Delusions of an Idle Mind

''How boring... ''

I sighed for like a hundredth time now. It was going to be a "fun" day they said. "You'll enjoy it!" they said. But this is probably the most boring day in my entire collection of boring school days.

It was time for our yearly Christmas party. Our school was known for its grand preparations and lavish events but this year, there were some budget cuts due to the onslaught of a recent calamity, so our school decided to give some of the funds instead as charity. Or maybe because no one really is in the mood to party. Like me.

I was never a social person. I'm the type who'd rather spend the day reading and playing video games than mingling with others but today was just different. Even for an introvert like me, the classroom seemed so deserted. Literally. I am the only person here. Well, the program was supposed to start at four in the afternoon and I arrived a little too early. Too early. A full ten hours early.

So I just spent the entire day looking out the window, scribbling some random stuff. Outside, students are continuously arriving and the entire campus was starting to be filled. Despite that, I wasn't able to spot any familiar faces. I thought some students in our block would come to school because our professor mentioned something about a class but it turns out, the whole morning was devoted to preparations and I had to spend the entire day idling around with nothing to occupy my mind.

I glanced at the food stands outside. It then occurred to me that I haven't eaten any lunch yet. I went to a nearby burger stand and ordered something that takes 6 minutes to cook. I took a seat at a nearby bench and just stared at the clouds. In my idleness, I failed to notice that other people sat near me. It was only when I accidentally set my hand down near the shoulders of one of them did they catch my attention.

"Oh, excuse me." I uttered an apology but they didn't seem to hear me. They were just staring at something wearing the same expression: S-A-D. When the food was done, I took it and proceeded back to the room. I shot another glance at the bench only to find out that the other people were gone. I didn't even notice them leave. They really didn't stand out and could have easily disappeared in a crowd.

As I was walking back to the room, I received a text from a friend that she was staying at Room 501. I answered back and told her that I'll just meet her there. Upon arriving, she asked if I know any vacant rooms. I told her that we could stay at the room I was in earlier, 603. We decided to take the stairs instead of waiting for an elevator. We were chatting about some supposed ghost stories circulating our building. Along the first flight of stairs, I passed another group of S-A-D people. They were different from the guys at the bench and I was throwing them a secret glance for at least a few seconds. Upon reaching the second flight of stairs, I was surprised that another group of S-A-D people only this time they looked exactly like the ones that passed us a few moments ago even though I just saw them for a few seconds since they were in a hurry. Deja vu? My friend then called me from atop the stairs. It seems I was left behind.

Inside the room, my friend and I continued talking about those ghost stories until she asked me what happened at the stairs earlier, so I told her all about it. About the group of people who passed us twice. "What!? You've actually seen a walking ghost?" She exclaimed. "Yeah, so stop talking about that stuff. Besides, I've already got two signs." She looked at me with eyes as big as saucers, pressing me for more details. I told her that earlier, I ordered food that took 6 minutes to cook. Then she met me at Room 501. 5+0+1=6. I glanced at the clock. It was quarter to six. I asked her how long we have been talking and she said that we were here for 2 hours now. I grasped my mental clock and recalled that we had only been here for 45 minutes at most.

Outside the building, the parties were now in full swing. We passed by a photo booth and my friend urged me to take a photo together. We were told that another group was inside and wasn't finished yet so we decided to move along. I then thought that the group inside was composed of 6 people would come out at 6 PM. To which they did. We explored the various booths and stand throughout the campus before going home at 8 PM. While exploring, I still saw a bunch of S-A-D people.

That day gave me a combination of 6-6-6. I tried looking for answers on the web and the library but came up short. I asked my friend if she can find any reference to the connection between the numbers and the S-A-D people but she wasn't able to find anything until we met again when classes resumed.

She told me that sometimes, when the mind isn't too busy, it can intercept glimpses of spirits wandering around the Earth. They were souls that cannot go to their destined place above or below. Contrary to belief that ghosts hide in dark, abandoned places, they actually prefer huge areas like our campus. They can easily blend into crowds and no one would notice that they are dead unless you have an ability of sorts. Once seen, they can suggest suicidal thoughts and distort your sense of time if you're caught off guard. I was probably able to see lots of them because I was thinking of such notorious numbers that they can use as a catalyst. I asked her how come I wasn't harmed in any way aside from distorting my sense of time and she told me that it was because she was around me that time which renders me less vulnerable.

So always be sure to occupy your mind with something when you're bored. And wherever you go, whether a mall or hospital, make sure you always have someone with you.