text: SailorSenshi ~ a.k.a  ~SS The Mystery At Dorson All Boys Academy A Gray van der Waal Novella Dedicated to All the Readers out there!!
  
                  ~SS 
   
   
   1. First Day 'O Boarding School 
   "Ahh, you must be the new transfer student. Mr...?" The teacher dressed in blue jeans and a dress shirt said to the boy standing at the door of the Advanced English Literature classroom. 
   The boy was 5'10'' with messy dark brown hair and midnight blue eyes. He was dressed, of course, in the Dorson All Boys Academy uniform; a white dress shirt under a dark blue blazer. Along with a red tie and brown khakis. His blazer had the school insignia on it.  Memento Mori , it said on the schools crest. 
   "Van der Waal. Gray Van der Waal." He said casually. He glanced around the room. He noticed one empty seat in the back, right next to some kid with his head in a book. There as another kid next to the window picking his nose. 
   Disgusting , Gray thought. This was his new school, and these were going to be his new classmates.  Great. 
   "Alright, Mr. Van der Waal, why don't you tell us about yourself and where you were before coming here to Dorson’s?" The teacher said pronouncing his p's and rolling his r's. He was gesturing to the class with his hands. 
   Gray looked at the teacher like he was insane. No other teacher he ever had made him tell the class about himself, and he would know-- since he's been to so many different schools. Gray wasn't interested and he certainly wasn't going to delve on the details on where he was before coming to Dorson, it really wasn't anybody's business. 
   "No." Gray went for the empty seat and sat down. The teacher was shocked to say the least. 
   "Mr. Van der Waal I have to say I'm appalled! I have never, ever in my 23 years of teaching here at Dorson All Boys Academy,  ever  been talked to like that! Well, you might not know since you’re new, but here at Dorson-- Respect and Obedience are held at the highest regard. I will excuse your-- your--  Ignorance -- for now. But you better watch your back and keep that mouth of yours in check Mr. Van der Waal, or else it might end up getting you into serious trouble!" The teacher was wagging his finger at Gray like he was talking to a 3-year-old. Gray just rolled his eyes. 
   Story of my life , He thought, frowning slightly. 
   Soon after, the teacher introduced himself to the class as Professor Dougal (pronounced Doo-gall, he made a big deal out of it. And Gray noted that he emphasized the  Professor  bit too.) The Professor went on and on about what the class would do and what books they would read. 
   Somewhere in the middle of Dougal's lecture Gray heard whispering coming from his left. He turned to see the book reading kid looking at him with a smile. He had thick rimmed glasses on. His light brown skin contrasted nicely with his Dorson uniform. "That was awesome! No one ever talks that way to Dougal." He said in his British accent. 
   Gray almost didn't answer the kid, but something in the way the kid looked at Gray changed his mind. "Why not?" 
   "It’s because he's so scary! He's like Dracula and the Boogieman all wrapped up into one!" The kid said shuddering. "I'm Naveed Metta, by the way. Nice to meet you." 
   Gray nodded. "Gray." He replied. He didn't know why, but something about this kid... He had some sort of good vibration going on; Gray was surprised that he found himself smiling a little back at him. 
   The bell rang and all the students in the class ran out the door as if seeking freedom from Dougal's clutches. Gray didn't blame them, he was really boring. 
   Gray walked out the door and took out his schedule from his blazers pocket. He saw that he had Advanced Trigonometry in room 3B15. 
   He looked back at his Advanced English Lit class door, room 1A21. 
