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Thread: Not a Care in the World ~ZERO~

  1. #11
    The One True Pervert DonatorModeratorCascade UserBoulder UserSS Veteran
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    Chapter 6: August 25 – 6:35 A.M.

    “S-S-Shut up!”
    It doesn't stop, so I slam my fist on the snooze button.
    “OW!”
    A sharp pain lingers on my hand. The alarm still rings. I had punched the edge of my desk, and now my hand is hurting.
    “SHUT UP ALREADY!”
    This time, I make sure to break it.
    I open my eyes wearily, trying my best to lift the weights off of my eyelids. Everything's a blur, but the world focuses again after a few seconds. I guess I'm still not used to waking up this early for school. I yawn the entire time while I get dressed. The walk to the bathroom is a long one. I'm literally dragging my foot across the floor as if it was chained to a big, steel ball. It kind of hurts. It feels as if the weight of the steel ball is pulling my leg right off. Slowly and painfully, of course. The ball slides much easier when I enter the bathroom, as the floor is patched together with smooth, polished, slick vinyl tiles. Looking up at the mirror, I say to myself that my hair is messier than yesterday. I do all that bathroom stuff, then I turn on the shower faucet.

    “Mom, I need you to sign these.” I say, as I hand over the syllabus'.
    Mom reads over and signs every one with her favorite pen. It is blue, very shiny, and smooth. It almost feels like glass, really. Mom's name is neatly sculpted on the top half of the pen in cursive writing. It was a present from Dad during their anniversary. Mom gives the papers back to me. We dig into our breakfast of omelet sandwiches, savoring every bite. I could live off of these.
    “So, how was school?” Mom asks.
    “Gfhhreafth!” Retah replies almost instantly with her mouth still full of food.
    “Don't rush, Retah. You'll choke.”
    Retah swallows before trying to speak again. Unfortunately, she rushes and almost chokes anyway. Looking at our worried faces, Retah desperately tries to reassure us that she's safe by trying to swallow, but we're not so convinced. With the food, having successfully evaded lodging her throat and now, into her stomach, Retah attempts to speak again.
    “Great!”
    Mom pats on Retah's back. For some reason, people do that when others are choking or coughing wildly. I really don't see how that could help. It can worsen the problem if the food is knocked into a more dangerous spot.... if that's even possible.
    “Be careful, Retah. It's not safe to rush when eating.”
    “Yes, Mom.”
    We don't talk while we finish our sandwiches.

    I walk in the door to Ms. Kluge's class. Unlike yesterday, the desks were paired up in fours. It doesn't take long for me to figure out which desk is mine. They're really at the same spots, but in different positions. I take a seat and Ms. Kluge starts attendance.
    “You'll all work in fours to complete this worksheet, front and back. Any questions?”
    No one answered.
    I look at the two desks in front of mine. Both of the students aren't here today, which means I'll be working with... Medwin, was it? The desk next to mine belonged to Medwin. I've only heard his name in class and have yet to actually talk to him. Medwin has curly red hair and brown eyes. Although freckles dot his face under his glasses, he hardly looks like what people call “nerds”. He has a calm face that looks loose and not uptight. Calm, but he looks ready to do the assignment as well. Two sheets of paper land on my desk and I pass one of them to Medwin. We both start right away. Everything on the worksheet is review, so the problems aren't too hard.
    “Hey... can you slow down a bit?”
    I look up to see Medwin peering at my paper, then looking back at his own.
    “Sure.” I respond.
    I do the problems at a slower pace.
    “How... How did you get that?”
    “What?”
    “Number 12.”
    “The one with the triangular prism?”
    “Yeah, I forgot how to find the volume of those.”
    “Volume? Well, the formula is B times H, or in this case, base times height divided by two multiplied by the Length.”
    “Um......”
    “Here, to find the volume of a 3D shape, you have to find the area of the base and multiply it by the height.”
    I show him how to solve the problem, step by step.
    “And so, the answer is 973 cubic inches.”
    “I... kind of understand.”
    “Think you can do one by yourself now?”
    “I'll try.”
    I leave him be and work on my own paper. Once in a while, Medwin would ask for my help, but we finish the worksheets without much hassle. I hand the worksheets to Ms. Kluge for her to check.
    “All correct. Nice work, you two.”
    Medwin turns to me with a smile on his face. “Thanks, Aric.”

