Laughter shook the silence of the shadowy room. It was a bone-chilling, cold laughter that froze Sidney to her bed in fear. How did he get in here? Sidney looked up and saw the outline of a tall figure in the doorway. "Get out! Go away!" She shouted but the figure stepped into the room, looming closer and closer. Sidney tried to get up, but suddenly her legs were tied. She couldn't escape.
Sidney woke with a start and sat up in the dark dorm room. Green numbers flashed from the desk alarm clock, announcing that it was 2:38 AM. Sidney sat very still, dragging in ragged, shaky breaths. Don't wake Shayna. Don't wake Shayna. Sidney glanced over to the other girl's bed. Shayna was fast asleep. An outline of earbuds just visible against her pillow. Sidney felt some of the tension dissipate. Shayna had mentioned that she usually fell asleep listening to music. At least Sidney wouldn't have to worry about waking her roommate whenever the nightmares took hold.
The sheets were tangled tightly around her legs. She carefully extricated herself and tiptoed out of the room. The hallway was painfully bright in comparison to the pitch black room. Sidney walked unsteadily to the communal bathroom and made her way to a sink. She splashed water on her face, first warm, then cold, then warm again. The sensation was calming. Her breathing slowed, but the panic lingered.
She wondered if she would get any more sleep tonight. She could always hole up in the little study room down the hall. There were four computers and a little couch in there. It was cozy, and safe-feeling.
Sidney had worried at first that she would need to find a way to pay for a laptop, but computers were easy to come by on campus, for the small price of inconvenience. She could handle that. A laptop could wait. A cell phone could wait, too. She didn't have anyone to call, after all. And if she did need to call anyone, she could use the room's landline.
What couldn't wait, perhaps, was the $80 molecular model set that she would need for chemistry, on top of the $200 text book. But she couldn't think about that right now, not if she wanted to get any more sleep. She stared at her reflection in the mirror and willed herself to feel the calmness and strength she knew she would need today.
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Organic chemistry was the first class of the day. Sidney left Forney Hall bright and early to get there before anyone else. She hoped that would help stave off any more anxiety. Her chest was still tight from the nightmare last night, and she needed to be careful if she wanted to avoid a panic attack.
The class was divided into a lecture section that met 3 times a week, as well as a lab section that met twice a week. She would likely have to find a lab partner. The thought didn't sit well with her, but she was determined to not allow trivial things to freak her out today. For all she knew, there might be an odd number of students and she'd be allowed to work by herself. That was a silly idea, but Sidney let herself believe it as she climbed the endless stairs to the top floor chemistry department.
When Sidney opened the door she was surprised to see that there were already a few students in the room. Several of them were gathered around a guy who was putting on a puppet show with figures he'd made out of a molecular model set. Sidney stopped short in the doorway and stared at the absurd performance.
"We're taking heavy fire, mayday, mayday!" The guy held little carbohydrate molecules he had shaped into people and danced them around frantically on his desk. Sidney was surprised to see that it wasn't just guys enjoying the show. A couple pretty girls were laughing as he embellished his performance with "pew pew" sound effects and threw hydrogen atoms at a stoic looking football player sitting next to him.
Suddenly, the performer looked up and locked eyes with Sidney. She felt her face burn as she realized she'd been standing in the doorway watching him. Sidney understood why the pretty pair of girls was humoring him. He was handsome, in a boyish sort of way, and his features were a little striking with dark hair and light, piercing eyes.
Her feet jerked her abruptly forward as she moved to take a seat in the Goldilocks zone. She pulled out a notebook and turned pointedly away from the show. Most people as shy as Sydney made the mistake of sitting in the back of classrooms, but Sydney knew better. If she needed to ask a question, or answer one, she stood a better chance of working up the nerve if there weren't rows and rows of people between her and the professor. The front row was too exposed and made her feel self conscious and distracted, so it was counter-productive. The second row was almost as bad, especially because the first row was usually empty. The third row was just right: the Goldilocks zone.
More students trickled in and the guy in the back continued on with his display until Dr. Crick arrived, and then everyone was magically silent. It wasn't like a high school class at all, with the teacher taking several minutes to get everyone to settle and be quiet. All eyes were on the professor as though his very appearance commanded respect. Except that his appearance reminded Sidney of a jolly little garden gnome. Dr. Crick was probably just a bit taller than Sidney, and had bright blue happy eyes, graying hair, and a bit of a paunch belly.
He was already smiling jovially at the class, like he was seeing old friends seated around him. And Sidney realized with a pang that these probably were old friends. He knew all the students because this was normally a sophomore class. She was definitely the odd one out - a freshman in the midst of smarter, more experienced students who already had a rapport with a reputably tough professor. She felt the bile rise to her throat, feeling out of depth and fully expecting Dr. Crick to call her out and have her introduce herself to the room. But he simply walked across the front row of students, distributing stacks of syllabi. Sidney calmed herself, feeling silly.
Crick passed out the last stack of stapled papers and looked up happily. "Welcome to the class that is going to wreck your lives." He said with a merry smile. And the bile was back.
YOU ARE READING
The Physics of Falling: Study Buddies #1
Romansa"Sidney, talk to me. What's happening?" "Can't breathe." Sidney gasped. "Is it asthma? Do you have asthma?" His eyes were wide with worry, and his gaze darted about the room, looking for something. "Do you have an inhaler? Are you having an allergic...
