Chapter Seven
The Academy for Individuals Gifted with Extraordinary Abilities
I found my dorm in the sophomore dorms, which last year had been the freshman dorms, since Mr. P explained to me that normally, as long as you were at school here, your dorm was the same.
The hallway was long, wrapped around itself with many numbered doors stuck out at intervals. I found mine and unlocked it.
But, I didn't actually have to unlock it, because the door swung open when I tried. In the doorway stood a girl with long black hair. She looked Asian, and when she talked braces peeked out. Red framed glasses sat on top of her head.
"Hey you know you can't come in here. Well, unless you're my roommate, Ariah? But then, why have you come so late? You should've been here yesterday. Unless you live around here, making you a special case."
I chewed my lip, embarrassed by this girl's fast narrative. "Yeah, uh, I am Ariah but I go by Ari. Uh, hi..." I struggled to explain everything and still try to sound polite, "so you're Tara, right?"
Surprisingly she didn't interrupt me throughout my awkward introduction, and now she broke out into a smile. "Yep, you're my roommate! Hey. Oh, I hope you're responsible with a key, because I tend to lose and find mine pretty often."
"I guess, you can borrow mine if you need it, I might not use it that much," I offered in a slight mumble. She was talking at a rate slightly above normal human diction.
"Thought so. I mean-" here she took a deep breath and slid her glasses down on her face. When she now spoke, it was at a more regular pace. "Okay, sorry for me being crazy. It's just, my ability is intuition..."
"That's interesting."
"Yeah, not really. But anyway, I'd already figured out that you lived around here, and I knew you were my roommate when you knew my name already, because they tell you who your roommate is beforehand. And I've never seen you before so there's no way you could've known it before they told you."
"Oh. I see. That's clever."
"Eh, it's my ability. So I talk fast, hope you don't mind."
"I don't think I will."
"Good, so what's your ability?"
I looked at her comically. "Speed."
Tara smirked amusedly. "That's funny! So if I talk too fast you can just hightail it away from me!"
I laughed. My first impression of her had been wrong, I had thought she would be haughty, or even slightly rude, and would interrupt me, or talk too fast to care. But now she seemed kind, and smart, obviously.
She showed me the dorm, which consisted of two twin beds on opposite sides of each other, a long desk with two chairs in between them, and a shelf over each of the beds which left each of us our own corner and wall, interrupted only by the door out. The floor was stained wood, and the walls and furniture were white.
"It's nice," I said.
"I guess," Tara shrugged.
"You'll be living here though, not me," I mentioned. Her side had some personal touches like posters on the walls and some books on her shelf. In her corner were a few boxes which she still hadn't unpacked.
"I'm procrastinating," she explained, referring to them.
I nodded. "So, uh, what does a person do on their first day, while they're waiting around because they have nothing to do before class starts?"
Tara sized me up and said "Oh yeah, I almost forgot. You have to go to the office to get your backpack."
"But I already have one."
"Yeah, but it's school rules that every student has to have an academy backpack. They're specially designed to stop bullets or something and they have a tracking device in them so we can tell if you're skipping, it's the real deal."
"What the hell would it need to stop bullets for?" I blurted out.
"If someone's shooting at you, I guess," Tara shrugged. "If the backpack doesn't stop the bullet, your textbooks will. Sulfuric acid couldn't pass through those things. Now go, you'll need to transfer your stuff."
I rode the elevators down and went to the office. I told the lady what I needed and she directed me to a room clearly marked FRESHMAN INFORMATION.
"But I'm not a freshman, I'm a sophomore," I said, slightly embarrassed.
"Not my problem. You need a backpack, you go to the freshman office."
Rude. But I did as she said.
Turns out the backpack was pretty cool. It was black, which was boring, and it looked like a normal backpack but had a ton of hidden pockets, a handy key ring for our dorm key, and room for twelve children to live comfortably inside. Well, okay, there was a lot of room. But not that much.
I sat on the bench outside the office and began putting my things into the new backpack. Well, now I wouldn't have to worry about looking like a hobo.
Moments later, someone came up to me. It was Evelyn standing with an incredibly hot blonde guy. He was about six foot with honey blonde hair, tan skin, and blue eyes with gold around the pupils.
"Hey, Evi. Hi...." The second hi was shy and directed at the hot guy.
"Hey. Ari, this is Josh! You guys can finally meet! Yay!"
"Hi," Josh said warmly and smiled. The instant the smile, aimed at me, made contact, everything else faded. I melted a little. Chaste was homely in comparison.
Josh's eyes were so bright and deep. When he made eye contact with me it gave me butterflies. I couldn't help but grin like a fool in response to his. I became aware of the fact that I was no longer in control of my face. This made me embarrassed and I chomped down on my bottom lip, which made Josh's grin turn up in a sort of cheeky way.
I broke eye contacts and looked at my shoes. I know my whole face would be red if I was a blushing type person. Thank the Lord I wasn't.
"Nice to meet you," I said quietly, forcing myself to look up at him again.
"Who do you have first?" he asked.
