That day was not like other days, it felt so quiet, although the clock still struck two in the afternoon. The last lesson was over, and all the students seemed to have left the school. Unfortunately, I could not go home right away because there were things that needed to be done there, including correcting today's assignment. I didn't want to take books home. Besides, I didn't want to delay it another day because I wanted to focus on Summer. Some teachers had already left. Only some remained in this room.
The quietness of this day felt so odd. And I could say nothing unusual in this place. Only the temperature dropped significantly. Perhaps it was due to the coming of December. I looked around again, and I saw five people including me were still staying in. This relieved me because I was not alone somehow.
"I wonder if you could help me?" A friend asked me to accompany her to buy some paper. She knew that I had my bike and that would save time as well.
"Is the place far away?" I had never been to the shop she told me about. The school usually provided us with the paper, and I never bothered myself to think about this. This teacher was the one who was responsible for supplying the availability of the paper for us.
"No. We are almost there." She said.
The shop we were going to was located in a row of old shops. I was not very familiar with this city even though I had worked here for several months. I just knew my house and my school where I worked as a teacher. I am also quite familiar with some food stalls my friends recommended. Even so, the location was not that far from the school.
The buildings we were walking past were very old, and even the streets were in dilapidated condition, with holes everywhere. This was made worse by rain and a thin layer of ice formed, making it even more slippery as it is now.
"Watch out!" several times we almost fell down because the wheels almost slipped on the slippery road surface. "That it is, the one at the end." I saw a small shop with a brown wooden plank marked with a book, the paint was faded due to age.
She immediately went inside once she got off my bike. I decided to wait for her outside the shop area. Observing the buildings here, I hardly saw a single person, it was a little strange if there was a bookstore in such a lonely place. Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes to twenty-five minutes, but my friend was nowhere to get can't out of that shop. I checked my watch several times and confronted it with my cell phone. Both were the same, and it made me confused, what took her so long to be in that shop?
I got up from my seat and wanted to go inside the shop to check on her. I walked to the shop, which was only one house away from where I sat previously. When I was only a few steps closer, I just realized that the building seemed to be tilting a little, or it might merely be my feeling.
When I arrived right in front of the shop, I felt something strange. I didn't see anyone in the building. The shop was almost empty. The storefront was just the same. The floor was covered with mud and dirt, and the walls were mossy with cobwebs infested.
Being confused with what I saw, I froze, my head was still processing what had just happened. Tracing the incident from the morning before I left for work until when my friend asked me to take her to buy paper at the shop, or it was instead an empty building. There was a gasp when something inside of me told me to get out of this place immediately.
"Run!" The cry was followed by the appearance of a small sand vortex beside me. I knew that it was the Manjis. I wanted to follow their words, but my legs seemed to freeze on the spot.
"Tha, Run!!" This time, they shouted at me. However, just like before, my legs were unable to move. I asked myself what was going on right now, but I couldn't find the answer.
I gasped again when the strains of the song sounded from my cell phone. An incoming call. 'Tha, where are you?' Mala's voice sounded so panicked.
"In front of a shop. I was asked by my friend to take her to buy paper" My words were dumbfounded and reflected confusion.
'Run out of that place!' Mala screamed from the other end. 'Fast!' Both asked me to leave this place immediately. Hastily I took my bicycle and pedaled quickly.
Just a few strokes away from the building, I looked back and found one of Manji standing in front of the shop, a bow in his hand. A clump of sand flew low beside me, who was pedaling my bicycle. The sand slowly formed a dove which then flew ahead of me. The Manjis seemed to be asking me to follow the dove.
Now, this place was like a maze. I still remember when we came down from the main road earlier, we only had to go into the alley and walk straight until we arrived. However, right now, even until eight o'clock at night, I couldn't get out of this place yet. Dark and tired, I forced myself to continue pedaling my bicycle, following the dove that was now slowly glowing in flames, helping me a little to see in the dark.
Faintly, I heard whispers from every house I passed by. Even though I knew no one was there, I felt that someone kept talking from every dark building along this street. They spoke in a language I didn't understand.
"Why is it taking so long?," I moaned, feeling my already sore legs.
I slowed down my bicycle when I saw something dark walking slowly from one of the open doors of the house. He crossed slowly in front of me. I was still watching him when suddenly the dove leading me shouted in a shrill voice, piercing my ears.
That something vanished like smoke in the air. The next second, another creature turned up. They came out one by one from every house I passed. Again, the dove in front of me made a shrill and painful sound. However, they did not disappear like the first time this time.
I stopped pedaling and covered my ears while my eyes saw those who were now blocking my path. Their bodies were like Summer, only so thick with red eyes burning like flames. I tried to ignore it, fighting the fear currently creeping up on me. However, once I saw their gazes, I could feel the horror rising.
Slowly they walked towards me, while the screams of the pigeons were getting louder as if to chase them away. I closed my eyes and screamed loudly when one of them seemed to be reaching for me.
"Tha!" I was still screaming even when I heard that voice calling my name. "Tha, wake up!" That voice, I felt like I knew it. "Tha!" A tap on my shoulder made me open my eyes slowly.
I looked around and saw myself still in the teacher's room. In confusion and surprise, I just stayed silent, trying to catch my breath that was still panting. I also kept quiet and shook my head when they kept asking me questions.
I looked at the room again, and it turned out I was still in the teacher's room. I didn't move an inch from my desk. It was a dream, a dream that was so real.
"Rani?" I called the name of the friend who asked me to buy the paper earlier, which I doubted was just a dream. "Where is she?" I asked.
"She's on leave, Tha," said the teacher next to me. "Aren't you the one taking over her place for physics?" he said doubtfully, whereas I was surprised to hear that. I didn't even remember it. Was it just a dream? But why was it so clear and real?
I took my cell phone, about to ask Erick to pick me up when he was free. I didn't feel good if I had to go home alone. I was not sure, but I felt my body was very tired, and my mind was messed up. And just then, I realized there was an incoming call from Mala about ten minutes ago, so, "This isn't a dream?" I mumbled, sitting limply in my chair.
I still kept silent and thought about what had happened to me earlier. I saw my colleagues start to go home. They asked me to go home as well and continued my work the following day. They also advised me not to be alone in this room. I just smiled reassuring them that I would be alright, and quickly cleared my desk.