Hiraeth

Chapter 8

Samara Shaw

I submitted the letter a few minutes into lunch.

It was three hundred word long, explaining it wasn't my fault and how I shouldn't get punished at all. I also included it was my first day in school and I was new to the system. Ceris mentioned those were not necessary because the school's punishment was equal to all and they would not acknowledge I was new. Stubbornly, I wrote it in hopes to get something less severe. After all, all I did was waste a cheap bar is soap and sponge.

"Hey, I was looking everywhere for you" Ceris caught up with me on my way to the dining hall, looking sweaty with her shirt damp and face dripping with sweat. She looked like she ran a hundred miles to get to me, or even worse, cause her face was red too.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, why'd you ask?" With each word she and, she let out fast deep breaths to calm herself. Her hands rested on her knees and head faced me as she spoke. It was difficult to believe looking around for me made her so sweaty.

"How long have you been looking for me? You look like you ran around the school"

"Even if I wanted to, I can't run for over a minute. I took my drugs a little too early last night and their effects are running out already"

"Drugs? I didn't know you were sick?"

"I'm not, I just have this condition. It's nothing too serious, don't worry about it"

"Is there a medical team here? We need to get you to a doctor immediately"

"I just need to have my drugs, the nurse knows that already. Come on, let's go"

We headed to the dining hall, Ceris taking fast steps while I ran to keep up with her pace. It didn't seem to bother her that how she walked could be a possible reason why she looked all sweaty. I could not keep up with her pace but for the sake of her health, I had to follow her. She was a few feet away from me when we got into the hall and immediately sprinted to the front where the other students stood in a queue to get their meals. She had no regards for them when she pushed through and grabbed a bottled water.

She then chugged down the content in a gulp. It took only a second for Ceris to drink an entire bottle of water and when she was done, she took another one and drank all of it the same way she did to the first one. It went on till she was done with six whole bottles and I was a few feet away from her, getting just as much attention as she was. Everyone, including the ones sitting around tables and those randomly walking around had their eyes on her and me too cause I was the closest to her.

"Ceris, everyone's watching"

She snapped out and dropped the last empty bottle before looking around at what she caused and then back at me. "I'm so sorry"

"It's okay. How about you get water and go take your drugs? I'll get your food for you"

"Thank you"

Ceris took another bottle and sprinted out of the line. The absence of the drugs in her body had caused so much in a few minutes. Her condition was more than I imagined it to be and definitely one I had never seen before then, neither had I read about it throughout my years learning Biology. One thing I did know was that it was serious and missing her drugs could lead to severe consequences.

"Are you gonna stand there or go to the end of the line?"

"I'm sorry" I hurriedly left the front of the line and on my way to the bottom, I caught a glimpse of Lucy. She didn't look bothered by the whole situation or as if she knew any one of us and when I walked past her, she didn't give me a single glance. Her eyes were on the food and nothing else.