by Lan Dang
Chapter 8: Mr. Hayden
Mr. Hayden, their algebra teacher, looked up from his desk, which faced the open door, at the students who were coming to his class late. Most of the students were already in their seats and those coming in late, mumbled their excuses. He looked at the clock and dismissed their apologies and excuses. He told them to take their seats and open their textbooks.
Mr. Hayden was a strict teacher who lived by principles and rules. He was relatively young, in his mid-thirties, but his appearance was that of an old man. He always wore checkered shirts, slacks, and most often, a tie. He had a receding hairline which persuaded him to decide to boldly shave his hair and become completely bald rather than wait for nature to take its course. He was tall and slender, with a build of a fragile man who had spent years reading books and furthering his own education, rather than going out to the gym to lift weights, which also explained his abnormally pale skin.
He walked up to the class and cleared his throat.
“We are going to review Chapter 7, p. 64 of the textbook. This might be on your test so I would start taking notes if I want to pass this class.” His voice was businesslike with a no-nonsense demeanor that terrified his students but also caused some of them to mock him once they left his classroom.
Today, Eric had no interest in this class or any of his other classes, for that matter. He only had his necklace on his mind. Janet was sitting two seats in front of him and he kept staring at her. He was thinking of how to get a message to her without Mr. Hayden noticing it. He decided against writing any notes to her for it was way too risky. He knew Mr. Hayden would read it out loud in front of the entire classroom to embarrass him if he ever caught anyone passing notes.
Eric drifted off as Mr. Hayden started his lecture, thinking about his own special powers and how he could use them if he knew what they were in the first place. This was a responsibility he had never asked for and he had no one to help him other than Janet and maybe Kathy, whom he wasn’t too sure about.
But what was so special about this necklace? Other than that it looked unusual, there didn’t seem to be anything special about it. Eric had never noticed the markings before on the scepter until Janet had pointed it out to him today.
Eric took out the necklace from under his shirt and looked at it closely. He stared at it for a long time and concentrated on thinking of what made it so special. As he focused his full attention on it mulling over this question, a loud echoing voice that seemed to come out of nowhere asked, “Why don’t you try using it?”
Eric was so startled; he let out a yell of surprise. Everyone turned their heads to stare at his odd behavior which made Eric realize that he was the only one who had heard the voice. Even Janet swiveled her head to look at him with a shocked expression, considering she had just warned him this morning, not to draw attention to himself. Her expression had a look of intense disapproval combined with shock.
Mr. Hayden walked over and glared at him. He loomed threateningly over Eric, asking in a quiet voice, “Eric Dirnam, are you purposefully trying to disrupt my class? And what is this?”
Eric knew better than to answer him and just as he was trying to hide the necklace from Mr. Hayden’s watchful eyes, Mr. Hayden caught a glance at Eric’s necklace.
He held out his hand for it and continued, “So you think this is more interesting than my lecture, do you? I will confiscate this for now and give it to you after you spend a week’s detention after school.”
Eric could hear Matthew snickering a few rows behind him. He knew Matthew was clearly enjoying this but he didn’t care. He watched helplessly as Mr. Hayden took his precious necklace from him and locked it in the topmost drawer of his desk. Mr. Hayden never trusted any of his students and he always kept everything locked in his drawers, both his own belongings and the belongings that were confiscated from his students.
Eric bit his lip and groaned to himself. How was he going to get his necklace back? He was upset at himself for losing it in the first place and spent the rest of the class under Mr. Hayden’s watchful eyes. The rest of the class watched with interest as Mr. Hayden set out to punish Eric who was the captain of the soccer team. Most of the teachers gave preferential treatment to their star sports players, who brought recognition and respect to the school, but Mr. Hayden was not one of them. He treated everyone equally, with no favoritism, regarding their importance to the school. He believed that students were still students who needed to be educated and because of that, the class seemed shocked that Eric was indeed going to be punished for class disruption.
