Chapter 12: Open UP!!
"Hey wait for me Hanu." Kartik called out to Hanu who was already on the first floor.
On the second floor, a sense of panic pervaded as boys frantically knocked on various doors, pleading for entry.
"Please, guys, don't leave us out here," one implored, his voice tinged with desperation. "We're classmates, after all, Rosey. That should count for something," another stated, his hand pounding on a neighboring door in a desprate plea for refuge.
The corridor layout mirrored throughout the academy, whether in classrooms or the boys' hostel. Stretching out into the distance, a long hallway flanked by rooms on either side. Only thing which was different was the staircases, In other buildings theier were two staircases each at the end of hallway, whereas in hostels thier were only one staircase, in the centre of the hallway.
"So should we help them first, or should we help ourselves first?" asked Hanu to which Kartik let out a sigh and shouted. "Boys! Calm down and line up." His voice boomed in the hallway, and in an instant, every boy had stopped their pleas and lined up in a single line.
"Everyone inside, come out right now! We need to talk about this matter," Kartik called out to the students who had entered the room and shut it to prevent anyone from entering.
"No, we won't! You can't order us, girls," yelled a girl from inside.
"Yes, I can't, but I am sure I can break these doors down, making all of us vulnerable," said Kartik with a frown on his face. "Despite it being safe inside the hostel, we have locked the main entrance gate."
Fearing the Vice Head Boy, all of the girls opened the doors and stepped outside, their heads downcast, looking at the ground. They were followed by some boys as well, equally ashamed of their actions.
All rooms were open except one - a room at the extreme end.
Setting his eyes upon the boys, Kartik started clapping sarcastically. "Wow! Our brave heroes hiding behind girls. Hats off to you."
"Is this really the way to talk to your seniors?" Riya directed this to Rosey with a fierce look in her eyes and hands folded.
"When did you come?" Kartik asked Riya, surprised. As he looked back at her.
"When you were bluffing about breaking the doors down," Riya replied while not breaking eye contact with Rosey.
"Ma'am, please ask Jerry to open the door. She has locked herself and Jhanvi in and won't let anyone of us in," one of the girls begged rosey with her teary eyes, while pointing at the end room.
At this comment, Kartik and Hanu looked towards the girl in surprise.
"She did what?" Kartik thought, "Why am I even surprise?" Hanu questioned himself
"So you did the same to others?" Riya asked angrily to everyone.
"I can't believe Jerry did something like this," Kartik said in disbelief as the boys were moving in.
"She has always been an emo, what can we expect from her?" Hanu replied with shrug of his shoulders
"Still, this is terrible." Kartik argued to which Hanu just shook his head and didn't replied.
After the shifting, only three girls were left outside, and Rosey was one of them.
The group soon moved towards the end room. And the girls kept asking Riya to punish Jerry and Jhanvi for thier actions.
Both Hanu and Kartik wanted to defend thier girl friends, but they knew that whatever they did was not right and they did deserve some sort of punishment.
"Jerry, Jhanvi, open the door!" Riya yelled as she headed towards the last room in the hallway. She was also Jerry's roommate.
"No, we won't," a firm voice came from inside the room. It was Jhanvi's voice.
"Babe, please, it's me. Let us in and sort these things out ," Hanu said in a sweet and compleing tone.
"Should we open the door?" Jerry asked Jhanvi as she looked at hr bestfriend. Jhanvi wanted to open the door, but this was not her alone's decision to make.
Jerry was not crying anymore, but her eyes were red and heavy with dried tear streaks around her face.
"I also want to..." Jhanvi began to reply, but another voice interrupted. "Jerry, please let us in." It was Kartik.
"I think we should open the door," Jerry said.
"Hmm," said Jhanvi, while thinking, "This is a bit selfish of her. But at least she has some liking towards Kartik."
As Jerry opened the door, the first one to come in was Riya, and she gave Jerry a stare.
"Sorry, ma'am," Jerry said, looking at the floor. Everyone had entered the room, and that's when they heard a loud yelling and heavy footsteps coming up the stairs.
"RUN! RUN FAST AND DON'T LOOK BACK!" the heavy voice yelled with panic.
"Who was that?" Riya asked both boys in panic, who were supposed to know them.
"It sounds like Neil..." Hanu said in shock while grabbing Jhanvi's hand.
"Wait, let me check," Kartik said, giving a slight nudge to Jerry.
And with complete confidence, he headed outside the room. He saw that a few other rooms were opened as students came out to look at the chaos. Everyone genuinely felt ashamed at what they did earlier.
"What's the cause of the commotion?" Kartik asked as he moved towards the stairs, with a few students following him while others stayed close to the door.
There was noise coming from downstairs, as if people were running all around the hallway.
"NO! THE DOORS ARE LOCKED! UP THE STAIRS!!" Neil's panicked voice could be heard loudly amidst the rumbling of humans running like a herd of stampeding cattle.
"NEIL!! IS THAT YOU!!??" Kartik yelled as he cautiously approached the stairs, straining to confirm the source of the panicked voice amidst the chaos.
It was indeed Neil.
Neil, Zayn, and a few other boys were being chased on the stairs, not only by waiters but also by some of the students who were bitten during the chaos outside.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone