School of the Supernatural

Finley: Wow

Both Amber and my's heads shoot up, looking at the hallway. Her hand tightens in mine beneath the table and she whispers, "What was that?" I reply just as quietly, "I don't know."

Students bustle around us, equally as startled by the gunshot. Whispers and shouts fill the echoed room, and Amber scowls deeply at the noise. "The incessant buzz of people annoys me," she mumbles. I say, "That was a bit dark." She offers a dry grin and we both stand up, going to investigate.

Two teachers appear at the doorway between the halls and the cafeteria. They block the flood of students and say, "No one will be going down this hall. You will be sectioned off in groups of six and evacuated to the outdoor training platform immediately."

Amber squeezes my hand tighter as we bustle around, attempting to group up with no success. Eventually we run into Chayse. She has her fingers laced with a boy I recognize from self-defense class. She says, "Are you guys okay? Do you know what's going on?" Amber answers, "Not a clue. And hey, who's this?" She looks up at the boy she's holding hands with and answers, "This is Will, my...er, my..." Will interrupts, "Her friend."

Amber and I exchange a glance, then look back at them. "Group up?" I ask, and they both nod. Four. Alright, two more to go.

As we examine the ever-dwindling groups of people to add to our group, I feel my heart dropping. If your group isn't at the number it needs to be at in evacuations, you get held back and sorted out. As I'm dreading the worst Amber exclaims, "Hey! I know that girl. I spoke to her last night! Let's get her to join up with us." I follow her gaze to see a dark angel girl and a boy standing together, their faces troubled. They may be in the same predicament as us.

Amber rushes forward and calls, "Hey , Akumu! Do you guys need a group still? We have two openings." The girl and the boy exchange a glance. She whispers, "It's alright, I know them. They're okay." The boy nods and the girl steps forward, extending her hand to shake. "I'm Akumu Maki," she greets, shaking hands with each of us in turn. The boy does the same, introducing himself quietly. "I'm Abel," he says.

The six of us make our way toward the door. Along the way we get talking. "Wait wait wait," Amber says to Chayse, "so you don't even want to be the princess? And you still have to be?" Chayse nods. "That's fucked up, man." She laughs, shaking her head. "Yes, I guess you could say it is. It's just annoying since people either hate you or love you--no in between." Both of them laugh, recalling the fight.

We get out to the courtyard, then the fighting platform. Abel and Akumu begin to join in on the conversation, and we all quickly become friends. When one of the teachers calls us out to go to our dorms, Akumu suggests, "We should all hang out in my dorm. We can talk a bit more." We all agree and follow her in.

The dorm is nice and clean, and it smells like lilacs. Akumu and Abel sit on the bed while Will sits on the computer chair with Chayse on his lap and I sit on the desk chair with Amber on mine. We laugh and discuss video games, movies, and books. Amber, Akumu, Abel and I all talk about anime, and Chayse, Will, and Amber discuss Pokemon and Harry Potter, along with Lord of the Rings and a few other things I don't catch.

Time flies as we sit in the little room, laughing away. I say, "It's insane how we all haven't met yet. We click so well together." They nod their agreement and Akumu says, "I've never really had friends like you guys before. I hope we stay like this." Amber chuckles. "I've never gotten that close to anyone, either. I'm a little off-putting, you know? But yeah, I know what you mean."

I glance down at my watch. "Shoot!" I exclaim. "It's late! We should head back to our own dorms." No one argues as we separate with an exchange of phone numbers. Amber and I walk to the point we part and she looks up at me, beaming. "We have a friend group," she says excitedly. I nod, sharing her enthusiasm. Amber waves and bounces off down the hall. She pauses, then says, "Oh, yeah! You left a book in my dorm. C'mon, you can pick it up." I follow her to her dorm.

I get the book, but we end up playing cards. I didn't want to leave her, and she didn't argue. Suddenly, over the game of war, the light mood grows heavy. Our eyes meet and our smiles fade, just staring at each other. Then, like there's a force between us, out heads slowly move toward each other. The space between disappears and I'm left with my mouth on hers.

And we kiss.

It's a moment I never thought I'd have, and it's certainly very nice. When we pull apart Amber murmurs, wide-eyed, "Wow." I nod. "Wow," I echo. Then she hands me my book and I stand, leaving. At the doorway I give her another peck on the lips, then leave officially.

Damn.