"What?" I asked, a little distracted by how the proportions of his face matched up perfectly.
"For your first class," he explained further.
"Oh." I bit my lip again and found my schedule. "It's math. I have Mr. Medina."
"I have science, it's right next to Mr. Medina's room. I can show you if you want."
"Okay, thanks," I said gratefully. I really was nervous about having this super hot guy walk me to class. But he offered, and I wasn't going to turn it down. I was also just happy he was being so nice.
"Mr. Medina is really weird," Evelyn said. "He's so...forward. Always planning ahead and stuff. It's a little obsessive, if you ask me."
I shrugged. "If he can teach math, I'll tolerate him."
"So who's your dorm partner?" Evi asked.
"A girl named Tara. I met her earlier."
"Oh, you got Tara?" Her words were politely questioning, but her tone suggested something else.
"What's wrong with Tara?"
"Nothing, she's just a little...." Evelyn paused. "Strange."
"Sure, but she's nice. And pretty cool."
I didn't like Evi's expression at that remark, it suggested that she thought my judgement was awry. It made me wonder about Tara. It wasn't like Evelyn to judge someone harshly without having met them.
I was interrupted by a long, continuous beep.
"That's the first bell," Evelyn told me. People immediately began streaming in and filtering off into the different wings. I walked with Josh and Evelyn to the sophomore area, where we stopped and found our lockers. Each one had a built-in heavy duty lock. The numbers on it went all the way up to fifty. I had to try three times before I got mine open.
After that, Evelyn branched off to another classroom, leaving me with Josh.
"Right this way," he said animatedly, making me giggle nervously. As we passed a couple guys said hi to him, but he didn't stay long with any of them, his main focused seemed to be me. Which was surprising.
"Here it is," he said. With a glance inside, I saw what was undoubtedly a math classroom. Posters of formulas lined the walls and a large bookshelf stocked with math books sat in the back.
"I'll see you later, Ari," he said, winked, and disappeared into the science room next door.
Him leaving was both relieving and stressful. There were no familiar faces in the room. Well, what did I expect, to instantly know everyone here? Still, I didn't want to sit alone.
As I took a hesitant step into the room, a face turned. A face I recognized. A face I had never expected to see here.
It was Chaste, dark eyes shining. They caught mine, and widened slightly in surprise.
"Chaste! You're...here!" I exclaimed, trailing my gaze over him.
"Ari! I never thought..." he trailed off from the sentence spoken after he got up to meet me.
"That I had-"
"An ability."
"Yeah." I looked at the ground, remembering my earlier comparison of him to Josh. "Wait, your eyes- they're just one color." I observed.
He shook his head. "They're brown and black. You can hardly tell, since they're so dark."
I looked into his eye, and for the first time, I noticed. A band in his iris that separated the dark brown and the black. "Oh."
"And your eyes? They're suddenly brown and gold now?"
"I wore colored contacts before," I admitted.
"Oh. So tell me, what's your ability?" he asked me.
"Speed," I grinned. "What's yours?"
He grinned. "Watch." Then he disappeared right before my eyes.
The effect was surreal. First he was there, then he was gone, without a warning or sound or even a puff of smoke. "What the-" I raised my hand which bumped into something I couldn't see. Then he reappeared in from of me.
"Invisibility?" I laughed.
"Yeah, that's it. It's kind of weird though."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, when I turn invisible, I'm suddenly in sort of a...trance. I don't know how to describe it well, but it feels very quiet. Everything is quiet except when it moves. I'm very focused, too."
"Weird...is it like what happens when Frodo put on the ring in Lord of the Rings?"
He laughed. "Not exactly. It's not some kind of creepy effect, if that's what you're thinking. It's sort if peaceful. Like all my extra thoughts sort of go away, and I'm not worrying about anything."
My face must've showed my surprise at his words. "Really? That's the same thing that happens to me when I run! Well, not the quiet part. But the peaceful feeling, I get it too. I wonder if everyone does?"
He shrugged. "No one else so far has been able to relate."
"I've never really told anyone about it. But Evelyn has never said anything."
I'm suddenly aware of the feeling of being watched. I turn around when Chaste doesn't immediately say anything and am met with dark eyes.
It was a boy. Even sitting down I could tell he was tall. He had tan skin and dark hair that came down past his chin. He had a strong jaw and his biceps suggested he was an athlete. None of those things were my main focus, however. My main focus was his eyes, glaring at me with such intense concentration I couldn't help but notice. When he looked up to meet my state, however, his expression turned from focus to irritation. Anger, even, like I had no right to look at him. Averting his glare, I quickly turned around and followed Chaste to a seat.
"What was that about?" he asked quietly."
"No idea. That guy was just staring at me. What's his name?"
"Dunno, I'm as new as you are."
"His name's Carlos," a girl next to me whispered. She had blonde hair and a cheery expression.
"Oh. Do you know him?" I asked.
She shook her head. "No one really knows him. He's not really that social. I mean, he gets plenty of attention from girls-look at him. But it's like he doesn't even notice."
