Learn to Smile

A couple of days later and it still seems as though Mallory was acting very strange. Sophia had admitted that she does think that there is something weird going on as well, but we had done nothing about it.

I walked through the musky cafeteria during one of the few stunted breaks we had in the morning. It was good to gain freedom from the prolonged classes here. Most teachers acted in a maddening jittery fashion, especially in the presence of an eccentric staff member or the obtrusive Mrs. Gertrude.

Out of the corners of my eyes, I saw Mason, one of the disruptive students that had gotten the entire class sent to this jailhouse. I glared over in his direction to see the guy crouching over a cat with a match in one hand. This appalled me. It was one thing to fight with other equally brash people, but to harm a vulnerable animal like this was malicious. I ran over and pushed him over, giving the cat room to get away from the imprudent boy.

“You know, you’re the kind of person who can get help from a place like this. Not to mention the only kind who needs it. And forcing the rest of us here as well,” I hollered.

“You’re kidding right?” he scoffed. “This place obviously is not helping anyone. Look around you, the people who had these therapy sessions are not normal. They’re like freaks now!” and there it hit me. The thing that every student here knew, yet was unanimously eluded, was put into words. I guess that was what I needed to bring me back to reality from my sanctuary of ignorance.

So that night I stayed awake, sitting by my window and thinking of what I could do. I really did not know, what was there to do about it? I was only one kid. A sudden shout pushed me away from the window with its control over my fright. On impact, I rammed my thumb into the end table. I crawled back to the window to see Mr. Deming, one of the most apprehensive teachers, running by. His face was rinsed with fear and sweat.

“What happened?” Sophia asked, waking up from her light sleep.

“Mr. Deming just ran by screaming!” I exclaimed, my voice quivering from the pain I just endured from my thumb and the fear of what was happening.

“Hah.. I knew he would lose it eventually. He always did act weird,” the ever-so-blithe Jeanie mused, though it was obvious from her expression that even she was getting unnerved of this place.

The three of us sat there gloomily. I would need to get ice for my thumb soon, but I dreaded the thought of leaving this room. Mallory, to our great relief was no where near. Everyday, Mallory and anyone else who had the therapy session would go to Mrs. Gertrude’s office at exactly 5.00 to 12 or 1 o’clock. For some strange reason, they would wear the exact same thing: a hooded maroon sweater and black denim pants.

We were half way done. Two weeks have passed since the class was punished to endure this nightmare. No one had seen Mr. Deming since five nights ago when he ran away howling. I sat with Sophia and Jeanie while we ate in the old cafeteria, resting my stinging thumb on the table. Mallory was already in the dorm getting ready to go to her daily therapy session.

I looked over at Jeanie, she was unusually solemn today. “You guys...” Jeanie started. “I’m... I’m going to a therapy session today!” she wailed loudly. That took us off guard. Sure, she was the most likely person out of the four of us to get in trouble, but after the first batches of kids that acted out went to these therapy sessions, everyone did everything in their power to not get in trouble.

“What happened?” Sophia asked soothingly.

“Yeah Jeanie, what did you do this time?” I asked, angry that she had gotten Mallory and herself into a therapy session.

“I was just talking with some people. And the class was already really loud anyways, so I didn’t think that the staff would notice if I talked about Mr. Deming’s disappearance. But then she did! And she told me I had a therapy session at 5.00,” her face bitter and terror was radiating from her.

“Oh no.. What are we going to do?” Sophia chimed in.

“We..?” I asked skeptically. The staff members obviously did not want anyone talking about their business, let alone meddle with it.

“We have to help her! We can’t let her become like... them..” Sophia whispered, gesturing at students wearing hooded red sweaters and black denim that were staggering toward Mrs. Gertrude’s office.

So we decided to do the unthinkable. Sophia and I were putting on a maroon sweater with a deep hood and pocket and black denim pants over the clothes we were already wearing. We hurried to reach the other students who had gone to meet Mrs. Gertrude. Sophia had my elfin camera in her hands, since my thumb was still sore, I may not be able to catch it if it fell from my other hand. We knew that there was something wrong that the staff members and Mrs. Gertrude were doing to the students, but we needed proof. Something that would help get everyone to rebel or at least run away.

What Sophia and I saw... could have killed us on the spot. Though it didn’t, the outcome was just as bad. Mrs. Gertrude had the students wearing black and maroon border her office. Sophia stood slightly behind me to hide the shooting camera.

When Jeanie came in, knowing we were already here, Mrs. Gertrude directed her to sit in the large towel wrapped chair in the center of the tiny room. Jeanie scanned the room to find us and spotted Sophia. She didn’t notice me for my head was deep within my hood.

