It took Mark around ten minutes to sprint to office and come back. However, within these ten minutes, the whole world turned upside down.
The moment he entered the class, he handed the laptop to his professor. The professor called another kid to assist him. They both were busy with connecting the laptop and the projector screen. While Mark got totally confused about his seat. He was sure he was sitting in the front desk and he was definetly sure it was this seat, but where is Alan? Alan didn't change his seat or did he? Mark started looking around the room. He was checking every row and column. His neck was rotating as if he was a satellite for navigation. In the end, this satellite failed to locate his omega. Mark felt a little nervous. There was an ominous feeling crawling into his mind that made extremely uncomfortable. The professor started the lecture in the mean time. He kept going on about how carbon dating created a way to look through the past and how everything that we had known so far is invalid, after it has been dated chronologically.
The lecture went on and Mark started losing his mind in meantime. He was tapping his foot, clicking his pen and murmuring something out of anxiety. The professor noticed his abnormal behaviour soon. Why? Because except for Mark, every corner of class was submerged in silence. This one oddball, made the professor lose his calm.
" Hey you! The grey haired one! What are you doing? Can't you focus on the screen?" The professor shouted.
" I am looking at the screen." mark articulated each word with arrogance. He was not in the mood of pleasing others. Well, he never tries to please anyone anyway. Just one person, Alan is the exception. After all, this extremely cold and disturbingly indifferent attitude is what helped him snatch the title of frost prince.
" Oh, are you? My apologies. Then, Could you please explain to the class about the archaeological details of this blue shell?" The professor smiled sarcastically." If you were looking at the screen, Please enlighten me. "
Mark was obviously looking at the screen but in a daze. His eyes were lost in the thought of Alan's whereabouts. He knew well, at this point, apologizing is the best option. " I am sorry. I didn't quite get that." Mark drooped his head.
" I knew it. I am letting you go this time but please be quiet and stop disturbing the class. This is my warning. Next time, I won't be this lenient. So, let's continue."
" This blue shell is more than a hundred years old. Before it was dated, the mythology claimed that this shell was thousand years old relic of love. It was written in one of the documents, that this shell was the emblem of love between the king and his concubine. The historians often claimed that it was the reason for king going on rampage and causing the great massacre. This in turn led to population depression. However, after carbon dating, we found its age to be pretty less than that. But, the bones of the alpha soldier of that time has same age as this shell. So, we can conclude, either the shell was absent at the great massacre or the massacre took place a hundred years ago. Rather than a thousand years, as claimed in the old texts. You see, that's why we can not say archaeological texts are accurate. Every archaeological observation is based on assumption. However, by carbon dating, you can find absolute chronological order of events and occurences. Now next...."
Mark was finally listening to the lecture. The blue shell made him curious enough to forget about Alan. However, his mind went back to that worry as soon as the professor moved to the next topic.
Someone tapped on his shoulder. The person sitting behind him passed him a note which was " Are you looking for your friend? He is at the infirmary, he fainted when you were outside."
As soon as Mark read the word infirmary, everything around him started buzzing.
Alan at infirmary? But doesn't he hate hospitals and medical facilities? Is he alright? For how long he has been there? Why he fainted?
A thousand questions were running through his mind. Suddenly, his senses gave out. All he could hear was a loud beeeeep and all he could think was he has to see Alan. Right now!
Mark stood up out of the blue. The professor was really pissed by his audacity." Hey mister..I told you to behave..."
Without listening to what he had to say, Mark sprinted out of the classroom as if he was insane. He ran as fast as he could towards the infirmary. He already lost a lot of time wondering in the classroom. He was afraid that Alan may have woken up, in that white room filled with smell of medicines. Is he going to be okay?
He reached at the door of infirmary. All his fears came to life. There were shrieks and screams in the whole corridor. Alan was inside, shriveled and shrinked into a tiny ball on the bed.
Was he always this small?
Mark was shocked. The Alan that was infront of him right now, made all his hair stand straight. He was screaming, sobbing and begging. " Please no. Please don't take it away from me. Please I beg you. Let me go." He sobbed until it was hard to breath. " I will never do it again. Please let me have this child. Please." He grabbed his stomach real tight and wrapped his arms around. As if his limbs will create an impenetrable armour around his stomache.
Mark took one step after another. The closer he walked, the more scared he felt. His heart was sinking in pain, terror and agony. Something about it all made his eyes tear up. Soon enough, there were tears rolling down his eyes. He grabbed Alan and yanked him in his arms.
" Alan! Alan! Stop! Please stop!" Mark was now sobbing along with Alan. Everyone present in the room was awestruck. Why are these kids crying like this. No one has even touched the patient yet.
" No! No! My baby! I will lose my baby! Mark! Ask them to go!...Mark! My child..." Alan looked into Mark's eyes and begged with all those tears dripping down. He held on to Mark tightly. As if he was holding at the last drop of sanity left in him.
" Go! Go away! What are you look at! Get out!" Mark screamed at all the people present there. Soon everyone left.
" Alan, Alan, it's me. Look at me." Mark tried to calm Alan. He was on the verge of going crazy. " Alan please look at me".
" No...No! My baby...they will kill my baby. No. I want to go...I want to go away from here." Mark sobbed.
Mark kept patting on his head," Alan, what kid? You don't have a kid right now? You have Rui. You remember Rui. She is your family."
The haze in Alan's mind cleared a little bit," Rui...Rui...Rui..." He kept mumbling Rui's name.
" Yes. And do you remember me, I am Mark. I am...I am..." Mark hesitated, then he looked at the person in his arms.
Realilty stuck him hard. He realised, how selfish he was, to treat this person as an asset. He was so inconsiderate about his feelings, his pain and his life. What right does he have to use a living person like a shield. What right does he have to think he is important than the others. What right does he have to believe that his pain is greater than that of the others. This person right here, he doesn't deserve to be treated like a weapon. No living being within this world filled of pain and torments, deserves that. He was wrong. He was so wrong.
" I am your friend." Mark promised with a warm smile. Then, he held Alan's chin and raised it up. He fondled his face and placed his hand on Alan's soft white cheeks. Slowly, he placed his warm lips on his forehead.
The voice in his head claimed," He is my friend."
Mark wrapped his arms around Alan and smiled, " I know."