   He sighed. 
   In the other schools that he went to, they gave you a map of the school so that you could find your way around easier. Here, they just gave you your schedule and sent you on your merry way. Gray started walking but stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulders. He turned to see the kid smiling at him. 
   "You look like you could use some help. This place is huge." Naveed said. 
   Gray eyed him. Reluctantly, he handed his schedule to Naveed. "Show me where 3B15 is." Naveed took the schedule from his hands. 
   "Oh-- that's Advanced Trig. You must be smart! I have it too and there's only 2 other kids in it. There are not a lot of math lovers in this school, nice to know that you're one just like me!" Naveed said walking towards the main entrance. Gray was about to tell the kid that he was just good at math, he didn't like it at all, let alone love it, but he kept talking. "See, the school is divided into 7 buildings-- A Language Building, a Math Building, a Science Building, an Art and Theater Building, an Administrative Building and the Dormitories. As you can tell by the names, each building is named after the subjects that they contain. In the past, they used to be named Building A, Building B etc. But they changed the names so it would be more convenient for the students. However they didn't rename the classroom numbers. The classroom number, however, tells you the building it's in and the floor it’s on as well." They stood outside the building adjacent to the one they came from. It had a big letter 'B' above the main entrance. They stepped inside the building and went towards the stairs. "For example, if you had a class in room 4D22, your class would be on the 4th floor of building D, or the Art and Theater building, in room 22. So, your class is 3B15 which means-" 
   "It’s on the 3rd floor of building B in room 15." 
   Good! You’re getting it!" Naveed said happily. "So, Language is A, Math is B, Science is C, Art and Theater is D, Administrative is E and the Dorms are F and G. Does it make more sense now?" 
   "Kinda." Gray said as they stood in front of his class. "Shouldn't you get to class too?" 
   Naveed had a blank look to his face for a second. His eyes went wide when he realized he was late for class. "Oh no, my class is in building C! I have to go!" He started to walk away but stopped. "Hey, if you need my help to find anything else," He took out a pen and scribbled something onto Gray's schedule and handed it to Gray. "This is my number-- just text me if you need assistance. See you later!" 
   Gray watched as the kid ran towards the stairs. Gray stopped and put Naveed’s number into his iPhone under the name ‘Kid’. Once he was done, he started for his classroom door but he stopped again when he heard 2 guys talking. Normally, Gray would just ignore other people's conversations, but something caught his attention. 
   "Did you hear? Another kid went missing last night." One of the two boys said. 
   "Really? Already? That's the 2nd kid this month and it's only October!" The other said. 
   "Dude, I wonder how long until the next kid gets taken?" The first guy sounded panicked. The second guy shrugged. 
   "We really should get to class, the teach is going to kill us!" The boys hurried to their class. 
   Gray wondered about what they were talking about. 
   2 guys went missing in the last month.   This place should be swarming with cops trying to find these kids , Gray thought.  Why aren't they? And why did those guys talk so coolly about the missing boys? Is it normal to have classmates go missing like that here? 
   Gray shook his head. He would have to wait until later to find out what they were talking about. 
   But until then, he would have to deal with a more immediate problem. 
   Advanced Trig. 
     
