased him further.
"WHY YOU LITTLE-" he hoisted his legs to kick me but our teacher marched into the room with a bitter expression.
"You're so getting it later." Dylan hissed at me.
My giggling immediately ceased when I made eye contact with Rikki a few seats behind Dylan. We locked eyes for a good three seconds before he turned away with a harsh 'tch'. He shifted to lay on the bench before closing his eyes. The coach promptly took notice of that and wasted no time calling him out.
"Rikki! It is time for exercising, not napping!" the youngest did not budge. At all. I grew anxious.
"Oi, Rikki." Dylan stood up to nudge Rikki in the leg.
"That's it," the teacher suddenly grunted.
"Run five laps around the gym, now!" Rikki scoffed as he glared at the teacher before doing the unthinkable.
He stepped out of class!
The gym teacher was fuming as his eyes followed the boy, speechless. "What's going on with him?" Nick sighed with furrowed brows.
"Are you sure he's just at his puberty phase?" Silas raised a brow at his twin.
"Oh, shut up."
Not long after, the teacher rushed out of the hall to catch up to the youngest, accompanied by a sharp yell of Rikki's name after the doors shut. I winced. I was positive it wasn't just because of the 'crush' matter now. "Is anything going on with him?" Jay softly asked from behind me.
"I might know but I'm not sure..." Ethan muttered, we turned to him.
"While we were sauntering through the hallway earlier, I overheard the rugby co-captain speaking with one of his teammates." we nodded, signaling for him to go on.
"He said Rikki quit rugby after school yesterday,"