    I sidestep through the narrow space and into the tiny room past the stairs. This place really needs to be cleaned. It's started to get a little eerie, actually. I walk up the stairs. This part of the school is so different from the rest. While everywhere else was repainted and reorganized, it seems as if this hidden area was forgotten. I turn the knob and push open the creaky door. In front of me is the bell tower. It is a hollow pillar that houses the bell. Attached to the clapper is a rope that descends down to the school, where it is swung back and forth whenever the bell needed to be sounded. A gust of wind blows by.
    Bang.
    What was that? I turn around to find out that the door was closed by the wind. To my right, I notice a girl on the other side of the roof. She's sitting on the bench again, staring at the river with her lunch on her lap. I walk up to her.
    “Hey, Karren.”
    Karren slowly turns her head to me. Her glasses reflects the glint of the sun for a moment. Behind those glasses, her deep brown eyes seem as if she is looking right past me.
    “Hello, Aric.”
    “May I sit here?”
    “Sure.”
    She turns her head back to the river and stares again. I take a seat and unpack my lunch. I too, gaze into the river beyond the school. It is a beautiful sight. The water glistens with each light wave and casts a reflection on everything above it; the clouds, the sun, even Fraelot Bridge. I dig into my lunch while Karren finishes hers. She gets up and throws her trash away. Soon after, I throw mine away as well. I sit down, and notice the bell in the tower rocking back and forth.
    Ding-dong, ding-dong.
    The second break begins.
    We stare at the river again. It certainly is entrancing and doesn't get boring.
    “It feels really nice up here.” I say.
    “I'm glad.”
    “Hmm?”
    “I'm glad a place like this exists.”
    I can see a half-smile on Karren's face. She seems happy that she's here. Yet, at the same time, she seems sad. Something else must be bothering her. Hmm... It seems too personal, I'd better not ask.
    “What do you like about this place, Karren?”
    She's sad about something, but I can tell she likes it here. This might be a place where she can relax when stressed.
    “I... don't know.” she replies. “I'm just glad that I can be here.”
    She pauses.
    “Do you like this place?”
    I feel at ease here. The sound of the waves hitting the cliff, the gentle wind constantly blowing, and the overall relaxing atmosphere.
    “Of course.”
    “Truly?” asks Karren, without changing her tone.
    “Yeah.”
    Silence.
    “Is that why you are here?”
    “I... guess.”
    Not once does she change her expression. I don't think she's satisfied with my answer.
    Silence.
    I say nothing, in case I blurt out something unnecessary again. Not once does Karren take her eyes off the river either. She's not carefully watching it like an alert dog, but rather, looking into it. I catch her pupils move towards me.
    “Wah!” I stumble backwards, fall off the bench, and land on my back. “Ow...” How embarrassing... Oh, right. Quickly putting my senses back together, I sit up and apologize.
    “I-I'm sorry!”
    I must have been staring at her.
    A light smile appears on Karren's face. It's like seeing a light at the end of a tunnel, or finding a needle in a haystack. I feel as if this is a rare sight, but I know Karren is capable. I laugh, enjoying the moment.
    Ding-dong, ding-dong.
    The bell stops swaying seconds after the chiming stops, and I don't realize until seconds after that.
    “Oh...” I say, disappointed. “It's time.”
    I stand up.
    “I'd better get going. See you again, Karren.”
    “Goodbye.”
    I dash down the stairs, hoping to break the habit of being late.
    Last edited by Alice; 09-29-2013 at 07:46 PM.

  2. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by EpicCh33se View Post
    Karren slowly turns her head to me. Her glasses reflects the glint of the sun for a moment. Behind those glasses, her deep brown eyes seem as if she is looking right past me.
    Good job Ch33se. I just found one mistake. I believe in the part I bolded, it should be just reflect. But ignoring that one minor mistake, it's really good!

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    Ch33se's writing 3333333
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  5. #15
    The One True Pervert DonatorModeratorCascade UserBoulder UserSS Veteran
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    Chapter 7: August 26 – 8:35 A.M.

