The next day, Alex got ready for college and hurried to catch a taxi, thinking he was running late. To his surprise, he arrived ten minutes early. With time to spare, Alex wandered around the classroom, feeling bored. That's when his eyes landed on a small, old box tucked under a desk in the corner. His curiosity piqued, he opened it and found an envelope inside. He unfolded the paper, and to his surprise, the words on it seemed jumbled—like a code. Squinting, he read: 'I ma kcab xela.'
Suddenly, the classroom door creaked open, and the teacher walked in. Startled, Alex quickly stuffed the letter into his pocket and put the box back in its place, his heart racing. Moments later, students began trickling into the room.
As the class settled down, the teacher introduced a new student, Ron. When Alex looked at him, a strange feeling washed over him. He had seen Ron before—but where? And then it hit him. I've seen him once on the way to the cave. But Alex couldn't quite remember why that moment stuck out to him.
The teacher told Ron to take his seat and then announced that there would be a math test after attendance. "Revise carefully," he instructed.
The teacher started calling out roll numbers: "1… 2… 3..." Alex, lost in his mental revision, was completely zoned out. The teacher's voice grew louder: "Roll number 33… Roll number 33... ROLL NUMBER 33!"
Alex finally snapped back to reality and blurted, "Present, sir!" He noticed a few students chuckling, but he didn't care—he was too distracted by the letter.
The teacher began handing out the test papers, but Alex couldn't focus. His mind kept drifting back to the message in the box. 'I ma kcab xela.' What could it mean? And why did Ron look so familiar? As the paper landed on his desk, Alex glanced at Ron, who was sitting still, staring straight ahead. A chill ran down Alex's spine as Ron turned and gave him the faintest smile—a smile that felt unsettlingly familiar.
Was Ron the one who left that message? Alex's thoughts raced. And if he's back... where had he been?