Samurai Hazard

5: Aberrant neighbour

At the doorway, Jharede could see the man he saw on the ground, who was looking at him from behind a tree.

"Yes?", Mrs. Anan asked. "Uh- I'm sorry to disturb you, but I moved next door just now, and I realised that I have ran out of sugar to make tea...... so, I just wanted to borrow some sugar, can I get?", the man asked, politely.

Jharede was scared out of his wits. At first, this unknown man shows up in the ground, and talks to him, and the other day, he moves next door. What's the intention of this man?

Mrs. Anan interrupted in his thoughts, "Jharede, please bring some sugar, the bowl is kept at the table.", Jharede stood up, and started scooping a few crystals of sugar from the bowl into a cup. He could hear the man talking to his mother: "By the way, I'm Evan Wettran.", he shook hands with Mrs. Anan. "And I'm Jane Anan, and he is my son, Jharede.", Mrs. Anan said, pointing at Jharede.

Finally, Jharede stopped to scoop sugar, as the cup started overflowing with it. Grudgingly, Jharede started towards the door, when he gave the cup to the man, Jharede noticed him more accurately: he was a man with broad shoulders, with almost a bald head, a dense, black beard. He wore an old-fashioned, brown robe, with a red belt around the waist.

"Oh, hello Jharede, I'm Evan Wettran. Thanks for the sugar.", Evan said to Jharede. He talked in a very polite way. "How come we didn't heard you, I mean the sound of trucks, when you moved in?", Jharede asked Evan. "Kid, when I moved in, I heard shouts from your house, I think that's the reason you couldn't hear me.", Evan said, smiling. At this, Mrs. Anan reddened with embarrassment. "Sorry Mr. Wettran, I would have made a cup of tea, but I'm really getting late. I will talk to you later."

"Oh really no problem, instead, I'm sorry to waste your time.", said Evan, making a way for Mrs. Anan to go. "Bye Jharede.", Mrs. Anan said and left.

When Mrs. Anan was out of earshot, Jharede, mustering all his courage, said to Evan, "Why are you following me?" Evan continued to smile, and said, "Kid, I don't think I have saw you earlier, did I?", he acquired a thoughtful expression, and said, "Oh, I remember now! You were the kid who did that fantastic things on the ground, right?" Jharede was now not feared, instead he was ready to shout at Evan, he didn't know what was suffered by Jharede, "Fantastic? Do you know what are you talking about? Jack was almost at the point of dying! And you're saying, that was fantastic!
And, also tell me what are you planning to do. Yesterday I met you, you spoke to me, as we are friends, even if we don't know each other. And the next day, you come to live in my neighborhood.", Jharede stopped to take a breath, but before he could continue, Evan said, "Jharede, I don't have any intentions against you, OK? I just moved here because I have work here.", he was telling these things to Jharede, as he was a teacher and Jharede was a student.

"And may I know, what is that work?", Jharede asked. "No", Evan simply answered. "And kid, don't try to act like a know-it-all in front of me, you're thinking too much.", after saying this, Evan made a two-finger salute to Jharede, and left for his home.

Jharede was surprised to see Evan moving in the manor which left to his. It was named as Unstable Manor among children living in the area. As nobody has lived there for more than four months. He, till now, thought that Evan has moved into the house, which was right to Anans' house.

The Unstable Manor was a really old manor, it was kept close for four years till now. Thus the dealer would have sold it at the price of water.

Just a few seconds afterwards, when Evan was gone, Jharede saw Mark coming, he had seen Evan talking to him. "Hi mate!", Mark greeted Jharede cheerfully. "Hi", said Jharede, with same enthusiasm. "Who was that big bloke talking to you? I've never before seen him here.", Mark asked. "Actually, he moved next door to me, just now.", Jharede replied. He was desperate to tell to Mark, what happened on the ground, and also about the Evan guy, so invited inside the home.

"Mate, are you fine now? I think you're still worried about the accident on the ground, I can make it from your face.", Mark said, he was really the best friend of Jharede, and he knew that Mark has came to tell him to not worry.

