***** Vol.3 Chap.11 Broken communication *****
Frank sat in his chair and pondered about the impending fiasco without comprehension.
JB had been very faithful so far. There were many times that she even offered to take his class without asking.
He tried to recall if he had told JB to take his class this time and clearly remembered he and JB were walking out to the car the day of his departure and he specifically asked JB to take his classes. Unmistakably, she said yes.
I must sort this out with JB.
Though it was almost time for his next meeting, he wanted to stop by JB’s office and clear this whole thing up. Heading to her office, the door was closed.
He knocked.
No answer.
He knocked again.
No answer.
He tried the door; it was locked. He put his ear to the door and heard someone typing on the keyboard.
“JB? Are you in there?”
The typing stopped, but still no answer.
He knocked again.
No answer.
Seeing the time of the meeting was approaching, he left wondering what had happened to JB. The day disappeared quickly with meetings and he was tired when he finally got back to his office.
Several messages on the phone waited for him, including one from the Dean’s office and another one from a Dr. Summer representing the Academic Appeals Board. Amazed and flabbergasted that people on the campus wasted no time to stomp on him, the victim.
It is after quitting time. Wait till tomorrow.
Frank packed up his papers and his laptop computer. His eyes felt on a stack of test papers to be graded. He grabbed those as well. The students would be screaming for the test results in the next class. He sighed. More chores to bring home.
Life became so mundane suddenly. Another lost evening occupied with grading papers!
Before leaving the building, he stopped by JB’s office again. He knew she normally worked late. The door was closed. Before he knocked, he put his ear to the door and heard someone typing on the keyboard. She had to be in there.
Frank knocked and called out to JB.
“JB, are you in there?”
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No answer.
“JB, I know you are in there. I just want to catch up with you.”
No sound.
“JB!” Frank knocked again.
Silence.
“JB! I know you are in there. Please open the door?”
Nothing.
Frank waited for five more minutes and thought he heard someone resumed the typing. He realized she did not want to talk to him, although he did not know why. Picking up his briefcase, he went home baffled.
The day had started off so beautifully, but as the day wore on, it got uglier and uglier. Typically, Frank would stop by the faculty club for a nice dinner, but today, he lost all his appetite and went straight home, grabbing some Chinese takeout along the way instead.
At home, Frank relaxed in his nice oversized armchair and turned on the television for the evening news. He was not really listening. There was the typical local news about traffic accidents and the local school bond issues.
However, his ears perked up at a news bulletin about a boat that sank in the Bermuda Triangle. What was so unusual was that the entire event was witnessed by a pilot of a small chartered airplane. The plane was flying over the area. The pilot got on the air and gave a minute-by-minute description of the entire event. Naturally, the television station kept replaying the taped conversation.
… a lot of foaming. The entire area is white with foam bubbling with some kind of gas. We are flying about five thousand feet high and our plane can still feel the turbulence from the gaseous discharge. The small boat is listing critically and bopping up and down like a tossed rag doll. This is not good. The boat is taking on water. No, the boat is listing to its side.
Ooh, a giant bubble burst near the boat, throwing it to the other side. I see two people in the boat waving at us. They are calling for help. Oh, another giant bubble burst near the front of the boat…
Frank looked up to listen.
…No, no. The boat disappears. Somebody calls the Coast Guard. Somebody calls for help. According to my GPS, the exact location is 25 degrees 36 minutes North by 78 degrees 15 minutes West. I cannot get more accurate than this. Repeat, my exact location is 25 degrees 36 minutes North by 78 degrees 15 minutes West.
I will stay here a little longer to see if there are any survivors. I only have enough fuel to stay here for a few minutes. Again, I repeat. My location is 25 degrees 36 minutes North by 78 degrees 15 minutes West. A boat just sank at this location…
And here we have the breaking news for the evening. We have contacted the Coast Guard who said that rescue efforts are underway. An anonymous source claims that the rescue of the two boaters is highly unlikely given the location and the weather. As more news becomes available, we will keep you updated on this.
Reporting for CNN, I am…
Frank felt sorry for the boat and the occupants, but he himself had enough excitement already for one day. Quickly finishing his Chinese takeout, he concentrated on grading the test papers.
Though he stopped many times and wanted to just fling the papers down the stairs and gave them the grade depending on where the paper landed. The students were just not as astute as before. In the earlier years of his career, the students were a lot more conscientious and a lot more diligent than now. The students in this class just wanted a grade and cared much less what or if they learned anything.
And they had the audacity to complain? Frank was getting mad.
The more he looked at the paper and his mind dwelled on the complaint, the madder he got. He finally put the papers down and fixed himself a drink. He walked over to his exercise bike and pedaled furiously. After about fifteen minutes of exercising, he felt his frustration was manageable. Whether it was the alcohol or the exercise that calmed him down, he was not sure. Time to return to grading.
When papers were graded, he was ready for bed. As his habit, he would turn on the television and catch any news update. Only a short bulletin from the Coast Guard was on the evening news saying that they had located a vessel that was closest to the stated location. The ship was a research vessel from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. There was a submersible on board of the research vessel and they would attempt to rescue the passengers and raised the boat.
It has been a long day. Frank was worn out from the trip and from the events of the day. He slept soundly.