Chapter 4: Chapter 4

New Year’s Eve seemed to be unnaturally sunny and a lot less cold as compared to the previous year. Was that a result of g1obal warming? Or the mass air pollution that spread across the city due to the endless fumes emitted by cars? No one could figure out, nevertheless, the weather was pleasantly snowy. The plaster on my leg had been finally removed and I could walk normally and have been strictly prohibited by the doctor against and physically straining activity, hence, Alex and Matt postponed our trip to the Forest of Dracon to the end of January, or at least till the time my leg got completely healed and I could run.

In the meantime, the three decided to take me to the annual carnival held in Poseidon Park, Central London. The park was located about five miles from my house and instigated excitement in my stomach as I hadn't ever been there. We reached the place about an hour later as the hopelessly frustrating traffic of London turned Alex's SUV into a turtle. By the time we reached, half the exhilaration that I felt had died out, however, the first look of the park rejuvenated the lost exultation. Poseidon Park appeared to be heavenly; snow covered the trees which were once green, with mild sunlight striking the snow and glittering it golden, a gigantic Ferris wheel circled gently at the center of the gargantuan park leaving my heart to explode with bliss and along came the best scenario, where joyful young kids played with snow, either involved in making artistic snowmen or just smashing snowballs on each other. There was a prolonged queue at the ticket counter, which moved at a ridiculously slow pace, thus, enhancing our agitation and nearly changing Alex's mind to go somewhere else, however, I dissuaded him against this idea as I had nearly fallen in love with the place, as well as keeping in mind the fact that, you almost always have to patiently wait for things that are the most beautiful.

The queue cleared and suddenly my heart sank, as I read the sign on the counter board. ‘Kids: £30, Adults: £50'. Fifty damn pounds! I thought, thunderstruck at the sky-rocketing entrance fees. Dad had placed a twenty-pound note in my handbag, which wilted inside as I zipped the purse. Before I could open my mouth to make a lame excuse of rushing back home, to avoid the embarrassment, Judy tactfully shoved a crisp hundred-pound note in my palm and reproachfully placed a finger on her lips to prevent me from arguing.

“Babe, let's go for ice-skating,” said Alex, grabbing Judy's hand and rushing towards the stupendously large ice ring, just by eyeing those excited faces skating impressively seemed to provide me with an inexplicable sense of euphoria but I didn’t dare approach it due to the exorbitant price for an hour of skating. Matt approached me from behind, giving me a shy but sort of innocent smile which melted my heart.

“Ellie…” he began, with a sparkle forming across his hazel iris as they stared into my green ones. ‘Would you like to accompany me to that Ferris wheel you see over there?

“I don't mind doing that Matt,” I admitted, with a sly smile, gesturing to him subtly to lead the way. The Ferris wheel appeared nearly as tall as London Eye but its compartments were smaller and the glass had turned foggy, blocking the view outside. As we sat on the leather seats inside, the doors of the compartment closed and we were taken high up into the sky. I wiped the mist from the glass and experienced the glamorous view. As we reached the topmost position, I could see Big Ben which appeared like a stick standing tall and the crowd below could be perceived as teeny dots moving randomly across a whiteboard. The sun which gleamed graciously from the horizon, struck the compartment glass, illuminating everything inside.

I wished I didn’t admit that but, the atmosphere was highly romantic, especially when I was alone with a guy whom I secretly liked. Matt, who all this while had pretended to be relishing the view, suddenly looked at me. I could feel it conspicuously that he desperately hoped for something to happen between us, which in turn was very unnerving for me, especially when I wasn't ready for any sort of fling or a serious relationship in my life at that point in time.

“Ellie…,” he piped up, glancing below. “How's your leg now? Does it still hurt when you apply some pressure on it?” he attempted to touch my leg as a casual initiation of some romance.

“Look, Matt, it’s Big Ben!” I cried, hurriedly diverting his attention and trying my best to play it as unintentionally as possible.

“Yeah Ellie, I can see that too,” his voice gave off a noticeable tone of disappointment and rejection, which showed me that I had succeeded, and the rest of the ride we talked about fun facts regarding the medieval building and he went onto to uninterestedly agree with every fact or opinion I placed.

