Advait felt deeply uncomfortable under Gorak's cold, unblinking stare. The air in the office felt thick and wrong, nothing like a normal teacher's room.
But he stayed rooted in place. He had come to apologize for his mistake, and he had done that. He could not just turn and leave without hearing any response.
So he waited. Five full minutes passed in heavy silence, Gorak still watching him without a word.
The tension became too much. Advait gathered his courage and spoke. "Teacher, can you take me with you to meet your son? So I can apologize to him directly."
In his mind, he thought, I guess the teacher doesn't want to forgive me himself. He probably expects me to go apologize to his son instead…
His thoughts cut off sharply. Gorak suddenly lifted two fingers and made a small motion in his direction.
Advait did not understand the gesture. But the two men behind him did.
They stepped forward without a sound. One of them grabbed Advait's head in a vise-like grip, forced him down to the floor, and sat heavily on his small back so he could not move.
Advait screamed the moment he hit the ground. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…"
He felt the stranger's weight pinning him. He twisted his head toward his teacher, desperate for help. "Teacher, help me! I don't know who they are! Teacher!"
He shouted louder, hoping to snap Gorak out of whatever trance held him. But Gorak did not move. He only watched.
Then Gorak raised his hand again in another small signal. Advait still did not understand it. But the man on top of him did.
The man lifted one thick arm high. To Advait's terrified eyes, that hand looked enormous, like a falling mountain over his tiny body.
Thump~
The massive palm slammed down on Advait's back. He cried out, "Noooooo!"
His whole body shuddered from the impact. Tears filled his eyes and spilled over, but the pain was not enough to break him into loud sobs yet. He endured it silently, trembling.
His mind raced in panic. Who is this man? Why is he doing this to me? Why isn't the teacher stopping it?
He was still trying to make sense of it when his gaze drifted backward. He saw the man raise his other hand.
Bam~
The man brought his hand down again on Advait's back. He did not stop there—he kept slamming his both palm repeatedly, one by one, each strike heavy and deliberate.
The other man did not stand idle. He stepped onto Advait's small fingers and stamped down hard, grinding his shoe into them. Then he moved to the boy's arms, pressing and twisting.
Finally, Advait could not hold back any longer. His cries broke free.
"Ahhhhhh…"
"Don't hit me…"
"No… teacher… help me…"
"Why are you doing this…"
"Nooooooo…"
"Please stop…"
"It hurts… it hurts…"
"Please stop…"
"Please… stop it…"
But they did not stop. They kept going, switching their methods. Now they stomped on his legs, kicked his face, and drove blows into his stomach.
They continued until Gorak finally raised his hand in a sharp signal.
Gorak watched as Advait's voice faded to hoarse whimpers and his struggles weakened to nothing. Only then did he motion for his men to halt.
He leaned forward on his chair, staring straight into Advait's swollen, tear-filled eyes. "Were you asking for help?"
Advait's eyes, red and streaming with tears, locked onto his teacher with raw anger. He now understood—these men followed Gorak's every order.
His ruined throat forced out a ragged shout. "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS??? JUST BECAUSE OF THAT ACCIDENT?"
Gorak did not answer right away. Instead, he turned colder, his voice like ice. "Why did you stop my child? Just because he was playing with his servant? Why did you have to push him? And now you call it an accident? You damn filthy creature!"
With those words, he rose from his chair and walked slowly toward Advait. He towered over the boy, who remained pinned helplessly beneath the man's weight.
Advait could see Gorak's shoes right in front of his face. He turned his head to the side, refusing to look at them any longer.
Gorak noticed the small act of defiance. His voice came low and cold. "You killed my family's future, and now you won't even answer my questions. On top of that, you show disgust toward me. From this, I can now formally discipline you. The principal pleaded for you earlier. But after seeing your behavior, I don't think he'll have anything to say."
Those words stunned Advait. His mind spun with questions. Am I really that bad? Do I deserve something this harsh?
He lifted his gaze to his teacher. The teacher signaled his man with a flick of his hand. That man stand up from Advait and stepped back.
Gorak spoke again, calm but firm. "You can go now. But don't think your punishment is over. You will come here every day to accept it. And don't even think about telling anyone—teacher, friend, parent, no one. If you do, the punishment will be much worse. We'll expel you from school, deduct your marks, ruin your future. Your parents will be so disappointed if you get expelled. Do you understand?"
Advait was still lost in his own thoughts, questioning himself. He barely registered the words at first. But he understood enough to know the threat was real. He nodded slowly, not wanting worse pain or to let his parents down. The guilt from the accident weighed on him too, making him comply without protest.
(Hah… what can be expected from a child? He swallows the deception so easily.)