Unknown

          An exhausting evening followed as soon as the afternoon classes ended; Dylan quietly excused himself from his companion, Carlos who hesitantly allowed him to go. The after light had slowly grown dimmed, saved only by the light fixtures upon the ceiling and against the walls which threw the shadows away. Heavy and light footsteps thumped against the dark wooden floorboard and echoed throughout the white four walls of the classroom, added to the lively atmosphere were the voices of their fellow classmates, endlessly chatting and giggling as they hurriedly exited from today’s activities whilst the others were not fortunate as they were left to finish their class’ responsibilities. One of them was Carlos, who with a melancholic touch upon his face, held the broom and swept the floor.

            “Damn that b*****d. He is doing this on purpose,” he muttered under his breath as he sharply turns his unrelenting gaze at their class rep who seemed to relish upon the foul mood of his classmates.

“Quite the pretentious b*****d,” Carlos begrudgingly added with a somber countenance then turned his gaze down to the floor, gripping the broom tighter while gritting his teeth.  Meanwhile, Dylan could only sigh, not wishing to say anything that may worsen his companion’s foul mood.

            “I shall go now,” he said and without waiting for his reply, took his cue to leave. Quietly, he waded his way through a throng of his classmates who were chatting nonstop and then proceeded towards the hall.

Finally free from the boisterous atmosphere, he was about to turn around from the door when a hard and sudden form run into him. A gasp escaped his lips and a sharp spasm of pain flooded through his left arm. Quietly wincing at the pain however, upon checking himself, he was still on his feet.

“Argh… Geez…” an unfamiliar voice moaned.

            “I’m sorry,” Dylan quickly uttered without turning to the person. “Are you okay?” he asked, straightening up and then turned down to see who he had accidentally bumped into.

            “I’m… okay,” the boy with a reddish hair responded, slowly rising up from the floor. Quickly, Dylan helped by reaching for his hand. The boy immediately gripped a hold of his hand, stood up and with a weak smile turned to him, quietly mouthing the words “thank you.”

Leaving the dark haired Dylan astonished whilst gazing upon the hand he used as aid, the redheaded boy carelessly walked inside.

            However, Dylan remained rooted on his place. Eyes still glued upon his hand, he was unsure of what just happened but he was certain of the icy touch evading his whole body. Shuddering with an unknown reason, Dylan shook his head, regarding it to the weather’s unpredictable behavior.

He was about to leave when in no particular reason, he had turned around and saw the boy he had collided to earlier had approached the exuberant Mike.

 

            “Damn you, Dave! Where have you been? We thought you’ve been lost!” cried Mike, who suddenly spanked the shorter boy with red hair on the back.

            “Sorry, that won’t happen again Mike,” answered the boy named Dave in a soft voice, almost as if the whisper of the wind.

 

            Realizing that he had been away too long for his appointment, Dylan immediately left for the council room, leaving the two to their reunion.

 

           

***

 

           

            “You were not supposed to leave the school premises or have you already forgotten?”

 

            It was not long after Dylan escaped his nosy companion and only to be ambushed with astonishing questions by his burgundy haired cousin, Lawrence who was his senior at their academy. Standing in the dim-lit room with pink coral colored walls and red velvet curtains that were set aside to allow the evening light to get in through the tall, narrow glass windows, Dylan avoided the penetrating gaze of his cousin, sealing his lips as to avoid any further questions.

            Seeing that he wouldn’t easily get any details from the dark haired boy, Lawrence slowly stood up from his royal blue armchair, his palms laid flat upon the brown table.

            “Dylan, I wouldn’t ever dream of telling Aunt myself of your doings here. It’s best that you start telling me what you’ve been doing to clarify some matters,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone. His simple words had alarmed Dylan who immediately turned to him, round-eyed and with lips set on a thin line.

            Seeing Dylan’s reaction, he made his way towards the nearby window and watched the darkening sky while a clump of birds forming into a v-shape flew back to their nests.

            “She always asks about you and wouldn’t keep quiet unless she knows how you are. You know just how important this is for her, Dylan. I just can’t tell her lies. You know that,” Lawrence softly said, his gray eyes looked gentle and the usual hard look upon his countenance mellowed as he turned to him.

            Dylan, on the other hand, seemed to have relaxed, the impassivity upon his face altered and a boyish grin spread on his lips.

            “You shouldn’t worry about me, Lawrence. I went out on my own without the help of anyone,” he finally confessed.

            At his words, Lawrence’s brow rose up as he returned to his seat.