“Ellie…can I ask you something? And expect an unequivocally truthful answer from you?”

“Yes, of course!” I replied, in a rather frenzy manner as my heart raced faster than as he gazed into my eyes piercingly and I didn't get the time to look away. My mind began pounding too, as I felt that he would ask me about my resistance towards his feelings for me. However, the question that he fired at me filled me with relief and, even though I wasn't able to answer it candidly, and lied on his face. Moreover, I was impressed and bewildered at the same time, as he was probably the last person close to me whom I would have expected to ask me.

“During your gymnastic performance that day, how could you possibly have fallen in your last stunt? I mean I was watching you from the front row, you were fired up with energy and unlimited confidence after performing the last two stunts flawlessly. Besides, the three of us, Alex, Judy, and I used to be with you during practice after school and you were admirably brilliant at executing backflips, I mean you had practiced that particular backflip a dozen times the night before the finals too?”

“To be frank, Matt, I would say I was unbearably over-confident during my performance, and I would say God just threw me down on the ground for my conceit,” I shrugged persuasively, hoping he'd swallow the lie I threw at him.

“Are you sure, Ellie? You are not hiding anything from us right?”

“Oh Matt, of course not,” I lied, slapping his shoulder playfully with a flirtatious smile, to divert his attention from the topic. I had shunned down his questions quickly, but, some part of me really wished to desperately pour my heart out about the horrors that I had been experiencing, to Matt, particularly when he was the only person who had observed so much and felt like the only one who'd believe me and understand. Anyhow, I had killed the temptation in my heart instantly, thinking what if he didn't believe me, and rather thought of it as a joke or prank and laughed it off, which would fill me with resentment in return.

We landed back on the ground, thoroughly revitalized by the Ferris wheel ride, and prone for some more adventurous activities. Alex and Judy were nowhere to be found, and we didn't make an effort to search. Let the love birds find a nest, we declared, giggling uncontrollably as we moved towards a lengthy row of game stalls. There was such a variety that we couldn’t make up our minds. Eventually, we decided to try the shooting stall located a few feet away from us.

“Alright girl, tell me which stuffed toy do you desire?” he asked in a mockingly haughty voice as I rolled my eyes.

“Winnie the Pooh,” I cried, and he instantly fired five shots at the pyramid of cans, taking out only two out of the eight, and sighed with disappointment. I snatched the gun from his hands, destroying his failed attempt to show his masculinity.

“Now you tell me boy, which of these cuties you want to take home?” I asked, aiming the gun at the cans.

“Kung Fu Panda,” he croaked, and I blew away the entire pyramid with just three shots, as Matt grinned sheepishly and managed a ‘wow', feeling utterly foolish and stupid.

We moved on to the next stall, a ‘Spin the wheel' challenge which appeared more like a casino wheel with various prizes starting from large sums of cash to massive discount coupons on holiday packages. The stall owner gawked at us stupidly with a greedy smile on his face.

“Ellie,” said Matt, stopping in his tracks. “I’m getting really hungry, haven't had my lunch, I’ll go grab something to eat, would you like a sandwich or something to drink?”

“Na, it's alright, I’ve had a substantial brunch,” I refused politely. “Although, a hot cup of French Vanilla would be soothing,” I added, considering Matt's slightly disappointed face. He was one sensitive fellow.

“Cool then, you stay here, I'll be back like the wind.” And with a subtly noticeable wink, he rushed off, leaving me at the stall.

“Welcome miss,” the stall owner greeted me with a grin on his face, and I nodded with a half-smile. “Would you like to try your luck at the wheel? If you are lucky, there are innumerable rewards to be earned.

“Sure, I'm quite interested, but let my friend come-" before I could finish the sentence, my eyes fell on a massive grey marquee located at the far end of the row of stalls. It towered above stalls, reaching almost the radius of the Ferris wheel, and portrayed some sort of eeriness. ‘THE TENT OF WONDERS’ was embossed on the entrance in scarlet.

“Miss,” the stall guy piped up, as he followed my eyes towards that uncanny tent. “I wouldn't for the life of me dare to be within a five hundred feet radius of that tent if I were you,”

“Why?” I whispered distractedly, my eyes still hooked onto the place.