When the bell finally rang for their next class, Jonathan came over. A look of genuine concern filled his face.
“Are you okay, Eric? I mean your reaction this morning, the yell in class and the constant stare at Janet, it’s really starting to worry me. If you have any problems, you can come talk to me about it. We’re friends, remember?”
Jonathan’s forehead creased with concern and his eyes looked up and down at his best friend as if to detect if there was anything wrong with him.
Eric brushed it off, replying, “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me, okay? We have to hurry to class before we’re late. Let’s go.”
Both Eric and Jonathan walked off to their next class. As the day wore on, Eric felt himself growing more and more impatient. He had to find the answers to all the questions that kept floating around in his head. He was sure the necklace had spoken to him this morning and he had to know why. It had never spoken to him before in all the time that he had worn it. Eric mulled over his many questions and his desire to get these questions answered only intensified over the rest of the day.
When lunch time finally arrived, Eric went to get his lunch and hurriedly took a seat next to Janet. She looked at him with her mouth open and whispered, “I don’t think this is such a good idea. People are staring at us.”
Eric never took Janet as a person who was self-conscious but as he looked around, people were indeed turning their heads to stare at both of them. These included his own soccer buddies and Janet’s friends, most of whom were members of the school newspaper, who also turned to stare at him. He didn’t care though; he had too much on his mind to care what others thought about him.
He asked, “Do you mind sitting together with me in a separate table?” He pointed at a table in the far corner which was not occupied by anyone.
Janet looked at the table, then back at Eric, and sighed. She nodded her head and told her friends that she had an important discussion with Eric but would come right back. Some of her friends grinned, thinking that the two were dating and others just stared in shock.
Both Eric and Janet went over to the empty table and Eric immediately said, “The necklace…it talked to me today. That was why I screamed out loud in Mr. Hayden’s class.”
Janet stared at him in surprise. “But the necklace is just an object. It can’t speak, can it?”
Eric shrugged his shoulders. “You have to believe me. I know what I heard and that necklace definitely talked to me. It told me to try using it. What does that mean?”
Janet looked at him for awhile and slowly said, “I’m not sure. But I do believe you.”
She thought for a moment and continued, “To be honest with you, I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
He looked at her helplessly.
“Mr. Hayden has it now. What should I do?”
She looked back at him with a determined expression.
“We have to get it back. That’s what we have to do. It’s not safe there. I’m afraid that someone might try to steal it from Mr. Hayden’s drawer now that they know where it is.”
“But only Mr. Hayden and the students in our class know about it. I’m sure they’re not going to spread the word.”
Janet pointed at Matthew who was talking to his group of friends. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that. You may have more enemies than I thought and some
of them are human.”
Eric watched Matthew in the distance. Janet was right. People just couldn’t be trusted. Another thought struck him. He wanted to tell Janet about his dreams of the Elder who was being held prisoner. He hadn’t told Jonathan about this either because he was afraid Jonathan would think he really had lost his mind but Janet was more understanding. She would believe him.
“Janet, I have something else to tell you. I don’t know if it’s significant or not but it’s been bothering me and I feel like I can’t tell this secret to anyone but you.”
Janet solemnly nodded her head. “Your secret is safe with me. Go ahead. Tell me about it.”
She listened with interest as Eric told her about his dreams of the Elder. She interrupted only several times to ask a question or two. When he finished, she nodded her head.
“I believe you. We haven’t made contact with the Elders since the day we arrived here on this planet so things may have changed from the time we left. One of the Elders may have been captured to weaken the power of the Triad of the Elders, now that there is only two and not the three Elders. Of course, since he is immortal, he can’t be killed but he can lose his powers. So even if we save him, he might be useless if we don’t save him soon.”
“But we don’t know where he is being held captive. How can we find him?”
She sighed. “That’s a good question. I just think it’s odd that you’re the only one who has these dreams and you’re the only one who can hear the necklace. I guess you can’t dispute that fact. You are a member of the royal family whether you like it or not.”
