The Colors In Her Voice

☆Chapter 34☆

As I sat on my bed after dinner, I kind of felt disoriented. Something was gnawing at my insides and I couldn't help but feel frustrated. Sighing, I pulled at the ends of my hair. There are days when I feel so fussed up for no reason. Or maybe I was just PMSing. Yes, that must be it.

Lying on my bed, I stared up at the ceiling but my mind kept on wandering elsewhere. Instinctively, my eyes moved toward my study table and I kept on gazing there until sleep finally welcomed me. Before I knew it, it was morning but I felt like I didn't even get enough sleep.

It was because of my tireless sleep, I was completely exhausted by the time I reached my school. My eyes were droopy and there were bags forming under them, making them seem worse. 

I'd had this weird dream wherein I was crying and chasing something while in another one, I was creating havoc just to find something. 'What exactly was I finding? Even my dreams had no clue.'

“Boom!”

I gasped and turned around to find Mason grinning at me. Clutching my chest, I took a few deep breaths in and released them. I blinked my eyes and gave him an unamused look.

“Whoa. You don't look so happy,” Mason said, observing my face as if I needed the reminder about how much I was resembling a hobo. He messed up my already tangled hair.

“Yeah, that's because you just scared the daylights out of me,” I retorted lazily and started walking inside the school's main gates.

“Nope. Something else is the matter. Spill it,” he urged me and I slouched in my position.

“Actually,” I began, looking at him. “That's the thing. I don't know either. I just feel so exhausted. I couldn't sleep well last night and now I feel like I'm brought back from the dead. I'm sorry if I can't share the same excited energy as you. Today's not my day.” I explained to him dejectedly.

Mason just stared at me for a few seconds before smiling at me gently. Slinging his arm around my shoulder, he literally dragged me to my class. I felt like he was dragging me maybe because I was walking slower than a snail. “No worries, Rach. I think I can sulk with you.”

I passed him a weak smile at that. A day without proper sleep is like a day when you have one of the best sleeps in your life. It is because after a great sleep, you want to sleep even more. I sat down heavily on my seat beside Mason after we reached our class. “Thanks.”

“Did you eat anything?” He asked me because Mr. James, our calculus sir, had not arrived and he wouldn't for another five minutes as we were early to our class and half of it was empty.

“Does granola bar count?” I asked him teasingly. I rested my head above my arms and looked at him.

“In this state?” He said, waving his finger up and down at me with scrunched eyebrows. “I don't think so.”

“There you go. You got your answer,” I told him with a careless shrug. 

He gave me an admonishing look which clearly meant that he was displeased with my answer. He drummed his fingers on the bench as if thinking something. I just kept on gazing at him sleepily. To be honest, I was feeling really comfortable and just when I was fully blanketed by the sleep, someone nudged me.

Opening an eye, I saw Mason looking at me with concern. “Don't worry, I'm just sleepy,” I mumbled hazily.

“I think I have just the thing for you then,” he told me and rummaged through his bag. After what seemed like ages, he finally handed me a thin book. Its cover read ‘puzzles’ and I did give him a puzzled look. Pun intended. It was the last thing I'd expected. “Open it,” he ordered me excitedly.