“It's quite a creepily daunting place ma'am, and the people who have ever visited it haven't been blissful after walking out of it. God knows what lurks within that area.”

The Foretelling

Despite his serene words, I started getting gravitated towards it out of sheer inquisitiveness. The stall guy’s smile dissipated instantaneously as he watched me walk away from the stall, and in the direction of the tent. I reached the entrance and felt warm air blowing from inside the place. The interior appeared dark from the entrance, intimidating me slightly, nonetheless, I still plucked up the courage to enter it purely to satisfy my insatiable curiosity. I walked through the darkness, with no idea in the world what I would discover at the end. A distinctly strong, but arousing essence of lavender diffused through the warm air, teasing my sense of smell. Abruptly, a massive glow of light punctured through the blackness, and a large clearing came into view, causing my pupils to contract. The gigantic clearing appeared like a grand hall; two hideously turquoise twin L-shaped sofa sets were arranged to face each other on both sides, a monstrous and obscenely ornate chandelier was hanging from the center of the tent, whose light pierced my eyeballs mercilessly. Exactly underneath the irritating chandelier, stood a round table, on which lay a magnificently glowing crystal ball.

“Greetings, Ellie, my child,” called a figure, dressed in turquoise robes, with a purple turban wrapped on her head. The lady was sitting on a chair with her arms placed on the table and fingers crossed, clearly casting a mystically preternatural aura around the place. She was a middle-aged woman barely in her fifties, with few strands of grey hair protruding from the black, and sparsely unnoticeable wrinkles appearing on her white bony cheeks. She wore very thin makeup with a dark purple lipstick on her thin but firm lips. Her intimidatingly booming voice gave me goose pimples as I walked towards her in slow motion. “Please take a seat,” she requested, which rather sounded like a command and I sat on the chair opposing her.

“Who…who are you…and how… how do you know my name?” I quivered, shivering with a reasonable amount of fear.

“I’m Madam Maxima, a soothsayer, and the one who will provide you with all the answers that you so miserably seem to seek,” she said, opening her eyes, which were an awful shade of amber, and gave me a smoothly understanding smile which collapsed my fear.

“Are you a fortune-teller?” I murmured, half-expecting she didn't hear it, but she did.

“Girl, you may swear on my face, but never, ever, address me with that word,” she boomed, looking highly affronted, and reinstating the dread on my face. “I'm not amongst those species of deceitful and swindling humans who rob people,” she paused, glaring at me with a speck of annoyance in her mystical eyes.

“So tell me, dear, do you wish to see what lies in your fortune?” She asked, with a smooth return to her original tone.

“I…do", came out of my mouth unconsciously, unable to move my eyes away from the lady, even for a fraction of a second.

“But before that,” she gestured, stretching her hand forward and keeping her palm wide open.

“How much, Miss Maxima?”

“However much you could afford to pay my dear child,” she claimed, and I moved towards her slowly, removed the twenty-pound note that dad had kept in my purse, and placed it in her warm palm, then gently walked back and seated myself. Madam Maxima muttered a ‘thank you and placed the note in her robes. Detaching her eyes from my face for the very first time and threw a look at the mysterious crystal ball placed on the table. She placed her palms across the sides of the ball and began circling them slowly around it. “Oh my crystal, by the mighty power of the divine will, show me what lies ahead in the destiny of this young girl, Ellie Parkinson,”

The instant my surname was called out, the crystal ball began glowing profusely, and to my uttermost bewilderment which nearly popped my eyes out, the ball rose a few inches up in mid-air, and started pacing across the table towards me. It stood an inch away from my face, as I ogled it with a mixture of unfathomable shock and trepidation. The next second, jolts of electric waves erupted out of the crystal and struck my forehead, I was paralyzed with fear, totally expecting to receive an electric shock or something, however, a soothingly ticklish sensation spread over me, enveloping me tenderly diminishing every feeling in my body, causing it to become light like a feather and my eyes closed automatically, as though hypnotized. A thin ray of smoke appeared in my mind, showing me flashes of important events in my delightful future chronologically: me wearing a red gown and hat, and walking across the school stage to receive my diploma and memento on graduation day. The smoke reshaped and formed the image of a grown-up me dressed in a bridal gown, and being escorted by dad across an unrecognizable church full of guests, towards a handsomely charming and tall man watching me beside a priest, on my wedding day. The colorless cloud of smoke molded again, and this time, the image that it portrayed, took my heart away, an adorably precocious toddler smiling widely with a tooth in its little mouth, as I held it high in my hands.

