Chapter 17: Strange Feeling

“I am very impressed with your skills, but you are not qualified for the required job.” The woman who was sitting in front of me said politely. She was a middle-aged woman with brown skin and bright green eyes. Her face was adorned with makeup, but it couldn’t help her hide wrinkles. She was the principal of the school.

I applied for a teaching job in an elementary school as I promised my parents to find a suitable job and helped them financially. But disappointment engulfed me when I heard her words.

“You do not have a bachelor’s degree.” She glanced at my resume. “You worked for Robison’s fashion house, why did you resign? I guess their pay is great.”

“I resign from them because of some personal reasons,” I said with a hint of sadness and fixed my gaze on the table to avoid eye contact.

She said nothing and flipped through the papers, glancing through them. “Okay, can you deal with five-year-old kids?” She asked, and my eyes widened in surprise.

“Sorry?”

She smiled and fixed her glasses, meeting my eyes. “I told you I’m very impressed with your skills. We’re looking for a teacher who communicates with our kids with patience and love. I’ve been working as a teacher for almost three decades and I’ve never met a woman like you. What are we looking for in a teacher you perfectly fit in that category? There is a saying that a teacher is the second parent of students.” She joined her hands, leaning over the table. “Are you ready to become the second parent of those kids?”

I blinked as it took me a few moments to find my voice back. “So am I eligible for this job?” I asked.

“Yes, you are, Miss Bennett, you’re eligible for this job,” she said with a warm smile.

“Thank you so much,” I said. “I promise, I will never disappoint you.”

“Let’s see.” She straightened herself against the chair and fixed her glasses. “You can start work tomorrow.”

“Thank you again,” I said and grabbed my file and pressed it against my chest.

“You may go. Have a great day, Miss Bennett.”

“Have a great day, Mrs. Johnson.” I nodded and stood up and walked out of the office. Finally, I found the job according to my choice. Teaching jobs better fit in my schedule.

Dad had been discharged from the hospital as he was recovering quickly. It had been a week since I last saw Henry in hospital. He hadn't shown up at the house since that day. I wondered where he had spent the entire week.

I looked at the school playgroup where cute little kids were playing, screaming, and laughing. Aww, my heart melted when I saw their chubby cheeks and cute pouts. Kids were like magic in this gloomy world, and I loved them. I was happy I was going to work there and got to see their faces every day.

Joseph was waiting for me next to the car in front of the school. Since the Vivian incident, he never left me alone. He followed me everywhere, even at Sarah’s place. Sometimes it bothered me, but it was not his fault, anyway. He was doing what he was being told. Henry would have warned him not to leave me at any place for over five minutes.

I was about to make my way to the car, but a little girl caught my attention. She was crossing the street alone. I glanced at the school gate, and the guard was nowhere to be seen. She must have sneaked out of the school in his absence. I had to take her back to school because it was too dangerous to wander around the busy street.

“Joseph…” I called him and handed him my bag and file and said, “I’ll be right back. I have to take that girl back to school.”

“I’m waiting for you right here,” he said politely and stuffed my bag into the backseat.

I headed to her but before I could reach her; I darted to a black car coming towards her at high speed. “Shit!” I hissed and rushed to the road. I didn’t know if the driver had noticed her or not. I ran as fast as I could, crossing the road. I waved my hands at him, but he didn’t seem to notice because the car speed was still high. Ten seconds passed, then twenty and thirty. Finally, I wrapped my arm around her small body and cushioned her before I jumped on the other side of the road.

I hissed out when a sharp pain stabbed my back and into my arms. I squeezed my eyes, biting into my lower lip to suppress my whimper. We were safe! I could feel two heartbeats throbbing at the same speed.

When I was ready to face her, I slowly peeled open my eyes and looked at her golden hair. She was hugging my body tightly and shaking with fear. Her ragged breath blew across my neck as she was gripping my arms in her small hands.

“Hey…you’re okay,” I whispered and caressed her hair. “You’re perfectly fine.”

“Mum,” she mumbled, pressing her head against my chest and the next second she broke into a sob.

My heart broke seeing her cry. “Hey, sweetheart, you’re okay. Look at me.” I rubbed her small back as she buried her face in my neck.

“Alice, are you okay!” Joseph gasped when he approached us.

“I’m fine.” I smiled and caressed the girl’s hair aside to see her adorable face.

“Mum…” she mumbled again and rubbed her eyes with her fists. Poor girl, she was missing her mother.

I cupped her face and made her look at me. “Don’t be afraid. You’re safe with me. Now open your eyes.” She slowly opened her eyes and let me see her beautiful blue eyes. She watched me with her big blue eyes and said nothing, her small pink lips trembling. She was so adorable.

“Ma’am…!” A young woman jogged towards us, worrying. “Are you alright?” She gasped, scanning me and the girl. “Oh my God! Harley…” she kneeled next to us and examined that girl. After a moment, she sighed in relief when she found no sign of injury on her body. “Thank you so much. I didn’t know what would happen to her if you were not on time.”

