章節 33: Chapter 33
Layla was called by Sir Kingsley to the infirmary where they could talk while Blair was resting on one of the beds, hidden away from her bullies by placing her in the far right corner of the room. She didn't know why she was called since she was as clueless as all of them were; she didn't know Blair, although she wished she did. She didn't know what was the exact reason why Sir Kingsley called for her but she knew that it's something about Blair's situation. Layla's friends disagreed with the idea of involving her in the new complications because they view it as a gateway to danger and endless possibilities of ferocity but Layla agreed to talk with Sir Kingsley nonetheless, after all, she made him see her unexpected gained of trust.
She was nervous about it unquestionably, her constant fidgeting, unending thoughts, heart pounding, the sheen of sweats on her hairline, and continuous deep sighs of trouble clearly made her worry evident. She didn't want it to be obvious to anyone who she might pass but she could not control the way her body reacted to her overthinking unrested mind. She could not control the way her body reacted to a particular man when he's near enough whether physically or inside Layla's mind. She wanted it to end but she would not avoid him because it would make her feel weak and unable to handle her emotions.
She didn't have the answer as to why she trusted him. If his intention was to question the way her eyes looked at him when Blair fell unconsciously into his arms and the moment he looked at Layla, their eyes locked like quietly communicating—if that was his intention then she would not have any answers at the tip of her tongue nor inside her mind.
Sure, he's intelligent and he's the only one capable of thinking an intelligent way out of the trouble. Everybody could eventually try to find a way but no one will handle it the way everyone thinks Sir Kingsley would handle it. Still, the reasons why he's likeable and trustworthy weren't enough for her to trust him like she trusted Sir Arthur, her parents, and her friends. They're both confused but it already happened and Layla couldn't take it back even if she wanted to but if it was possible then she would still not take back the look she has given him because she really wanted him to help Blair. She felt as if the trust was the only thing that gave him the push to continue his intentions of helping the poor girl. The trust was the fuel to get to the heart of the matter. However, it annoyed her that she didn't know why.
Perhaps, Sir Kingsley was right, they're both intelligent so they could understand each other better than the others.
She knocked on the door and took a deep anxious breath before she opened it.
No, intelligence doesn't have anything to do with one's emotions. In fact, sometimes emotions could control a person's mind and body that the said intelligence can feel as if it doesn't even exist in the first place.
Sir Kingsley was sitting in front of the nurse's table, he was alone there, the nurse was nowhere to be seen and the lights were off which confused and frightened Layla while her eyes looked around the wide room. The only source of light was the lamp that's on the nurse's table and Sir Kingsley kept on switching it off and on. The sound it made was only the loud noise that could be heard other than their soft breathing.
Layla's eyes darted on him and wondered what was going on inside his mind that made him seem so lost and so sad while he was leaned back in the seat, his thighs were spread apart, and he was looking directly at the lamp, he never looked at her as she came in. He was either lost in thought or he didn't feel the need to greet Layla but either way, the exhaustion was visible in his face and she could make out tiny spots of dried blood on his left cheek.
She was hesitant to close the door behind her since it may look inappropriate to the eyes of the others who could walk in anytime and she was admittedly scared of facing him alone in the dark wherein, for her, emotions are stronger and more visible. It's maybe because of the lack of light and noise so it could bring out the emotions that she tends to keep deep inside of her. Like that one miserable night when she lashed out at Amon for something that cannot be controlled.
She took a deep breath and looked around for any people who might be near enough to get the wrong idea and when she thought she was finally calm, she closed the door with shaky hands that made her look at them. She quickly looked away from her hands and angrily tried her best to keep them steady.
As she turned around, she slowly took steps towards her teacher while looking at him, waiting for him to acknowledge her. The more she walked further and the longer he remained still, the more apparent the spots of the dried blood all over his skin were. They were all over his body and clothes, and it was all just from carrying the girl towards the infirmary which was not long by the way.
It scared Layla to see how much blood the poor girl lost and how many wounds she was suffering from. At the same time, it made her heart warm at the thought of Sir Kingsley's willingness to help her even if it results in how he looked like right now. It's always nice to see how a person can be willing to help others especially when they seem cold-hearted and mad.