All of a sudden, the baby vanished, the soft music played in my mind diminished, and a thunderous jolt of lightning struck my brain, sending shock waves all over my neurons. The colorless cloud of smoke turned intense grey, and a black hooded figure emerged out of it, removed its hood to show those pointed teeth and ghostly pupil-less bloodshot eyes which haunted me time and again. A bony skeleton-like hand protruded from the sleeves of its charcoal black cloak and was about to reach out for me, when the hand vanished along with that demon and the grey cloud of smoke, as though sucked away by a vacuum cleaner. My eyelids flipped open immediately, and my brain shook horribly with an unbearably intense pain similar to the one experienced during a prolonged migraine. My vision was blurred, and the surroundings emerged spinning around me vigorously. I was on the verge of passing out, when a tenderly warm palm was placed on my forehead, it was Madam Maxima's, who made gentle and slow motions across it, causing the vicious pain to terminate within seconds. My vision became crystal clear and I looked at her anxiously, noticing a deep look of concern on her face, as she stood inches away from me.

“Madam Maxima-,” I uttered, but she raised her hand to silence me, there was an uneasy moment of silence in the tent, as she carried the crystal ball and placed it on the table. Then, she took a chair and sat an inch away from me. She held my hand, caressing it affectionately, which honestly felt heavenly.

“Dear child, I am very well aware of what you have seen,” she claimed, continuing to rub my hand. “And I also know that you have been experiencing this monstrosity for quite some time, as well as the nightmare that has been tormenting you since you were eight. The fates have informed me everything till this date,”

“Miss, why?” I muttered, tears forming across my eyes, filling my heart with deep sorrow and vulnerability. “Am I cursed, or am I going crazy?”

“You're neither cursed, nor are you going insane my child, on the contrary, yours is a uniquely blessed soul that I have ever come across, you are a glorious child of god Ellie, and I feel honored to have encountered you,” she praised, smiling at me widely, who showed off her sparkling white teeth perfectly arranged. “I, Minerva Maxima, from this day onwards, consider it as my sole responsibility and obligation to obtain your freedom from this malice, even if it is at the cost of my life,” taking this oath, she magically summoned the crystal orb with a gesture of her opened palm and it landed on it gently. “But first, we must look into your past Ellie, coz one thing's undoubtedly certain that these horrors have some sort of connection with the events of your past,” she began circling the orb and muttering some completely inaudible incantations. Before the orb could glow and initiate its enchantment, a thunderous bellow blared from outside, nearly bursting my eardrums and causing Madam Maxima, to halt the incantation midway as I stood up. It was Judy's yell, which nearly sent me into cardiac arrest as I got up in an instant and began rushing away at lightning speed, ignoring Madam Maxima who kept calling me back, and without bidding farewell to the beneficently obliging soothsayer, I sped off outside.

Evil Strikes Again

The sun had concealed back in the clouds and the temperature seemed to drop drastically as evening fell. Astonishingly, three hours had passed since I entered the tent. I had lost track of time inside the mystical place and gotten so engrossed in the future that I nearly overlooked the present. Shoving all the events that occurred in the tent to the back of my mind, and adrenaline rushing through my blood, I ran as fast as my barely healed legs could take me, my brain thundering and heart pounding like a pendulum. I reached the place where I had left Matt, panting atrociously I looked hither thither but discovered no sign of the three anywhere. I took out my mobile from my handbag hoping to call them but the battery had been completely drained. Clenching my teeth in frustration I threw it back inside. Extreme anxiety seemed to conquer me completely as I rushed towards the Ferris wheel. What on earth could have happened to Judy? Did she fall from someplace? Or did someone hurt her? These thoughts kept swerving in my head as I searched for them at the height of desperation. However, to my utmost surprise, everything seemed quite normal around the place, with no sign of anything unusual or life-threatening. All around me everyone appeared to be enjoying themselves as usual. I was extremely muddled as I walked, eyeing everyone anxiously like a crackpot, hoping for the slightest sign of Judy or Matt or Alex. Abruptly, I felt a hand being placed on my shoulder, and I turned around alarmingly with a jerk, to my relief, it was Matt. He held his hand on his nose which had begun to bleed as a result of a collision with my shoulder when I jerked.

