章 10: Troubling news
The next day, Michael went to school tired. He didn't have a good night's sleep because he was too busy trying to remember the music to the songs he chose. Problem was, he had a good voice, but didn't know a thing about music and composition. He couldn't even name an instrument when he heard it play.
It was difficult to sell lyrics without accompanying music, and if it meant a higher chance of selling and higher pay, he had to spend the extra effort.
Mciahel's research continued long into the night, and if not for Mind Alarm Clock, he would've been in trouble. On the other hand, he dared to go to bed late exactly because he had that ability.
Michael came back to his senses when he felt someone was shaking him.
"Michael, are you alright?" asked Anna. The girl sat with him in every class the day before and looked for him this morning as well.
"Sorry, didn't sleep much. Had things to do".
"What do you need to do at night?" she looked at him with suspicion.
"Ah, just had so many ideas, you know. Couldn't fall asleep".
"Were those ideas about biology, by any chance?"
"Anna, dear" Michael put a hand on her shoulder. The poor girl blushed all the way to her toes, "You are the only person who can't fall asleep because of biology textbooks, OK?"
"Documentaries too" she muttered.
"That only proves my point".
The door opened and the children's future history teacher, Mr. Apoll, entered. He always looked the same, with his patchy beard and greasy hair.
"Look, a Snape knockoff" one of the twin boys nudged another.
"Let's take roll, everyone. Anna? Carina? Jack? Jerry? Wait, that's not right" he stopped, after seeing the boys raise their hands, "It says here that Jack is the taller one. Are you playing tricks or did one of the teachers do it on purpose?"
It was indeed one of the teachers. Twins Jack and Jerry were plain-looking boys with high foreheads and freckled cheeks. They looked absolutely identical, except Jerry was taller by a head. Michael always wondered if that was medically possible but never had the time to find out.
After taking roll, Apoll started with his favorite joke, how his name was like the Greek god Apollo's. It never got any laughs but helped him break the ice. During his two lessons, he was very energetic and enthusiastic, nothing like in the second part of the entrance exam. He was also very polite to Michael, as if there was no animosity between them.
In fact, that was how Michael remembered Apoll. The man had always been cheerful and considerate to his students. The only time he behaved out of character was during the entrance exam previously.
After two lessons, there was a short break before biology, which was compressed into Monday and Tuesday for some reason. Anna was so excited she refused to take a walk in the halls with Michael, opting to prepare instead. Michael treaded out of the classroom alone, going one floor down to see if Mark Jones was in his office.
He tried the handle, but the door was closed. After fixing his hair in the restroom, Michael went back through the set of stairs on the opposite side of the hall. When he came up to the third floor, he saw the twins playing tag with two other boys. Carina was standing nearby, playing with her expensive phone. As Michael approached the noisy boys, his ears picked up on a sudden burst of footsteps in one of the classrooms along the hall. He was the only one to hear the sound amidst the noise.
At the same time, Jerry was so determined to tag his brother, he jumped at him like a cheetah at its prey. Realizing that the boy would be hit by the door in a moment, Michael grabbed Jerry by the shoulder mid-jump and pulled him down with all his strength.
The door opened suddenly, with Jerry being pulled away as it appeared in front of his face. Michael's strength was such that the whole time the door was moving, Jerry's body was moving back at the same speed.
"What's happening here? What are you doing in the hallway?" asked Mr. Apoll.
"Nothing, sir" one of the boys shrugged confidently.
Apoll checked the other side of the door and found Michael and Jerry innocently looking at Carina's phone together with the girl. He looked around, trying to pick up clues of misbehavior, but the kids had just started playing, so they weren't sweaty yet. Apoll gave up shortly after and went back inside.
"That was so cool, dude! Like, some ninja-grade stuff!" exclaimed Carina.
"Thank you so much, Michael. I'm sure he would've expelled me if I hit the door when he was opening it".
"Right? The creep was probably waiting to do that to someone" agreed the girl.
"No worries. Just be more careful".
"Thanks again" Jerry smiled and left to goof around with his brother. Michael also decided to head back to the classroom.
"Ding! 30 glory points earned for saving Jerry from expulsion. Host performed a good deed. Host, please continue to be a good person".
"Seriously, Glory, whole 30 points? Why is helping Jerry six times more rewarding than loving my mom?"
"Host, good deeds are the basis of a good person. Good deeds receive strong response from infofield".
The day went on after that, with Carina telling everyone who listened the story of how Michael saved Jerry from expulsion. Then she managed to tell it to everyone else.
Michael spent the week getting closer to Anna, doing his best in lessons and on tests, thinking how to sell the lyrics he had plagiarized, cultivating and taking care of his mother after school. The woman was very happy to receive so much of her son's attention. What other teenage boy would cook, clean and do laundry, or even know how to do those things? Few teenage boys knew how to, but a 33-year-old bachelor unable to leave his apartment often would be quite good at them. As for Michael, he was glad he could earn glory points while helping his mom. He couldn't do it in his past life, so this time he grasped the opportunity to make her feel loved.
On Friday, after all the classes were done, Michael broke through to the third level of Mind Enhancement stage and immediately checked the shop. Over the last few days, he saved 87 glory points. 13 of them he got because of good test scores – 2 points for 85% and above, and 3 points for a perfect score. Less impressive results weren't rewarded by Glory.
There was only one new symbol in the shop, 'Mindfulness. Intermediate mental technique. Allows one to pay more attention to the world. Cost: 30 glory points'.
Even though Michael wasn't confident in Mindfulness' value, he was now aware of its possible upgrades which could be more useful. Anyway, if it cost 30 points, it couldn't be completely useless.
"Glory, I wish to buy Mindfulness for 30 points!"
For the first time, nothing happened to him after an upgrade. There were no new sensations, thoughts, information. He tried to concentrate on his bed, but it remained to be just a bed.
"Glory, was this a fake upgrade? I don't feel anything different".
"Host will realize the benefits when he finds himself in certain situations".
The symbol also changed to 'Awareness. Advanced mental technique. Allows one to feel the world on a different level. Cost: 50 glory points'. Now that Michael already decided to not be thrifty, he went on to buy that ability as well. This time, the change in his perception was great.
The bed was not 'just a bed'. It was made of wood, it had a mattress that needed maintenance, and he could feel how it shifted under his weight. He heard the world around him breathe. He realized the difference between the softness of his fingers and the hard surface of the table. He knew his mother was talking on the phone even though she hadn't yet spoken a word. He could smell the dust on his bookshelf, in that spot he couldn't reach because he was too lazy to get on a chair.
Once the sensory overload eased a little, Michael found himself in his own body. Now he felt deaf and blind, missing the way he was one with the world a second ago. But he knew that his perception had heightened considerably, and that he could sense the world like that again one day, when his cultivation was higher.
He sat on the bed, contemplating about his sensations, when the door opened. There was his mother, her eyes red from crying. In her hand she gripped the phone handset so tightly, her knuckles went white. Her lower lip trembled as she mumbled, "Misha, son, I'm so sorry. It was the school. You didn't pass the third stage, dear. You… you didn't impress your teachers. They told me we should pack our things".
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