     
   ----------------------- 
     
   Next Chapter: Roommates? 
   
   
   
   2. Roommates? 
   
   Brring! 
   
   Gray sighed with relief.  
   He was glad to hear the bell ring. His Advanced Trig teacher wasn't as bad with lecturing as Dougal, but he did constantly blabber. Mr. Iknishov was kind of funny though, he had a thick Russian accent, and he would say the weirdest things. At one point in class, he went on a whole rant. 
   "Why is there always more than one word to describe one thing? Like, for example, when you’re describing a baby for instance, you can say that the baby is 'cute' or you can say it's 'adorable'. You could also say its 'loveable' or 'sweet'. In Russia, if we were describing a baby it was either pretty or ugly. That's it! I am so glad I don't teach English, Math is so much easier to understand. You’re either right or wrong. No two ways about it!" 
   He isn't wrong , Gray thought.  He's just talking too much . 
   Thank God the bell rang so he couldn't continue ranting. There weren’t many kids in this class but they were all thinking the same thing. 
   Gray left Trig and walked towards his next class which was located in the Administrative or E Building- Introduction to Physical Exercise. Gray thought this was just a stupid way to say Gym class.  Rich people,  He thought,  they always have to make everything sound fancier than it is. 
   He walked into the building and looked for room number 1E01. When he saw the door to the gym, he walked in. There, he was greeted with the fresh smell of sweat. All the students in his class were wearing the same knee high dark blue shorts and bright white shirt with the school insignia on it. As he scanned the room for the teacher, he saw Naveed waving at him so he walked over to him. 
   "Where's the teacher?" Gray asked. 
   "Mr. McDonnall is always late. I don't know if he can even remember that he has a class to teach at this time. He's a bit on the old side." Naveed said. 
   "Where can I get a gym uniform?" 
   Naveed pointed toward the door. "In the front office. We can go after class if you want." Gray nodded. 
   10 or 15 minutes later they were still waiting for class to start. They had been waiting for so long, Gray had time to go to the office, grab a gym uniform, and get a locker to put his stuff in in the locker room. 
   Naveed was talking about the Dorms and roommates when he stopped suddenly. Gray looked at him and was confused. Naveed was staring at the door with his mouth open and eyes wide. Gray looked around and noticed that the whole class had stopped to stare at the door. Gray turned towards the door and then he understood why everyone had stopped. 
   There was a really hot woman standing there. Like seriously hot, even Gray had to admit it. There were a lot of teachers here (or professors in Dougal's case) but as far as Gray was concerned, there was not one person of the female species here. This one might be the first. 
   She had short brown hair and brown eyes. She was wearing the same uniform as everyone else but it was much tighter, showing off her every curve. In her hands was a clipboard and around her neck was a whistle. 
   "Hello class," She said in a sultry voice. Gray could have sworn that he heard the whole class swoon when she spoke. "My name is Juniper Leeson. I will be your teacher for the rest of the semester. Please sit down as I go through the attendance list." 
   Gray moved to sit down but stopped when he saw Naveed still standing there staring at the teacher. Gray snapped his fingers in Naveed's face and Naveed snapped out of his daze. 
   "Wow, she's-" 
   "I know." Gray lead Naveed to sit down near the back of the class. She started attendance after a minute. 
   At last she reached the last name. But she didn't call Gray. He raised his hand. 
   "Your name wasn't on the list, are you in this class?" Gray nodded. "Okay, tell me your name and I will add it to the attendance list later." Gray did as she said and she wrote down his name. "Okay, now that that's done, we can go ahead with the brand new volleyball unit. Let’s start shall we?" 
   Class seemed to drag on forever.  I hope this doesn't happen every day . Gray thought as the bell signaling lunch rang. 
   "Hey, Naveed, can you help me find my Dorm room? I want to dump some of these books I got from Trig." 
   "Ok, the number to your room is on your schedule." Gray took his schedule and handed it to Naveed. "What, room 6G05? I know where that is!" 
   Gray was confused. “Congratulations on that, but can you help me find it?” 
   “What I meant was, room 6G05 is my dorm room! How strange is it that the first person that I talk to is my new roommate!” Naveed exclaimed. “Let’s go to the room!” Gray found that a bit strange, but would prefer Naveed to anybody else in this whole place. 
