The Beginning of the End by Lorana Hoopes (readict txt) 📕

Higgins had seemed fine when they left school on Friday. Plus, he wasn’t in the high-risk category. The man was only in his fifties. How could he be out for a month? “How do you know that?”

Tristan shrugged. “Heard them talking about it in the office this morning. Forgot my normal mask and had to borrow one of theirs.” He pointed to the surgical mask covering his face.

“Do you know who the sub is?” Katie asked.

Lily could not imagine Mr. Higgins having a sub, especially considering she was pretty sure he made it his personal mission to make their lives as miserable as possible, and she couldn’t see him giving that up. Nor could she see anyone teaching his lessons the way he did.

Tristan shrugged and his bangs covered his eyes again. “Yep, heard we have some new guy. That’s all I know.”

Another new person? With a sigh, Lily slid down to the floor and leaned her back against the wall. Katie followed suit. Neither girl was close with Tristan, but at least he was a human body in this world that suddenly felt very foreign and weird. “This stinks. I hope he’s nice.”

“Yeah, welcome to this year,” Tristan said.

Lily nodded, and for a moment silence descended on the three of them, but it was not one of those comforting silences. It was more like the oppressive kind that left her stomach churning with anxiety. And suddenly she couldn’t stand it. “So, how was your summer?”

Tristan flicked his head, sending his bangs swooshing to the side again, and fixed her with intense brown eyes. “What summer? There was nothing to do.”

Lily opened her mouth to reply but closed it again. What was she going to say? He was right. Summer had been crappy and fall wasn’t shaping up to be much better. Some things had opened for a time like dining inside at restaurants but only with your family. Of course those were closed again now. And gyms had opened but at limited capacity. The press conference last night had shut them down again too. Bowling alleys and movie theaters had opened for a month or two, but masks were mandated the whole time, so she hadn’t patroned them when they were open. Like everything else, they had been forced to close their doors again as well.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps interrupted the awkward silence that had fallen between the students. Lily glanced up to see an imposing figure approaching, his loafers tapping on the linoleum floor. He was tall and thin, reminding her a little of Thin Man, the character on some video games meant to scare kids. His black hair was perfectly placed, and dark eyes peered over his mask. A tiny thread of fear erupted in her stomach, and she swallowed to keep it down. He was just a man, a dark and sinister looking man, but a man just the same.

“Ah, the eager beavers. I do like seeing that.”

Even his voice set her on edge. What was it about all these new adults? Why did every one of them give her such a foreboding feeling? Sneaking a glance at Tristan, she saw his face was still focused on the phone in his lap. Katie’s eyes, however, were wide and fearful, and Lily believed hers looked similar.

“I’m Mr. Dagon, and I’ll be your science teacher now.” He unlocked the door and pushed it into place so that it stayed open before ushering them inside.

“Wait, now? I thought Mr. Higgins was just home sick. He’s coming back, right?”

“What? Oh, of course he is. I mean that I’ll be your science teacher until he returns.”

Mr. Dagon’s demeanor still appeared confident, but Lily had heard the hitch in his voice, some hint of emotion that left her wondering if Mr. Higgins would return.

When Mr. Dagon flicked on the light switch, Lily nearly dropped her bag. She blinked at the room as another round of trepidation passed through her. Mr. Higgins had always had the room decorated in bright colors with lots of natural light, but now it was dark. The windows were covered with some film that only let in the softest gray color. Dark posters hung around the room, and the only other word she could grasp at the moment to describe the place was sterile. Empty, sterile, and dark. She had never been in a morgue, but suddenly she was sure it would feel exactly like this. How on earth had he transformed the room so quickly? And why, if he was only subbing for a week or so?

“What happened here?” The words escaped Lily’s mouth before she could stop them, and as soon as his head whipped her direction and his eyes bore into hers, she knew she had made a mistake.

“If I am to be working here for the foreseeable future, then it only makes sense the room should be to my liking. Now, pick your desk,” Mr. Dagon said, “but be sure to choose wisely. Whatever desk you choose right now is the one you will remain in for the entirety of class. I will not be cleaning desks willy nilly.”

Lily turned her wide eyes to Katie. Though she said nothing, she hoped that Katie would understand her silent question. Why had a substitute redecorated Mr. Higgins’ room? And why was he acting as if they’d be there all day instead of just the fifty minutes for the first period?

Katie offered a small shrug and a subtle shake of her head in response. It wasn’t much, but it let Lily know that she had understood the question and that she had no answer either.

As Lily walked to the desk she had used last week, she noticed new tape marks on the floor. She’d performed in a few plays over the years and had marked stages for set pieces. The tape had never seemed threatening or dark before. But it did now. The once bright room now looked like an elaborate tragedy with all the desks