Chapter 30 #2
Then she continues, her voice clearer now.
“That day when I saw you cutting yourself, I tried to deny it. Because if I acknowledged it, I would stop. I wouldn’t be able to keep going, the emotions would consume me.
I thought that you wouldn’t want me at such a time.
That you would want your sister. So, I left.
Because I thought you wouldn’t express yourself with me there. ”
“Mom, I wasn’t going through anything… but wanting your love. I was hoping for you, not Levon.”
She chokes mid-sentence. “I’m so sorry! I’m sorry, my baby. My love, I’m so sorry! I love you! I can’t wait to see you. You are the most important thing in my life. And I love you.”
I hold back my tears. “I love you too, Mom!”
We take a moment in silence, neither of us speaking. Then, my eyes drift across the walls, and that’s when I see tosh flying outside the door, reminding me that my time will soon be up.
I seize the urgency. I finally confess, “I don’t know what I want to be, Mom. I hope you will still be proud of me, Dad.” I barely find the words to say it, the tears falling down my face now.
“Whatever you decide, my love, we will support,” my dad says.
“As long as it is a lawyer or a doctor or an engineer,” my mom teases.
We burst out laughing.
“What about Levon? How is she?” My mom’s voice cuts my thoughts off.
“I don’t think she’s ready to talk yet. But I’m with her,” I respond.
“Is she okay?” she inquires.
I take a moment, then after a while, I repeat my dad’s words. The words he said to me when he dropped me off earlier this year. “It will be okay! A little while, four years will come and pass, and we will see each other again. All of us!”
I look to see my time is almost over just as they say their goodbyes.
The phone cuts as my words confess once more in the silence, “I miss you, Mom. I miss you, Dad. So very much...” A tear falls and this time, I don’t care who sees.
My strength is in my heart. My strength is in my tears.
I take a moment after dropping the phone and walk back into the hallway.
I peek into The Commons auditorium as a crowd of students flood in. I notice Zavish and Zia in the corner as Jordan joins them.
Zavish looks at the notification on the floating screen, mouth open. “Good riddance! Patron De Londe’s allegedly a criminal. This is horrible news for The Commons. Who will be our leader?”
Zia pounces on Zavish to whisper something to him, but he steps away and she nearly trips. Nothing has changed there.
I contemplate walking up to her, but just as I do Pesh appears and takes my hands, pulling me away from the auditorium just as Doctor Val begins to make a formal announcement.
Upon entrance into Pesh’s office, I look to see live footage of The Seventh Zone on a floating screen.
An Earth Patron is speaking to the students there, revealing the news of their freedom. They stare in shock, a zest of hope trickling in the atmosphere.
Pesh seems to be communicating with other Earth Patrons on his digital device as the Earth Patron from before continues his asseveration, “You all have two options. One, go home. Your parents have all been notified and are eager to see you. They are all waiting at the ports for your arrival, should you choose that. Option two. Return to The Commons and finish school, right where you left off.”
Everyone stays silent, not moving. Then, a student goes to the right, toward the line that leads home. Others join, one after another. They hold onto each other with tears of joy streaming down many faces.
Suddenly, a boy with a name badge that says “Feloy” silently moves over to the left. Everyone turns and stares at him, confusion on their faces. His jaws tighten, his gaze hardening. “What? Who’s joining me? We barely escaped the battle. Who’s gonna stay with me for the war?”
A few others join him. They all bow as they walk past the Earth Patrons to Feloy’s side. They seem to like the Earth Patrons. Maybe because they are not as involved in The Seventh Zone dealings.
“You’re going back?” a student exclaims, running toward Feloy as the ships are loaded.
“Hell yeah.” Feloy flashes a grin. “We’ve already been through the worst. How much worse can it get?”
Feloy’s friend chuckles. “Oh, it can.” He pats him on the shoulders and hugs him, turning to join the ships returning home. “I’ll say hi to your parents.”
“Thanks,” Feloy says, side-bumping him. He watches his friend leave before his eyes shoot to the right to see bands of students sprinting out from The Seventh Zone buildings into ships that are returning home.
Feloy smiles as others exit the buildings, moving like a band of warriors toward The Commons ship.
In another screen, behind a cluster of rocks, a male Patron is privately speaking with a dark-haired female student. Suddenly, they both turn to see an army of Water Patrons surging out from the waters. The Patron’s eyes widen, and he draws away from the student.
“Take me with you,” the student pleads.
“I can’t,” he says, conflicted.
“Please, what’s happening?” Her eyes snap to the waters.
“Join the students.” He races out to join the submarine with the Water Patrons, and they submerge underwater within seconds.