    Art class.
    Mrs. Kalah finishes with attendance and goes up to the projector.
    “We'll be starting our first project today.”
    She turns the projector on and places a painting under it.
    “Reflective paintings.”
    On the painting is a beach. A lonely beach without anyone on it. The sand is red, instead of yellow, white, or brown. There's a palm tree up close with beach chairs underneath it. The water isn't blue, but a dark shade of red. Over the horizon, a bright, yellow sun beams over the water. I'm not sure if the painting was meant to be eerie or playful, but the former definitely wins.
    “In this project, you paint whatever comes to mind that best describes you. You have to reflect on yourself.”
    I wonder what that painting says about the painter. A red world...
    “We're going to be using watercolor this time. The more water you add, the lighter the hue will be. If done right, each painting can express different emotions. Of course, don't add too much water. It'll wash the color away. You can paint how you feel, what you like, your hobbies, anything that involves you!”
    Mrs. Kalah seems excited. It looks like she's about to jump up and down or something. She slowly exhales.
    “The canvases, paint, brushes, and water cups are over there on that counter. Make sure to clean up your area after you're done. If you need any help, I'll be right here.”
    We all line up behind the counter. Gathering my tools, I make my way back to my seat. What should I paint? Something that describes me... What describes me? Well, I guess I should start by painting myself. I dip the paintbrush into the water, then into the brown color palette. I paint the hair first. Switching to another color palette, I paint the rest of me. I survey what I have done so far. It's funny how even though I'm me, I can't seem to replicate myself onto another surface. If I can even come close, I'd be glad. I mean, I know how I look like, right? Do I? As I question myself about myself, I notice Maira painting. She's painting a field of bright sunflowers. It looks really light and dream-like even though she's only halfway done with it. She washes the paint from her brush with her water cup, dips the brush into a new color, and continues to paint. I can't help but notice how delicately she's painting. The brush doesn't even look like it's touching the canvas, yet it creates deep and visible marks.
    “That looks amazing, Maira.”
    She turns her head to me.
    “Thank you.”
    “You're really good this.”
    “Am I?”
    “Yeah. Do you paint often?”
    “Yes. It's my favorite pastime.”
    “You must enjoy it a lot then.”
    Maira nods.
    “Hmm... Do you keep all your paintings? Seems like you'd have quite a lot by now.”
    Maira shakes her head. “I throw most of them away. If one is good enough, I frame it.”
    It's hard to believe that Maira throws most of her paintings away. If those paintings were bad, then what does she consider good? Looking at the painting she's working on now, it hardly looks bad. In fact, it looks quite... beautiful.
    “Surely, the others couldn't have been that bad.”
    “Not bad. I painted them wrong.”
    “Wrong?”
    “Yes, wrong. Different than what I thought they would be.”
    “I'm... not sure I understand.”
    “My apologies. My paintings sometimes do not end up the way I had intended them to.”
    “Oh, I see.”
    Maira glances at the clock.
    “If you may excuse me, I must get back to work.”
    I look up at the clock as well. Yikes, it's 8:53. I grab my paintbrush and...
    What am I going to paint? I already have myself on the canvas, but I'm going to need something else. Something... something... Well, I love music. I guess should paint some music notes. I dip the brush in black and do just that. I also love to read, so some books would work. Video games and food too.
    I spend the rest of the class period coming up with things to put on the canvas.
    I put the brush down and stare at my painting. A collage of my hobbies and interests. Although not the most original idea, I suppose it'll be enough to get me credit for the project. I look over at Maira's painting.
    Wow.
    The painting is complete now. The sunflower field looks even more dreamy and unreal. White clouds dot the blue sky in many shapes and sizes. The windmills in the background look like they're actually being blown by the wind. In fact, I can almost feel it. So much... that the painting is starting to seem... familiar...
    My head jerks up as the painting moves out of my sight. Maira sets it on the drying rack. Oh, right. I'd better do that too. I grab my painting and set it on the opposite side of the rack from Maira's painting. I don't want her to see it when she picks hers up later.

    “Please open your notebooks and turn your math books to page 5.”
    The first chapter is on how to find the volume of a cylinder. No sweat. It should be like finding the volume of a prism, right?

    (Author's Note*
    In the last chapter, the class was reviewing on the volume of cylinders. If you are wondering why they are learning it now, it is because I have edited the last chapter so that the class was reviewing on the volume of prisms instead. Sorry for the inconvenience)


    “Here's how we'll do this. Everyday, besides test days, we'll be working on a different lesson. After recording the lesson in the table of contents, we start a new page and take notes there. On the back of that page is where you'll do your homework. Does everyone understand?”
    The class replies “yes” with the exception of a few students.
    I write “1-1 Volume of Cylinders” in the table of contents and flip to the next page.
    “For the first term, we will be working on geometry. Today, we're going to be learning how to find the volume of a cylinder. I'm sure all of you are familiar with prisms, so we are going one step up this time. In fact, why don't we warm up with some prisms?”
    The class finishes the problems fairly easily.
    “Okay, time for the actual lesson.”
    A cylinder comes up on the projector screen. Using a baton, Mrs. Kluge points to it.
    “As you may know, the formula to find the volume is base times height. The same rules apply here. First, you're going to need to find the area of the base, which is this circle. The formula for the area of a circle is pi times radius squared. This circle's diameter is ten, so we have to divide it by two to get the radius... which is five. After that, we multiply it by pi, and then by five again since it's squared.”
    With each step, Mrs. Kluge writes it down on the board with a marker. As do I in my notebook.
    “Of course, you can multiply these in any order you like. Now that we have the base, we multiply it by the height of the whole cylinder.”
    Mrs. Kluge finishes the problem. It seems simple enough. I look around the classroom. Everyone seems relieved that the lesson is nothing entirely new.
    “Let's see this next example here.”
    The slide changes and a new problem comes up.
    “What's the first step?”
    Someone raises their hand.
    “Freddie?”
    “The area of the base.”
    “Correct. Then? Bonnie?”
    “Um... you multiply that by the height?”
    “Correct. Now, please finish the problem in your notebooks.”

