Chapter 19 : Dangerous Man (1)

Nothing can be done by standing around doing nothing. With that mindset, I looked upon the plate above the door, written "Counseling Room". It was clearly written like that, but my eyes read it as "Condemning Room'' instead.

I didn't know what it felt like for the other students who stepped their foot into this room, but for me, this room spelled troublesome all over it. Being in this room constantly reminded me of how powerless I am. It wasn't the first time I was called here. Mr. Gilbert often used this room to give the student a "lecture", since aside from being a language teacher, he was also this school's counselor.

And he is one of the reasons why I dislike this room so much.

I shook my head, trying to focus my mind. After taking a breath, I knocked on the door.

"Come in." A deep baritone voice could be heard from inside. I turned the doorknob and stepped inside.

As I thought, this room was a bad idea after all. Soon after I stepped inside, I could feel the foul air inside. In the middle of the room, sitting on the chair facing me across from the desk, a middle-aged man propped his chin with his hand, as he stared at me. His face appeared normal, but the aura surrounding him was thick and heavy, creating a tense and suffocating atmosphere.

"Sit down."

I pulled the chair across Mr. Gilbert and sat down. He stared at me for a few seconds before giving me a reassuring smile. "Don't be so tense. We're just going to talk a bit."

Normally, in the circumstance when a teacher was going to have a serious talk with a student, such a smile was supposed to be a refreshing sight to see. However, Mr.Gilbert's eyes weren't smiling at all.

Seeing me being unresponsive, he leaned back with a face full of mirth. "Cold as always, huh. I will never admit this in public, but I honestly regard you highly, Williams."

I clenched my hand into a fist, trying hard not to show a hint of displeasure on my face. "Thank you."

"I heard about what happened with Harry Michelson, and also how you defied Mrs. Gabrielle."

So this was about that after all. I observed Mr. Gilbert for any change in his expression, searching for any sign of anger or disdain. I tried to measure his stance on this matter, however, aside from obvious amusement in his eyes, he revealed nothing else.

"Could you specify exactly what mistake I committed?"

Mr. Gilbert snickered. "Are we going to start with that? You might want to confess and apologize now so the consequences will not be more severe."

He didn't say I wouldn't be punished if I confessed or apologized. He was only saying my punishment will be lighter than the previous one. It means no matter what I said, the punishment was inevitable for me. He didn't even let me explain myself. "Condemning Room" indeed.

I scoffed inwardly, incredulous with this man's haughtiness. Outwardly, I said with a calm voice, '"Please enlighten me on what mistake I committed so I can apologize properly."

The smile on Mr. Gilbert's face faded and was replaced with a cold look. "So you are going to feign innocence until the end? Fine then. What do you have to say about how you knocked Michelson unconscious and your rude behavior towards Mrs. Gabrielle? Do you realize how much trouble you bring to the class?"

I remained unfazed even when he started to raise his voice. "If you are talking about how I accidentally smacked a broom to Harry Michelson's chin, then you are asking the wrong person since he pushed me first. The whole class can be a witness to that. As for Mrs. Gabrielle, I planned to apologize properly to her and receive my deserved punishment from her directly."

"Hoo, so you want to say that what happened to Michelson was not your fault but his instead, and the matter with Mrs. Gabrielle will be settled by you two ALONE, and an outsider shouldn't interfere?"

He was as sharp as always. Glad to speak with a quick-witted person. "You are joking. I never had such intentions."

"But I am your homeroom teacher. Any disobedient student who happened to be under my class will need to answer to me whether they like it or not."

"I understand. I will remember to report to you after Mrs. Gabrielle accepted my apology and gave me the punishment."

"Such a way with words. I wish you could show this side of you more often." Mr. Gilbert eyed me with a dangerous look on his face, which instantly sent goosebumps all over my body.

I chose not to admit or deny his words, but rather shifted back to the topic, "The series of events yesterday was witnessed by many students, you can ask them for more details. I never intended to defy Mrs. Gabrielle. It's just that my body condition wasn't well at that time, and I didn't want to disturb the class by causing a commotion."

"I heard you were sick for 3 days. Mrs. Gabrielle indeed goes too far by scolding you and throwing things at you," he said with a face filled with understanding, but only a fool would buy that.

"Mrs. Gabrielle is an excellent teacher who respects discipline. She had every right to be angry at me. However, I deeply regretted it and will apologize immediately."

"So you already have an idea on how to settle your problem with Mrs. Gabrielle, then how about the incident with Michelson?"

I chose my words carefully before replying, "What happened back then was pure accident. I was also very much shocked by how it ended. Nevertheless, he is still injured despite the circumstances, so I promise I will talk to him properly about the accident. I hope my answer can alleviate your worry, Mr. Gilbert."

Mr. Gilbert chuckled. "Why so serious? Don't get me wrong, Williams. I am on your side in this. Mrs. Gabrielle was being too much, and Michelson only reaped what he sowed. I know he always bullied you. Such a vile kid. It must be hard for you to endure that."

Again. He was trying to make me slip by voicing his support on me. You won't deceive me again. "That's not true, Mr. Gilbert. Harry Michelson is not a bad person by nature. He is just prejudiced against me just as everyone else is."

'Including you'. I silently added that in my heart.

However, as sharp as he was, he bounded to feel that soft jab. Mr. Gilbert laughed in a low voice. "You are right. Michelson is totally not a bad person, just misguided," he said lightly, but I was able to discern a mocking tone in his voice. I bet he was scorning at me deep inside right now.

Well, I couldn't blame him for that. Even I found my words hilarious. Anyone who thought Harry was a decent person must be crazy.

"Is there anything else you'd like to ask me, Mr. Gilbert?"

He looked at me with an unreadable expression and… an alarming smile. The temperature inside the room somehow felt colder now, as he approached me.

A chill flowing down my spine as a loud siren seemed to erupt beside my ear, forcing my body to stiffen unconsciously. This oppressive feeling, I knew it very well.

He slowly took a step by step towards me. All these years, the only thing that always saved me from major problems was my accurate sensibility. It might be due to how I grew up, but I could read other people's intentions very well. That's why I could easily perceive if a person had malicious intent or not. With this, I managed to survive this long.

And my sense was currently telling me that this man had a bad intention towards me.

Mr. Gilbert stood beside me. I looked up at him, trying my best to keep my wits in me and not barging out of the room.

'Is he going to hit me? Not that I care, but I hope he gets it done quickly.'

His hand slowly reached out to me. I braced myself, expecting a hit or two to come.

No matter how stoic I was, I could never hide my shock when he grasped a few strands of my hair, then pressed a kiss on it. He looked at me with ravenous eyes that made every fiber of my body screamed in disgust and dread.

Along with that nasty feeling built up inside, a voice reverberated in my mind.

'Be careful. Get out immediately after he finished.'

This man! He is dangerous!