𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 | Ben Clark

004. The spidey senses of a mom friend

Chapter 4: The spidey sense of a mom friend

The teacher was semi teacher-ing and what do you mean I have to work on this for the whole semester?

Talking to a teacher was a norm for Vera. Talking to a teacher alone in a quiet almost isolated end of the hallway was sort of? Well we, the wider audience, would think otherwise.

But all Vera could do was look her teacher straight in the eye because in her mother’s words and teachings, “Nak, respetuhin mo mga kausap mo. It’s disrespectful to not look them in the eye at babasagin ko ulo mo pag nakita-kitang tumitingin kung saan— san.”

Her mother may be 5 '4 but god did she give more fear to people than any monster in silent hill.

Mr. Thomas was a particularly new teacher that she’s only seen for around for a week. If anything, the fact that he was hired a week before classes started was much more suspicious. Vera was the one to give him a tour around the school even introducing him to the staff that worked in a specific area. But even during that time she noticed his eyes lingered too long on specific places. And if she was correct on her assumption, he was mostly looking at places where it was easiest for people to get in and out or hide in.

Vera should know. From how long she’s been here, she knows that some of the teachers and some staff who didn’t have anything to do during a period at the time would linger in those places. To make sure no students were cutting classes.

She didn’t want to brush it off but at the current moment Mr. Thomas had been nothing but kind and polite. All she could do was leave it be but now with him leading her to a secluded corner the alarms bells were ringing in her head.

“Ms. Jackson?” His oddly soft and cool tone had cut off her jumbled and loud line of reasoning that was resounding in her head. He stood tall, fixing his composure a bit, with a warm smile on his face, and his hands behind his back.

“Yes sir…? May I ask why you brought me here?”  As best as could she brought her hands behind her back, afraid that she’ll see her jittery fingers. Holding a polite smile on her face and well enough it didn’t seem like she had her fight or flight instincts in motion.

“Oh it’s nothing really! I just hope I can get a class list from you, since you won the voting form for class president.”

She did?

I did?

Vera was sure that student council members weren’t allowed to participate in being a class officer, voting your class officers was supposed to be done in class too. It wasn’t done in paper forms. How did he even get the votes so quickly? Who even nominated her? 

“Sir—” Before she could even ask any of the questions in her head he had removed his hands from the back of his hand, showing a folder. He opened the folder up and brought it close to her urging her gently to take it. Vera didn’t know if she took it out of duty or the fact she was used to being given responsibilities like this.

But either way she took it. When she read the contents it was a run of a mill blank class list.

“I think someone mistakenly sent the email of the class list to somebody else,” Mr. Thomas spoke sheepishly whilst bringing his right hand to his nape. “I was searching and emailing everyone this morning if they had it but only a few replied and they said no…”

Well that explained a lot…

“And that’s why I was late to get here… then I saw you in the office and since I’ve noticed you practically know everybody— and I even notice you remember a lot of things, even names of transferees and I thought… Maybe you could help? I’m just really new to this teacher thing… and you were really mature and responsible with the way you handle everything so I thought you were the best person I could ask for help.”