    “Seems like we finished early today. How about we start on our homework?”
    Mrs. Kluge writes the homework assignment on the board. We all turn our books to the page written, except for some people who would rather do their homework at home. After heading my paper, I start right away.
    Halfway done and with plenty of time left. I feel quite accomplished. I look around the room. Everyone's doing fine as well. However, Medwin's paper catches my eye. There's nothing on it. I would have thought that Medwin was going to do his homework at home, had I not noticed that the paper was already headed and that Medwin looks to be in deep thought. No, he looks frustrated.
    “Is something wrong, Medwin?”
    “Huh? Oh, it's nothing.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Uh... I didn't understand the lesson.”
    Medwin hangs his head low. He looks ashamed. I have to do something, so I decide to help him.
    “Alright, then we'll just have to go through the lesson again.”
    “What?”
    “We're going to redo the lesson. Start a new page for your notes, Medwin.”
    “You're going to help me?”
    “What does it look like I'm doing?”
    “Ha ha. Thanks.”
    I turn his math book back to the lesson's page. A confident Medwin springs up and replaces the frustrated one. Quietly, so that I don't disturb the whole class, I go through all the steps with Medwin. I do it slowly enough for him to absorb everything into his brain.
    “And that's how you do it. Understand?”
    “...Yes, I think. Thanks, Aric. You've helped me a lot.”
    “No problem. If you need any help on the homework, you can ask me.”
    “Okay.”
    Last edited by Alice; 09-29-2013 at 07:47 PM.

  6. #16
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    Chapter 8: August 27 – 10:20 A.M.

    Huh...? I... I feel horrible. I force my eyelids open. The blue ceiling looks back at my sluggish, stinging eyes. We stare at each other. All the while, the drool stains on the side of my mouth become more and more noticeable and annoying. I try to lift myself up, but my body feels as if it's three times heavier than normal. At last, I sit on my bed, hunching over. I feel like some kind of zombie rising from the grave or something. The light shining through the curtains remind me that it's morning. What time is it? I look over to the side at my clock.
    ...
    10:24?! I'm late for school! VERY late! Oh man, why didn't my alarm clock ring?

    (Author's Note: I have changed it so that every student must wear a school uniform. The previous posts have been updated regarding this as well. Sorry for the inconvenience.)

    I quickly jump out of bed and slip into my uniform. I try to put on my tie really fast, but I fail again and again. I decide to slow down. After my tie is perfectly in place, I resume to speed through my morning procedures. I dash out the door and into the bathroom. I brush my teeth and everything at such a fast pace, that I don't think it has much of an effect. Going back to my room, I grab my bag and hop down the stairs. Oh no, I forgot my book. I run upstairs and stuff the book into my bag and try to remember if I'm missing anything else. I rush down the stairs, almost tripping on them this time. Thank goodness that there is a railing. I look around the living room and the kitchen. No one's home. Mom must be at work and Retah must be at school already. Ah, I have to hurry. I decide to skip breakfast and head out the door. There's no time to enjoy my surroundings today, so I run as fast as I can out of the neighborhood. The wind blowing in my direction and the fact that I'm running towards it makes my eyes tear up. My bag bounces up and down which kind of distracts me. Trying to ignore both, I run through Kimare Park and out onto 7th street. There it is, Harmell. I have to hurry. I speed towards the giant building in the distance. As it gets closer and closer, I feel as if I need to pick up the pace. I run faster, sweating more and more. I run until the parking lot comes into view. Huh? Why are there only a few cars? The parking lot had many cars the past few days. Maybe it was because those were the first few days of school. I go up to the front door and grasp the handle.
    .
    ..
    ...
    What...
    What day is it today...?

    I walk away from school grounds and towards home. Agh, how can I be so stupid? I should have known just from the parking lot. It's not like it wasn't obvious. I mean, my alarm didn't ring, Mom would have woken me up if I overslept, Retah's probably with Mom, and I also have a big calender on the wall and everything, geez!
    Deep breath, Aric. Ah well, I suppose it could be worse...
    I trudge away from the baseball field that is outside my school, sweating just as much as I did back there a few minutes ago. Combined with the warm weather today, it makes my uniform stick to my back, which is really uncomfortable. I cross the street into Kimare Park. I don't feel like walking home just yet, so I plop down onto a bench. It's a nice day. The sun is shining through the leaves and branches of the trees, and the grass feels cold, even through my shoes. The birds overhead chirp one after the other in different pitches. It's entertains me, but only for so long. I open my bag and pull out the book that I almost forgot earlier.