“Oh my god, Matt! I'm so sorry,” I apologized, frantically digging my handbag to search for my handkerchief which I passed to him and he covered his bloody nose with it. I moaned guiltily as he wiped his nose, which hadn't ceased to bleed.

“Where the hell have you been Ellie?” Matt demanded aggressively, still holding the handkerchief to his nose, the smash on his face had elevated his anger. “I searched the entire place like a lunatic for you, and on top of that your mobile is switched off,”

“Matt, I'm extremely sorry. After you left, I really needed to visit the loo, and it was located almost a mile away from the stalls, and I lost track of the path while returning,” I lied quickly, looking highly apologetic and innocent, which softened his expression largely.

“It's alright, it was my fault, I shouldn't have left you there alone. Here, I got you a present,” he admitted, handing me an expensive heart-shaped bracelet.

“Oh Matt, that's so sweet of you. But there was honestly no need of such a precious gift,”

“I couldn't get you anything for your birthday Ellie, so this is just compensation,” he beamed, looking at me wearing the bracelet. The intensely affectionate feelings for Matt that I had so stubbornly locked in some corner of my heart began gushing out, as I stared at the lovely bracelet with pure affection.

We began our search for those two love birds across the humongous park. My mind kept pondering about Judy's mysterious scream which seemed to echo in my ears like a catchy song. I was damn sure it was Judy's voice, I could never fail to recognize my best friend's in a hundred years. But how was it possible that no one else heard it? Or was it that we shared some sort of connection, like twins do, that I could hear her voice and unconsciously feel her pain in my mind? We had nearly reached the park's exit when Matt's phone rang loudly, alarming me instantly. Matt received the call, and within a few seconds his eyes widened in shock, he immediately threw the phone in his jeans' pocket and grabbing my hand rushed outside the exit as fast as he could, with me trembling with intensified dismay and confusion.

“Alex has suffered a terrible injury,” he revealed, waving desperately towards a cab as Alex's car was nowhere to be found. We got into a cab that stopped and rushed to Lord James' Hospital where he was admitted. Fortunately, we reached the hospital within half an hour thanks to the clear roads and zoomed inside the ward where Alex was kept. Judy sat weeping beside his bed holding his hand, as he lay unconscious with an oxygen mask on his face and a thick bloody bandage wrapped around his head which seemed to have nearly cracked open. She saw us and dashed forwards to hug me tightly. No words of consolation came out of my mouth and could only caress her hair to try and calm her down. At that moment, a hefty doctor sporting a French beard and wearing a stethoscope entered the ward followed by a young nurse.

“Could you all kindly wait outside, the patient needs to rest. We'll inform you when he regains consciousness,” the doctor entreated, and we moved outside, with Judy still holding onto me like a child.

“Judy could explain what exactly happened,” demanded Matt, with a slight tone of harshness but turned soft as I gave him the look, while still patting Judy whose tears refused to cease.

“How did this happen, Judy?” I asked her reposefully, placing my arm around her shoulder as we seating her on the bench outside the ward.

“Humph, we, we were happily ice skating, holding our hands and then chasing each other, when suddenly, a faceless man in a black hoody skating from the opposite direction crashed into him with a gut-wrenching pang, and Alex went flying backward and smashed his head against the ice,” she sobbed, and I gave her a handkerchief to blow her nose. “Bloody scoundrel that hooded guy! I didn't even stay back to help and just disappeared. Some good souls helped me carry him to our car and I raced him here,” she finished, sending jolts of electricity across my spine. Was it possible? I thought, my body radiating with terror. Could it be that demon or creature or whatever it was, that had been haunting me continuously, to have scathed Alex? First me, and now my friend, was this creature going to hunt us all down? Profuse sweat oozed through my hair and flowed across my cheeks and neck, despite the freezing weather outside, as my blood curdled with utmost apprehension.

