Words

Ten

By last period my stomach was practically roaring. It was embarrassing how much it echoed in the classroom almost every time I exhaled. I couldn't help it; I was hungry.

Eating words during lunch seemed impossible when Sophie and Abigail spent their time between eating and drinking water to talk with me as if it was a competition. So there was no other choice but to endure it until I was in a secluded area. As much as I tried to, however, I couldn't ignore the sounds that emitted from within me.

Even though I wanted to focus on taking notes that I would eventually have to eat later, the only thing that I was thinking of was how delicious the knowledge of chocolate cosmos would taste when the words slipped past my mouth and down my throat. I licked my lips in anticipation while rapidly scribbling down the notes that no one would see.

Ahh, I can't wait to eat. The words that hung over me were tempting but I shouldn't be too greedy. What if my brain overloaded from eating too much knowledge? What would happen? Would I die? Now that I think about it, I never ate the words that I typed. What did that mean? Could I only eat-

"Ziva!" A sharp, impatient voice cut through my thoughts.

I straightened my posture and fixed my gaze on the woman who stood in front of me with her arms wrapped around a pile of papers.

"Is my class this boring now?" She said with a hint of a frown as she laid a blank test on my desk. "I expected more from you Miss Kritikos. You were the only one who didn't even attempt to take it. You didn't even write your name."

I glanced at my test in grief, clenching my fists in my lap. A large red bleeding zero stared back at me. I knew it was mine from the smudges of lead that was left on there from my hands. I failed, I realized when I turned to Miss Flores in disbelief. "N-no Miss Flores, I was just..." I trailed off, wincing at the glare that her brown eyes held when she looked at my notebook and test.

My notes had already vanished from the pages of my notebook, and I wasn't surprised that my carefully written answers from last week's test had disappeared as well. Pursing my lips at how this would've looked to anyone else, I sighed in defeat. There was nothing I could say to defend myself. With a trembling voice, I apologized for the crime that I didn't commit.

Miss Flores narrowed her eyes for a moment before huffing. "Try to pay more attention next time. I know you're smart, but at least act like you're learning something."

I nodded my head, keeping my eyes faced downwards. Looking her in the eyes seemed wrong to do at the moment. I couldn't while knowing how bad my grades were becoming now that writing on paper was impossible. "Yes Miss Flores."

Satisfied with my submission, she smiled sympathetically. The thick, curly black hair that fell past her small shoulders swayed when she turned around, walking to the person whose test results were under mine. Snickers of ridicule surrounded me once she left. I brushed them off, more concerned with how clouded my head was with unease. If my parents knew about this, what would they say? Would I even be able to graduate?

I took a look at the clock hanging at the top of the wall to distract myself. It was 2:40. Twenty minutes left. It felt like my heart was synced with the steady ticking of time. History class was always my worst subject. She was too slow-- we were only in the 1400's after nearly 5 months of school.

But this test was so easy... why couldn't my words obey my desires? Why did my grades have to suffer like this? I'd never gotten a failing test grade before; this was a first for me. It was frustrating, especially when I knew all of the answers off of the top of my head. Yet because of my thirst for knowledge, I wasn't allowed to express what I knew on paper.