“No, it’s okay,” I said and grabbed Joseph’s hand to stand on my feet. I winced when I felt a scorching pain in my left elbow.

“You need to see a doctor,” she said when she glanced at my wound.

“I’ll take care of it.” I smiled and patted my jeans clean.

Suddenly, a black SUV pulled up in front of us. “Her father is here,” the young woman gasped and carried the little girl in her arms before she headed to the car.

I glanced at the car but couldn’t catch the sight of her father. I was startled when my phone buzzed in my jeans pocket. I thrust my hand inside and pulled it out, glancing at the number. It was Sarah. Without another thought, I picked up and brought the phone to my ear. “Hey.”

“Where are you, Alice?” Sarah shouted on the phone and made me flinch. “Where are you?”

“Hey, calm down. Why are you shouting?”

“I’ve been waiting for you for an hour and you’re asking why I am shouting. I’m asking one last time, are you coming or not?”

Oh, no! Yesterday she had asked me to meet her in Washington square. How could I forget that? I cleared my throat. “Sorry, Sarah, I’ll be right there in a few minutes.”

“You have fifteen minutes,” she said and hung up the phone without even listening to me further.

“Washington Square,” I huffed to Joseph and climbed into the car.

He slid behind the wheel and started the engine. “You need to treat your wound first.”

“I’ll take care of it, Joseph. Thank you.”

After fifteen minutes of driving, he dropped me at Washington Square. I quickly got out of the car and said, “Please, don’t wait for me. Sarah is with me and she’ll drop me back home.” He nodded in agreement and drove off.

I looked at Sarah. She was sitting on the bench and typing something on the phone. I took a seat beside her and smiled. “Hi.”

“You’re seventy-five minutes late,” she said without breaking her focus on the phone.

“I’m genuinely sorry.”

“Okay!” She sighed and stood up and grabbed her handbag. “First, we’ll go to the hospital to meet Ava, and then we’ll rob the shopping mall. What do you think?”

Hospital, but she didn’t tell me we were going to meet Ava.

“Alice…?” She crossed her arms over her chest as waiting for my reply.

“Henry will not like the idea of me being around his girlfriend. He warns me he never wants me to meet Ava.”

“Don’t worry. He won’t find anything.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

*****

We arrived at the hospital and made our way to Ava’s room.

“Hey, your hand. Are you hurt?” Sarah blurted when she saw my wound.

“It’s nothing.” I brushed away her hand. “Let’s go, we’re getting late.”

“Show me your hand first. How could you be so irresponsible, Alice?” She chided and grabbed my forearm, examining my bruises.

“I’m fine Sarah. It’s not like I’m dying.” I snatched my hand away from her grasp. I didn’t want to bother her. It was just minor bruises, and she was behaving like my hand was fractured.

“Shut up, you stupid woman. Don’t you know there is a risk of infection if you don’t heal your wounds on time? Let’s go to the doctor first.”

“Sarah…!” I groaned in annoyance.

“No…!” Sarah clipped and dragged me to the doctor.

After a while, the doctor cleaned my wounds and put on bandages, and gave me a few painkillers.

“That's good,” Sarah said and grabbed my arm carefully before helping me to stand on my feet.

“My hand is wounded, and my legs are perfectly fine. I can walk properly. You don’t have to hold me like a toddler.” I chuckled, and she broke into a smile.

We headed straight to Ava’s room. I was excited to meet her after a month. I had been feeling guilt and regret for one month. She went into a coma and ended up in a hospital bed because of my stupidity. I didn’t know how long it would take her to wake up from a coma. Everything would be alright when she recovered and I would never see Henry’s face.

We approached her room and saw a muscular man in a black suit standing outside the room. When we stepped into the room, he blocked our way. “Sorry, ma’am you can’t go inside.”

“Who do you think you’re stopping us?” Sarah growled at him, poking her finger into his chest.

“I’m just following orders,” he said. “Sir strictly warned me that nobody is allowed inside the room.”

“Oh no, Henry,” Sarah blurted out and stepped back from the room.

I glanced through the transparent window and saw Henry sat next to Ava’s bed. His hand interlocked with hers as he was staring at her with affection. I felt something strange tingle in my heart, which I had never experienced before. I didn’t know it was a feeling of jealousy or guilt, but I didn’t want to feel like that.

Without thinking twice, I turned around and stormed down the hallway.

“Alice, stop!” Sarah called. “Where are you going? Don’t be scared he will not kill you.”

“I’m not scared of him,” I stated firmly.

“Why are you walking like you saw a ghost?”

I stopped and turned around to face her. “Because I don’t need to stick around here any longer.”

“Why are you speaking like this?” She studied my face for a while. “Are you okay?”

I rubbed my forehead, sighing exasperatedly. “No!” I didn’t know what was wrong with me, and why I was feeling burned in my heart. Damn! I hated this feeling.