THE ESCAPE

Chapter 1: The Gift

Everyone was born with a competence.

Althea Adler     
***    

             I can still remember how my father gives a piggy back ride to me whenever I can get a perfect score in Math. My dad, James Adler is one of the best student in Mathematics during his time in High School. He could solved a complicated problem in Trigonometry in just a few seconds. He memorized Shakespeare's sonnets in a week. He can even arranged a puzzle in a minute. Indeed, he has the gift.

             Maybe you are confused why I really give my dad much more attention. Well, dad is never been a normal child in his time. As you can see he has the same traits like me. But unlike me he happen to kept his ability infront of the people and I envy him for not being like me who happen to be so much obvious of what I am capable of.

Year 2014...

             Today is my first day in elementary and we are to wait for my parents here after class in the children's park near the school. My brother Ivan Adler leave me for a while when one of his friend, Andrew Anderson called him. While waiting for him to come back, two mean girls in their pink skirts and a typical white upper blouse uniform approach me with their scary look. Well, if you are a three years old baby you would probably cry because they really look like a super villain in town where in fact I can always beat them with the rubics cube I have in my hand if I can. But...my brother really forbid me to do that. Maybe because that is against the moral etiquettes that we are always trained for.

           "You are alone, aren't you?" The girl in a ponytailed blonde hair asked me with an upper eyebrow.

            "Hey, com'mon Megs! It's obvious." The girl in her brown hair paired with a pink head dress answered.

             They must be really bestfriend because they share the same coconut shell. I don't want to be rude for a six years old me because I know they must be in the same class with my brother. However, they are trying to beat me on how mean they are.

             So I gather myself up ready to get avenge of them. But even before I could stretch my arm, a boy in my age interferre and beat those mean girls for me. Honestly, I want to beat him as well for taking my chance to avenge those girls but for the meantime, I just have to thank him. Afterall, he saved me from being mean too.

           "You must think first wether you fight them back or not. Do not use your skills to them." He grabbed my hand and gave back my rubics cube that fall earlier as I stretch my arm.

          "Thanks." That is all I can muttered. This boy might also lost his friends for being mean too. That's what I thought.

            Actually I want to befriend with that boy but I don't think we can get along. I usually get awkward with other people talking to me. The only people in my life are my parents and my brother. I'm not even a fan of my grandparents. We grew far from them anyway.

           "Althea, we'll get going now." My brother told me when my dad's car arrived. And that's how my first day of school like.

          I nod to the boy before leaving as a way of showing respect and he waved back. Is that how a friend like? I wonder if I ever got a friend in school.

          The next day of school is just a typical day for students, listening lectures, oral recitation, reading books and answering a test.

           The class adviser entered our classroom bringing her book. Oh! I really expect that the lecture is interesting. I'm so sick of listening to my brother's stories when we arrived at home about how his crush who look so cute in a pink head dress. If he only knew how mean she is.

            "Good morning class! How are you today?" The teacher asked after she puts down her bag.

          "Good morning too Teacher! We are all good." My classmates answered in chorus.

            Is this how first graders communicate with a teacher? Why does I felt like teaching a three years old baby on how to say, "Ma-ma" and "Pa-pa". Gezz... it really does'nt make sense to me, so I stand up and asked the teacher.

            "Teacher, can we start the class?"

            Some of my classmates laughed at me like I spoke at the wrong time. I closed my eyes and sighed. Gosh...that was my first time to be embarasssed. "Sorry. I should'nt asked about that."

            "It's okay. Class, listen up. Althea is just excited for the new lesson today. So, let us start now." My teacher then gives us a sheet of test paper. I looked at the paper wondering what could it be. Well, these are basic in Mathematics. I saw numbers being added to another numbers. So that is what we are going to learn today. Before a teacher could give her instructions I got my pencil and start filling up the test paper.

             One plus two is equals to three. Three plus two is equals to five... I answered the test without looking at my other classmates. I'm about to finish the ten-numbered paper when my seatmate noticed what I am doing.

             "Huh? How did you do that? Did you take an advance lesson or you retake the first grade?" She was staring at me as if she saw someone from the second grade and seat-in the class. She grabbed my paper and hand it to the teacher.

              "Teacher, did you give your lesson in advance?"

             "Huh? Ah..let me see." My teacher went to us and stared at the paper.

             "Well, its not bad. Althea maybe studied this before when she start to learn counting numbers, right?"

             "Uhmm. Addition, substraction, multiplication and division are basic in learning Math. I learn it from the book I've read at home."

              The teacher stared at me for a moment. I noticed she write something at my paper and hand it back to me. One hundred and forty two plus two hundred and seventy.

              "Four hundred and twelve."

              "How about this one." She write something again in my paper. The square root of one hundred and twenty one multiply by two.

             "You put another thing here. Can you give me a second?"

             "It's okay. Now, let us move on to the lesson." And she went back in front of the class.

              The class finally starts and everyone in the class participated in every questions that our teacher asks. I stared at the numbers and the square root sign before the number.

             "It's twenty two." I mumbled. Yeah, it is. And I got it. "I got it!" I stand up and shout.

              "Oh! sorry. I was surprised at the moment. It's awkward."

             "You got what, Althea?"

             "It's twenty two."

             My teacher went back to where my seat is and stare at the paper.

             "How did you get the answer?"

             "I..."

             "Wait..don't answer. I'll give you another paper later. For now, can you be with us?"

             I nod and listen to what she says. Even I was surprised on how I managed to answer those equations. It is too young for me to learn that. It is a complicated equation for a first grader like me. But how come I answered those? Do I have a mind like Albert Einstein? or Isaac Newton?