Behind a shady mask

CHAPTER 10: Session's end

        It was the end of the class and the school was just about closing for the day, all the students had packed their bags waiting for the final call from Mr. Anderson
        “…and that will be all you need for your final exams” Mr. Anderson said, just be fore he let the kids go, and as always, everyone had a sudden glow in their faces as they left the class.
        “Carter!” Mr. Anderson called out
Carter waited behind as everyone dragged their feet out of class.
        “I hear you have been through a lot these days and I admire your strength. Coping with school and all” Mr. Anderson commended
He continued;
        “And I know your friend will also be going through very tough times right now, no one has seen him for a while but he is your friend and this is the time he needs you most. Do your best to be there for him”
Carter put on a gentle smile and looked straight into Mr. Anderson’s eyes;
        “I will do what I can. Thank you very much sir, but I think I should be on my way now” he said, trying to avoid the conversation.

        “I understand I am just a substitute teacher and you don’t want to talk but it’s my duty to look out for you guys. Now take care” Mr. Anderson said, letting Carter go.

        “I wish I could be there for him” Carter whispered as he left the classroom
        It was two weeks after the incident, Mr. Green was taken into custody by the police, Christine finally revealed her true identity to her mum, Carter as usual didn’t tell his parents anything about what occurred, and Smith on the other hand was nowhere to be found. His calls always went to voicemail and he wasn’t responding to texts either. Two weeks of school and Smith was absent, and that didn’t only make Carter worried but it also left him lonely.
He walked out of class after the little chat with Mr. Anderson. Walking down his school hall way with his bag hanging on one shoulder and Christine leaning on the other as his hand was wrapped around her hip. They walked very slowly, remaining quiet. The mood was always very sad around as he never said much with anyone but Christine remained patient because she knew what was up.

        “I mean, I knew you were a baby, but this too?” a voice said from behind them.
Carter suddenly grew a small smirk on his face and turned around as he said;
        “Yh, big baby needs a hug and a big kiss too from uncle Smith”

        “Now that’s just gross” Christine said as she watched Carter and Smith squeezing each other.

        “Oh, you are back to spicy again?” Smith said as he laughed
        “Glad to have you back” he added
Formalities were over, Smith was finally back and they were all happy to see him, then Carter landed a very heavy slap on his head.
        “Hey! What for?” Smith exclaimed in serious pain as he rubbed his head

        “Next time you want to go missing, give me a heads up man” Carter complained threatening to slap Smith again as he raised his hand up.

        “okay mum!” Smith jests, raising his palms in sign of surrender.

        “But, really where were you all these while? You really had us worried” Christine asked out of concern
        “Is everything okay?” she added
        “Everything is great. Just had to sort out some paper work regarding my dads properties from what he owned legally and what he didn’t, and it turns out I am still filthy rich” He said sarcastically
        “Okay I am kidding, most of my dad’s properties were confiscated and I am umm… now own some of my grandfather’s property. It’s small compared to what my dad had but it’s more than enough for me, and plus, they are letting me keep the house”

        “speaking of your dad, are you going to be fine with you know…?” Christine asked, rubbing on his shoulder

        Smith sighed while looking at the ground;
        “Despite the fact that he was a jerk to me half the time I ever knew him, I still loved him. But he is  a criminal and he his getting what he deserves” he said,  gently rubbing his furrowed brows

        “What of Alice?” Carter asked

        “Dude! Not in front of your girlfriend” Smith exclaimed

        “Who’s Alice?!” Christine asked punching Carter on his arm out of jealousy

        “Alice is…” Carter was saying before Smith cut in

        “My maid that he totally has a crush on”

        “Unbelievable!” Christine yells as she started walking away

        “No, come on man!!”  Carter yells at Smith just before Christine pauses and busts into laughter

        “We got him there” she mocked, winking at Smith

        “We sure did” Smith agrees with a very large grin

        “Yh, very funny guys” Carter said with a shallow voice

        “So it turns out the police had been on my dads back for a long time and Alice was just an undercover agent sent to gather as much evidence against him as she could, but luckily for us she found a lot more than just drug evidence but murder evidence also.” Smith explained

        “Let’s get out of here before it gets too late” Christine said, pulling Carter by his arm as they started leaving the school.

        “One more, thing…” Smith said
        “I and Janet are kind of… like… dating now”

        “Oh, playboy has finally decided to settle” Carter mocks

        “Yh, whatever. Besides, I have unfinished business with her” Smith replied as the three walked their way home under the setting sun. The orange rays of light shun on their faces as they walked together and for the first time in a while, bliss.
        The session was almost at an end, their final exams were drawing nearer and nearer with every day that passed and they had to prepare well for them. Christine has always been a smart girl and one of the best students in their class, but Carter and Smith on the other hand needed a lot of help if they were going to make it through to college. Very aware of these facts, Christine took it as a responsibility to ensure they were very prepared for the exams.
Like a cat after rats, Christine chased after the two boys just to make sure they were doing all that’s needed to pass their exams. They always met up at Smith’s house to study together as a group but this one time Carter was missing. Nowhere to be found, not in school or at Smith’s place and it was only a few days to their exams.

At Carter’s house, after school;
        Carter was sitting in the couch, with a bright smile in his face and a full glass of orange juice, watching television. He sat there feeling very comfortable, not knowing what was coming for him. Standing behind the couch was Christine, who had just walked all the way to down from Smith’s house to find Carter.
She whacks him in the head with all she got as she asked rhetorically;
        “Watching TV today are we?”
Carter on the other hand jumps out of shock, pouring the juice all over himself as he stammers in attempt to defend himself;
        “Huh?! I umm… uh… the… the…”

        “The what?!” Christine cut in, stopping him from shaming himself with his pathetic attempt to defend himself.

        “I am sorry, I just wanted to relax” Carter apologised

        “I understand you are tired but you can relax when this is all over. I mean the exam is just around the corner.” She scolded
         “Alright, if you say so. Even though I am pretty prepared.” Carter replied

        “Yh right” Christine said, rolling her eyes out of disbelief.

        The exams had all finally come and gone, it was to last only two weeks and the trio didn’t get to see each other at all during this period. They were all nose deep into their books and totally focused on bringing out their best performances but now they had all the time in the world to do whatever they wanted.
Carter, Smith, Christine and Janet could finally all spend time together again and it seemed like nothing could ever go wrong again. Their results were out and they all had very good grades, Christine could finally be with her man and Smith finally found peace with himself and they could live life at their own pace and to their satisfaction.
Finally things were back to normal again.

The end