Balls

14

Iqball saw Micah drape a thick towel over a shower door. The older student entered the shower booth next to him.

"So you ran back to your room as soon as the fish were taken care of, yet held on this long to the stink?" Iqball chided.

Micah laughed.

"At least I don't stink as bad as Mrs Jogh!" he responded with hot water dripping all over his locks.

"She doesn't smell bad at all, as far as I could tell," Iqball said.

"It's all the fish she's been eating. It's always fried fish for her every time we sat for a meal," Micah joked as he lather soap all over his body.

A sense of dread pricked Iqball's brain.

"I know for a fact that she did ate roo meat. She enjoyed them at the dance," Iqball replied, not wanting Micah to know he's been noticing the same thing.

Micah looked at him with a smile. He quickly shampooed.

"You should observe her sometimes. I swear she doesn't eat much of anything else but fish," Micah said as he finished his shower.

The third year student left Iqball still holding on to his soap bottle.

***

"Which one is she?" asked Ballqis the next day, right outside room 6E.

"The one with the ponytail," said Iqball as he picked up their pace.

The girl with the ponytail seemed bent on leaving the building as soon as she could, judging from the brisk walk she was maintaining.

"Look, she's queueing behind that guy at the vending machine. Quick, talk to her, Iqball!" cried Ballqis.

It was the girl's turn to put in a dollar into the coffee machine. The note went into the slot successfully.

"Hi Mirna, I'm Iqball, we just got out of the same class?" Iqball ventured as he stood next to the coffee machine.

Mirna had just pressed a finger on the Regular Black button. She had no choice but to wait.

"I know who you are," she replied. Her eyes darted a little as she spoke.

Up close, Ballqis noticed how pretty she was. Her green eyes and red hair were indication that she was an international student too.

"We, that is my friend Ballqis and I would like to talk to you about the fish lab project you were involved in last semester. Micah said you were his duty partner," said Iqball quickly.

Mirna turned to walk away from the machine. Iqball tailed her. Ballqis grabbed the wasted freshly brewed coffee, put on the lid and quickly followed Iqball.

"We were just wondering if you know how the lab disposed the earlier generations of the fish," said Iqball as he chased after Mirna.

Mirna looked thoroughly spooked.

"Leave me alone," she pleaded.

"Wait, your coffee," Ballqis tried to stop her.

But Mirna simply took the cup from Ballqis' hand and continued walking. In her haste she took a turn and the three of them ended up at an alley between two faculty buildings.

It was a route that led to a parking lot for the lecturers. Mirna stopped walking.

"Mirna, please, we just wanted to know a bit more about the tilapias," Iqball tried again, sensing the unease the red head was radiating.

"We need to help the fish," Ballqis chimed in.

Ballqis' words seemed to trigger a strange effect. As if drained of all fear, Mirna looked at her with fascination.