Another Terrible Day

When Pablo turned menacingly towards him, Stanley could barely hear the chatter of other students around him. It was almost like he was no longer a part of the room. Everything around him echoed. He stood fixed at the point where he had been standing when he yelled at Clinton, sweating profusely and suddenly losing his courage. "He was in deep shit!" He screamed in his head.

As Pablo advanced closer to the insolent junior who had dared to push a member of his gang, he didn't tear his murderous gaze from him. Stanley couldn't move or run, he couldn't get his feet to move. His fear held him hostage while Pablo walked towards him..

"Do you know the gravity of what you just did? Do you know who you dared to push? What gave you the audacity to push a member of Young Daggers? You just messed up big time, youngie!" He screamed in Stanley's face, hijacking him by his collar.

"You just messed up. I don't know what gave you the mind to push me, but by the time we are finished with you, you will regret ever doing that!" Clinton snarled at Stanley, punching him in the stomach. Stanley winced in pain, alarmed by the unexpected attack. Fuming in rage, he swung a blow at Clinton but missed because Pablo was still holding him by the neck.

"Boy… You still have the guts to blow one of my guys. Everyone get out of my way! This stupid boy needs to be taught a serious lesson!" He threatened as he dragged Stanley to the T-end while the other guys kicked and punched him. The other students watched silently as Stanley was being rough-handled, but none of them was brave enough to step in and save him.

At the door, one of Pablo's guys looked around to see if there were any teachers in the compound who might see them dragging Stanley. After confirming that there were none to catch them in their atrocious acts, they continued dragging Stanley to the T-end to deal with him. And when he tried to shout, Clinton hit him in his mouth, breaking his lips. Pablo smiled in approval at Clinton as they continued to drag the poor Stanley.

Once at the T-end, they didn't waste a second before raining blows and kicks on Stanley, who tried his best to ward off the attacks. As the blows landed on Stanley's chest, stomach and legs, he cried like a baby, but the boys didn't stop. He tried his best to fight back, to stop the numerous blows he was receiving from different directions, but it didn't help. At a point he stopped fighting as he felt darkness all around him, his head feeling light as he tasted his own blood.

Clinton watched as Stanley was gradually losing his strength while he bled,and the boys still didn't stop. They dragged him by his collar like a rag doll as they continued to brutalize him. Clinton suddenly stopped. He was afraid that they would end up killing him. He withdrew from the gang feeling sick of their brutality. Things were only going to get worse if they didn't stop now.

"Pablo, guys… we might end up killing if we don't stop." He said in a concerned voice before the others stopped, leaving Stanley lying unconscious on the cold floor of the T-end.

"Remember, if anyone asks what happened to him, we have no hand in it! Let's get out of here!" Pablo announced in between breaths.

"We have taught him the lesson he deserved to learn. " He said as he stretched his aching hands before bouncing back to the dorm room, the other boys following him behind. As they walked back, no student dared look at them for fear of being next on their list.

From his bloodied view, Stanley watched them leave as he regretted ever challenging them. He was sapped of every energy in his body to the point he couldn't even cry. His ragged breathing was the only thing he could hear as he tried to lift himself up. But his body wasn't cooperating. His hands and legs seemed like they had lost their use because of the terrible beating he had received. He tried to speak, but no word came out… Was he dying? He wondered as his heavy eyelids closed, throwing him into complete darkness.

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When the school ambulance's blaring sound reverberated around the school compound, everyone knew something terrible had happened to one of the students of Bishop Evangelical College. Students rushed from different corners of the school to see which of the students had been injured or was possibly dead, which was usually the case whenever the school ambulance was active. There was so much commotion that even the teachers couldn't control the students, no matter how hard they tried.

Anna ran out of the sick bay when she heard the wailing of the siren to see which student was being taken to the hospital. Pushing through the crowd of students standing on the school veranda, she looked towards the ambulance and to her shock; it was Stanley lying unconscious on the stretcher being carried by medical personnels. Her heart somersaulted as she watched as they dumped her poor friend at back of the ambulance while they shut the doors close. She wanted to rush towards him to console him but she couldn't. Their teachers were watching them and if she dared move an inch towards the ambulance, they would punish her.

She whimpered as she remembered Stanley's last word about making Pablo and his friends pay for what they did to Sylvia. Did he act on it and got the beating of his life? What happened to Stanley? Anna mused as she scanned the school compound for Pablo and his gang. She immediately saw them watching the ambulance drive out of the school compound, a guilty look boldly written on Clinton's face, and she felt it in her gut that they were the ones responsible for whatever had happened to Stanley. She also noticed then that other boys were murmuring and secretly pointing at Pablo and his gang as they spoke amongst themselves. And that was enough confirmation that Pablo and his friends were responsible for Stanley's unconsciousness.

Out of curiosity, she walked towards some boys in her class to find out the story behind what happened to her friend. But none of them agreed to say a word about the incident because they were afraid of Pablo and his gang. After trying several times to persuade the boys to tell her the actual story but getting no answer, Anna finally decided to go back to the sick bay with a heavy heart.

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"I heard he was brutally beaten by some seniors. Who could have done something so horrible to a fellow student? This is the height of wickedness. I mean, we may be wicked seniors, but we have never done something so bad. This is too much!" Goodness lamented to Edith as they watched the ambulance drive off.

"Missionary school indeed! Yet the Deaconess keeps using us for ru…" before she could finish her sentence, Goodness's hands were already covering her lips to stop her from saying any other word.

