The next day was nice. Baron took his daughter to school in his car after packing her breakfast. The future looked bright for both of them and his daughter’s cheerfulness encouraged him. There were still moments of tears and longing for Dawn but everything was better. They prayed together and spent a lot of time together.
At school that day, during recess, Juana decided to go out for the first time in weeks. She went to the school eatery to buy some food and a bottle of Coke for lunch. Aunt Ann was absent that day and she wondered why. The eatery was full when she got there. Everyone minded their business instead of mocking her like they did before. Juana didn’t know what was worse-those students treating her like she was invisible and minding their businesses or them seeing her and mocking her everyday. She stood at the back of the eatery and waited for someone to leave his seat so she could take it. She waited five minutes before two tables got vacant. She went in quietly and bought some food. She took a table and faced the other empty chair at her table eating quietly. She secretly liked that she was not noticed by anyone. She even started to think she was indeed invisible. Few minutes after she sat, people began to leave the eatery. It was not anything about her but they had finished eating and drinking and had to visit the playground too. She looked around and found at least twenty one vacant seats. She was glad for the silence. After eating, she began to sip her drink slowly. Then she saw something. There was a girl on one of the seats few metres away from her. She was sitting alone just like her, but it appeared that she was talking to someone. Only that the person she was talking to was not visible. Her seat was the closest to the back of the eatery and she had two bottles on the table. Juana looked closely to see if she had a phone on her ear but she didn’t. It was funny but weird. It took a while before Juana noticed that she was crying. She wondered why she had never seen that girl. Not once. Maybe she was a new student? Nobody noticed she was there. Except Juana.
She stood up quietly and went to her. It was darker where she was seated.
“Hello”
Juana tapped her on the shoulder and she looked at her. She looked very innocent and sad.
“Why are you crying?” She asked. “Can I sit?” Juana asked but she shook her head “No. Can’t you see my mom sitting there?” Juana looked at the empty chair and sighed.
She drew another chair and sat closer to the girl.
“What is your name?”
“Ella. I’m a new student here” she said
“I see. Why are you crying?” She asked again
“Mom died. I miss her so much” she sobbed
“How did she die?” Juana thought she was stupid for asking such question but Ella answered
“In the plane crash. The one that was hijacked recently” she said stifling tears.
“Oh my”
“I know she’s dead because her ghost keeps coming here. Like now, she’s right here looking at us” she said staring at the empty chair.
“You see ghosts?” Juana was shocked
“Yes I do”
“What is your mom saying?” Juana asked looking at Ella’s teary face
“She’s telling me not to cry. She says she’ll visit me all the time and be there for me before she finally leaves”
“Finally leaves?” Juana was confused. She thought she was the most strange person on earth but not anymore
“Yes she’ll only be around for a little while longer” Ella said. Her eyes never left the ’empty’ chair.
Juana sighed. She’s never met someone who sees ghosts and she was beginning to fret.
“Does your father know?” She asked Ella
“Know what?”
“That you see ghosts, that you’re seeing your mom’s ghost, that she’s dead”
“Yes and that’s why he hates me. I hate him too though. I don’t live with him” Juana sighed. Just then, the bell rang for end of recess.
After school, Juana met Ella at the gate. She had a blank expression on her face and had her left hand on her forehead.
“What’s wrong?”
“I think I’ll be sick. I have to rest” she said and turned towards the road.
“Where do you live?” Juana asked following her
Ella turned to face her with the same blank expression “Don’t ask me” she said and began to hasten her steps
Juana was taken aback by her answer and it literally scared her. Maybe she’s a ghost who lives nowhere? That thought crept into her mind and didn’t leave even when she got home.
Her father was at home, mopping the floors. That was the first time anyone would think of mopping since Dawn disappeared. She could smell food cooking too. It was lamb stew, she could tell.
She went straight to her room after mumbling “Good work dad”. As much as she tried to forget the whole scenario of the day, her mind still went back to it. She was curious about Ella, her father whom she hated, where she lived, if she had any family left, and how she came to seeing ghosts.
” I’d totally freak out if I could see ghosts” she said to herself. She began to think maybe she had been imagining everything again. Maybe, hopefully she would go to school the next day and there’d be no Ella in grade 4.
But tomorrow came and there was Ella on the school assembly ground lined up together with other students in grade 4. It was a sunny Friday morning. Juana couldn’t pay attention to the assembly teacher; her mind was somewhere faraway. She looked from Ella’s face to Ivy’s to Alicia’s. Ivy focused her attention on Mrs Amanda who was talking about ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’. Juana as well as all other students had heard that ten thousand times or more but here was Ivy listening as though she were hearing it for the first time. Juana knew she wasn’t listening, it was an attempt on her part to a avoid locking eyes with ‘the evil genius’ as she was called by her classmates
She remembered when she first heard that mean nickname. It was during a PE class and other students had gone to the field for sports practice but she didn’t because she had menstrual cramps. Her PE teacher, Mr Jones had asked her to assist the tallest boy in class, Eric to pitch the basketball stand because it had fallen flat due to the previous day’s wind. Juana wished she had managed to agree to help without complaining because her refusal earned her that nickname ‘evil genius’
“You won’t play and you still won’t help Eric fix the stand, you’re so evil” one of her class bullies had said with a tone of disgust. Juana just winced in pain
“Evil genius” someone added, and one or two people repeated it until 60% of the class began to laugh.
