Dragon Academy

The Albino Goth

I open my eyes and press the button on the alarm. Oh if only snooze was an option.
My eyes have already adjusted to the darkness, but still wanted to be closed. Someday, I'm going to sit in the sun. Rubbing my hands from my chin and up through my hair, I sit up on the edge of the bed. Ugh why do I have to go to class today? I hold my hand slightly in the air, palm up. I watch as all five of my fingers, each one different, display the five elements. Spirit, Water, Fire, Air, and Earth. Knowing that I can't tell anyone about it, squeezing my hand into a fist, I make them disappear. I stand up and get dressed for class. They call me the Albino Goth. I guess I am a pretty weird sight to see. Sixteen year old guy dresses in all white to match his white hair.
Oh well.
I start my way to class and stop walking when I get to the vending machines. As I'm about to get a few snacks, I feel a soft presence behind me. I turn. Oh it's just her, good. I didn't feel like dealing with anyone else yet.
She's a fifteen year old, always dresses in black. And even though I know that black is her natural hair color, I can't help but wish she would leave it black. She comes up beside me.
"Hey." She says quietly.
"Hello."
"So uh how's your morning?" She says, sounding honestly curious.
"I guess it's not too bad yet. What about your's? Got any plans for fires to get me out of class?" I say jokingly, still not sure of what I want from the vending machine. I'm not really hungry yet.
She laughs and I listen to the music of it.
"I don't know yet, are you taking me with you when you dip out if I do?" She says, looking around for listening ears.
"Probably, you're the only person here who doesn't make fun of me. Who else would I rather take with me?" I said, failing to hide the seriousness of my words.
She just looks at me for a few moments, her dark yet bright blue eyes reading my ice blue ones. I look away. Are you stupid, man? I think to myself.
"You're the only person I could think of taking with me on an adventure also, Winter." She regards me with a serious gaze.
"You want anything from the machine? I'm buying," I offer.
"Eh, if you insist, I'll have a bag of chips and and chocolate bar." She said laughing.
I put the money in, press the buttons, and reach in for her snacks.
"I do insist." I whisper, handing them to her with a smile.
After getting what I want, and stashing them in my bag, we start walking to class.
"So about that fire..." I say and she laughs.

We walk into class and the first thing I hear makes me angry.
"Oh look at them two! Oh they must be dating! The Two FREAKS of the school!" Shouts none other than Samuel.
"Don't call her a freak just cause you hate me. And we're not dating." I say angrily.
"Okay, class!" Mrs. Lucas says, "take your seats, and let's begin."
I sneak a glance to my only friend, Zandra, as she starts on her chocolate bar.
I get out a piece of paper.
Did you skip breakfast again too?
She passes the note back to me.
Yeah, I didn't feel like going.
You really should eat.
She passes the note back to me again.
I wasn't really hungry anyway, now focus xP
I put the note away in my folder and smile to myself as I notice how many we have in there. She finishes her chocolate bar and still looks sad.
All of a sudden, the fire alarm goes off and we are told to evacuate the building. As we all leave, I grab her hand much to her surprise, and lead her away.
We get to an abandoned part of the school, a separate building covered in vines, and I lead her in.
"I guess we didn't need you to start a fire. Or was that your doing?" I joke.
"Oh no, don't you pin that on me! I had nothing to do with it." I believe her, but we both still laugh.
"I grabbed our bags." I tell her.
She giggles.
"Oh I'm glad one of remembered!"
I sit down in one of the abandoned desks, not worried about the dirt or the darkness. I can still see.
"Why did you defend me earlier?"
"Cause I don't like it when people mess with you." I say, completely serious.
"Thank you. I mean it." She whispers.
"You don't have to thank me." I whisper back gently.
"Although if I were you, I would have said something like 'yeah, why? Are you jealous?'" She said laughing.
"Oh? And label you as dating someone like me?" I asked.
"I wouldn't have minded..." She breathed.
We looked at each other in the darkness. We both turned a little red.
"So how come you don't specialize?"
"I uh. I have. But don't tell anyone." I say.
"I won't tell anyone, I promise. Which element?"
"All of them." I murmured.
She gasped as I looked away from her eyes.
"But that's impossible..."
"I know and that's why you can't tell anyone. You know what they would do to me. I would have to run away from here, far from here. Please, you promised." I begged of her.
"I won't tell anyone, Winter..."
Something about the way she said it made me look up at her. Her words from earlier ran through my mind.
'I wouldn't have minded...'
"You like me." I whispered.
She looked me in the eyes and then quickly away.
"Yes, I do." She said quieter than I've ever heard her speak.
She stood against the wall furthest from me. We were in silence for a few minutes.
She didn't look up as I stood and walked toward her. Standing in front of her, I can just barely see her through her long, layered, dyed red hair. She still looked down. Until I touched her. I gently touched her cheek, pushing her hair back to see her face. And she looked up at me.
Mr. Six Foot Four as she sometimes called me and I would comment on it not being my fault that she's 5'3".
I still kept my fingertips against her cheek.
Her skin is so soft, like silk. Beautiful.
Don't look down like that. I can't stand to see you look sad. I wished I had the breath to say. But I didn't. So we just looked at each other, with my fingertips on her cheek.
She blushed, the pink making me feel even more breathless. I want to kiss those black painted lips.
The look on her face told me that she wanted me to, so I tried. But when I stepped forward to, I slipped and fell on my butt. She started to speak, but I just stood up. Too embarrassed, I just walked back to my desk.
She's had boyfriends before, she's had her first kiss. I know cause I've seen her kiss her ex-boyfriend. How can I even think I'd be good enough to kiss her?
I still looked down at the desk, its true. She does have friends and has dated before. She's beautiful, the only reason Samuel called her a freak was because of me.
I heard her move off the wall. Oh goodness, I hope she doesn't laugh at me.
She gets closer and I still can't look up at her. She has to think I'm pathetic. Going in to kiss her and then falling like that.
She stands in front of my desk. I hear her giggle. Oh no, she's laughing at me now. I wish to be in class after having messed up so bad.
"That was really cute." She says sweetly.
I stare at the desk, like as if I can burn a hole through it. Into the floor and drop into it, never to have to be seen again.
She touches the side of my face, moving my hair out of my face. But naturally, the white strands fall back into my face. The straight, multidimensional, hip length white hair that gets me mocked. Its shorter in the front but still covers most of my face, especially since I'm still staring down my desk.
She tries again, putting her hand under my chin. I still refuse.
"Look up!" She says, putting her hands on either side of my face and pulling up.
I finally give in. Dragging my eyes up from my desk to her lightly curly hair that falls to her knees, then to her breathtaking blue eyes.
"You're so stubborn sometimes." She says jokingly, still holding my face.
I stand up out of the desk, and her hold and walk over to the far wall where she had been. I lean against it, staring at the ceiling, and take a deep breath.
She walks over to me and stands with her hands on her hips. I glance down at her and then back up.
"Now you listen to me, Mister! I'm tryi--"
She was cut off by an opening of the door, nighttime air spilling in.
"You two, follow me to my office."