"Goodness, don't do that next time!" Edith warned as she wiped her lip gloss, which Goodness had smeared all over her face in an attempt to cover her mouth.

"Do you want us to get in trouble?" Goodness whispered, looking around to see if someone had heard them.

"Goodness, I am seriously fed up. The next time you see that school ambulance inside the school compound, it maybe me inside,being rushed to the hospital. I can't keep slaving myself for Mr. Godwin. It is no longer funny. The horrible things I have endured I cannot explain to you. How come the Deaconess always sends you to the good ones?" Edith lamented.

"Stop talking about that here, someone may hear us." Goodness whispered

"Calm down, no one knows we are talking about the Deaconess." Edith snapped.

"What did the Deaconess do this time? Her name seems to be at the tip of your lips every time." Gloria asked as she walked in on their conversations.

"We were saying… em… we wonder if she will get to the bottom of this" Goodness lied while Edith glared at Gloria before walking out. "Whoever did this went too far," Goodness continued, while Gloria rolled her eyes at Edith's retreating figure.

"Do you know who might be behind this wicked act?" Goodness asked, trying to make small talk with Gloria to divert her attention from her initial question about the deaconess.

"We all know who can do something so evil!" She said as they both looked at Pablo, chatting and laughing with his guys. Everyone knew how vicious he was and what he was capable of. And they all had a feeling he was responsible for whatever happened to that junior. 

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The next week as Gloria and her friends sat in class still wondering who had done something so evil to a fellow student, Clinton was summoned to the Deaconess' office. Gloria watched him leave and her heart leapt in fear at the thought of Clinton getting her name entangled in the ugly incidents that have happened. Her mum would surely kill if her name was ever mentioned in connection with the terrible things that have happened in Bishop Evangelical College. 

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As Clinton walked reluctantly to the Deaconess's office, he was a bit afraid that his evil deeds had caught up with him. Ever since the investigation into what happened to Stanley had begun, he had always had the nagging feeling that he would be summoned soon by the Deaconess. As he thought about facing the consequences of all of his actions, his hands trembled a little.

"I am a Bernard, and we are untouchable!" He assured himself as he inhaled and exhaled before walking into the Deaconess's office.

After a series of tough questions and scrutiny from the Deaconess, Clinton was finally dismissed from the Deaconess' office. The questions the proprietress asked him had rattled him and made him to almost spilled the beans. But he tried his best to keep his mouth shut because his fear of Pablo was more than his fear for the Deaconess. He could never risk exposing members of his gang.

"I have no hand in it!" that was what he told the Deaconess no matter how many times she asked if he was responsible for what happened to Stanley.

Still feeling agitated, he walked into class, wondering who had ratted him out to the Deaconess. He wasn't okay with being harassed by Deaconess and if he does nothing about it, it may get worse. He was a Bernard and he would not be questioned like a common criminal. His father must hear of this and he won't like any of it. He needed to make a phone call home.

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Few hours after Clinton had left her office, the Deaconess received a phone call. When she saw name of the caller, she was reluctant to take the call but she couldn't come up with any excuse to give the caller for not taking the call. Left with no choice, she picked up the call and Pastor Jude's yelling pierced through her ear. She almost dropped the phone in alarm.

"Madam Deaconess, what is going on in that school? What nonsense am I hearing about a student being in an intensive care unit? I need answers!" He bellowed.

"Pastor… it is not anything that I can't handle. Trust me, I have it under control, and the culprits will suffer the consequences." Mrs. Rachel assured him.

"And who are these culprits? Rachel, what have you turned that school into? You seem to have forgotten it is a prestigious and religious school because I let you run your illicit business. This sort of news is not good for my school.. This is not what I expected from you, Deaconess." Pastor Jude yelled into the Deaconess' ear.

"I… I am taking care of it" Deaconess said calmly even though she wanted to tell back at the pastor.

"You have to sort this out! Well, that aside, can I know the names of the culprits?" Pastor Jude asked.

The Deaconess gritted her teeth against the desire to yell back at Pastor Jude. She kept her cool while she answered him in a calm voice.

"emm…Are you sure you want to concern yourself with such trivial matters, Pastor? It's just little boys rough play. Trust me to get to the bottom of it all." The Deaconess muttered.

"I said, I need to know their names Madam Deaconess!" He yelled into her ear.

"The primary suspect is Clinton Bernard, according to the little info we picked up during our investigation. We suspect he and some other seniors ganged up against their poor victim. Once I am done with the investigation… I will.."

"Listen to me Deaconess" Pastor Jude said, cutting into the Deaconess' statement.

"Clinton Bernard cannot be touched. Whatever you do, don't get him involved. Do you know who his father is and how many projects he has sponsored for the school? Do you know what it means if we disgrace his son? That's like waking a sleeping lion and we certainly cannot handle that. It is up to you, Deaconess, to absolve him of all his crimes. I don't want anyone mentioning that name Bernard in relation to that ugly incident. That is my command. Good day" With that last word he cut the call.

"But… Pastor Jude" Deaconess muttered into the receiver only to realize the call had ended. She gritted her teeth in anger, hating her alliance with Pastor Jude. How long would she continue to play to his tune?

She paced around her office trying to clear her head. And once her head was calmer; she realized that she had no choice but to do Pastor's Jude bidding. So much was at stake if she dared to rebel against him. Now, all she had to do was to find a way to keep Clinton Bernard away from all this mess. She was Deaconess after all and had the power to do anything in her school.