    Why... why is it so cold...?
    I open my eyes, blinking twice to reassure that I opened them successfully. A light breeze blows by, sending shivers down my spine.
    “Ohh...” I groan.
    I sit up and look down at where I had been resting my head. I must have fallen asleep on the bench. Doubting myself for some reason, I look around to confirm my whereabouts. I'm... still in Kimare Park. Why am I acting like I'm expecting something else? I sit on the bench, thoughtless, like in a trance. Eh... I'd better get home soon. What time is it? I look around for something that can tell the time, even though I know I won't find anything like that around here. Accidentally proving myself wrong, I see a pole clock nearby. How come I didn't see that before? I get up and approach the clock.
    It's 11:26.
    I guess I should get going. I walk back to the bench and pick up my bag. It's... open? Oh, right. I was reading a book.
    The book...
    Where's the book?
    I desperately look around the bench, where it most likely is. No sign of the book. I then check around the pole clock. Not there. Where can it possibly be? It couldn't have just rolled off somewhere by itself. Did somebody take it? I look for anybody nearby. Maybe not...
    “Today's just not my day, isn't it?”
    I close my bag and sigh. I guess I'll go to the bookstore to get another copy sometime... I drag myself towards the rear entrance of Kimare Park, which seems miles away. I look up and see the birds from before fly away, rustling the branches slightly. Although they only move slightly, red, orange, and yellow leaves fall from them.
    Autumn, huh? Time flies.
    The leaves float by in front of me, blocking my view. As they settle down, I make out a figure near the entrance. A child? The child is wearing a kindergarten uniform, which is blue and frilly. They are different depending on the gender. Boys have a darker tint of blue, while girls have a lighter tint. This child, who I can tell is a boy, is looking in my direction. He grins and jumps up and down cheerfully, waving his arms around. In his hand is... my book!
    “Hey!”
    I run towards him. Having noticed that I'm coming, he grins even more and runs off.
    “Wait!”
    He turns the corner behind some bushes. I run faster and turn the corner myself, skidding to a halt.
    ...
    I stare straight ahead, the boy nowhere in sight. Where is he? Don't tell me he ran off into the streets! I run up to the bend and look both ways. He really is gone. What... what happened? Where did he go? In front of me on the rough, black, concrete is my book. I pick it up.
    Once in a Lifetime by Jary Mayes.
    One of my favorite books. I can't remember how many times I've read it, but I know that it's quite a lot of times. I open my bag and place the book inside. I'm glad my book is back, but.... I'm just not happy.
    Why? Why do I feel horrible?
    I make sure the child actually vanished and is not hiding behind the bushes or anything. He's not. I was hoping to be able to talk to him. Why did he take my book? Where did he go? Who is he? Questions pop out one after the other. Questions that probably won't be answered.
    ...
    I should stop thinking about this and just head home. I walk off, feeling very heavy for the rest of the day.
    Last edited by Alice; 09-29-2013 at 07:47 PM.

  7. #17
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    Chapter 9: August 29 – 9:18 A.M.