Alex’s parents rushed to the hospital at around midnight, both anxious and distressed at the same time. The three of us fearfully expected an exchange of words with them but to our relief, it was quite the opposite, as both were extremely understanding and admitted that accidents like these do occur sometimes and no one has control over anything. Matt and Judy both stayed the night at the hospital along with his parents, while I had to rush home due to my strict and overly possessive parents no matter how I wanted to stay back with them. I could not sleep the entire night, Judy's words about the hooded man who injured Alex still kept ringing in my ears, and fear bubbled like acid in my stomach. Peace had been thoroughly extinguished from my life. While being awake, I had to be on my toes and be alert for any mishap that could occur or of the appearance of that fiendish hooded creature, and when my eyes closed at night, I experienced that irksome nightmare time and again. In addition to all that, Judy's supposed scream which I heard in Madam Maxima's tent lead me to raise more questions on my sanity.

Alex was discharged the next day, his head heavily bandaged and having received nearly ten stitches.

“How are you feeling Alex?” I asked as we sat in the school cafeteria three days later. His parents had insisted he take a week's leave from school, however, no matter how adventurous or happy-go-lucky he portrayed himself to be, he didn’t wish to miss out on any lectures, especially since it was our final year.

“Way better Ellie, thanks,” he replied with a genuinely reassuring grin. “The only regret I have is, coz of me our New Year's Eve got spoiled,”

“Will you shut your mouth!” scolded Judy and Matt together, as they both slapped him gently on his shoulder simultaneously.

“Do you recall the incident, Alex?” I inquired, hoping to receive more details about the guy who injured him.

“Not much to be honest, all I remember is chasing Judy in the ice rink and I looked sideways for a second and got dashed, after that it all went blank.

“Was that all?”

“Yeah, that's pretty much it, I looked sideways, heard Judy shriek and clashed with someone,” he added, and a sudden surge of relief broke across my face, lightening my heart. So Judy did scream, and it was not my hallucination, I thought, sipping my cold coffee. But, that still didn't explain how I was able to hear it booming in my ears when Madam Maxima's tent was situated nearly half a mile away from the ice rink. The period bell screeched and we zoomed back to our respective classes, my mind still pondering over the plausibility of that incident.

The Power Lurking Within

The rest of the day passed ordinarily exuberant as well as relieving, as I returned to the hustle and bustle of school and felt born ready to shift my focus back to academics which had gotten substantially neglected as a result of the dreadful events of the last few weeks. The last hour was Psychology for Judy and me, which was predominantly my favorite subject, while Judy loathed it and thus, was pretty terrible at it. Miss Clarissa, who along with being an erudite professor of the subject, was also quite an amiable and fortunately lenient teacher who genuinely cared about the students and their grasp on the subject.

“Good morning everyone!” Miss Clarissa greeted zestfully, with a dynamic beam that radiated the face of every student and they all chimed back with an equally vibrant ‘good morning'. She was a woman brimming with youth and exceptionally elegant beauty, which led the pretty blondies in our class to go highly insecure and caused the handsome hunks to go crushing on her. She stood there facing us, her sparkling hazel eyes piercing each pupil in class like an x-ray. “So everyone, I heartily hope that you have had an excellent vacation, and relished every moment of Christmas and New Year. Now, since we have just returned I'm pretty sure that a great many of you are still in the festive mood. So do you want me to proceed with the new topic, or do you wish for a free hour? Such was the charisma of Miss Clarissa that the entire class agreed upon the latter and with a genuinely enthusiastic will to learn.

At the class' unanimous demand, Miss Clarissa gave a beam of approval and moved towards the whiteboard and wrote the words ‘Schizophrenia’ in bold letters with a black marker.