She stared at him for a long time before speaking again.
“Eric, actually, I’ve been thinking about your questions earlier. I think your foster dad might know more about your parents’ deaths than I do. If there is any way we can track him down, then we can get more information about the necklace and about your past. I mean, he’s been your caretaker since you were a baby and he was the one who left the necklace so he must know more about you than the rest of us.”
Eric sighed. “But I have no idea where he is now or why he left in the first place.”
She spoke slowly. “Maybe he didn’t leave voluntarily. Have you thought about that? It seems more than a coincidence that the day he leaves is the day the necklace appears. And maybe the information leaked out somehow and now, people are after your necklace.”
Janet and Eric grew quiet, thinking about the conversation that had transpired.
Janet interrupted saying, “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be seen together. People are already beginning to talk. Remember we have to attract as little attention as possible.”
She added, “I have to go back to my friends and I suggest you do the same. Cheer up.” She smiled. “Everything is going to be alright.”
She left Eric sitting by himself on an empty table and that was when Eric noticed that his own friends were whispering to each other and looking at him. No doubt they were talking about his odd outburst this morning. He sighed and went to their table. They smiled and pretended as if nothing had happened, leaving Eric alone to eat his lunch in silence.
The rest of the day remained uneventful and Eric was about to walk to his bicycle to go home when he suddenly remembered his detention. He groaned out loud and slowly walked to Mr. Hayden’s class. The classroom was empty except for Mr. Hayden who was wiping his white board clean. He looked tired, more than usual. He glanced at Eric and motioned for him to take a seat.
Eric sat down and politely waited for Mr. Hayden. When Mr. Hayden was finished, he came over.
“Eric, I hope you realize that this so-called punishment is only for your best interest. I need you to comprehend that this class is no joking matter. School, itself, is not intended to be a joke. School was built for the primary purpose of educating people regardless of their age, race, gender, social class, etc.”
Eric was thinking of whether aliens counted as an entirely different race.
“It is actually a privilege for everyone to attend school and in my opinion, I think you abused that privilege today when you attempted to disrupt my class. So now, you have to stay for a whole hour after school for this entire week to clean up the classroom. Do you think this is a fair punishment?”
Eric knew it was not in his best interest to protest, especially with Mr. Hayden towering over him. He simply nodded his head.
Mr. Hayden smiled and to Eric’s astonishment, he displayed a fine set of white, straight teeth that would have made any dentist proud.
“That’s good. In return, I will keep this just between the two of us. Your mom would not have to know about your detention. Just tell her you are working on a school project, unless you would rather tell her the truth yourself.”
Eric looked at Mr. Hayden and said, “Thank you for keeping this quiet. And I apologize for my outburst this morning, I never meant to disrupt your class today. I promise that it will never happen again. Is it possible for you to return my necklace back after the week’s detention? It was a present from my dad just before he left.”
Eric attempted to make his face appear sad and pathetic. Apparently, it worked for Mr. Hayden took pity on him.
He replied, “Sure. That will be our agreement then. I know you are not a bad kid. It must be difficult for a single mom to raise a son all by herself. I realize with your dad’s absence that you have seemed distant and I am allowing you to get back on your feet before you stray too far. Do you understand what I mean?”
Eric nodded his head. He knew Mr. Hayden was giving him a second chance and he didn’t want his mom to worry about him. He was going to be alright as Janet had said.
Eric did as he was told. He wiped the desks first, one row at a time. There were pencil and pen marks on the desks as well as chewing gum on the bottom of the desks that he had to scrub away. After he was finished, he proceeded to vacuum. Mr. Hayden left to answer a private phone call. Eric kept glancing at the clock, making sure not to lose track of time. He finished early and sat down, quietly and patiently, waiting for Mr. Hayden to come back. When he did, the hour’s detention time had passed and he was free to leave.
As he picked up his backpack and prepared to walk out the door, Mr. Hayden said, “Don’t forget tomorrow or the rest of the week either.”
