New Moon at Mellow Ville

Chapter 2

Jess returned to school after a week. Everything was the same, but somehow it felt different, as if the colors have changed their shades.

In English class, Miss Boots was teaching poetry. Jess was sitting in the middle row. Jeremy was sitting adjacent to Jess. From the corner, Alex was staring at Jeremy, because Jeremy was looking at Jess. Alex also saw that Jeremy was writing something, and it seemed to him that he will give it to Jess.

Then Carl, who was sitting two seats ahead of Jess in next row, turned back and looked at Jess. When Jess looked up, he smiled. She smiled back. And Alex killed Carl in a hundred different ways in his mind.

Adjacent to Alex was Tyler, then Jason, then Daniel, then John, and they were all feeling out of breath looking at Alex smolder.

Love and poetry, right?

Three seats ahead of John, Anthony was sitting with his eyes looking out the window, but his mind farther away.

"Psst," Steve, who was sitting right behind Anthony, said to Anthony. But Anthony didn't budge.

"Hey Anthony," Steve said again, and poked him with his finger. When Anthony didn't move again, Steve cupped his shoulder and gave him a slight shake.

Anthony fell sideways on the floor like a statue. His hands frigidly hanging in the air as they were still kept on the table. His knees still bent as they were on the chair. His neck was still turned, and his frozen eyes were still looking out the window.

Steve gasped violently with a shudder. His hand was still in the air where it cupped Anthony's shoulder. For a few seconds it seemed like reality went as if nothing has happened.

Slowly the faces were turning, and when the teacher saw the empty faces and vacant eyes of these kids looking below the window, and Anthony's hand that was frozen in the air, a violent terror creeped on her spine.

She rushed out of her chair, her book falling, the pages fluttering in the sunlight.

Kneeling by the boy, she shouted for help, but the whole class seemed to have frozen. Their huge eyes were unblinking. Their breathless mouths were open.

She tried to lift him on her own, but he was too heavy, and stiff. Then, John ran to her and they carried him to the nursing station.

The only sound heard in the class was the rustling of the trees outside.

++++

Later, in the library, Jim took Alex in a corner.

"Remember that day Anthony got pale when we were walking in the woods?", Jim said.

"Yes. Why?", Alex said.

"Something about a well he was saying," Jim said.

"Something sleeping, yes."

"You think...is it possible...that he saw it?"

Here, they both became silent, looking down, avoiding each other's eyes.

Then Alex started shaking his head, saying, "I-I don't---maybe. Maybe..."

"Let's go there. Today," Jim said looking at Alex.

Alex suddenly looked up. "Why? NO—"

"Alex—You saw Anthony, right?"

Alex was looking in Jim's eyes, and an image of Anthony's stiff body, lying there like a frozen statue, crossed his mind, and he shuddered. "Okay. Fuck it! Ghost house at seven," he said.