Ienzo took him off for a private talk, and I hope that everything went relatively okay. I would have snooped; but I can't neglect my classes. I'll catch up with him later. All I can give is my love and support; but other than that, I'm at a loss. This never happened before! Admittedly, a lot of this is so wildly different. I guess there will always be bugs with updates; but this is ridiculous. The rest of the morning passed without any further drama; though Jake wasn't present for lunch with the literature club. The three of us that remained barely spoke; our little clique fractured so quickly.
It came to science; and he still isn't present. I fear he might have been suspended, or worse. I sat at my desk; awaiting the lesson. Even had already written a great deal on the chalkboard.
"Today we'll be doing something a little different. We've already explored chemicals native to the body, from Serotonin to Dopamine. Now we will divert from biology to...philosophy." Evan spoke those words with a wry, almost sinister grin. "all these such chemicals we understand to affect the brain, our 'minds', so to speak. But what if it was more than that? What if there Is another element that operates the personality, our very 'being'?" He then went silent, waiting to see who would respond. The ominous young man from earlier raised his hand, and was given the floor to speak.
"You're talking about the soul, or heart-as some would call it?" The stranger responded.
"yes! Exactly." Evan confirmed with excitement "Good work, uh..what was your name again? I apologise, I'm not usually so bad with names."
The stranger was silent for just slightly too long. "It's Davriel. My family has…. Egyptian descent." He spoke slowly, as if thinking about the right words. Evan eyed him with suspicion.
"Davriel. Right. It must be on the register somewhere-though I usually don't look at such things. Moving on. Yes; in religion this 'sense of being' is called the 'soul'. Throughout history scholars of all stripes have explored this concept, with varying degrees of success. Depending on what circles you believe in; there are those that use 'magic' to affect the soul in all manner of ways, from curses to outright sacrifice of this entity for some sort of goal." He explained, pointing to the board.
"These scriptures determine also that those with a lack of a soul are gravely affected, both in life and in death. Those who's souls have passed on may find their bodies 'controlled'. In some cultures, this was known as Necromancy. In others- it was a part of voodoo practices. Of course, no scientific proof to confirm or deny whether such things are possible has been found."
I raised my hand to speak, and got a curt nod from the teacher. "If I recall, they also say that souls can be connected, like the age-old belief of 'soulmates." I add, hoping to gauge his opinion on the matter.
His eyes seemed to light up at that for a moment, followed by a brief moment of solemnity. "Ah yes, this is another concept that has existed for centauries; popularised in the fairy tales of the medieval period. Psychological research has found that people fall into personality types, and thus tend to gel well with those of similar and sometimes opposite types. But sometimes even that matters very little. Those same Phycologists would chalk it up to an anomaly; others would call it a phenomenon known as 'fate'."
I'm not sure what response I actually expected; but this was…enlightening.
"It's also possible that souls transcend bodies; in a process called 'reincarnation'. The religion of Hinduism seems to have the most defined grasp of this, giving rise to the question of 'are humans the only ones with souls, if souls exist?'. This might explain the feeling of Déjà vu, and the concept of soulmates as 'lovers in a previous life'. "
I raised my hand again, this time to ask a question. "Has there never been a study into this. I mean I get this is philosophy, but surely someone has done research to prove of disprove the matters of the 'Heart'?." Evan twitched slightly, and Davriel stifled a laugh.
"Quiet; Davriel." He chided them, shaking his head. "Well, there has been; but there are risks involved with such….fringe sciences. Ridicule from your peers at best and…"
"And death at the worst case!" Davriel interrupted with a dark laugh. "And I believe this tutor of ours once partook in such 'dangerous' research, no?" They smirked, pearl-white teeth eerily contrasting with their unnaturally dark skintone. On closer inspection, such a tone was practically inhuman, like it sucked the light out of the surrounding space. More like a shadow than a man.
I looked back to Evan, who's fists were clenched, and teeth gritted.
"I-…I knew I recognised you." He pointed to the door. "Get out. And pray to your…. pantheon that I never see your face again." He spat. I was taken aback by this sudden change, as if he was staring down a demon or something. Davriel simply laughed again; a guttural-villainous chortle. They rose from their seat and walked out, with the confident gait of a monarch.
Class was deemed concluded early, and everyone was allowed to leave.
"Monika; stay behind if you could. Please." Evan asked, his voice quieter and quakier than normal.
I did as I was asked, and sat at back at my seat.
after everyone else had left, he closed and locked the door.
"I'm sorry; but it seems you have been caught in the middle of all this. has been sent home, and he won't be at your club later. He will return tomorrow. I am familiar with how the status quo is with you, so I ask that you do everything within your power to convince him to spend the weekend with you-so that you can keep an eye on him…and…ease his pain."
Status quo? Is he referring to how the game originally forced the protagonist to pick one of the girls to spend the weekend with to help with the festival? How could he possibly know that? Maybe I'm just overthinking things, and he just cottoned on that I like him or something. He did speak with competence about psychology, after all.
I nod. "I'll do my best. But I have to ask; what was with that 'Davriel', if that's even his real name?" I ask, but Evan shakes his head and puts a firm hand on my shoulder.
"I think you have enough to worry about. Let me deal with them." He reassured me, with a hint of venom in his voice. I question what he meant by 'deal with', and I think I don't want to know. He's right, I have enough on my plate as it is.
"As for what they said. It's true. I have done research on the heart or soul-depending on what you call it. And what I found wasn't worth the trouble." He explained. "The heart is a real thing, and it is very fragile. That is all I can say for now." He added, before unlocking the door and courteously opening the door for me.
"You are dismissed. Good luck; Monika." He said with a warm smile.
"I'll see you again next week, right? Since there's no science on Fridays." I asked
"Maybe. I hope so." He said with great uncertainty in his voice, and closed the door as I left, quite suddenly. I saw his shoes before the door fully closed. They looked like black boots; really weird for with a lab coat. Gothic, even.
What a strange and tense day. I can only hope to unwind at the club with Yuri and Natsuki.