“Why are they running?” I turn to Pesh who drops his device on the table, taking a moment.
“They don’t want to be found culpable in De Londe’s crimes,” Pesh responds.
“What about you? Are they going to come for you,” I ask, concerned.
“I have nothing to hide. But the Aristocrats will try to bribe the authorities to arrest any Patron they can, to try to avert blame from Londe.”
“Do the Water Patrons deserve the blame?”
“Well, I mean, those who refused to obey Londe’s command to be stationed to the Seventh Zone were killed by slow torture so… what do you think?”
God Almighty. “That’s horrible. Do the Aristocrats know this?”
“Yep. So Water Patrons are running before it’s too late.”
“So we won’t have Water Patrons anymore?”
“We will. In time, they’ll resurface. But for now, they must hide. The Commons will never be the same again.”
Our eyes collide in silence. There’s so many things involved in this that I didn’t think of. So many lives at stake. I open my lips to speak, but he takes my hands, and we walk toward Doctor Val’s office. Just as we enter, I suddenly remember.
“We have to check on Swin!” I blurt out.
Intercom: Will Doctor Val please come to the Biology Hallway?
“Must be Swin!” Pesh says as we hasten toward the Biology Hallway.
“Oh goodness! Thank God. He isn’t dead, right?” I mutter, unease creeping in.
A lone figure in uniform stands silhouetted against the distant end of the Biology Hallway, towering over a shadow… Swin? I hold my breath, hoping Swin is not injured or even worse, dead. And just as I imagine the worst, the shadow suddenly moves.
It’s him.
Swin!
The officer pulls him forward, hauling him through the light into our sight. A smile shoots through my soul as my gaze meets his glacial-green eyes.
He is alive!
“We were mandated to arrest him by Patron De Londe, but he claims it was a mistake, saying he goes to The Commons. Do you know this boy?” the officer inquires.
In silence, Doctor Val stares at him, tears clouding her eyes upon realization that this is her long-lost nephew. “Of course I know him, that’s my star student, Erel—”
“Swin—” he interjects.
“Swin.” Her voice flusters. “Yes, Swin is his name!”
“So, he is enrolled here after all?” the officer asks with wary eyes.
Doctor Val strides over to Swin, pulling him away from the officer. “Of course. Not only is he enrolled, he’s my family! Any issues?”
“No, just a minor misunderstanding. Good day.” The officer bows, then leaves.
Since no student from The Commons could ever be arrested without the permission of The Commons itself, and no one who wasn’t from The Commons knew the school’s anthem, “For The Love of The Commons,” they were mandated to bring him here first.
We find out that Swin had begun singing it as his last resort when Pesh mentioned it. The gun shots we heard were fired to the sky in solidarity of the anthem.
Doctor Val turns to Swin, holding him tightly. “I can’t believe it. It’s you. I’ll let you catch up with your friends for now.” She sniffles, wiping away her tears. Before Swin can leave, she touches his shirt. “And by the way, don’t forget to come to my office. Welcome to The Commons.”
Swin nods, looking away with a smile in his eyes.
“I have to talk to the students.” She looks to us. “See he is taken care of.”
Swin watches as she leaves, then turns to us with an edgy smile. “What happened to all of you? Any word from Levon?”
“We are a long story! But Levon is on the way!” I respond with a smile, happy to know he’s safe.
“Okay, good, phew!”
“Yeah, that’s how we feel. Come on.” Pesh pats his shoulders as we take him away in joyous camaraderie.
“By the way, how did the torture tool go?” Swin mutters, arching a brow.
“Oh, it was nothing. Apart from the feeling of a thousand daggers stabbing me at once.”
What? Pesh knew? “The injection, you knew it was coming?” I turn to him, but Swin interrupts.
“He had an inclination that it was coming, thanks to yours truly, so he wanted to make sure he would be the one to take the grunt before they had a chance to use it on you. They intended to employ it as leverage to compel Pesh to reveal the truth,” Swin explains.
“There was only one dose. And it’s lethal from what I’ve researched. ”
Pesh turns to Swin, who instantly freezes.
“Are you done?” Pesh’s dark gaze roams over him.
“Oh. She didn’t know. Right…” Swin walks ahead of us, chuckling.
I just now realize it must have been Pesh that bumped into Beatrice, not the other way round. My eyes merge with Pesh’s. “Is this gonna be a thing, you putting yourself in harm’s way for me every time?”
“I’d rather die than watch you be hurt.”
I roll my eyes, walking away. “We’re gonna have to figure out a middle ground where we can all stop trying to die!” Good grief!