    The bell rings for the first break of the day. People bustle about, feeling refreshed after the weekend. Everyone seems so energetic and happy. But of course, there are also those people were caught off guard by the coming and going of the weekend, and I'm one of them. Scratch that, I'm the only one. Now I need to get used to going to school again. Many people are crowded in the cafeteria, chatting with their friends until they lose track of time. Their voices fade into almost nothing as I walk away. I sigh and rub my eyes. Man, I am so tired. The thing is, I don't even know why. I'm sure I got enough sleep this weekend, as that was the only thing I had to do, but even then, my eyes are stinging. I rub my eyes again. I'll just get some more sleep then, I guess. I walk down the hallway aimlessly. I might as well be walking for the rest of the break period. Hmm? Something catches my eye. To my left is the entrance to the library. The library, huh? I've never been here before. In fact, I'm kind of curious. I push open the door and walk through the doorway. Immediately, I become aware of the entrancing smell of book pages that fills the room. It feels as if it's lifting my head, which is quite unpleasant, really. It makes me feel even dizzier than I already am. After recovering from the scent, I take a second to survey the library. It's very big and it has a high roof. You'd expect the library to be spacious because of the size, but it really isn't. The walls are lined with bookshelves filled with books ordering from A to Z depending on the author's name. The shelves are very tall, so there's are big step ladders used to climb them. There are some other shelves parallel to each other near the back. To my left is the check-out desk. The librarian doesn't seem to be here. Maybe he or she is just filing some books away or something. Near the entrance and the check-out desk are six tables. Some of them are occupied by students studying. A bulletin board covers a small portion of the right wall where the bookshelf ends. The rectangle roof has a smaller rectangle in the center made of glass, which is bordered by hanging lights. The back wall is completely glass though, like a giant window. I'm actually very impressed with the design. It's so neat and everything is so organized. There are not many people here. I guess this place isn't very popular. I walk around, gazing at everything with fascination. Why don't I check out a book while I'm here? It's only natural to do that at a library. I face the bookshelf and sidestep, skimming through the titles to see if anything interests me. A little while later, I come across a good-looking book. I take it out of the shelf and read the description on the back. It appeals to me, so I grab it and look through the pages while walking back to the check-out desk. Let's see... There are three hundred fifty pages and th-
    I bump into something.
    “Eek!!”
    I look up to see a girl falling down from a ladder, landing on her side. The books her arms were cradling fly out in every direction. Oh no.
    “Ah! I'm terribly sorry!”
    I drop my book and rush over to her, but before I can help, she gets up herself. A frantic look crosses her face as she scurries along the ground, gathering the books back up. The first thought that comes to my mind is to help gather the books too, so I pick up the ones that are on the opposite side of the girl. I hold them out to her.
    “I'm so sorry about that. Are you okay?”
    She looks up and stares at me intently. It's not a stare of anger or sadness, but rather, a stare of bewilderment. I can see her eyes glisten. Is this the proper reaction to an apology? It makes me feel worthless, somewhat. All of a sudden, she jerks up with a scared look on her face. Quickly grabbing the books from my hand and stacking it on top of the ones that she picked up, she runs off.
    “Ah...” I reach my hand out to her, but stop halfway.
    I feel a mixture of guilt and confusion. One, I chased her away. Two, just what was that about? I look up at the ladder where the girl fell down from. Aw dang, it's awfully high. Now I feel even worse. It was my fault that she fell and got hurt. I'll have to apologize the next time I see her. I pick up the book I wanted to check out off the floor and walk towards the check-out desk. Huh? In front of me, I see another book on the ground. I pick it up. This is one of the many books that I returned to the girl. Speaking of which, that was quite a lot of books. She must read a lot. Oh! If she's checking those books out, she may still be here! I walk faster towards the check-out desk. The desk comes into view and...
    ...
    To my surprise, the girl is behind the counter, not in front of it. I can tell she's trying to stand up straight, but she looks a bit flushed. I approach the desk. Seeing me, she whelps and quickly hides behind the counter.
    “Um... I'm sorry about earlier.”
    No reply.
    “I really am. I just want to know if you're alright. That fall looked like it hurt.”
    She slowly pokes her head out until the bottom of her eyes level with the countertop. Eventually, she stands up. She tries to avoid eye contact by looking down, but I can tell that she's still flushed. She opens her shaky mouth as if to speak, but she hesitates her words.
    “I... I-I-I-I'm fine!”
    What an outburst.
    “Ah, I'm glad you're okay. That was a nasty fall though. Sorry...”
    Her body trembles. I can see her hands tightening on her skirt.
    “H-Hey! Don't cry!”
    I really screwed up this time... Uh... What do I do?
    She quietly sniffles, but a great deal of tears come out. I decide to give her some tissues from the tissue box on the counter.
    “Here.”
    She slowly lifts her head up and looks at my outreached hand. Still sniffling, she takes the tissue and wipes her eyes.
    “Thanks...” she whispers. She says this so quietly, I can barely hear her.
    I turn around, leaning on the counter, and look around the library. The kids studying are still deep in their textbooks. Either they were completely oblivious to what happened, or they were just ignoring us. Whatever they're doing, I'm impressed with their ability to concentrate.
    “E-E-E-Excuse me!”
    I turn around. The girl is trying to act with a decorous manner again, but her beet red face kind of ruins it.
    “I-I-Is there something I can h-h-help you with?!”
    I think she's trying a bit too hard on the volume...
    “Um... I guess I just wanted to apologize.”
    “I-I-I'm fine, b-b-b-but if you need anything else, I-I-I-I'll be right here!”
    It seems like she wants to derive from the subject. I don't want to somehow hurt her feelings again, so I might as well act along.
    “On second thought, I'd like to check out a book.”
    I figured she was the librarian or something by now. I had thought that she was just older than she looks, but her student uniform proved me wrong. Although, it's not everyday you see someone so young doing this kind of job.
    I hand the book to her and hold up my Id. She scans both of them with the scanner.
    “Done.”
    She smiles satisfyingly as if she's saying to herself, “Another day, another check-out.”.
    I take a closer look at her. She looks foreign. Asian, I'm pretty sure. Her charcoal-black hair reaches down to her shoulders. A purple hair clip supports her side-swept bangs, which covers most of her forehead. A big, purple ribbon is tied at the bottom of her hair. Her lanyard is not the standard black fabric, but a series of colorful patterns. Clipped onto it is her Id. I squint my eyes to make out the name.
    “...Narumi Hase-gawa?”
    “Ah... It's Narumi Ha-se-ga-wa.” she says each syllable slowly.
    Looks like I was right about her being foreign. Hmm... her name is Japanese, I'm think... So, I guess I should call her by her last name for now.
    “So, Hasegawa, you're the librarian, right?”
    “E-Eh? N-No, I'm the librarian's assistant.”
    Oh.
    “Then, is the librarian busy?”
    “Y-Yes, she's copying papers in the office.”
    “I see. Uh... Oh, right. You dropped this on the way here.”
    I place the book that I found on the counter. Hasegawa looks at it closely, and then looks over at the stack of books that she was carrying earlier, which is placed against the wall behind her. She looks back at the book on the counter.
    “Oh no!!! I forgot!”
    She takes the book and puts it on top of the stack. Then, she grabs the stack and rushes to the shelves. What's she doing?
    I follow her.
    She's on top of the ladder again, sliding the books into the shelves.
    “Hey, be careful!”
    I stand next to ladder, just in case she falls. Remembering that I was the one who bumped into the ladder, I take a step back so that I'm just close enough to catch her and far enough to avoid contact. After putting away some books, Hasegawa climbs down the ladder and pushes it farther along the shelf. She climbs it again and continues. Fortunately, she doesn't fall and successfully files away every book. She descends the ladder, pulls it back to its original spot, and turns around. Upon seeing me, she whelps and jumps back.
    “Eep!”
    Seems she forgot I was here.
    “G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G” she stutters greatly. “G-G-G-G-Hello, is th-there something I can h-help you with?”
    Her sudden change of behavior surprised me. She must be trying very hard to keep her composure.
    “No, not really.”
    “Oh-O-O-Okayyy!” she replies, slurring her words. “I'll be at th-the check-out d-desk if you need me!”
    And with that, she darts away.
    Hasegawa is really shy, huh? It kind of makes me wonder how she got this job.
    I walk back to the check-out desk. What time is it?
    It's... 10:28. There's still two minutes left.
    “I'm going to get ready for class, Hasegawa. See you later.”
    I walk off, but stop in my tracks when I hear her voice.
    “E-E-E-E-E-Excuse me!”
    “What is it?”
    “U-Um... Y-Y-You don't have to call me by my family name...”
    “Oh. So... just Narumi is fine?”
    “Yes.” she answers, smiling.
    “Well, I'll see you again, Narumi.”
    “Goodbye.”
    Last edited by Alice; 09-29-2013 at 07:48 PM.