            “You really did it? That’s rather surprising, Dylan. I wouldn’t have thought that you could break a policy especially when you are just a freshman,” said Lawrence with astonishment.

            “Ahm,” nodded the younger male in agreement. “I know. It was rather refreshing but after Sir Clark found me, I realized what I’ve done was truly absurd and…” his voice trailed away, unsure of what to add.

            “And what, dear cousin?” urged Lawrence, quite intrigued of his cousin’s tale.

            “…fascinating at the same time,” grinned Dylan, finally relating his experience to him however, not wholly as he had omitted some stories. Lawrence took a sharp breath and then sat down to his seat, his gaze glued upon his cousin’s relaxed face.

            “That was exciting however, you must promise not to do this in the future,” added his cousin. “And one more thing, aside from your escapade I would like to remind you about some things that you should be aware of in regards to our school,” he added in a serious tone which pulled the attention of his younger cousin. Dylan now turned to him, a puzzled look dominated his features.

             “I must tell you this in advance because I am rather worried about your adventurous spirit. There are some places here in the academy that students like us are prohibited to enter. You must be aware of the infamous West Wing Hall, are you?” asked Lawrence and Dylan frowned; not fully comprehending the whole matter however, he had already the foreknowledge of the said place.

            Slowly, Lawrence leaned forward on the table, this time his face wore a serious look and in a somber tone whispered, “You know what I mean, Dylan. Try to avoid that place. Our family had reluctantly agreed to allow you in this academy due to that matter however, since you are old enough, you’ve been allowed.”

             Dylan remained silent as his hand automatically traveled inside his pants’ pocket, taking a hold of the accessory within while his eyes remained at his cousin.

            “You have the amulet with you, right?” asked Lawrence and Dylan could only nod, his grip around the said accessory tightened.

“Good. Don’t ever lose that. It would serve as your protection. Compared to us five cousins, you are the only person who could easily attract their attention and…” Lawrence then turned to meet his gaze.

“Always wear your contacts no matter what happens or wherever you are,” he added before retreating to his armchair.

            “I know. I never forget about that,” Dylan simply said, slowly turning away from his cousin as his eyes flickered with hesitation. “Is that all you have to say, cousin?” he asked, clutching the silver amulet on his hand.

            “Yes, that is all,” answered Lawrence in a concluded tone. “You may go back to your room now,” and at his words, Dylan took his bow and then retreated towards the door, not turning back to face his cousin.

            Seeing the door shut away after Dylan’s departure, Lawrence finally sighed and then turned his armchair around, clasping his hands together as he closed his eyes.

           

            “Well? Why don’t you show up now?” the boy asked in a deep voice.

            Upon Lawrence’s words, a silhouette crept out of the shadowed corner and then proceeded towards him.

            “Since you’re Dylan’s classmate, try to keep an eye on him,” Lawrence said, slowly opening his eyes at the sound of footsteps echoing against the carpeted floorboard.

            “Is that why you personally arranged for me to become part of class 1B?” asked the silhouette who slowly moved towards the light, revealing the handsome but stoic visage of Edmund.

            “Well, isn’t that convenient, Edmund? It would have made your task difficult if I had put the both of you in the troublesome first-class section,” Lawrence then turned around with his swivel armchair, a chuckle escaped his lips at the subject of their discussion.

            “Heh,” the boy smirked, twirling his eyes at the mention of the section. “Rest assured, Mr. President, I am not a bit bothered if you choose to put me there with them,” he said.

            “It seems that you’re the right person for this job then. Just make sure that he keeps away from the dangerous places of this academy especially from our troublesome people,” added Lawrence with a ghostly smile that lingered upon his lips.

            “Very well then, I shall steer them away from him, Mr. President,” Edmund concluded and Lawrence, quite satisfied of his words leaned back to his armchair, a wide grin splayed upon his lips.

            Seeing the sun had finally set with the shadows slowly crawling towards his armchair, Lawrence quickly tugged the copper lampshade by his table, producing an eerie glow that pervaded the entire room. Retreating back to his armchair with a blissful smile upon his lips, he turned to the younger boy whom he had absolute trust to his personal matters.

            “Please don’t disappoint me, Edmund. I have high hopes in you,” he said, a mischievous light glinting in his eyes.

            “Of course, how could I ever disappoint you?” answered Edmund with a frolic smirk spreading on his lips.

            Not long, the shadows had grown tall and the darkness dissolved the remaining speck of light, concluding the existence of the night.

