Audris
I glanced up at the chalkboard at the front of the room, peering over my classmates’ heads. A clean white electropage sat on the desk in front of me, just one of many in my notebook. I scribbled down the notes with a stylus, biting down hard as chalk screeched against the board. I’ve always hated that sound. It makes my teeth feel all weird, even though it has absolutely nothing to do with the oral region.
Just as I had set down my stylus to exchangeit for a highlight sensor, a shrill buzz echoed through the room, telling me that science was over for the day. I was glad. We were calculating work that day, and it was tedious and all too easy. I had learned how to do that in first age!
I glanced over to Tannia, who sat at the other side of the room. She slammed her notebook shut and gave a sigh of relief as she stood up to leave. I met her at the door on my way out.
“Gosh,” she started. “Why do we have to spend a whole week on work? It’s just division.”
I nodded in agreement and adjusted the binder full of paper below the stack of novels and textbooks I was juggling. Students shoved passed us, giving a friendly wave from time to time, but for the most part, passing period was just as it always was. Nothing spectacular ever really happened in our learning division, and I couldn’t help but wonder if anything ever would. It was just Tannia and me walking towards the dining room, our uniform heels clicking against the clean tile floor.
As we passed through the skywalk to the food and events building, I cast a glance at the street down far below. People were zipping through the green lights on scooters, and every few blocks a security guard stood in the narrow shadow of an alley, daring somebody to budge up and over the speed limit just a little bit. Daring somebody to come claim their punishment.
Lost in my thoughts, I jumped in surprise when somebody’s elbow brushed my shoulder.
“Oh, sorry,” a voice told me. I looked up at the boy who had bumped me. He was taller than me (Most everyone was), but not nearly as high up as Tannia. I had never seen him before. And I knew everyone at the Hilliard Parkinson Learning Division.
He had neatly combed bright auburn hair, which resembled what mine would probably look like if I were a boy. He looked so much different than all the other boys for some reason, and it wasn’t just because of the fact that he hadn’t received his uniform yet and was wearing casual clothing.
“It’s fine,” I said quickly, managing an awkward smile.
“She’s really skittish,” Tannia added easily, chuckling at her own joke. “She does that every time we try to talk to her.” I tried to resist blushing. Classic Tannia.
The boy nodded, grinning. “I just got here. Can you direct me to the main office?”
Tannia pointed back down the skywalk to where we had just come from. “First right, take the staircase on your left and use the elevator with the crest on it. It’s on floor 4.”
“Thanks,” he said, nudging the student directory under his arm up, and starting down the passage. “See you around.”
I followed Tannia into the hall, feeling some of the reddish color drain from my cheeks. “What was that all about?”
“No idea,” she said, casting a glance over her shoulder. “But I think he might turn out to be something sort of-different, I guess.” Looking back at where he had appeared, I completely agreed.