“Vance...” her unvoiced demand was followed by the boy standing next to me to turn around and open a closet door. He pulled out a cart filled with diminutive sharp knives.. Understanding finally crept to mind.. Hadn’t the brochure said that she used to be a brain surgeon?

I subdued a gasp as I figured what was going on. My body fell limp and I couldn’t move. Wasn’t there a scar near Mallory’s scalp?

When the cart came into Jeanie’s view, she got up, panic creeping into her. “What are those for? Isn’t this just a therapy session?!” she shrieked as she got up from the chair.

“Sit down,” Mrs. Gertrude ordered. When Jeanie disobeyed and tried to escape, two of the bordering teens grabbed her and hauled her back. Jeanie, still squirming, accidentally knocked over Sophia and the camera slipped through her wilted hands. Mrs. Gertrude didn’t miss a single thing as she stooped down to pick up the still-recording sturdy camera. Her other hand snatched Sophia’s arm and she glared down at her.

Obviously not attuned with technology, Mrs. Gertrude left the camera recording on the cart with the surgery instruments, where the camera would document all the gory details. “Give me the pill,” she demanded as Vance picked up a small pink tablet and dropped it in Mrs. Gertrude’s hand. She jammed the pill down Sophia’s throat and proceeded to the wide-eyed Jeanie. The two writhed for seconds more and dropped to the ground unconscious. Mrs. Gertrude ordered two more people to help lug my friends’ bodies into the chair.

The rest was a blur.. A bloody, metal clinking blur. I closed my eyes most of the time. The wretched minutes slugged by with cruel indifference. I could barely breathe, the stench of blood oozed from my dear friends’ heads and accumulated in the air around us. When the dark deeds were done, Mrs. Gertrude left the room with a note on Jeanie and Sophia’s lap. The rest of the hooded students trailed after her. I followed them until the group dispersed. As carefully as I could, I crept back into the surgery room.

I picked up the note and read it. “Your names are Jeanie Crowe and Sophia Fare. Take as much time as you need gathering your thoughts and then clean this room when you are done. Only when you are sure you remember enough should you go back to your dorms. Do not wait too long though, for you will not remember everything before this night. Come everyday from now on at five to help.” I could barely read the note. My fingers were trembling with horror. I held the note in front of the camera, thankful that it was still there. I dropped the note back between my former friends. Their minds were gone... I had no one here anymore.
I grabbed my camera with my good hand, turned it off, and stuffed it into my pocket.

“What are you doing up so late?” was the greeting I was given upon reaching my room. Each syllable was pronounced in that horridly robotic voice.

“I just went to the bathroom..” I lied unenthusiastically. The numbing sensation I had was the only thing keeping me together. I had no sleep that night, not with the knowledge of what had happened to Mallory, who was sleeping on the bed next to mine.

The next morning, I showed the clip to as many people as I could find, rounding them up. Everyone who saw it wasn’t as nearly troubled as I. Witnessing something like this first hand could never be matched by a video clip, no matter how many times you see it. It had been noon already and the news was circulating through the school. The students who didn’t see the clip was just as scared as the ones who did.

When the break for lunch was here, all the non-smiling students gathered in a huddle in the cafeteria. We worked as one mind, me being the center of it. We looked around warily, the staff members were nowhere near, but the teachers were still here. They seemed to be guarding the door, though their fretful faces showed no enthusiasm for their job. “Come on everyone.. Go now before the staff members come back!” I called out.

As the mob of students rushed toward the door, the teachers stepped away before they could be trampled. An abrupt yelling caused the mob to run faster. I looked behind me to see the staff members, Mrs. Gertrude, and the surgery tested students chasing us. “Hurry!” I shouted and noticed the teachers were actually following us. But there was no more room to go. The direction we went in led us to a lake. There was no going around it.. We were trapped.

But our luck had not run out just yet. A ship had cruised by. Squinting my eyes, I could just make out an indistinct man standing on top, steering the ship.

“It’s Mr. Deming!” I heard someone call out. The mob boomed with excitement, waving over to him. The ship cruised over to us. Everyone rushed onto it as Mrs. Gertrude’s group neared. Just in time, the ship sailed off again, leaving Mrs. Gertrude and her group staring at us from the shores.

I looked closer at her... she wasn’t sad. On the contrary, a wicked smile rested upon her face.

I looked in the direction she was smiling at to find a dreadful sight. Through all the celebrating, cheering students and teachers, was Mr. Deming. The last time I saw him, he was sweating with fear. Now, he was smiling robotically, a scar rested near his scalp.