“Now, can anyone among you tell me what Schizophrenia is?” she demanded, leaning against the board with her hands folded. All eyes spun around and landed on me and I smiled slyly. I loved Psychology true, but this was an absolute Chinese word for me, but the damage had been done as Miss Clarissa's eyes landed on me and my name was called. I stood up most reluctantly, smiling sheepishly. I was honestly the top student in Psychology and seriously didn't wish to let my image down in the eyes of Miss Clarissa even for a second. I was on the verge of embarrassing myself terribly when an extraordinarily weird phenomenon occurred. As I glanced sideways for a second or so, my eyes fell on Rachel Dawson, another highly intellectual girl from my class who was staring at Miss Clarissa with an agitated expression on her face, and my brain buzzed heavily as though it was a radio, and the definition of the word echoed loudly in my mind through Rachel's silky voice.

“It's a disease or says a disorder wherein a person's ability to think, feel, and behave is tremendously affected. Its symptoms include hallucinations, delusions, disorganized speech, emotional flatness, etc. for approximately thirty days. Treatment can help, but there’s no cure for this condition as of today, therefore, it can last for years or even lifelong,” I blurted out, like a machine gun spitting bullets. The entire class appeared dumbfounded, in a similar manner as they did in History class last time, although a little less this time as History was one subject even I detested since I was a topper in Psychology they were rather dazzled. And Rachel’s expression of bewilderment was beyond measure, as I had unknowingly bitten off the words from her mind. Miss Clarissa’s expression on the other hand stayed quite normal, which I assumed was since she already expected me to know the answer to the question.

“Very Good Ellie,” she appreciated, and continued with the rest of the lecture.”

My mind was bombing with a million queries and doubts about myself such that it began to ache atrociously. Did that happen? I thought, staring out of the school bus window. How in the world could I possibly have read someone's mind? And it was mind reading wherein Rachel's voice boomed in my ears with just a glance at her. I felt infinitely puzzled, and also a little ashamed that I had so bizarrely, but unknowingly and unwillingly cheated for the first time in my life.

“Hey girl,” called Judy, tapping me on the head lightly. “What's the matter? I have noticed that something's been bothering you since Psychology class. Spill it now will you,”

“Um….Judy, I don't know how to put this but, I won't beat about the bush. Although you will be forced to deeply question my sanity after this-"

“Just spill it!”

“Alright, during Psychology class when Miss Clarissa asked the definition of that word, I was completely clueless, I had never even come across that word before, but, when I suddenly turned to look around for a second, my eyes fell over Rachel Dawson, and, my mind sort of started buzzing and……” I paused, bringing the rest of the words to my mouth with a gulp. “Her voice rang in my head as clearly as though she had uttered it loudly,” I finished, and looked at her with z nervous smile, half-expecting her to roar with hilarity. But her expression was very serene and her mouth hung open wide in bewilderment.

“Ellie, is this the first time that something like this has happened with you?” she inquired, staring at me with utmost serenity. I thought for a second, whether to refrain from telling Judy about the incident at the carnival or not coz that was ridiculously insane too, however, the seriousness of her tone and expression kind of reassured me that she had believed me.

“Uh, no Judy, this type of incident has occurred previously too, at the carnival. Matt had left me at a stall for some time to grab some food, and a few minutes later, I heard your scream in my ears as clearly as if you were standing beside, when the stall was about five hundred meters away from the ice rink,” I narrated, my heart became lighter with each word that came out of my mouth.

“Ellie,” muttered Judy, continuing to stare at me. “I want you to make an unequivocal excuse at home about having remedial classes tomorrow,”

“But why?”

“Coz I wish to take you somewhere,” she stated, without blinking. “It’s highly crucial, hope you understand,”

I agreed to follow her instructions and took my parents' permission with a defiant lie about the remedial classes.

The next day, after school, Judy and I got down at Camden Town, a residential district in London famous for its market and a haven of counter culture popular amongst tourists, teenagers, and punks. The school bus had dropped us at an old rusty pub by the name of ‘Drake's Bar' written in bold. We entered the pub, which seemed extremely dilapidated and ancient, the chairs were placed upside down on the tables with cobwebs formed on them. It seemed as though people hadn't visited it in about a century. A Fat and plump man stood at the counter, intensely cleaning few mugs. He sported an unusually long and thick grey beard that nearly touched his waist and wore half-moon glasses.