  8. #18
    The One True Pervert DonatorModeratorCascade UserBoulder UserSS Veteran
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    (Author's Note: I have gone back and edited the first day of the story. I fixed some tense problems and have added a few things.
    1. It describes both the boy's and girl's uniforms.
    2. It describes the office a little better.
    3. Changed it so that the stairway to the rooftop is hidden instead of being out in the open
    4. Slightly reduces the amount of enthusiasm from Aric for the first day.
    5. Lockers are now full-size lockers. No more top or bottom. Aric's locker neighbors are Maira and Karren.
    Sorry for the inconvenience.)


    I write “1-2 Volume of Pyramids” in the table of contents. Mrs. Kluge holds up a rectangular prism and a pyramid. They are both hollow.
    “Does everyone see this?”
    “Yes.” the class replies.
    “We're going to learn about the volume of pyramids today. Look at these two shapes.” Mrs Kluge holds them up higher. “Which one do you think holds more?”
    A bunch of kids shout out mixed answers.
    “The rectangular prism!”
    “The pyramid!”
    Mrs. Kluge laughs. “How many of you would believe that three pyramids can fit inside this one rectangular prism?”
    Disbelief rises above the class. I don't blame them. The shapes do look about the same size.
    Mrs. Kluge grabs a water jug sitting nearby and fills the pyramid with it. Then, she dumps the contents into the rectangular prism. Strangely, it only fills about a third of it. Looks like Mrs. Kluge was right. She continues to do this another two times until the prism is full.
    “So... what does that say about the volume of pyramids?”
    The class goes silent. Nobody could come up with anything.
    “It means that the volume of a pyramid is three times less than the volume of a rectangular prism that have the same dimensions.”
    Mrs. Kluge writes the formula for the volume of a rectangular prism on the board. She waits a bit, so the class can see it, and then writes “divided by 3” at the end.
    As if coming to a realization, many kids exclaim “Ohhh”.

