Revenant: I Was 14 Years Old When I Died [Vol 1 - 001]

I caught a whiff.

The scent of the living.

The smell of blood, flesh, and skin.

From a girl.

A young girl consumed by terror.

This was the first time she ran so desperately to save her life.

Her torn shirt and shorts exposed her slender and helpless body.

It was truly heartbreaking to witness this unfortunate girl being hunted and slaughtered by someone or something lurking in the dark forest.

Certainly, its desires would be fulfilled by pouncing upon this innocent and frightened girl.

She stopped in front of a house after sprinting through the dark woods. It was undoubtedly an unfavorable place for a victim.

She pounded on the door repeatedly, uttering her plea.

"Help, please!"

No one opened.

A growling sound could be heard from behind the dark trees.

Kuntilanak? Wewe Gombel? Werewolf? Ted Bundy?

The girl with half-pink ponytailed hair screamed and kicked the door.

Unfazed by the demands of the occupants of the house.

The darkness emanating from the house revealed the fate of this wooden house in the middle of the rural hill. Empty.

She turned on the flashlight on her mobile phone to explore the house, which was no less eerie than the forest from where the screams originated.

She entered like a mouse sniffing its cheese in a trap.

This was the moment.

When the victim made the biggest and final mistake.

I followed her silently, allowing her to ascend to the second floor.

To make her feel temporarily safer.

The woman turned around.

Her eyes gazed into the abyss of darkness.

But her ears heard the laughter of a child.

Regret washed over her.

She had no other choice.

She ran and screamed as if it were her last movement and sound.

Until she reached a dead-end. All she could do now was...

Kneel and weep.

I stood behind her.

No need for announcements or touching her to capture her attention.

She looked back to witness...

Death from which she couldn't escape.

                                                                          __________

Almost all the seats in the classroom were occupied by my classmates, except for Steven's seat. No one knew what happened to him.

Since it was a math class, most of my classmates decided to give up and just finish it while talking to each other.

But I'm not like them.

Only three of us remained committed to this journey.

And we always competed against each other.

To prove who is the best.

Girion and Chris.

Ever since I defeated them in the last Math daily test, they became even more determined.

With the only girl scoring a perfect hundred in math.

I couldn't let them catch up to me.

Twenty minutes before the bell. The class was getting noisier as everyone gave up and just guessed the answers. Especially for question three to five.

The word question involving ratios and X, Y.

The kids were intimidated by the seemingly simple yet complex word problems to solve.

Because I had to break down the numbers, put them into algebra, and then plug them into the formulas.

I intended to challenge my mind and solve them within a limited time.

Just like what Chris and Girion were doing.

They didn't care about the annoying noise that irritated Mr. Nur and focused on achieving their goals.

The bell rang, and the three of us didn't get up from our seats; we were still working on our problems.

I needed an extra ten minutes before Mr. Nur asked for my paper.

I confidently solved the first four questions correctly.

But question number five. I could only hope.

Like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Chris, Girion, and I debated the formulas and answers for the question number five.

"It's actually just combining all three algebra formulas that Mr. Nur taught us the other day. The important thing is the sequential calculation," Chris said.

"You're wrong, Chris!" I said, opening my textbook. His argument crumbled when I turned to the first page of Chapter 3.

Nowhere did I find the calculation method Chris used. I was sure Chris would regret his answer. Even though he kept arguing with Girion.

"You can say it's sequential, but in practice, it might not work." "Hey, I didn't answer like that," he argued.

It was a probability paradox that had us scratching our heads.

"Perhaps we should consider conditional probability," Girion suggested, his brow furrowed in concentration.

"No, it's a combination problem. We need to account for permutations," Chris argued, pointing to his calculations.

I listened to their arguments, uncertain of the right approach.

In that moment, I remembered a probability puzzle I had come across while studying online.

"Wait," I interjected, my voice filled with a spark of realization. "I think this problem involves both conditional probability and permutations. We need to consider the order and the conditions carefully."

SMK Berkat banned gangs. Instead, the "gangs" roaming the school were the boss girls and bad girls who found a trick to gain hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram. Yashica, Lia, Perry, and Venti were the most respected gang in the school. Besides Instagram followers, they also had real-life followers who liked to follow them and try to become one of them. From incredibly insecure junior girls who desperately wanted to be part of their circle, to boys who wanted to fulfill their puppy love with Venti as their loyal servant. Aka "Simp."

In addition, this gang, with their softness and humility, contributed to the community through teamwork...just kidding. They were known for spreading hot gossip, where one lonely and odd child had to be targeted.

Do you know who the current target is?

All the kids left with joy in anticipation of the long holiday ahead. Except for one girl who didn't seem to be excited about the break.

With her unique dark-gothic style (for preferences, The Cure, 30 Seconds to Mars, Asking Alexandria) and her introverted nature evident from the thorn choker she wore around her neck.

Alina, with her deviant vibe, was approached by Venti in a dominant tone. "Hey, wanna give Dance Dance Revolution a try?"

With a hesitant tone, Alina said, "Uh, sorry, Per, I'm quite busy. I have to-"

"Busy on what? The exams are over, you know. You haven't even joined the Thanksgiving event. Don't lie!" Venti's tone was as exaggerated as ever.

"You know, you have no friends, you don't socialize, and you're kind of strange at school. We want to offer you some fun, but you're suspicious of us? what's the matter with you?" Yashica said, along with her gang, circling around Alina, who looked uncomfortable and tense in their presence.

Their attention shifted as they noticed a bright blond hair passing by, as they were very familiar with that characteristic in their classroom.

"So, how about it? Can you answer it?" I said with a Western accent, but my Indonesian was very fluent for a blonde and blue-eyed white girl.

"It's a math quiz. You know how we 'handle' it. By the way, want to go to the mall together? You know, Dance Dance Revolution."

"For today, I'll pass. Maybe tomorrow. I'm planning to visit Kemville," I said.

"There you go, Lin. Ask Angel. Angel, why don't you invite me to Kemville?"

I felt sorry for Alina, who was constantly teased by the gang. Maybe this was a good opportunity for her to open up and make friends?

"That's a good idea. If you're not doing anything at home and want to celebrate the end of the exams, you can join me," I said.

My words were met with laughter from the girls, and Alina quickly left to go home. They laughed even more at her and followed Alina for a while before she descended the stairs.

Well, what can you do? Alina did behave strangely, often talking to herself. Plus, her attention-grabbing appearance. Actually, she's fine if I invite her to hang out.

Me, Venti, and Alina met again in the crowded cafeteria. The atmosphere was filled with a mix of happiness from the students, manifested as a collective sound. There were joyful shouts, jokes, anger, laughter, curiosity, and first-time infatuation.

Alina ordered a Gojek beside me, while I whatsapping Tom to ask if he had finished his practice. Venti approached me from behind and said,

" He's so lucky not to have exams because of his competition."

I said, "you're so nosy... Why are you so concerned about Tomas? It's not like he's causing me any trouble."

"Just asking, is that a crime? It's not like he's your boyfriend... Actually, you should be more curious than me!" Venti and I laughed together. But Alina, who overheard, laughed along too until Venti said, " It's unusual for you to laughed along don't you think?"

I saw Alina twitch slightly upon hearing Venti's sudden loud tone, which resonated deeply within her soul.

I covered my phone and said, "I'll check the stadium. It seems like they're still practicing. Maybe I can come to your event together with my honey."

"Ciee, honey..."

"Hey, don't be jealous!" I joked.