blossom children(werewolf story) ( choni )

homework

It was a tepid summer's day and cheryl sat alone in the scantly filled lecture hall, pen frozen in hand as her mind wanders, half absorbing the monotonous droning of her lecturer.

Something, something, hand your papers in after class.

The same paper cheryl had blitzed through a week ago.

The young medical studied to become a doctor at a university in new york, granted with the scholarship that covered her tuition. She worked part time, at a small locally-owned café to cover food and rent and lived in a quiet suburban neighbourhood alone in her small, scant, one-roomed apartment.

brown eyes scan the near-empty lecture hall; it was that time of semester when students began skipping class to finish assignments to hand in by the end of the day.

Her gaze fell on a woman sitting a across the room a few rows ahead, hand scrawling notes at a feverish pace, head flicking up and down between her notes and the tutor before her, diligently absorbing as much as possible. This stranger was so unlike any student she had ever seen around here before, she realises. She never recognised this figure,though she prides herself for remembering almost every face this late in the semester. And yet, this woman...

From what cheryl could see from her seat, she had no textbook. She bore pink hair, She wore a black leather jacket, and those br-

"Alright I think I've rambled on long enough," the "That's enough for today. I'm holding a bonus workshop tomorrow evening in the library for those in need of some extra assistance or advice. Please don't hesitate to stop by! Don't forget to turn in your papers by 5pm and I'll see you all next week."

The room erupts with students breaking their silence to resume much needed conversation they had been resisting for the past hour. The sound of paper fluttering, books closing, bags zipping-up, wooden chairs scraping back against the timber floor. Cheryl organises her own belongings before shuffling to the front of the room to place her paper in the tray amongst the other students' before exiting.

She turns to find the woman in the leather jacket, to put a face to the mystery and finds her at the back of the lecture hall, books and papers tucked under her arm, slinking out the back door, alone.

cheryl turns on her heel and follows her up the stairs as the door hisses closed before the stranger, pushing it back open into the now bustling halls. cheryl's eyes scan the crowd of young adults moving between class, chattering and gossiping about the exams, their upcoming practicals, weekend plans and other uninteresting nonsense before her eyes land on a familiar short figure rounding a corner towards the stairwell. She picks up into light jog to keep up with the woman's stride and when she rounds the corner,the woman is already halfway down the stairs.

" Hey wait up!"

The woman turns around at cheryl's voice. Dark brown eyes are set hard, fixing her with a glare, boring into cheryl's own soul. chelyl falters for a moment, a sudden bout of shyness washes over her under this woman's gaze. She stutters out a poor attempt at a sentence before is cut off by a cool voice.

"Yes."

"I- I uh, was just making sure you hadn't forgotten to hand in your report." cheryl gestures at the books below the woman's arm. "That's wh-"

"I am not enrolled here," she cuts her off once again.  "I can quit coming here if I bother you." She turns to continue down the stairs, conversation apparently over, leaving cheryl lost for words.

cheryl deflates a little, sighing and turning to head back to the lecture hall before sparing one last glance at the mystery  woman now stepping out into the courtyard in front of the building.

Children are squealing and laughing, chasing each other through the open area and weaving around the women. The smallest boy trailing after the group trips and stumbles, face planting into the dirt before her. cheryl watches as the women stops in her tracks and turns to the sobbing boy, kneeling and helping him to his feet. They exchange words and the boy nods his head, swiping his runny nose with a dirtied arm as she ruffles his hair and continues her way out of the campus.

cheryl smiles at the sight and decides to follow her once again.

"Wait!" She shouts,  jogging to catch up. "What's your name?"

The woman pauses when cheryl stops besides her, catching her breath. She regards her quietly, her expression firm yet not quite bordering on annoyed before speaking. Toni. Ah... Toni topaz"

"cheryl she returns, extending her hand. Toni quirks an eyebrow and takes it in her own, returning the shake. Cheryl immediately notes the roughness of her skin, the strength of her grip, and yet how gentle and careful she takes her own hand in hers.

Cheryl chews her lip in contemplation for a moment, Toni's steely gaze looking at her quietly. "It doesn't matter if you aren't enrolled here, but it will be hard to keep up if you don't have a course book. Would you... want to study together? Maybe? I don't know if maybe... you..." Her eyes flicker away, cursing internally at the blush she can feel creeping over her ears and cheeks.

And for the first time since meeting, Toni softens, lips twitching into a smile.