           

 

***

 

            He had not anticipated the darkness that devoured what little light remained as he walked along the white halls of the building, going back to the comforts of his own room. Tired and completely preoccupied of his cousin’s words, Dylan had no time to check around his surroundings especially to where he was headed to. It had been a month now since he had talked to Lawrence and the meeting that had transpired allowed him to remember some things he thought he had forgotten.

            But at the back of his mind, he knew that he was entirely wrong.

            Taking in a lungful of air, he quickened his pace and decided to allow the matter to go on its natural course. Greatly immersed to his introspection, Dylan had little time to look around him and had not noticed that he had taken a wrong direction. Quite astonished, he stopped and regarded the place; his eyes flickered with puzzlement as he looked around him.

            “What the " “

            Antique-looking lamps constantly flickered, producing  an eerie golden glow  that were jutted out from the smooth, cream-colored walls of an unfamiliar hall met his gaze. Tall, narrow glass windows provided him the sight of a darkening sky, almost covered with the purple and black hues which left a deep impression upon Dylan. The light thrown a pale quality of yellow upon the dark brown floorboard, casting away his shadow that seemed to stretched endlessly.

To where it would end, Dylan had no clue.

A frown creased his usual impassive face as he turned to see where he had come from, quietly contemplating as of how he had arrived to such a strange place. 

And upon turning around once more, his eyes grew big as he now stood in front of a closed dark wooden door with the words “school library” written in black in a silver nameplate.

As of how he was able to stand facing a remarkable location, he had no clue.

With furrowed brows, Dylan turned to either of his side and saw the hall deserted, not a soul could be seen roaming around.  As the light faded away, sending forth long and indefinite shadows upon the walls and floor which fluttered against the faint light from the lamp, Dylan inhaled a sharp breath, feeling his heart rapidly beating.

A cold prickling sensation evaded his senses and all the hair of his body stood.

Dylan, feeling his lips went raw and his throat constricted, stepped forward, hand reaching towards the bronze door knob. Uncertain of what he might find out, he slowly grabbed the knob and turned it around.

 

“What are you doing here?” an unfamiliar voice echoed throughout the hall.

The wretched and clueless poor boy almost jumped out of fear.

Sensing his heart almost to burst out, Dylan immediately turned around and only to be confronted by a frowning face of a young boy with striking hazel brown eyes and copper colored mane standing beside him. Tongue-tied and round-eyed, he stepped back, surprise mixed with confusion painted his face.

“How did you get here?” inquired the stranger, eyes narrowing to him, sweeping a wary gaze from his head to toe. “Nobody is supposed to be here especially after dark,” he added.

“I don’t know,” Dylan answered directly, keenly returning the boy’s conspicuous gaze of suspicion.

“How is that possible that you don’t know? You must be lying,” hissed the boy whilst raising a brow at him.

            “Why would I lie? I just really don’t know how I even get here,” retorted Dylan, his voice edged with irritation. “And how about you?” he added however, the stranger simply turned a deaf ear.

            “Well, you should have been in your room,” said the boy. “However, follow me. We shall get out of here before anything else happens,” he spoke and slowly turned around on his heel.

             “Follow me. Don’t just stand there. And whatever happens, DON’T ever turn around.”

            And the boy with such a strange look upon his face walked back to where Dylan had come from, not even throwing a glance at him. Quietly though still confused, the dark haired boy walked after him.

           

            As they walked further, the wind grew mild and the cold slowly ceased as if a receding breeze from the ocean during the summer season. Though crowded with unanswered questions, Dylan remained quiet, not wanting to break the silence.

            He craved for answers.

A light upon the shadows that seemed to cover the matter of which Dylan had found himself into however, in his heart and at the back of his mind, he knew what it was.    

            A sense of relief rushed over him and the previous faint glow of light had now been replaced by a brighter and cheerful color emanating from the lamps installed at each columns of the wall. Quickly feeling these familiar sensations returning to him, Dylan stopped and then turned around. His surprised was obvious as he saw himself standing in the familiar pristine white hall where he had previously came from the council room though through the windows, it showed the sky had already deepened into ebony.

           

            “Never enter that place again especially after dark, do you hear?” the stranger spoke with threat in his voice. Dylan quickly turned to him, a frown plastered upon his face.

            “You were lucky that I was the one who saw you. If it was someone else, you might have ended up like him,” he added, of which earned him a baffled look from the confused boy.

            “Like him? Who do you mean?” asked Dylan however, the boy had already turned his back on him and returned to where he had come from.

            “It doesn’t matter. Just mind your own business,” the stranger said in a cold voice which sent shivers down Dylan’s spine before vanishing into the darkness, leaving him deep into confusion.

           

 

 To be continued…