The Case Of Unexpected Deaths In Little Meadow

IV

The days passed by like a blur for Richard, nothing much had happened since he met Dei and the students councils. The books and magazines the nurse had given him was the only thing that kept him occupied for the past week. And now that the first day of class had arrived, he could not help but feel relieved. Being stucked in a hospital bed was never ideal for him anyways. He was also eager to see the school where his mother went and maybe because he was also about to find out what was the fuss with Class 3.

" Here's to new adventure. " Richard thought as he stepped out from his Aunt's car. He waved goodbye to her before facing the building infront of him.

Meadow High was exactly like what Richard had seen in the pictures. It had typical building structure with wide open ground where flocks of students casually lingered, waiting for the bell to ring. Taking a deep breath, he walked in straight to his class. He could feel eyes following his every step but he dismissed it, knowing it was just because he was the newcomer and the stranger in town.

When he walked in to his class, Eli was the first to welcome him and pointed the vacant seat in the middle row. Natasha was also there, standing a few feet away and she was eyeing him warily. It was just like how she acted back in the hospital, minus the fidgetting. She was more composed this time although one could still tell something was bothering her. But Richard did not acknowledge it anymore, thinking maybe it was a part of her personality or he was again overthinking. His fellow classmates soon approached him and introduced themselves almost at the same time. He had a hard time remembering their names. He even almost made it to the point where he mentally cringed when they ask too many random question about the city life. " Its not as different as Little Meadow. The only difference maybe is the population. The city is much crowded than this town. "

The questions only stopped when a bald, short legged man, wearing a worn out polo and pants sauntered in to the room. There was authority in his every stride and the whole class felt it, making everyone rush to their seats.

" Good Morning Class. Im Walter Guevarra. I will be your class adviser and also your English teacher. Im here in substitute to Ms. Rosario but she will still be supervising us from time to time. Any questions? " Mr. Guevarra said and when no one raised their hand to say anything, he continued.

" I hope for a great year and for us to be still complete by the end of the year. Now bring out your Language book and open it on page 10. "

The class went in smoothly and nothing unusual had happened. It was as normal as a class can be. Even Natasha who he thought was a silent type began happily chatting with her seatmate who he had forgotten the name. It was the same with Eli who had his face burried on a Literature book. He had already been informed that Katarina was also his classmate. She was just absent because of a commitment she had to attend being the Head of Countermeasures. He had wondered what the position was all about but got no response from his classmates. They all said it was really important but explained no further. Next, he searched for Dei but no brown doe like eyes had caught his attention. He was about to ask his seatmate when the one he was looking for, walked in to the class like she had not missed two classes already. She headed to the seat on the last row near the window and look outside. He noticed no one greeted her or even look her way which he found odd.

" Does she have no friends at all? " The young man thought as he continued to stare at the girl. She looked the same, nothing much had change since he last saw her except maybe her hair wasn't in a ponytail back then. He found her appearance cute but he liked it more with her hair freely flowing like the last time. He continued to glance at her till their last class ended and everyone was preparing to go home.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Maine getting up so he planned to talk to her, get to know her if he was given a chance. The girl intrigued him and he had no idea why or how. He decided to follow her till they reached a secluded area near the back entrance of the school. It was the opportunity he was waiting for Luckily, none of his classmate had seen him and it was a relief for him. He was not prepared to be ambushed with embarassing questions.

" Hey. " Richard shouted when he was only a few feet away. The girl walked incredibly fast for his liking and he almost had to jog so he could keep up. Wiping the sweat dripping on his forehead with the back of his hand, he tried to get her attention again. " Hey Dei. "

It was then that the girl stopped and faced Richard, still with indifference obvious on her posture. Her arms wasn't folded to her chest and her hands wasn't clenched but it was the way she looked that made him falter. But Richard being Richard, he still approached Dei

" I was just wondering - "

But Dei did not allow him to finish what he was saying and cut him off. " No one had told you everything. Had they? "