Eric sighed and replied, “I won’t.”
He felt tired and was happy that this would only last a week. He couldn’t imagine spending any more time with Mr. Hayden. Out of all the teachers he had in eighth grade, Mr. Hayden was his least favorite.
Eric practically ran out of his classroom and down the hallway, taking a deep breath of freedom. The sun was still out and maybe, he could hang out at Jonathan’s house for awhile. He really wanted a friend to talk to. He felt alone and miserable and he needed someone who could make him forget his problems.
He sighed, thinking of all his problems. His mom was dating someone just a couple of months after his father left, his real parents were dead, he and several other people he knew were aliens, and there are people who were after his necklace. It just wasn’t his day.
As if things were not bad enough, he ran right into Janet. She looked eagerly at him and asked, “Is Mr. Hayden still there?”
He looked at her, puzzled. “I don’t know. He was still there a couple of minutes ago when I left.”
She sighed, exasperated at him. “Remember at lunch today, we did agree to get the necklace back. Come on. Let’s check to see if he’s already gone.”
She grabbed his arm and pulled him back to the direction from which he just ran away from. He shook his head. It was like returning to his prison cell. Eric felt his legs were just dragging reluctantly back to Mr. Hayden’s classroom only with the help of Janet’s forceful pull.
When they arrived in front of his classroom, the door was closed but the lights were still on. Janet walked to the classroom and li
stened at the door. It was quiet. They waited outside for a few minutes, not sure if Mr. Hayden was already gone.
Eric felt an impulse to ask Janet another question which had been bothering him.
“Janet, do all of our kind look like humans? Why don’t we look like the normal aliens they depict in the movies? You know, like the green slimy creatures with big heads and deformed bodies?”
She rolled her eyes at him. “That’s what everyone here thinks. They don’t realize that we all evolve from each other. Not all aliens look different.”
He stared at her, incredulously. “What do you mean ‘we evolved from each other’?”
Again, she rolled her eyes. “We travel a lot to other different planets and sometimes, we choose to stay and live with the natural inhabitants. Of course, we learn to adapt both culturally and physically. I heard that we look like the inhabitants of this particular planet because we are their ancestors.”
“Wait, everyone on our planet…”
“Sylo.” She filled in the blank for him.
“So everyone on the planet, named Sylo, looks like us?”
“More like the humans here look like us. I heard that several thousand years ago, we sent some of our kind to this planet to form a colony and they never came back. We were not sure what happened to them and we thought initially this planet may have been uninhabitable. It wasn’t until we sent more people out to investigate many years later that we realized there was nothing wrong with this planet. It was perfectly capable of life. They never knew what happened to the original colonists so we think they may have assimilated into the human culture completely. The fact that we share similar characteristics then would not be shocking if we assume that the original colonists were the ancestors of this human race.”
Janet made this comment with such arrogance that Eric couldn’t really dispute her claim. It did make sense.
“How did you learn to speak our language?”
She smiled. “Although we do share common physical appearances, we are still more advanced than the human race here. We learn languages differently because we don’t have to study it; we just simply have to be exposed to it. We can derive meanings from the spoken words from mere exposure and combined with our impeccable memory, we can learn quite quickly and return to our planet to teach this language so if we do receive visitors from other planets, we would be able to communicate effectively.”
“So our race has been to this planet many times?”
“Of course. We have been studying this planet for a long time now and we have made many trips back and forth. We just make sure that no one notices us as we come and leave so we don’t disrupt the natural course of this planet.”
He laughed. “I guess the movies were wrong about aliens then, right?”
Her smile widened. “Obviously. We are living proof of that.”
He looked at her with interest. “So what other planets have you visited?”
“Numerous planets and solar systems. We have a library dedicated to these visits that accumulate a variety of knowledge about each planet and its inhabitants.”
“So if I was to return to our planet, would I need to learn our language?”
She rolled her eyes. “You’ve already been exposed to the language as a baby and combined with your superior memory, you won’t have to learn a thing. You’ll be able to understand and speak our language, so don’t worry about that.”
