Monday morning dawned, and Stefan returned to school with a sense of trepidation. However, the absence of Christina provided a fleeting sense of relief. Yet, the mere thought of Tina sent his heart racing, and he found himself constantly scanning his surroundings, anxious to avoid any encounters with her.
The day's classes unfolded with monotonous regularity, and as the final bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, Stefan began to gather his belongings.
"Hey Stefan, hope everything's alright?" Laura's voice came from behind.
Stefan barely acknowledged her, his gaze remaining fixed on his bag. "What do you mean?"
"Do I need to spell it out?" she replied. "Your suspension was mysteriously revoked, which I still find baffling. Moreover, Mike didn't return to school with you, which raises even more questions. And throughout today's classes, you seemed utterly distracted, as if your mind was a thousand miles away."
Stefan let out a deep sigh and shrugged nonchalantly.
"You wouldn't understand even if I tried to explain how I'm feeling right now. It's like–"
Their conversation was abruptly interrupted by a voice from the entrance of the classroom.
"Stefan!"
Stefan and Laura turned to see.
Rachael stood at the entrance, her presence commanding attention.
"I'm almost done, wait for me. I'll join you in a jiffy!" Stefan told her, before turning back to his bag.
Laura's eyes narrowed, her gaze flicking between Stefan and Rachael.
"Your girlfriend?" she implied.
"What?! Mike's sister?" Stefan swiftly protested. "Better don't say this in front of him."
"Mike's sister?" Laura repeated, her eyes darting back to Rachael, who was staring back at them. "Whoa! The resemblance is uncanny."
With a hasty farewell, Stefan bid Laura adieu and hastened towards the door to join Rachael. However, upon reaching there, she had already left.
"I told her to wait for me, so impatient," he muttered under his breath, before rushing toward the stairs to catch up with Rachael, who had almost reached the bottom.
They had previously agreed to visit Mike at the hospital after school.
As Stefan descended the stairs, a sudden jolt sent him crashing against the wall.
"Argghh! That's painful!" he groaned, clutching his shoulder in agony. His attacker's identity became apparent as he gazed up at Tina, her eyes blazing with fury.
"Oh God, what do you want, Tina?" he winced.
Tina's clenched teeth seemed to tremble with rage. "You fooled me, you know that, don't you? I knew something was off when you kept probing me about the power in the box!"
"What are you talking about?" Stefan feigned innocence. "I don't understand what you're saying. Care to explain?" His eyes wide with pretended confusion.
"Don't play dumb with me!" Tina snapped, her whispered words dripping with venom. "I know you were aware of the book and the power in the box even before I told you. Now that I think of it, how did you know the wielder of the power would be abnormal?"
"I don't remember telling you that."
"I asked you when we met at the restaurant if you wielded the power, didn't I?"
"Yes, and I said I didn't."
"No, you said 'do I look abnormal to you?' or isn't that what you said?" Tina's words cut through his facade. "Where's the book in the box?"
"Why are you asking me that? I don't have your book," Stefan replied, trying to hide his fear. "Go'an check inside the box!"
"No! The book inside the box was empty. It's either you get me the real book, or explain why the one you gave me was empty!"
"I'm sorry, but I don't understand what you're talking about."
"My father wanted to see you, you should explain to him."
"Your father again? Ugh! I told you, your spell won't work on me!"
Just as it seemed like Tina would pounce on him, a voice from the upstairs landing intervened, causing Tina to release her grip on Stefan.
Laura's intense gaze settled on the duo, and Stefan seized the opportunity to escape, scurrying down the stairs and disappearing from view.
Tina's glare lingered on Laura before she turned to pursue Stefan, but he was nowhere to be found.
Meanwhile…
"Wait, wait!" Rachael's voice echoed through the air as she stopped to catch a breather. "Why are we running exactly?"
"Tina confronted me on the staircase a few minutes ago," Stefan's reply came in ragged gasps, his breathing heavy. "I managed to escape thanks to my classmate's interruption. I think she's already opened the box and found nothing inside the book."
When Stefan escaped from Tina earlier he had run past Rachael, asking her to join in. And without asking any question, Rachael had ran along with him.
Rachael's gaze lingered on Stefan, her expression unreadable. She wondered if she should intervene in Stefan's affairs or simply observe as he dealt with what he caused. He'd opted for it in the first place.
However, she said nothing. And as they approached the school gate, Stefan's words broke the silence.
"Don't worry, this is my mess, I'll clean it up without implicating you and Mike," he assured, as though reading Rachael's thoughts.
"Then you shouldn't have involved me earlier!" Rachael rasped. "If Tina had seen me running with you earlier she'd have assumed we're in this together."
"OMG! That's true!" Stefan exclaimed. "I'm really sorry."
"Ugh! Medicine after death. Let's just hope she didn't see us running."
Just then, a familiar car turned into the school entrance, and Mrs. Smith's voice called out, "Rachael!"
Rachael hurried towards the car, Stefan following closely behind.
"Mom? What are you doing here?" she asked, surprised.
"I took a day off today, only your dad went to work," Mrs. Smith replied. "I'm just coming back from the hospital. Get in, let's go home."
Rachael hesitated, glancing at Stefan.
"We're going to the hospital to visit Mike. I'll see you at home when I return," she said.
"You can visit him tomorrow,". Right now, he's asleep, and shouldn't be disturbed," Mrs. Smith said. "The doctor said he's been sedated and might sleep the whole day."
Stefan's brow furrowed. "Is something wrong with him? He's been sleeping ever since he lost his sight, why sedate him again?"
"The doctors said they wanted to examine him again and asked me to leave," Mrs. Smith answered.
Something's going on in the hospital. They don't need sedatives for someone who can't see, Stefan thought to himself.
As Mrs. Smith unlocked the car door, and Stefan bade her goodbye in a polite manner. But Mrs. Smith offered him a warm smile.
"Come in too, Stefan. I'll drop you off at the bus stop," she said.
"Much appreciated, ma'am."
Stefan and Rachael settled into the car, and Mrs. Smith drove off.