High Impact || Genshin Impact H.S AU

Chapter 7.8

Sucrose takes off her glasses, wiping her eyes and cleaning the lenses. Seeing her world with clean lenses, she realizes that it was in fact afternoon. She woke up yesterday morning.

“What the hell?” Sucrose mutters, surprised to see that she pushed into an overnighter. She had done it before, though she had been told it wasn’t healthy by Mr. Albedo.

She got up from her chair, stretching her back. When doing so, her back cracked in several different spots, causing pain to snap-in.

“Ack,” Sucrose groans, annoyed at the sharp pain. She moved away from her desk, needing a moment from her experiments. The decathlon was in two weeks, an event that has caused Genshin High to go into chaos.

Students spent study periods and classes obsessively studying, all-knowing that if they looked good in the decathlon, they too can get into a good college. Sucrose had been able to avoid that for the past week, signing onto a special agreement with her teachers and principal, with Mr. Albedo’s help.

Basically, she was allowed to work from home on assignments, so she could have more time dedicated to her scientific endeavors. She didn’t do it very often, using it for important projects. She may not be the most energetic or social butterfly, but she didn’t always enjoy being stuck inside, alone.

Right now, she was stuck, having spent an entire 24 hours on experiments that didn’t result in her working product.

“Ugh" Sucrose whimpers out, seeing sunlight peek in through her kitchen window. Her eyes blink rapidly when seeing the sunlight, annoyed at the bright light.

She grabs an apple that she didn’t use for experimental purposes and leaves the apartment. Smelling fresh air, she sighs deeply, feeling the dopamine rush into her brain.

Walking down the stairs, every step creaking, she reaches the sidewalk and begins to walk away from her apartment complex.

She continues to walk, cars rushing past her. Eventually, she got annoyed by the cars, too loud for her ears that were used to the silence and being inside.
Seeing a trail that led to the forest, she made her journey into the woods. She smiled, passing trees and leaves, seeing the greenery.

“Sucrose? What are you doing here?” a familiar voice said. Sucrose gasped and turned around, realizing it was Mr. Albedo.

“Mr. Albedo? What are you doing here?” Sucrose asked back, her curiosity piqued.

“Painting, I got more time now that I’m no longer an art teacher,” Mr. Albedo responded bluntly. Sucrose nodded, referring to the scientist’s love for the arts, funky seeing the canvas and paints.

“Now what are you doing here?” Albedo asked again.

“Taking a walk after pulling another all-nighter,” Sucrose said, knowing she was about to get scolded.

“Sucrose you should refrain from doing that, it's not healthy, your sleep is very important,” Albedo lectured.

“I know sir, I just got busy,” Sucrose said.

“Mm alright, I understand, the decathlon is important after all,”
Albedo commented. He then grabbed his palette and continued to paint quietly. Sucrose sighed, weirdly calmed by watching Albedo paint. She heard of people relaxing to the sounds of white noise, ASMR, or more, but she never seemed to be in all of that.

Yet despite it all, watching her teacher paint and listening to the sounds of the paint splatter, the hums of her teacher as he fixates on the scenery and painting, going back and forth. It lulled her, making her want to close her eyes and fall asleep.

“If you’re tired, please return to your apartment, I don’t want you falling asleep in the woods,” Albedo said, smirking. Sucrose chuckled, pinching herself to avoid falling asleep.

“No worries, I’m smart enough to know better,” Sucrose reassured.

“You most certainly are, a brimming student full of potential,” Albedo complimented making Sucrose flustered.

Her teacher tended to compliment her and encourage her towards a hard-working path, making her the scientist she is today. She learned that it was okay to ask questions regarding everything and if she wanted to know more about something, she should research it.

With this advice, she had filled out entire journals crammed with notes, experiments, and things she learned over the years. The knowledge she had accumulated and built up. While she was still young and had a lot more to learn, Albedo’s support most certainly helped her get to the position she was today. She did truly love and appreciate the teacher, grateful for everything Mr. Albedo had done for her.

“Thanks, sir, I do genuinely appreciate that,” Sucrose said, her face red from all the compliments. Albedo smiles warmly, making Sucrose feel the cold air melt away on her skin.

“Anyway, do you wish to see my painting?” Albedo offered. Sucrose nodded, always fascinated by her teacher’s art hobby and skills. For a man who had spent a lot of time indulging in science, he was a very talented artist, making him a multi-trick pony. Sucrose walked towards the canvas and admired the painting.

It was another scenery painting, one of Albedo’s favorite things to paint. Sucrose looked up and down, comparing the scenery to the painting, amazed at the semi-realism and how well Albedo captured it. the long brush strokes showing the clouds and the splattering of the conforming trees. The roaring river flowing so lusciously, then she noticed a hint of bright green. She gasped, realizing it was her.

“B-but how did you capture me in the painting so quickly?” Sucrose asked, amazed at the skill. While it wasn’t fully completed, it looked amazing, her hair and body figure fully fleshed out, her clothing and its details being intricately painted. She had only arrived for a mere few minutes and yet Albedo had almost completed in putting her into the scenery.

“Years of practice,” Albedo answered, leaving it at that. Sucrose nodded, amazed at the skill.

Then in the corner of her eye, she notices a shiny amber color on the painting and in real life. Following it, she reached a nearby tree and touched the shiny amber color. The substance was sticky, causing her fingers to be glued together.

“It’s sap,” Albedo confirmed.

“Yes, interesting.” Sucrose says, remembering her issues regarding her product. She couldn’t find a way to make the preservative sealant stay together, constantly breaking apart and making the fruit age.

“Sir, do you have a-”

“Small vial and cork for you to capture a sample? Yes,” Albedo said, smiling as he holds out a small glass vial with a cork. Sucrose gleams, ecstatic to see her teacher continue to be a scientist.

“Thanks!” Sucrose exclaims, grabbing the vial and pouring a sample of the tree sap into it. She knew that if she could replicate the tree sap, she could be able to have a nontoxic ingredient for her preservative.

With the tree sap sample intact, she ran off, heading back to her apartment, readying herself for another all-nighter of experiments and more. She needed to be ready after all.