Jharede filled Mark with everything he had experienced on the ground. About the tingle in his body, and then the back flips, the provoking of Jharede by Jack, the surge in his blood, the pink flash, same flash along Jack, the accident, and also the appearance of the man.

"And now, the man who was at the ground, is my neighbour!", Jharede sighed with relief, at last, he has told someone about the accident, it was like he has shared a burden with Mark. And Jharede was sure that Mark will not think Jharede as insane, or tell all these things to his mom, or anybody else.

"Are you fine Jharede? I mean, don't you think you're seeing too much?", Mark said, after hearing the speech from Jharede, attaining a worried expression, which remembered Jharede of his mother. "Mark, I believed that you will not think that I'm freaked out, or something like that, but I can tell you that you're thinking that I just had an imagination, and I'm making a big deal of it, right?", Jharede asked Mark, Jharede knew that nobody would believe him, but at some part of his heart, he thought that Mark is none of them.

Mark reddened, and suddenly acquired a serious expression, like though he is thinking about how to build a rocket for Mars.
"Mate, I think, from what you told, that the back flips and the flash, are connected, as you felt the same tingle during both the incidents.", Mark said.

"Mark, I've already figured that out. I want to hear something new.", Jharede said, and there was something else he wanted to confess to Mark. "And Mark, to be honest, I'm wondering that, Jack fell from such a height, even then he didn't.....die", Jharede said, "but please don't get me wrong. Don't think that I longed that Jack should've died.", Jharede added hastily.

"Mate, actually I also thought about this on the ground the day the accident happened, but I didn't want to tell you this. But yes, you're right, Jack flew about a mile high! Even then, except some fractures, he is perfectly fine.", Mark said. Jharede nodded in agreement.

"But Mate, I can't understand how did he fly so high. In your perspective, it was because of the pink flash.", Mark said. "Not in my perspective, it is the actual reason!", Jharede cried, he didn't understood why Mark was not believing him. "OK then, tell me how did the pink flash came?", Mark asked and waited for the answer. "That's what I want to know!", Jharede said, rubbing his forehead. His head was really paining too much. First, Mrs. Alevot's lecture, then the Evan guy, and now Mark.

"OK, mate, leave these things. I think you're really tired. Go and get some sleep.", that's why Mark is a close friend of Jharede's. He really worry about him. "Actually, yes Mark, I'm really tired, especially after the visit of Mrs. Alevot.", Jharede said, his eyes were feeling sleepy.

"What! Jack's mother came here? You didn't tell me. What did she tell? I totally forgot about Jack's mom and dad, they would have been probably informed about the accident just a minute after, by anyone from Jack's team.", as Mark analysed these things, his expression became more and more worried. Jharede didn't remember to tell Mark about Mrs. Alevot earlier. He had too much in his mind.

"Don't worry Mark, she didn't beat me. Just said that I was the one who started the fight.", Jharede said. "How dare she! She doesn't even know the whole thing, and says you started the fight. Jack's friends would've told this thing to her.", Mark said, full of anger. "You're right Mark, Ben was the one who told her this." Mark nodded.

Mark insisted he had to leave. But Jharede convinced him to stay, so that both of them can play some games and have some fun. After passing an hour. Mark stood up from the couch.

"So, mate, I should leave now. You don't worry about anything. And as for your new neighbor, if you think he will kidnap you or anything like that, then: he can't do you anything in the daylight. People are always travelling from here, and at night, your mom will be at home.", Mark reassured, and started to leave.

"Goodbye, mate.", saying this, he left through the door. Jharede got up, he wanted to talk more with Mark, but now, the first he wanted to do was: to sleep. Jharede had a creepy feeling about the man next door, he could break in, so Jharede rushed to the door, and locked it, he couldn't do anything more.

He walked to his bedroom. When he lied on the soft bed, he tried to forget all his worries of the day, and immediately went to a deep sleep.