She took a sit in front of him but her reactions to him became worse, her palms were sweatier than before, her heart was like a bird trapped in a cage, she felt like she couldn't breathe, and to top it all she could feel the unusual heat radiating off his body despite the space between them. She felt like she was being suffocated by him and she wanted to leave but she was there now and she was stuck in her seat.
To make her busy, she began reaching for the tissue on the table and yanked a few of them off the container then she also reached for the alcohol and poured it on the tissues. She turned her head to look at him and he was already looking at her unfazed by what Layla was doing. She placed the alcohol back on the table and offered the tissues to him.
"Y-you have a lot of dried blood on your skin, S-sir." She muttered and Sir Kingsley stopped his unusual behavior and sat properly, accepting the wet tissues that Layla provided him.
They were both quiet after that very short chat Layla was constantly fidgeting and she grew more impatient with the way Sir Kingsley has been behaving and she still has classes to attend to. While Sir Kingsley was sat there while rubbing off the blood on his skin and he returned to switching off and on the light, keeping his full attention on the lamp, thinking very deeply.
Every time the small light was turned off, Layla could feel her breath halting in complete awkwardness and uneasiness but it never halted for too long because he would always turn the light back on. She observed him as he missed spots on his face and the way he still didn't completely wipe them away as a few of the stains remained on his face while he was immersed in the dull-looking lamp.
"Can I ask why the lights are all off?" Layla quietly asked while looking away at him. She didn't want to intentionally startle him and she knew that Blair was resting on one of the beds.
"Blair didn't want any lights to be on. She said it makes her feel restless and that the lights were too bright for her liking." He explained simply without an interest in the topic in his voice. However, they had gone through a lot while helping Blair.
After Blair was treated, she was asked by both the nurse and him about her name and what grade is she in. At first, she refused to give any information about herself but when the nurse had left to pick up a call and they were alone, Blair only revealed the simplest information about herself to Sir Kingsley. When the nurse came back however she said that she was going to sleep but without the lights on. The nurse didn't want to since it was important for everyone to see what was happening inside the infirmary. Sir Kingsley knew the conversation wouldn't end without him interfering and so, he actually made the nurse believe that she needed to leave so he could do what Blair wanted. And it did calm her down after the lights were all off.
The moment Layla heard Blair's name, she felt a sense of a déjà vu and she couldn't explain why. She had never met her but perhaps she had heard of her name before and she just couldn't remember. Layla slowly nodded and awkwardness instantly followed at that moment.
She wanted to leave and she's becoming irritated by Sir Kingsley. Minutes passed by and she knew that she could no longer be able to attend her last class which was Physics without feeling guilty and embarrassed when she enters the room, causing her to feel as if she didn't want to attend Physics anymore.
"Why do you want me to help Blair, Layla?" He questioned casually but Layla's breath finally halted and was caught in between her throat making it painful to gulp.
Sir Kingsley had noticed yet he didn't care about Layla's odd reaction to it, he cared for answers—the answers that Layla didn't have.
"The way you looked at me, Layla... It almost felt as if you were only trying to manipulate me. Is that your only motive?" His eyes landed on her. "Or is it one of your other motives?"
She knew what he was referring to but it wasn't her intention to do it now especially after what happened. She also couldn't blame him though for thinking that she was just trying to get inside his mind because they did have a strange conversation that morning when she followed him outside.
"I was not manipulating you, Sir Kingsley." He was the one who was doing it to her. "I..just trusted you." She defeatedly answered as if she was already tired at the beginning of their conversation.
"I know but I want to know why. Is it just because of your pity towards Blair or is it because you felt as if you needed to trust me because I am the only person who is wise enough to handle the situation?" He was unfazed by every word that came out of his mouth while Layla was barely keeping herself out of trouble.
He was right about the last words of accusation of her. She felt that she needed to trust him and to be honest, she didn't want to, it just came towards her like a great idea popping into her mind. Though that didn't mean that that was the reason why she has reacted that way. She was never careless when it comes to trusting people and showing her emotions but it suddenly came to her. He affected her in ways that were the main reason why she hated him. She felt so weak and stupid in front of him or just whenever his presence was around.
"What you said, sir, aren't the answers to what I've done," Layla mumbled while her hands intertwined on her lap, silently comforting herself. "I don't know why I did what I did but I genuinely meant whatever my eyes had said to you."