“Judy,” I murmured, agitatedly. “The last thing I want to hear from you today is that we have come here to enjoy some beer, coz you feel I am hallucinating or going crazy,”

“Relax Ellie, I’m not that stupid or ludicrously jobless to think in that direction,” she shot back, as we moved towards the counter. The man diverted his attention towards us and nodded approvingly. He wrapped up his work and then gestured to accompany him to a door beside the counter. And I followed Judy, as we entered the room, my heart thumping with mystery and intimidation. A bright green light illuminated the room emitting a deadly aura across the place. It was a small oblong room with two couches placed opposing each other and a tiny bulb on the wall whose green light spread across the room.

“Please have a seat,” he requested courteously, his voice was gruff. “Would you both like to have something, brandy or maybe a cocktail?”

“Thanks, Mr. Holden, but we are good,” Judy refused, with a polite smile.

“So how are you Judy, I hope your studies are going well?”

“Yes, Mr. Holden, all's well. This is my best friend Ellie, whom I spoke about yesterday. And the incidents that she's been facing since last week,” paused Judy, and the man shifted his attention towards me for the first time. He surveyed me through his half-moon glasses which was extremely unnerving. “Hello Miss Ellie, I’m Sebastian Holden, a former parapsychologist and a friend of Judy's late father,” he stated, offering his hand, which I shook quite tamely. “Judy has already confided in me the incidents that you have been experiencing, however, would you like to express what exactly happened?” he queried, sipping from a large mug, which I assumed to be an alcohol of some quality. I took a deep breath and explained both the incidents that had occurred, from Judy's scream to the Psychology class incident. When I finished, he moved his gaze away from me for the very first time and stared into space for a few seconds. Abruptly, he got up and moved out of the room without saying a word. I looked at Judy reproachfully, who gave a sheepish smile and shrugged.

Mr. Holden arrived, but this time, holding a Swiss Army knife, and began advancing towards me, with a maniacal smirk on his face. I jerked up instantaneously and was rooted to the spot with pure terror.

“Mr. Holden, what are you doing?! Demanded Judy, standing up with extreme shock.

“What does it look like I'm doing Judy? I'm about to slit your friend’s throat,” he claimed hoarsely, and Judy marched forwards to try and stop him, but he grabbed hold of her neck and restrained her, while she nearly choked with the pressure applied. He had a maliciously murderous glint in his eyes.

“Leave her Mr. Holden,” I croaked, shivering profusely, as I gazed back into his eyes. He increased the pressure in Judy's throat who turned purple, and was about to stab my forehead when something bizarre occurred, and my brain began buzzing, as jolts of electricity rushed through its veins, causing my blood to get electrified. I focused my eyes on Holden's hand that held Judy’s throat, whose grip loosened dramatically and eventually got unclasped. Judy fell to the floor, coughing and gasping for air. Subsequently, I diverted my focus on his other hand which held the pocketknife and it halted in mid-air. Holden clenched his teeth and utilized his entire strength to move it towards my forehead but in vain, as I loosened the grip of his fingers causing the knife to float in mid-air and land on the couch. Finally, my rage knew no bounds, as I focused my entire power on Holden, and before he could create any movement, he was lifted off his feet, as though a hugely beefy wrestler had pulled him from the back of his shirt, as a result, he crashed against the wall and fell onto the floor.

Uncontrollable rage was boiling up inside me like lava, something I had never felt previously ever, and a bloodthirsty desire to ruthlessly punish that malignant man bubbled up within my heart, which was predominantly because he had tried to kill my best friend, who laid there unconsciously on the ground. I looked at her woefully, grimaced with internal pain that burned me deeply, and with the fury rekindled as I glowered at Holden who lay on the floor pathetically with his wide open with enormous trepidation. However, before I could use any more of the mystical power to harm Holden, my vision began to turn fuzzy, and my head became substantially heavy as if smashed by a heavy rock. I grabbed my sore head with my hands and my body began shivering profusely. With one mundane glance at Judy’s motionless figure on the ground, I collapsed onto the floor and knew no more.