"Is he...like, a bully?" I asked, lowering my voice more.
"No. Everyone always thought he was just shy. But I saw him glaring at you...damn, he still is. Don't look."
I nodded. "Thanks." The girl seemed nice, so I took the opportunity to introduce myself. "I'm Ari."
The girl told Chaste and I that her name was Camille. We found out that her ability was making objects appear.
"Things with solid shapes, like foods, are easier, so that's mainly what I use it for." She giggled.
"Awesome." We got into a conversation but were interrupted by Mr. Medina.
"I'd ask if you three have a story to share with the class, but that would put us behind," he said, in a tone that suggested he was very worn out by us already.
"Now, let's get started. Here is my plan for all of you." He passed out a very official-looking syllabus to us.
"The rules are the same as they always were. No talking while I am talking, and I will not talk unless I have something to say that I think you all should hear. No talking unless you and all other students are finished with their work. Be respectful to the other students. Come to class on time and prepared. And absolutely NO use of abilities in my classroom." He glared at Chaste. "Mr. Maldonado."
He gave the class a second to turn around and stare at Chaste, then said, "Please review your syllabuses, and then I will call the roll."
After he turned his back I whispered to Chaste "How did he see that?"
Chaste shrugged. "I dunno, but he pronounced my last name right on the first try. I'm impressed."
I giggled. "Let's see if he gets mine. Nobody knows the X is silent until I tell them."
Mr. Medina got my name right. Even the silent X. Strange, seeing as he's the math, not English, teacher.
My first impression of him was the scholarly type who uses big words unnecessarily. As the class went on, I saw I was right. He was very formal, in his appearance as well as his demeanor. Oh, and he WAS one of those teachers who used the rule, "The bell doesn't dismiss you, I do."
Once the class had learned that, and were antsy to leave and get to our next class on time, he finally let us go. I ran into Tara in the hall, and we quickly greeted each other. "How was Mr. Medina?" she asked.
"How did you know I had him? Oh, intuition, right?"
"No, he's the only one whose classroom is that way." She pointed.
"Oh." I giggled awkwardly. "What do you have next?"
"Miss Kennedy for English."
"Cool, me too. C'mon."
We walked to Miss Kennedy's room, which was on the lower level. I could guess she was a newer teacher, because she was young looking at slightly nervous. Tall and thin with stringy hair and glasses on her nose, she gave the impression of a mouse.
"Since it's the first day, I've just planned to let you all do whatever you want. You can talk to your friends but uh, please don't get too noisy."
Tara closed the book she was holding and we chatted about our schedule. I found I had history with her, and the class called Control of Abilities.
"CA is the only class that you're technically allowed to use you ability," she explains. "But most of the teachers don't care. Unless you're caught by Mr. Medina or the principal, you're fine."
"I never thought you'd be the rebel type."
She laughs. "Oh, I'm not. Not even Becca obeys that rule, and she obeys all the others."
"Oh. So, is Smith the same as Mr. Smith?" I asked, scanning my schedule. We had him for History and CA.
Tara smirked and shook her head. "He's not Mr. Smith."
"But that's what it says in the schedule," I said, confused.
"I know. But he's definitely not a Mr. Smith. He'll explain it in class."
"Oh...kay." I was confused now.
Miss Kennedy got back soon after and she gave us an oral summary of what we'd be doing this year. English was never a problem for me, so I figured it wouldn't be too hard.
I exited the class to go to science. Tara and I took separate ways. As I walked I checked the schedule to make sure I had the right room. I saw something in front of me that made me stop short to avoid running into it. Glancing up, I met the face of Carlos. He glared at me like I had also run into him on purpose.
"Sorry," I apologized and sidestepped him, drawing my lower lip into my mouth. He just glared and walked away.
I shivered, and as I turned my head I saw something. An incredibly pure, white light streaking out from the janitors closet.
People walking by didn't seem to notice it. No one even glanced that way. But it was pretty bright, how could they not see it? Unless...I was hallucinating? Oh no.
Would I have time to go down there and see if the light was coming from somewhere? What if it disappeared again?
"Ari!"
I turned around to see Evelyn, waving madly. "So, how's your first day?"
"Well, my first two teachers were kinda weird, and I seem to have somehow made an enemy already."
"What? Who?"
"His name's Carlos. I met a girl named Camille who told me about him."
"Carlos? What did you do to him?"
"I don't know!" I said, frustrated. "He was glaring at me like he was trying to make me spontaneously burst into flames!"
"That's weird."
"Yeah! Even Chaste- hey! Why did you never tell me he goes here?"
"Chaste goes here?"
"Yeah! He's in first period with me!"
"No way!"
I nodded and began to tell her about it, but then I noticed something out of the corner of my eye.
The white light was gone.
"Something wrong?" Evi asked me.
"Huh? Oh, no. Nothing," I said, before I could wonder why I didn't tell her.
"Hey, I think I have science with you next."
"Oh yeah."
"C'mon, we'll be late."
I nodded and walked with her up the stairs to the main level.