Sir Kingsley stopped his weird actions and left the light on. He leaned into her, trying to assess control and making sure he intimidates her enough. Layla's body stilled after she backed away a little while her eyes widened in surprise. He watched as she began to feel more uncomfortable than she already was.
"Whatever sincere conversation our eyes had, it made me want to be good," He looked away from her. "And I don't think I want to be good."
Layla heavily gulped, overthinking everything that's happening and what to say. "To be honest, sir, I also don't think you are suited to be good but you still want to help Blair."
"Of course. I'm merely reasonable and trustworthy when it comes to sensitive matters. It's only fair that I would help Blair. She's a good kid, I speculate she's better than you." He goes back to his weird behavior, ignoring her once again.
Layla shook her head in disbelief and stood up, thinking that it was their final conversation. "I will be on my way now, Sir."
"Don't you want to know why I keep on switching the light on and off, Layla? Aren't you just a bit curious?" His brown orbs turned to gold as the light hit his skin. He left it open for a while, waiting for Layla with a twinkle of amusement and excitement in his beautiful golden eyes.
Layla sighed in despair and turned her head to glance at him but as soon as she saw the glint in his eyes, she began to become curious again about what was on his mind.
And that was enough for him to start explaining what was going on. He gestured to the seat in front of him and Layla vacillated between heading out, pretending that she wasn't interested in what he'll say and staying to hear what kind of conversation they'll be having but, needless to say, after contemplating, she decided to stay and listen.
"I had a dream—a nightmare to be precise. It wasn't recent but I spent days thinking about it, not willingly but because it got stuck in my mind. If I'm correct the period in my nightmare was around 1400s to 1700s, do you know what happened during those times to women who were 'unusual' Layla?" He stared into her eyes with intensity and strangeness.
Layla thought for a moment but she quickly guessed. "Most women who seemed peccable in that period were wrongly accused of being a witch in the form of a woman which resulted in the practice of execution of those women."
Sir Kingsley's glint in the eyes brightened, looking very pleased about what Layla answered. "Correct. In this nightmare, I had witnessed a woman's execution. She was a great and an intelligent woman, more advanced in thinking than the ones who burned her. She was full of contentment and happiness, she didn't fight them while she was stupidly accused of being a witch." He glanced at the lamp and Layla's eyes followed. "Many horrible unspeakable things have happened to her. People corrupted her and in the end, she was blamed for their actions. She was blamed for everything." Sir Kingsley shook his head after reminiscing the last words she spoke of. "She was at ease when they burned her immediately out of their selfish anger and the last person she chose to see was me. I didn't understand why but I felt like I knew her."
Layla's brows furrowed and stayed quiet while he was telling her about his nightmare but she continued listening to him.
"But I do understand now, Layla, after meeting Blair and especially after the both of you showed me how much you trusted me." Layla's cheeks flushed in embarrassment as Sir Kingsley once again reminded her that occurrence.
They both stayed quiet but Layla was still undeniably confused. "I-I still don't understand, Sir."
He pointed at the light lurking between the shadows it created. "The fire pit started as small as that but it grew angrier and angrier until it became the monster that people fear. However, the fire was as innocent as the woman, they're just both tools and usable instruments to have an excuse for people to be evil and in the end, blame them for everything. The fire grew bigger because it protected the woman by consuming her to end her pain. That was the story behind my nightmare, Layla, and you made it clear but there's more to it-"
Layla subconsciously leaned closer to him as she became highly interested in Sir Kingsley's words. "-Blair was the woman, Layla. Everything about Blair is exactly what the woman was therefore I already know the story behind Blair's situation. There's no clear and logical explanation to it to make you understand but I chose to discuss this with you because I wouldn't reveal it to anyone who isn't you. You showed that you trusted me so I suppose I can expect that you'll at least keep it to yourself until I find the logical explanation to the happenings behind Blair's situation, and I will be there to tell you that I am right about everything."
創作者的想法 
Penguinne
Penguinne This is a long chapter but I hope that it's not boring to you and enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! ❤ (This is also to make up those weeks when I haven't published a new chapter. I know I'm late, I'm sorry)
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