Tangled With A Catholic Priest

 She heard a voice and turned to see a priest. It was the new priest, the very new priest they had welcomed hours ago, the very one whose cat chased her in a dream but didn't manifest in the physical, the one who she wanted to avoid. He walked towards the tree, his eyes fixated on her, with a smile plastered on his face. What was he doing here? 

 He stared at her for a while, his brows contorted in a furrow. Then he smiled. "I think I know you," he said, "you're the one who had that placard, that 'I love you' placard."

 And he was the priest who carried a cat in his bag, what a good introduction. "It was not mine," she said, not liking that he misunderstood it. 

 "I saw it on you." He said as if her explanation didn't matter. He looked around. "What are you doing here?"

 "Relaxing," came her crude reply. 

 "Such indiscipline, hiding here while class is going on? Get down, boy," he said. 

 She rolled her eyes. "I'm a girl."

 "Get down."

 She looked at him, blew a bubble from the gum she was chewing, and went back to her phone, scrolling through it to see the next thing that would make her mundane time exciting. It didn't last long though as her phone flew from her hand, being hit by a stone. She looked back at the priest, wide eyed. 

 "Nice shot," he said, slapping his palm together to dust the sand off it. 

 Ivie slid from the tree and hurried to check her phone which laid faced down on the ground. "Jesus Christ!" There was a crack. "What the fuck have you done."

 "Uhn-uhn." He shook his head. "No curse words."

 She gritted her teeth. "You're going to pay for this."

 "I doubt." 

 "I'll tell the Dean," she threatened, coming to stand before him. He was tall. 

 He smiled. "Go ahead."

 She stomped her feet angrily, there was no way she could tell the Dean without getting herself in trouble too. "What are you even here?! Did you follow me?"

 "What an imagination you have, I have just decided to acquaint myself with the surrounding, had no idea I would see a stray student who would accuse me of following him. What are you doing here even after the signpost says strictly out of bounds?"

 "I placed that there." She glared at him, annoyed that her phone now had a dent. 

 "So you can have enough space to break more rules? What a tragic ending you now have."

 She cleaned her phone from the dust and checked the crack again, a mild anger boiling in veins. She secured the phone inside her pockets, nursing plans for a revengeful act. "Now, why not go back to acquainting yourself with the surrounding while I return to what I was doing?"

 He didn't move. "That gum, throw it out," he said. 

 "Why?!" The priest was frustrating every hair on her body. 

 "Because I said so. Now, out."

 She grumbled and then spat it to the ground. "Happy now?"

 "Good. You need a lot of training on manners, what is your name?"

 "It's none of your business." Why couldn't the priest go back to looking at the environment and pretend he didn't see anything like the other priests do. 

 "When I ask you a question, you answer me."

 She sighed. "Ivie."

 "Ivie," he repeated. "What does it mean?"

 Seriously? "Bead," she replied. 

 "What a unique name, mine is Chibuike, it means 'God is strength', don't you think it's beautiful?"

 Ivie could feel fumes coming out from her pores. "No, I don't."

 "Anyways, you've broken three rules. First, you skipped class. Second, you're here even when it is strictly out of—"

 "I told you I put that there!" She screamed. 

 "Interrupting a teacher, using swear words on him, being rude and disrespectful, how many broken rules is that?"

 Ivie cursed her luck. "I don't know."

 "Count it," he deadpanned. 

 She sure was going to get back at him for this, especially when she became sure he had that cat, she was going to torment him until he voluntarily resigns. For now, she counted, "Four."

 "It's five." He paced for while, his hands joined together at this back, thinking. "What punishment do I give you? I just arrived today, so I don't really know much about how disciplining a student works here. Ah," it clicked. "Detention. You need a change of this uncouth behaviour you have, you'll serve evening detention for two days. Now, rush to the class so you can be taught how to be a proper student and a proper lady."

 "As your Majesty pleases," she said sarcastically and stomped her feet away, murmuring curses as she walked out of the woods, the new priest, trailing behind her as she went back to class. And fortunately, Sister Gabriel's class was over.

 "That was quick," JohnMary said when he saw her. 

 "Guys, what is the best way to kill a priest?" She looked back to point the priest out, but he was no where to be found. 

 "How do you want it, brutal or soft?" Gaga asked. 

 "Soft, I want to watch the life slip out of him as slow as possible so he can understand the agonizing pain, and when he's about to breathe his last, I'll pull him back to live." As she talked, she made strangling demonstrations with her hand.

 "You really look like you want to kill a priest, who is it?" Itohan asked. 

 "It's the new priest!" She fumed and fetched her phone from her bag. "Look at my phone, that son of a—— that man threw a pebble at my phone! See!"

 "You should put that down, if any teacher sees you, you're in big trouble," JohnMary cautioned, looking around. 

 "The very new priest who came today?" Gaga asked. 

 "The one and only."

 "Girrrrrl," Gaga called in a drawl, "you've seen him from up close already? One on one?"

 "Are you not hearing anything I'm saying? He behaves like a mini god, he even called me a boy!"