Stuck In The Highway

The atmosphere in the classroom was different that afternoon. A sudden uneasy silence. Evelyn felt it the moment her heart skipped a beat. She thought it was the “tear a sheet of paper!” she heard from the Biology teacher, until her eyes met with Abu and she saw it. Then, to Meshach, and to the class teacher, who suddenly paused midway through her words, the students locked fearful eyes with another.  If they still heard, they could hear faint and strained voices from somewhere beyond their classrooms. Suppressed cries maybe. But something faint, the type of sound you don't hear with your ears alone. Panic overwhelmed the still atmosphere and they knew it wasn't just a feeling. Something was wrong. They turned to their class teacher with fear-filled words in their eyes. “Are we safe?” “What if they are here?” Suddenly, the door to the classroom burst open, causing their hearts to jump. Three armed men rushed in, guns in their hands, commanding them to be quiet. The teacher wanted to scream, but at the sight of a gun pointed at her, she instinctively pressed her shaky palms against her mouth to suppress it. And so did the rest of the students of SS Two. That way, with suppressed screams, welled-up tears, and muffled panic, their trembling bodies obediently moved in the direction of the bus outside disguised as their school bus. No single word was exchanged between the students and teachers jam-packed in there. Only their hearts communicated.  Were they going to add to the number of kidnapped school students in that area? Would they be rescued? Or would they be killed and disposed of in the bush like others? Twenty minutes passed, and the driver rode confidently on the tiled road, optimistic that their smart plans were successful. More minutes rolled into hours, and the journey seemed unending. The air in the bus was so choked that the captives thought they would not survive the next minute. Suddenly, there was a loud sound. The car came to a halt. “What the heck is this?” the driver slammed the steering wheel before turning to gaze at the captor seated on the passenger's side. “You go check out and fix whatever is wrong,” the second captor shouted. The driver stepped down. “Man, the four tires are flat!” He announced. “Bullshit!” “Nonsense!” “How?” Different frustrating words flew out of the mouth of the captors. “I... I... want to pee.” Evelyn's faint voice was heard. The captor on the third row turned a fiery eye at her. He said in a low tone, “What did you say?” Evelyn went mute, scared that she might be shot for speaking. “Answer me!” He ordered and Evelyn flinched. She opened her mouth and repeated the same words in a more shaky tone. “I... I want to pee.” “Let's go!” the captor commanded. A few students raised their hands. The captor, Jack, led them down while the driver brought out four tires from the trunk and began to fix them. One of the teachers, Mr Benson forced himself to speak. “Sir, please, what is the time?” The captor shot him a cold stare and ignored him. Mr Benson wanted to plead to be allowed to use his phone for a minute, but refrained. He knew that would be futile. For the first time, he let his tears wet his cheeks as his mind travelled back home. The first birthday of his first child was fixed for five p.m. that day. His wife had pleaded before he left for work, “I have a strange feeling about today. Can you please stay at home?” “My job. I have a lot to cover.” “I don't feel good. Don't you get it?” He ignored his wife's scream, tears and pleas, and stormed out of the house. To him, his wife only wanted his assistance for the birthday preparation. She had her younger siblings around for all he cared about. If only he had listened! Now, Mr Benson was filled with regrets, as well as other captives pressed against another in the bus. For some, their parents had complained. For others, they had one or two tangible reasons not to be in school that day, but somehow, they chose school over their discomfort. Only a random student, Maxwell, Evelyn's seatmate and the quietest, was caught whispering words. The captor, suspecting that he was speaking to a ghost, commanded him to keep quiet. Maxwell obeyed. Jack returned with the captives. He remained outside, watching the environment as the driver fixed the last tire. Soon, they were ready to go. But as the driver started the ignition, it refused to come up. Again, the captors cursed. This wasn't part of their plans. Staying out late was risky. News would be sprouting from the community by now. Just then, the sound of sirens was heard from different directions. The captors gave one another a knowing look. “Who called the police?” They roared at the students. Silence. Fearful eyes. Racing heartbeats. The captors, jumping down, also forced the students down. But before they could blink, they were surrounded by armed police men. “Drop your weapons and surrender!” “Don't try anything funny or we'll pull the fire.” Their leader signalled for them to comply. He whispered to them. “We will get out. I promise you.” Some policemen handcuffed and bundled them into a van, while others led the captives into another vehicle. Minutes into their journey back to town, Maxwell confessed that he brought his phone to school against the school's policy. And while the teachers’ phones were seized, his was hidden somewhere in his boxers. He took the risk and texted his father, who had a strong connection with the army, giving them all the information he could get. ______________________ **All images were generated with ChatGPT**