Being forced to move so many states away from all that he once knew, Nessa was nervous to tackle his new life. Fortunately, it didn't take long for Nessa to meet a plethora of unique individuals who welcomed him into their lives:
The optimist, the k...
Mythology class was normal again. There was no man from Nessa's past who came back to haunt him. Just a nice old lady who replaced him as the substitute teacher for the time being. With most of his friends also in that class, it slowly became something he could enjoy again.
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Just like always, Ian continued maintaining his grades that most people couldn't even dream of having. He knew that he was fortunate for having the mental capacity and patience to take almost entirely AP classes his entire high school career. Not everyone could pull that off, and for that reason alone, he was very pleased with himself.
However, it wasn't easy. It came with a price, one that constantly chipped away at the feeling of reward that came from holding up yet another A+. Sometimes it didn't feel all that great. Sometimes he wondered if it was even worth it in the end.
That was exactly what he was thinking about when his final class of the day came to an end, his teacher stopping him for a moment so that they could have a short conversation. He was talking about how much he appreciated Ian and his insane work-ethic. How much he wished that other kids had a drive like that, and that he knew Ian would be an inspiration for students come.
The whole while, Ian didn't say much. It wasn't the first time they had a conversation like that. He was used to the praise. Apart of him was extremely pleased to hear it, but it was a small part. The rest of him just felt empty.
"All I know is that you're going to be doing great things one day, Xavian. I'm honored to know that you're in my class."
Realizing that he wasn't entirely paying attention, Ian tried to regather his thoughts and appear enthusiastic or appreciative. He couldn't must up either, though. So he just said the first thing that came to mind. "I don't know if it is worth it."
"What do you mean?" The teacher asked him, face taking on a concerned tint.
"All of this time I spend doing nothing other than studying. I think it might all be a huge waste of time. I'm not going to change the world." He admitted.
"High school isn't your whole life." He told him. "It isn't a waste of time. Any college would be begging to have you as an alumni. Any scholarship. Any job. You will have the perfect head start in adulthood."
"Now I've set the bar too high. If I try to finally live my life in college, they'll know immediately if I'm not working as hard as I was. I think this really was a big mistake." Ian sighed, half talking to himself rather than the teacher. Then he left, because he didn't want to hear what was going to be said in response. He knew it would be the annoying words of someone who had never been in his shoes. Someone who couldn't even begin to understand.