    “Hey, Aric, I need a little help.”
    “Uh... hold on a sec.”
    I finish the problem I was working and look up. “Hmm?”
    “So, I just find the volume as if it were a prism, and then divide?”
    “Yeah, by three.”
    “But... I forgot how to find the volume of a prism.”
    Looks like Medwin needs a bit more help than I thought...
    “Okay, let's do that first. The formula is length times width times height, all three dimensions.”
    I guide him through this bonus lesson.
    “Oh, so I just divide that by three to get the pyramid?”
    I nod.
    “Okay. Thanks, Aric”
    “No problem.”
    I continue to do my homework. It looks I'm going to have to get used to this since we've finished the lesson early twice in a row already. It's as if everybody automatically understands what to do after a short explanation. Everybody but Medwin, that is.
    Right as I finish my homework, Medwin speaks up.
    “Hey, Aric.”
    “What?”
    “I need some help again.”
    I peer over at his paper. He's on the review problems that are on the bottom of the book page.
    “How do you multiply fractions again?”
    “You just multiply them straight across, no need to find the least common denominator or anything.”
    “Oh, I was wondering about that, thanks.”
    Hmm... did Medwin pay any attention in class last year? He seems to be working pretty hard, so I don't think so. Maybe he just has a hard time understanding or, maybe he just forgot most of the things he learned.
    “Hey, Medwin.”
    “Huh?”
    “Are you free the next break?”
    “What? Um, yes. Why?”
    “Let's meet at the library. You're going to need a bit more practice.”
    “Practice?” Medwin looks at his paper. “You mean this?” he says, pointing at it.
    “Yeah”
    “Uh... sure.” answers Medwin, looking uncertain.
    “Oh, and bring your notebook along too.”

    I open my locker and pull out my math book and two pencils. I close it and walk away. The halls sure are quiet during the break periods. Usually, during passing time, the halls would be crowded with people putting things away in their lockers. It now dawns to me that I could never hear my footsteps during passing time, but now I can. I try to mark time to a tune I was listening to the other day, which only slows my walking speed tremendously. Oh well.
    I walk into the library. Once again, the gusting smell of book pages flies towards me. I need to get used to this...
    I look to the counter. Narumi must be on librarian duty again. Just where is the real librarian?
    “Hey, Narumi.” I say as I wave.
    “Oh? H-Hi...”
    I turn my head to the tables. Medwin is already waiting for me.
    He waves. I wave back.
    “Hi, Aric.” he greets me as I sit down next to him.
    “Hey. Did you bring your notebook?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Good.”
    I plop my math book down on the table.
    “So... we're just going over some stuff?” asks Medwin.
    “Yep. More specifically, today's lesson. We need to make sure you understand it before you go on to the next lesson tomorrow.”
    “Alright... Say, thanks for doing this for me, Aric.”
    “No need to thank me.”
    “Why not? I'm taking time out of your life.”
    “Time? It's not like I have anything else to do.”
    “You don't? Weren't you going to hang out with your friends or something?”
    Friends? I try to dig up some people who I can call “friends”. Well, the only person who I've been talking to a bit is Karren, but I only ever see her during and after lunch.
    “No, not really.”
    “Oh.”
    I flip open the book and turn the page to the practice section of today's lesson.
    “Do you still remember how to find the volume of a pyramid?”
    “Uh... I... think so?”
    “Why does your answer sound like a question?”
    I review the steps with Medwin.
    “So you divide that by three.”
    “Okay, I got it.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yeah, I'm sure.”
    “Then do these three problems.”
    I wait for Medwin to complete them.
    “Done.”
    I take the notebook and look at his work.
    “You didn't multiply all three dimensions on all of the problems.”
    “All three? Isn't it just the base and the height?”
    I sigh. “No, it's the area of the base multiplied with the height. The area of the base is the length times the width.”
    “Huh?”
    I review all the steps again.
    “Do you understand now?”
    “Yes.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yes, I am.”
    “Are you surely sure?”
    “Yes.”
    “Are you surely sure that you're s-”
    “Yes, yes I am, Aric.” he retorts, obviously annoyed.
    “Alright then, do the next three problems.”
    I sit back and look up through the glass roof as I wait for Medwin to finish.
    Last edited by Alice; 09-29-2013 at 07:48 PM.

  9. #19
    DonatorThunder UserCascade UserBoulder UserSS Veteran
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    Ch33se why are you so good at writing? Keep it up ^_^ :3
    Had 1527 rep before rep system died.

  10. #20
    SS Veteran
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    Absolutely marvelous. I must say. One question. What's an Id? I believe ID is spelled ID. ^_^

    Hi I'm Reuben. Since joining the forums in 2013, I learned how to be a jerk!
    :nyan: :nyan: :nyan: :nyan:

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