A noise sounded and she immediately looked in the direction of the noise and hissed, “Ssssh!”
She took his hand and pulled him behind some nearby bushes. They crouched and waited.
Mr. Hayden walked out of the classroom, carrying his old black brief case. He yawned out loud and turned off the lights. Afterwards, he closed the door and took out a key to lock it. He walked down the hallway and turned left to the parking lot.
Eric and Janet waited patiently for him to disappear. As soon as he turned, they jumped from the bushes and ran to the classroom door.
Janet smiled and said, “Now, you can see what I’m capable of.”
Eric watched as Janet’s index finger extended and as she placed this finger in the keyhole, Eric heard a click sound and she pushed the door open. When she removed her finger from the keyhole, it had taken the shape of a key and her finger quickly changed back to its normal shape.
Eric looked at her in admiration and envy. “That was cool. I wish I could do that.”
She smiled and they both ran into the classroom before anyone saw them breaking and entering. He could just imagine the trouble they would be in if they were caught.
It was dark when they got inside the classroom. Janet blindly moved her hand around the wall and when she found the switch lights, she immediately turned them on. The lights flooded the room. They both went over to Mr. Hayden’s desk.
Janet asked, “Do you remember which drawer he put the necklace in?”
“I think it was the first drawer.”
Janet placed her finger into the keyhole and slid the drawer open. She saw the necklace and yelled a triumphant, “Aha!”
She handed his necklace back to him.
Eric smiled at her. “Thanks.”
He put his necklace back on and hid it under his shirt.
“Now, let’s get out of here before someone sees us.”
They both walked out and Janet turned off the lights. Before Eric could say anything, Janet tugged at him in the direction of the bushes. They hid behind the bushes across from the classroom and waited.
They both saw Coach Wilkins walking by moments later. He quickly glanced up and down the hallway making sure no one saw him. He went over to Mr. Hayden’s classroom and took out a key to open the door. He went inside and both Janet and Eric decided to wait outside, curious about what he was doing. When he came out several minutes later, his face was red and he cursed out loud to himself. He slammed the door shut and stomped down the hallway.
Eric looked at Janet, curiously. “How did you know he was coming?”
“A sixth sense. It’s not safe here. We have to leave before he realizes we have it.”
“You mean he was looking for the necklace?”
She turned to look at him, incredulously. She said in a sarcastic tone, “No, he just wanted to borrow some markers.”
She continued, “Of course, he was after the necklace. What else could he have been looking for? Apparently, we got it back in time. Now hurry, we have to get out of here.”
Eric decided not to argue. They both rushed back to their bicycles and as they were pedaling back home, Eric picked up the conversation where it left off.
“Do you think Coach Wilkins is one of…” He gulped. “Us?”
“That would explain why he wants the necklace. Apparently, someone very powerful is sending people here to take back the necklace but why? It just doesn’t make sense to me.”
“You’re telling me. None of this makes sense.”
Eric couldn’t believe it. Coach Wilkins was his favorite teacher. He had known him for two years now and all this time, he seemed like any average teacher. He couldn’t have been one of the burglars that night. It just doesn’t make sense.
“So can you sense who is human and who is like yourself?”
“Usually but sometimes, I have been wrong. I learn not to rely too much on this sixth sense. Humans are more simple minded creatures but since we have been living among them for so long, we are becoming more and more like them. It’s becoming more difficult for me to distinguish between the two races.”
“I see.”
When Janet reached her house, she said, “Well I have to go back now before my mom sends out a search team to look for me. She starts to panic when I stay too late after school. I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”
“Sure and thank you for helping me get back the necklace. I really appreciated it.”
“No problem. That’s wh
at I’m here for.”
Eric waved good-bye and watched Janet as she placed her bicycle on the front porch and walked into her home. He was beginning to like her more and more everyday and it was nice to be so comfortable around her. Sometimes, he even forgot she was a girl.