Lunch break was in full swing at Khanna's International School.
Overcrowded benches. Lunchboxes open. Voices overlapping from every direction.
Some kids were arguing about cricket teams, others were shamelessly begging for extra paneer.
From the doorway, a teacher yelled:
"Silence!"
Kero sat slouched with his usual group, legs stretched out, casually stealing bites from other people's lunchboxes like it was his birthright.
Manoj lifted the lid of Suhana's lunchbox without permission.
Manoj:
"Hey Suhana, where's today's lunch from? You usually loot us every day."
Suhana slapped his hand away.
Suhana:
"Today I thought I'd feed you poor people too. You all eat off me every other day anyway."
Raza paused mid-bite.
Raza:
"Wow… such kindness? Something's definitely wrong."
Suhana smiled.
Suhana:
"Jokes aside… it's my birthday today. Thought I'd treat you guys."
Raza:
"WHAT?"
Suhana:
"Shhh! Quiet! Otherwise I'll have to treat everyone."
Himanshu laughed.
Himanshu:
"Still, this is too cheap. Who treats people with homemade food on their birthday?"
Kero snorted.
Kero (grinning):
"Relax. A girl who thinks a hundred times before lending one rupee—do you really think she'd buy us pizza and burgers? The fact that she's sharing food is already a miracle."
Suhana:
"Excuse me?"
She slammed her lunchbox shut and stood up.
Suhana:
"You guys enjoy your free food."
She walked away with her female friends.
Manoj (leaning back):
"Relax. She'll come back on her own."
Kero:
"Obviously," (his hand already reaching for Manoj's lunch)
"Birthday drama."
The bell rang.
Lunch break was over.
Physics Class
Students dragged themselves to their seats.
Bags hit the floor. Chairs scraped loudly.
Manoj sighed internally.
Manoj (thinking):
Why do teacher always arrive so fast? In every other class they come late. Lunch isn't even finished and here he is already.
The professor stood at the blackboard, chalk in hand, halfway through a derivation no one was following.
Kero leaned back, half-listening, half-zoned out.
Then—
The air flickered.
Kero:
"Huh?"
A transparent screen floated into view. Numbers glowed on it.
00:00:10
Chairs screeched as students suddenly sat up straight.
Manoj (whispering):
"You guys can see this too, right?"
No one laughed.
No one joked.
00:00:07
00:00:05
00:00:03
Kero's heartbeat accelerated. Even the air felt colder.
00:00:01
The professor slightly turned, chalk still in his hand.
00:00:00
And—he vanished.
The chalk fell to the floor and rolled.
A moment later, the countdown screen appeared again, faint and translucent:
11:59:59 PM
Midnight.
The classroom froze.
All students stared at the screen.
The only sound left was their breathing.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
What do you think?
Why did the screen appear?
Where did the professor go?
And… is this happening only to teachers—or to someone else as well?