   They walked all the way from building E to G. Alphabetically, the letters are close, but Gray really saw how huge the campus was while walking to the Dorms. As they got closer to building G, Gray saw a lake in the distance. It was beautiful. Gray made a mental note to go there to visit. 
   G building was an architectural marvel. All the other buildings were modern and kind of high tech, but this one was like a castle. The building was made of old red bricks and it was 6 stories tall. The steps leading up to the door were made of marble and they were wide. Gray decided that he liked this area. It had a lake and the building was beautiful. They entered the Dorm and saw it was empty. 
   “Let’s head up the stairs, they’re this way.” Naveed said. 
   “Wait, where’s the elevator?” Gray asked. They were heading to the 6th floor; they really didn’t need to walk all the way up there.  And, plus these books are heavy.  Gray thought shifting his backpack. 
   “There is no elevator. This is the oldest building on campus; therefore it’s the only one without the modern luxury of elevation. Sorry to tell you.” Gray nodded. Just his luck, he already walked all this way to get here with all these stupid Trig books, now he had to go up all those stairs. He suppressed a groan. Sensing Gray’s need, Naveed asked if he could help with carrying the books. 
   “No, it’s fine-“Gray started but Naveed already took Gray’s bag from him and started to walk away. “You don’t have to carry them all you know.” They were climbing up the stairs to get to the 6th floor. 
   “It’s okay, I need the exercise anyway.” Naveed said.  But we just came from Gym class, isn’t that enough exercise?  Gray thought. 
   They climbed up all the stairs and Gray was surprised to see how quick Naveed could climb the stairs with Gray’s bag and his own. Once they reached the top, Gray stopped to catch his breath. 
   “Alright over there?” Naveed said. 
   “Yeah, just… give… me… a… minute…” Gray was fit enough but after gym and the stairs, he felt as if he ran a marathon. “Where did you learn to… walk so fast…?” Even during gym, Naveed was kicking ass in team vs. team volleyball. 
   “Oh, well, my family is big on education and learning, but I really think that a strong body is also important. If not more so. Anyway, if you expect to live in this dorm, you will have to get in shape!” Naveed answered. Gray just rolled his eyes (mentally, he was too tired to actually do it). They walked down the dimly lit hallway (which Gray was wondering about, how a rich private school could not light a dorm properly?) “Here we are, Room 5.” 
   Naveed told Gray that he needed to scan his (or Naveed’s) ID card on the black box right next to the handle. Gray didn't believe that such an old building could have no elevator but have a complicated locking system instead. Naveed assured him it did and when Naveed scanned his card, they heard a soft  click!  and the door unlocked. 
   “Alright, this is insane!" Gray said annoyed. "Why would you have an inadequate amount of lighting and not install elevators but have a high tech lock system?! What the hell is wrong with this place? Oh, and don’t get me started on the missing studen--“ 
   Suddenly, Naveed put his hand over Gray’s mouth and shoved him inside the dorm room closing the door behind them. 
   “Mm-?” 
   “Shh!” Naveed said looking around the room. 
   Gray was about to throw Naveed across the place but stopped when he saw the look on the kids face. Naveed looked depressed, confused, frustrated, a whole mess of other emotions and, most of all, Naveed looked angry- not the ‘I-just-got-a-C-on-my-paper-I’m-a-failure-to-mankind’ look that Gray would expect a smart kid like Naveed to get- but really,  really  angry. 
   Something was going on with this guy , Gray thought,  and I bet it has something to do with those missing kids . 
     
     
     
   -------------------- 
     
   Next Chapter: The Ugly Reality 
     
     
   
   ~Authors note-- 
   
   
             I will post more chapters if I get a positve response! Can't wait to hear from you! 
   
   
     
   
   
                                      ~SS 
   
     
     
     
     
   ~~~~Here's a preview ~~~~ 
     
     
     
   
   Ch. 3-- The Ugly Reality 
   
     
   Naveed let go of Gray. 
   “Sorry about that, mate. I have to make sure that none of the others here know that we care about the disappearances.” Gray’s eyes widened. 
   “Wha-“ 
   “Let me explain, but first- get comfortable- it’s a long story.” 
   
   
   
   3. The Ugly Reality 
     
   
   Ch. 3-- The Ugly Reality 
   
     
   Naveed let go of Gray. 
   “Sorry about that, mate. I have to make sure that none of the others here know that we care about the disappearances.” Gray’s eyes widened. 
   “Wha-“ 
   “Let me explain, but first- get comfortable- it’s a long story.” 
   
   
   Publication Date: April 30th 2016 https://www.bookrix.com/-sn222b91fcc2d45