“I see, you know Hanan, my mother,” Ana laughed, and only meaningless blabbers escape from Van’s lips. “She’s your mother?” Van managed to say. “Glad you still remember me Van,” Hanan said. And for Van, there is nothing stranger than seeing a mother that looks younger than him. “How can I forget how you almost caused me my school diploma,” Van muttered, as flashbacks of the Principal’s office replays in his mind. “You know her Van,” Don whispered as the rest try to relate to what is happening. “Remember when I was caught in the restricted hallway, and I kept saying I’m seeing an invisible girl?” “You mean that’s her Van…” “Yup, here she is,” Van answered. “And I didn’t believed you Van,” Alice said, her voice small and guilty.And their conversation is briefly interrupted by something grey and feathery. “Are they okay, I heard Azazel got them,” the Pigeon said in a panicky voice. “They are okay, don’t worry,” Ana answered as the Pigeon lands on Hana
About the Author Mamerto I. Relativo Jr. is an engineer in the Philippines, and writes for Hubpages in his free time. As of today, he authored almost 200 articles in Hubpages.
Enter At Your Own RiskGraduation day is fast approaching, and finally Van will be free from the stresses of high school life. For one thing, there is nothing romantic about studying in Lister’s Academy. It’s a daily torture where they are made to follow stupid school rules and endure ill-tempered teachers. For another, the place crawls with haughty school-mates, and who knows if they really learned anything useful. In fact, in his stay here his Math never improved at all. “And I should be given a medal for surviving an encounter with bullies,” Van boasted to his friends as they take a walk in the school ground one morning. Van pulled out a mirror and checks himself. And staring back from the mirror is a skinny boy with shadowy eyes, pale face and long fringes. “Did it occur to you that it’s you who have a problem?” His friend, a short haired girl in track suit said. She vividly recalls how Van chased-off a gang of bullies with a box cutter. “Hah! So being diffe
The story of Van’s misadventure in the deserted corridor is quick to spread. At first his friends cannot believe it, and they only did when they meet Van moments later outside the Principal’s office. “Okay Van, tell us what you did,” said Alice sounding shocked and disappointed all the same. Van is not really in the mood right now to recount what happened. He just survived an excruciating hour in the Principal’s office and he reckons his ears are now bleeding after hearing words like idiot boy, or stupid lad, and mischief. Nevertheless, he did tell his friends what happened and as what is expected, no one believed his story that an invisible girl in black is to be blamed. “You’re joking,” Alice said for Van is insisting that he is telling the truth. “Do I look like I’m joking?” He replied coolly. “No wonder why the Principal is furious, it’s like telling him a Sasquatch broke into your home and ate your homework.” And as if the hour-long verbal abuse by the
“You’re kidding,” Don said after hearing from Van how he befriended the likes of Ana. “It’s no big deal, we just have a bit of a chat,” Van replied as he scratches his head. “My dear pal, Ana is the most popular girl in school! Guys everywhere are itching to get a glimpse of her. Do you realize how lucky you are?” Don exclaimed while shaking Van in every word he speaks. “Wonder what Ana saw on you,” Alice chuckled, sounding as if this is all a bad joke. “Be careful though Van, hanging out with someone like Ana had its consequences,” Cara advised. “The girl must be bored, and she doesn’t have someone to talk to but me there. She will forget me tomorrow, I’m sure,” said Van, for this is how most upper-class people from higher sections behave. But the next day, Van and Ana is again seen together having a lively chat in the corner of the library. They have indeed become good friends and Don was never been so proud. “Go for it,” he whispered one day and Van onl
Kirsten’s sneering face is a nauseating sight to behold. There is a cold triumph in her voice as she recites to them how she, the appointed student of the school have all the authority to report any misdeeds, and they have broken an important school rule of not going to restrictive area. Don is now exercising every bit of self-control so he won’t grab Kirsten and choke her. “The penalties shall be discussed in the Principal’s office,” Kirsten concluded, her voice quivering with suppressed excitement. “Principal’s pet,” said Alice to herself. As much as she wants to nag at Kirsten, she knows that any wrong move will get them into deeper water. “But we just came here by accident,” Don explained. “No more excuses now, just tell it to the Principal!” She said and Cara’s face reddens behind Don.She then turns her attention to the unusually quiet Van. “And you, you are warned to never go back here. You never listen do you?” She nagged at Van. And Kirsten broke
Unlike what Alice thought, there is no cupboard behind the door, only pitch darkness, darkness so dense that no light penetrates through it. Don tried shining his flashlight but the darkness merely swallowed the beam of light. “I wonder what’s in there,” asked Van. He stares at the open doorway expecting some strange creature or a supernatural entity sticking out a clawed hand. “Don’t go there, Van. I don’t reckon it’s safe,” Alice warned. “Looks like it’s some sort of entrance to an abyss,” Cara suggested. “What do you think guys, shall we go now,” Van said, and three pairs of hands pulled him away from the doorway. “You are not going young man,” Alice nagged. “What if something dangerous is lurking there?” “Don, if something is in there it should have come for us when we opened the door,” Van explained. “Hey it’s Ana!”Everyone turned at the doorway after Cara said those. And even through the darkness, they could see Ana at a distance entering an unse
After seeing talking gates, floating flames and doors that lead to nowhere unless you bow, Van and his friends take turns to examine the staircase before them. The staircase looks innocent enough, except that there is no masonry or structure that supports it. The stairway simply floats in the air. To check for hidden jinx, Van will be putting his neck on the line. He tested the staircase by climbing a few steps. Nothing happens. “It’s safe to use,” Van concluded. Emboldened and convinced by Van’s act, his friends quickly follow him in the stairway. “How sure are you that the stairs are not cursed,” Kirsten, who refused to go with them sneered. “Please Kirsten,” Alice cried. She grabs Kirsten by the waist and drags her with them in the staircase.So far, they meet nothing unusual along the way. The only difficulty they have is holding the struggling Kirsten and making her behave. Van look down just to check how high they have gone. Down there is a dark and endl