Chapter 117: Past And Present
Lara felt like she had just drifted into a dream when a deafening, indescribable sound jolted her awake. Or was she still dreaming? The noise was relentless, pounding against her senses — a chaotic barrage of sound.
Her foggy mind raced back to another time, another place. High school. The protest. The noise barrage. Or was she still in a dream?
She was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with her high school classmates, freshmen, in front of the Justice Department, their voices rising in defiance against the unjust dismissal of two well-respected professors.
The student government organized the demonstration, a peaceful outcry in which the clamor of pots, pans, and drums, the honking of horns, the ringing of bells, and the voices of students singing patriotic songs became their weapon against injustice.
Lara had joined, not just to support her teachers, but to understand the passion that drove her fellow students. Those two teachers were well-loved by the students. But because they offended a big shot, they were framed and subsequently fired. The student government president was also very good with his words, that even she, who was indifferent to things around her, was convinced to come out and show support.
But the noise... it had been unbearable. Each bang and clash rattled her bones, making her want to run. Just as she’d decided to slip away, a canister arced through the air, landing with a hollow clink before spewing thick, white smoke.
Tear gas.
Panic erupted. The once-organized crowd dissolved into chaos. Students shoved and stumbled, their screams muffled by the choking haze. Most who came to show support were freshmen, and it was their first experience of a peaceful demonstration that turned into a riot.
They could not understand what happened. Why were they being hurt and pushed away when they were just showing support to teachers who suffered injustice?
Someone had stumbled and fallen directly in front of her.
"Mommy," the young girl cried as she instinctively called for her mother.