08

"Are you going to open the mail or am I?" Immaculate joked, anticipating the contents of the letter.

Camille asks uneasily, "OK, hang on. Are we really going to open this letter?"

"YES!" said everyone as they awaited the contents of the letter.

"What if it's a trick?" she wonders again, and Immaculate grabs the mail without hesitation and gently opens it.

"What does it say?" everyone wondered, as Camille remained dumbfounded.

Immaculate took a deep breath and read the letter out loud.

Dear Anne Friends,

I'm writing to inform you that I was the one who assassinated your beloved good friend; you don't know who I am yet, but you will shortly.

Are you having a good time figuring out who I am? I am, after all. I feel bad about killing Anne, but am I truly guilty? HA! You wish, seeing how scared you are and how much you miss your roommate. That is your punishment for wrecking my life, mainly yours, Alyssa.

Yes, I'm addressing you. How does it make you feel? Do you have a sense of what I'm going through? You've created a villain that will take your treasured closest friends one by one as a result of your actions.

I hope you came prepared because I'm going to start with the attractive ladies HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Sincerely,

Ms.S

"That's what it said, this person is coming for Alyssa and the rest of us girls. This is a death threat," Immaculate said, concerned. "We should keep an eye on whoever sent it, especially Alyssa. She hasn't fully recovered from the last incident, and we don't want her to have a heart attack with this letter," she added.

"My thoughts are to hide since I'm too young to die," Elvira stated as she went into the closet to hide.

"No one is going to die until we report it to the police station where we are, or either take the complaint or summon a detective," Camille sought to reassure Elvira.

"Yeah, reporting it to the cops or a detective would help us figure out who's trying to murder us," Elvira said as she cautiously emerged from the closet.

"But, wait," Immaculate remarked, "didn't Jelyn previously beg for help from the man Clydesdale contacted? Let's quickly call that person and send him the letter; we're also waiting for the fingerprint result."

Everyone nodded in agreement with Immaculate's offer. When the bell rang, everyone was frightened, and they raced out of the dorm to get to class. When they came and gently opened the door, their professor was already there, tapping her shoes and crossing her arms.

"Mr.Lawrence, Ms.Gabby, Mr.San Pedro, Ms.Cornell, Ms.Lago, and Ms.Irlandez, it's nice of you to join us, but you have the audacity to appear (looks at watch) 25 minutes late to my class," Ms.Brinley sarcastically stated.

"We're very sorry, Miss.Brinley," Camille apologized and bowed, and the rest soon followed.

"Well, since the late students disrupted our important conversation, let's continue with our topic," Ms.Brinley stated demeaningly. "The topic that we were discussing that you just interrupted was Understanding of the Self," she added while writing it on the board.

"We spoke about knowing the self in our previous class; let's summarize, what is the major focus of understanding the self?" Ms.Brinley asked, leaning on the table.

Bailey stood up and raised her hand, "Ma'am."

"Yes, Ms.Santos," Ms.Brinley says, pointing at Bailey. "What is the major objective of knowing the self?"

"The primary goal of our project is to get a better knowledge of the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual," Bailey stated firmly.

"Very nice! Please take a seat; now, what is the major goal of knowing the self?" she asks questions, her brow furrowed.

"Ma'am, the major goal is to comprehend the meaning, relevance, and numerous variables associated to self concept and self worth," Immaculate explains.

"Excellent!" she said gleefully. "Now, why is it necessary to cultivate self-awareness in the classroom?" she questioned, her hands behind her back as she slowly walked from the front to the back of the room, turning around as she tapped on Clydesdale. "Mr. Lawrence, could you please respond to my question?"

"Yes, Ma'am," says Clydesdale. "Self-control is a talent that relies on a child's capacity to pause and reflect on their thoughts and behaviors, and it should be cultivated." In a rigid posture, Clydesdale said, "That's all, ma'am."

"Very nice, Mr.Lawrence" She applauded while congratulating him "That will be all class, good bye" She added taking her stuff.

"Good bye, ma'am Brinley" The students said while bowing.

"Thank goodness we didn't get any punishment from ma'am," Clydesdale whispered.

"And oh, before I forget, for the kids who were late to my class, please write down in a yellow paper "I'm sorry for being late, it won't happen again" 10 pages back to back and bring it to my office once your done, alright," she said with a grin on her face as she departed the classroom.

"I spoke too soon," groans Clydesdale as he slams his forehead against his desk.

"You should've kept your lips shut, now see what you've done," Elvira smacks Clydesdale's shoulder.

"That slap wasn't necessary, and for your knowledge, it's not my fault that Ms.Brinley is so severe," Clydesdale grumbled as he rubbed his arm.

Immaculate rolled her eyes and said, "More like a horror professor. You know, these nails aren't for writing," she continued.

When a long-haired, attractive girl with spectacles knocked on the door, the pupils were astonished.

"Excuse me, apologies for interrupting. My name is Airah Peaches, and I'm a student assistant from the clinic. May I ask who Alyssa Miller's friends are?" Airah said shyly.

Clydesdale points to the rest of the group with his arm up.

"Please come with me, your friend has just woken up," Airah remarked as she left the room and waited outside for them.

They promptly rose from their seats and followed her. They arrive to the clinic a few minutes later. Airah said something quietly before opening the door.

"Remember, this is a clinic," she said quietly, "so keep your voices down since there are other students here who are sleeping."

She then gently opened the door as they cautiously entered the clinic, their hands clasped together. Airah snatched her paperwork from her desk and motioned for them to follow her to where Alyssa was hiding behind those curtains, where she grinned as she opened them.

"How are you doing, Ms. Miller?" Airah ponders softly.

Alyssa smiled and nodded, "Yes, I'm feeling lot better now thanks to you."

"I'll just check your heartbeat to make sure you're ready to go," Airah said softly as she listened to Alyssa's heartbeat after hearing a lub dub noise, nodding and making an okay sign to indicate that she was ready to go. "Your heart rate is normal; just a nice reminder to keep her calm and relaxed; scaring or frightening her is what caused her to freeze," Airah stated.

They exchanged nods as they thanked Airah and left the clinic, arms linked with Alyssa.

Camille remarked, "I'm pleased you're okay."

"I missed you guys, too," Alyssa murmured as she hugged them. "So, what did I miss?" she said, her gaze going to them.

As the group becomes more anxious, they trade glances to avoid staring Alyssa in the eyes.

"There's something you're not telling me, what is it?" Alyssa stepped closer and glared at them as she said.

"There's nothing, nothing at all," Camille says, scratching her neck awkwardly.

"OK, then," Alyssa said, giving them a skeptical look.

They exhaled a breath of relief as Jelyn murmured, "No one's going to tell Alyssa about the letter, got it."

They all agreed and nodded, then swiftly followed after Alyssa, laughing and giving her a nervous smile.