Today, the bell rang only once.
I sat by the window, watching the clouds drift by. My stomach growled. Someone raised their hand to ask if they could go to the bathroom, but right then, the sirens outside started blaring—louder than that student, louder than anything else.
We looked out the window. The sirens had passed, but no one said anything, so we stayed in our seats.
My mom packed something, probably the same breakfast again. I glanced across the street at the building facing our school, it looked grayer, darker, than usual, like the color had been drained out. I should've felt something. Fear, maybe. I must've thought it was in my head.
All I felt was hunger.
I heard it pass by again when I was at the cafeteria.
This time, it was louder. My throat tightened when I heard it, my heart beating hard. An unsettling dread washed over me, I coughed. I don't even remember what I was eating, but that was when it happened.
"EVERYONE! RETURN TO YOUR CLASSROOMS! NOW!" I heard someone shout. I didn't recognize the voice.
It became silent as the people took in those words.
Some people murmured, some people laughed, but most did start getting in line to go up; everyone became dead silent when that… person walked in.
He was bleeding all over. There were cuts and bruises all over his body. His hair was disheveled, the white uniform seemingly drenched in red. He walked as if nothing was wrong with him. "What the hell?" I mumbled.
No one dared to question who that was. Some people stared, some people didn't even notice.
But then, someone finally broke the silence....
"Sir! A-are you alright?!"
He should've known better.