The Mansion

Chapter 6

“I’m okay, Adrianna,” I told her for the thousandth time.

I felt my forehead only to discover beads of perspiration covering my head. I doubted my own sanity now but the doctors’ voices echoed in my head:

“Your mind is forming hallucinations because of your loss,”

Was I supposed to believe them or was I supposed to accept that all I experienced was real? I had no idea. I began to get tired of myself. Just when I was thinking about it, Adrianna tugged at my shirt and pulled me to a locker. She opened the locker effortlessly and turned to face me.

“Your locker combination number is 481,” she told me cheerfully.

I looked at the piece of paper Ms Madeline had given me and gaped at her.

“H-how do you know?” I asked her, awestruck.

She shrugged.

“I saw the numbers,” she replied cheerily. “Put your things in there and get ready for Mathematics,”

“O-okay,”

I placed my belongings into the locker. I hadn’t noticed that the bell had rung and everybody had rushed to their classes. It was only me and Adrianna left in the empty corridor. Adrianna didn’t look impatient; she frequently glanced at the place where the woman had stood.

“Umm… Genessa?” she asked. “I think the Mathematics teacher is in a bad mood today,”

“Okay, I’m hurrying,” I assured her, rummaging through my bag.  

Her face became more and more agitated as she tapped her foot occasionally. Finally, I was done. She looked at me oddly and dashed towards a red door, I followed her helplessly, thinking about how peculiar this girl was.

She kicked open the door, revealing the chaos in the class. Students threw at each other with spit balls and laughed hysterically. Some popular looking kids were engrossed in a conversation that they failed to notice me—luckily. Some geeky looking people were also engaged in their own little talks. The walls were light purple with posters dangling. Sunlight streamed through the curtain less windows. A blackboard was found adjacent to the teacher’s desk. I avoided some of their eyes as they scrutinized me. Some almost approached me but they scurried away as soon as they saw Adrianna near me. I wondered why they were avoiding this kind looking girl. She didn’t look that scary. She strode swiftly to a chair and gestured me to sit in an empty seat beside her. I slumped down into the seat and threw my books down on the desk with a loud thud. Adrianna busied herself with a pen and glanced at me.

“You’re from San Diego?” she asked, cocking her head to one side.

“Yeah, and you’re from?” I asked her back.

“Hmm… New York,”

“Nice place,”

At that moment she waved at someone behind me. She stood up quickly and grinned. I spun around just in time to see a boy—about my age or maybe older—strolling leisurely towards us. He was very tall and lean and he also took swift graceful steps as he walked. His porcelain face was also covered in freckles but his expression was impossible to read. His black hair stood up in a wild Mohawk which immediately reminded me of some rock band. His hazel eyes were dark and moody and they were fixed upon me like a hunter scrutinizing its prey. He was wearing a black t- shirt and a pair of denim jeans trouser. I caught a glimpse of a piercing on his right eyebrow. A single earring dangled from his left ear. Adrianna hopped up to him in glee. She whispered to him unclearly and both of them shot glances at me. She pulled his arm towards me and beamed.