But for Mr Jones ‘ deep voice of warning and command that sent the students trooping out of the class towards the field, they might have pulled at her hair making her more furious. That was something that pained her most-hair pulling. She had a long hair, and if she was silent while they bullied her, her hair would be pulled violently. The only way she could stop that was talking back at them and immediately walking out of the area. Juana was hurt by the nickname mainly because it was started by her best friend, Ivy.
Now that she thought of it, maybe she was indeed evil? She had heard rumors that Ivy and Alicia’s mother was to have a surgery soon and she didn’t ask them about it. Her mother has been gone for a million years and she’s almost stopped thinking of her? Eric’s sister, Anabelle got her hair caught by a tree branch behind the abandoned library where she usually hid, but she didn’t do anything to help. Some boys asked her to tell them the answer to a question during a test but she had played dumb. ‘Maybe I’m evil after all’ she thought
“Are you deaf or something?” The words reverberated in her eardrums and automatically jerked her out of her reverie.
“Sorry?” She looked around the assembly hall and found all eyes settled on her”
Dr Mrs Patricia was on the podium looking at her with a smirk on her face
“I’m sorry ma, I didn’t hear your question” Everyone booed.
“See me after this assembly is over” she said with an angry tone.
After the assembly, Juana began to hear whispers about her
“I’m sure she deliberately avoided the question, you know it was a sensitive one” she heard someone say.
“What could the question be?” She thought as she walked to the assembly teacher’s office. Dr Mrs Patricia was a very tall and strict woman but Juana tried to be calm as she knocked on her door. But Dr Pat was so busy with visitors in her office that she dismissed her without casting so much as a glance at her and it shocked her classmates when she returned to class. They expected her to be crying or serving a punishment but she wasn’t doing any. During recess, Juana was bored. She glared at Ivy and Alicia at the back of the class talking to Eric and Amy. They were talking about who had or didn’t have a boyfriend/girlfriend. She wished she could join her friends but they weren’t even looking her way. She had to be friends with Ella. There were a lot of things she needed to discuss with someone other than her dad. Or granny. She didn’t need to worry them.
“I wish mom was here” she said to herself.
“Hey” she saw someone place their hand on her locker. She didn’t look up because she knew who it was.
“You must be bored” It was Lillian’s voice
“Well we are having truth or dare at the back of the class now. So will you join us?” She sounded kind but she was far from it, Juana knew.
“If you will join us, we’ll be waiting for three minutes. If you won’t, we’ll start without you in three minutes” then she was off. The classroom was big but Juana could hear the voices of Eric, Ivy, Alicia, Adam, Amy and Ruby behind her. She heard them counting the minutes. When it was almost over, she got up and joined them. It was all fun at the beginning until Ruby dared her to kiss Eric. She asked for another dare but they were hellbent on that. She didn’t want to back away for shame, so she carefully on the cheek.
“Well I was talking about his lips” Ruby shrugged
“That’s enough Ruby. Let’s play on” Alicia said and Juana was glad that it ended there. But again it got worse when Lilian was paired with her.
“Truth or dare?” She asked
“Truth” Juana mumbled.
“Tell us why and how Lisa died”
Juana was shocked but everyone was waiting.
“Who’s Lisa?” She asked carefully
“Monalisa Caesar. The girl in your former school. She died in an accident” Eric replied. Without looking back, Juana stomped off and as soon as she was out of the class, she ran to hide in the abandoned library.
Juana felt bad. How did this story leak? How did they know her former school and how dare they link Lisa’s death to her? She wished she hadn’t joined them in the game. She waited in the library until the bell went for closing hour. She was too unsettled to face her classmates. She ran to Ella’s class but was told she had gone home during assembly and that it was an emergency.
“Do you know where she lives?” She asked Laura, Ella’s classmate
“No 44, Meadow”
“Thanks” she said and hurriedly walked out of the premises determined to see the girl who saw ghosts.
“Hey” the girl caught up with her.
“Hey don’t tell Ella”
“What?”
“Ella doesn’t want anyone knowing where she lives. She only let me know because my mom knows her grandmother”
“Oh don’t worry, I won’t tell her”
“Thanks” she said and continued running towards the school bus. Juana hid behind a tree until every student and the bus were gone. Then she came out of hiding and looked at the sky. It was clear. “Now is the time to visit Ella” she said and began to walk towards the road that led to Meadow Street