16

“Woi, teacher[1]  wants to see ya.”[2] 

The growl-mixed invitation came from a Penang guy that came to Jeremy’s class during the prep session. His name was Rizwan but everyone called him Nana. There’s the probability that this Nana guy wasn’t even growling – it’s just the way Penang people usually talk.

“Me?” Jeremy asked for a confirmation.

“Yea! The sissy,” replied Nana while looking straight at Jeremy.

Jeremy walked out of the class, “Which teacher?”

“Err… not really sure. They just say teacher, I’m only sending this message to ya. They say he’s waiting at Block B.” Nana explained.

“Who’re they?”

“There were around 2-3 people earlier. Their names… Arul, Mut and… Wan.”

Jeremy was silent hearing those names.

“What’s wrong?”

Jeremy shook his head – he can’t tell Nana that those people were the ones who often bullied him. Just this year, he had been yelled at by them twice. But this is the academic block so it might be okay.

“Ya okay?”

Jeremy didn’t realise that Nana was still next to him, and Jeremy was unable to control his face that was wrinkling thanks to him analysing the situation.

“Eh, nothing,” said Jeremy before quickly leaving.

Jeremy sighed in relief when seeing Mr Yusoff’s figure from afar, but as he was walking towards Mr Yusoff who’s standing in front of Block B, Jeremy felt his shirt being pulled roughly and he immediately was out from the corridor.

Before he made any reaction, he was dragged behind the block. His hand was gripped to his back by one of the people who attacked him. In front, Arul was standing with a sneer on his face.

“Ha, this Mr Arul wants to see you,” announced Mut while extinguishing a cigarette on the ground. Jeremy though that the one holding him was Wan.

“I heard that you’ve learnt bringing a girl to your room? You’re quite daring, ehh?” said Arul while stepping forward towards Jeremy.

“What’s it to you?” retorted Jeremy. Whether he answered or not… he’d still get it. It’s worth more answering like that, right?

“Wow! Our hero sure is something now!” Wan said from his back. Jeremy tried escaping, but Wan’s hold on him was too tight. As expected of the school’s rugby player.

“Weyh, I didn’t disturb you nor your girlfriends. So what’s the problem now?” asked Jeremy.

“Who said we have a problem?” Mut asked back.

“We just like to mingle with you. Is that wrong?” Arul questioned.

Jeremy suddenly felt like laughing. Why was it people who mingled with him all had to use weird methods? First, it was Lina, and now it’s these delinquents.

Just as he was about to resign to his fate and receive the punch that would fly anywhere on his body, he suddenly saw something.

Arul’s nose was bleeding.

“Weyh, what’s with your nose?” Wan asked.

It was Mut’s turn to see, “Woi, it’s blood dammit!”

Arul rubbed his nose and saw himself the blood on his hand. In his confusion, Jeremy’s leg acted by itself and kicked Arul in between his legs – an action that should make Arul hold his private part protectively while wailing in pain.

But it didn’t happen.

Arul started vomiting blood. His bleeding nose bled even more profusely. Wan and Mut started panicking.

“Woi! What did you do?” Mut shouted in Jeremy’s face.

“That’s it. Let’s go. Go!” Wan said with his hand pulling Mut away.

While Wan and Mut ran, Jeremy was still standing there, watching blood coming out from every orifices that he could see on Arul: nose, mouth, ears…

Then a voice whispered…

“As long as I’m here, I’ll protect you.”

And with that, everything turned dark.

Khalil’s eco-friendly car entered CGTSS area and was met with an ambulance that’s clearly causing noise pollution with its siren.

Now what?

Khalil parked his car and wanted to rush to the counselling room, but the counsellor herself approached Khalil.

“What happened?” Khalil asked.

“The kid that I wanted you to meet?”

“Yeah…?”

“He’s in the ambulance.”

“Shit! Is he okay?”

“He’s fine. He just fainted, but they’re taking him in anyway. The worse one is the other kid. It was horrible – blood everywhere,” she said.

However, Khalil felt that she wasn’t telling him everything.

“You know what really happened, right?”

She nodded. When she spoke again, her voice was trembling as him holding in her tears, “How did it get like this? You know him, right? He’s not like this! He was never violent…”

Khalil held her shoulders, trying to calm her, but his mind was as if it was hit by a thunderstorm. “I think… the first thing you need to do before solving this problem… is that you should that it’s not him. Not anymore. Then it’ll be easier for you to let go.”

Slowly, she nodded.

“Let’s go, show me the way to the hospital.”

[1] The word here is ‘ustaz’. A male teacher who teaches Islamic studies.

[2] He’s talking in the Pulau Pinang slang. I have no idea how to replicate it in English as my knowledge in slangs ain’t that high.