The Primal Terror

I woke up feeling sick to my stomach. My gut was knotted tighter than a hangman's noose round the neck of a 300-pound wrestler. I rushed to the toilet and barfed out the half digested macaroni that I had for dinner last night. My stomach agitated and grumbled like an off-balance washing machine. I could hear my mother arguing with the house maid at the top of her lungs.

"Damn, I'm late!"

I flushed the toilet and brushed my teeth in a hurry. It took me less than a minute to pick an outfit, I wore an oversized sweatshirt to hide my bloated belly.

"Isn't it too hot for a sweatshirt?" my mother asked casually.

"I'm not feeling well." I replied as I headed out.

"At least have your breakfast!" she yelled before I closed the door behind me. I had lost my appetite.

The dappled sun shone through the trees, creating mysterious shadows. It was too hot for a sweatshirt, hot enough to melt the tar on the road. I wanted to cry.

"May I come in, Sir?"

"You're too early for the next class," said the professor.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling well."

"In that case, you should've stayed home," he said. "Please close the door. I'm trying to take a class here."

The whole class gawked at me. I felt hot in my face as I closed the door behind.

"I'm definitely dropping this course."

The cafeteria was nearly empty. It wasn't lunch time yet. I got myself a cup of coffee and took a seat near the wall, away from the entrance. I was not in the mood to socialize, in case someone noticed me. The coffee was scalding, much too hot to drink, so I started fidgeting with my hair tie.

"What am I doing with my life?"

I noticed a creepy looking guy sitting right in front of me on the opposite table. He stared at me, taking a large, slow bite of his fully peeled banana. Feeling insulted, and slightly disgusted from his audacious act, I got up and took the seat facing away from him.

"Good God, you look awful!" I recognized the voice, it was Saya.

"Is it that bad?" I sighed.

"What happened to you?" She looked concerned for a moment. "You've been missing classes."

"I was..."

"Did you hear anything about Farah?" she asked.

"No, what about her?"

"Ismail broke up with her last night. Apparently, she cheated on him. So he leaked her nudes." She studied my face with mocking eyes, and her mouth twisted into a humorless smile. "She's a wreck."

Gossiping is a social skill and Saya excelled at it just how she excelled at keeping a straight GPA. She led a popular student website and was active in club activities. She was in the public eye. Although, being known by everyone was not the same as being loved.

"That's messed up."

"Is that all you have to say?" She looked disappointed.

"I'll call her when I get home... Hey, I have to go. I'll see you in class." I hurried out.

He was waiting for me, I could see him through the window. His lean slender fingers wrapped around the handle of his backpack. He wore bigger glasses that kept slipping down his sweaty nose as he kept pushing it back up. He was too thin for his height, and he slouched when he walked. There was an almost ritualistic quality to his movements.