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Time ticked endlessly, that boring clock making that continuous annoying tick. Sweat dribbled down the sides of my face and off my chin in the hot classroom. The class was sizzling with heat from everyone's potions.
My seatmate kept dabbing at his face with an handkerchief, checking his watch endlessly. Miss Janine sat with her legs on her table, an opened book in her hand. The curtains were replaced with black drapes to block out excessive lights, while the lights above had been reduced to a dim, burning orange, the color of dying embers.
Ground ground, tink tink, bubble bubble… the class was filled with different sounds of the students, and their work in progress, mixed with the smell of different roots and ingredients. Some of the scents were pleasant, while others—jeez, nothing to talk about. Meanwhile, the lights of the class had been dimmed to a low orange.
"You have to start over. You're doing it wrong, dear," my seatmate said with a click of his tongue, his eyes on his work.
"What?" I asked, looking from him to my potion.
"By step five, this liquid should have turned black. This is a sick-looking gray," he pointed in my books, where the textbook did mention that my potion should have absorbed darkness.
My index finger began to trace words on my textbook, "Uh, I… I did exactly what it said. A pinch of ground shell…"
"Show me your pinch," He demanded, and I pinched the ground shell, raising the brown dust between my fair fingers.
"This?"
He nearly laughed.
"You don't pinch the dust and let it stain your fingers. You have to pinch and keep whatever comes into your hands. You're not pinching with your nails either. That's dirty. You're pinching with your index and your thumb," he said, and dabbed at his face again, before brushing his white hair out of his face.
"What are you?" I asked, and he smiled lightly, as he popped two buttons, and dragged down his tie to reduce the heat.
"Do you think I'm beautiful?" He asked, smiling, his silver heart earring dangling from his ear, with two more silver piercings at the tip of his ear.
"Well, yes, you are," For some reason, I blushed.
"I'm half-demon, and guess what my other half is?" He asked, and I looked into his eyes. I didn't know how I got the answer immediately, but whichever way, it reminded me that I was actually smart.
"Fox eyes," I said, amazed, "you've got to be half-fox," my index finger did some weird dancing in front of his eyes, "Your sunset eyes, and…"
"Sunset? Wow, that's romantic," he hit my shoulder, and blushed, "Well, that's a new description. Whoever asks me, I'm going to tell them I have sunset eyes, and yes, I'm half-fox," he played with his pencil.
"You're like really dangerous, aren't you? A demon and a fox?" I squinted.
"Yeah, I have a mix of black and red hair. You shouldn't see it. It's so ugly. I had to dye it white to show people I want none of that shit. I'm clean; I'm innocent. I'm loving. I'm just all about romance."
I gave a little chuckle.
"What do demons do? Grant wishes?"
"No, that's a Djinni's power. We demons possess people and things. I can possess a painting, control it. I can also take another person's form and pretend to be them." He smiled, gesticulating with his hands, before wiping his face again.
Okay, I'm just gonna ask.
"You're gay?"
"Bi. I play both teams, but I'm really feminine. Doesn't mean I like boys more."
"Moore, Perez!" Janine suddenly called, and we jumped. She came to stand before us, her fat thighs spread wide, her arms crossed over her chest, as she stood over us in a military pose.
I began, in a little voice, "We're sorry, ma'am. I had an issue with…"
She suddenly grabbed my potion, and the class watched as she overturned it. It spilled waterily onto the ground, with a long splash, releasing stream. I shifted backwards a bit, watching my blood, sweat and tears wasted.
"No, Miss Janine, no," My seatmate held his potion, his eyes pleading, looking like the most innocent puppy on earth.
"Valen!" She cautioned, her impatient palm spread towards him.
"Miss Janine, we weren't talk…" she snatched his potion, and turned it upside down. It poured out thickly, brown and scenting like honeymoon candles.
"By the way, Perez, I think I saved you the mess of drinking poison," she said, without glancing at me, until all of my seatmate's, Valen's potion was down and out, "A pity, Moore. Next time, make better choices. You both will wait two hours before commencing your potions, and then will have detention for three hours after your potions are done."
"What? No, what? Miss Janine, no! You're going to make us miss the break too? And other classes?" Valen shot up to his feet. He was taller than she was, but she looked more menacing as she looked up at him.
"Fine, Valen. You both have an extra…"
"I'm on my seat!" Valen shouted immediately, crashing into his seat, making the entire class burst into laughter, "Nothing, extra, Miss Janine. We accept it," he said, flipping a new page of his textbook, "Where was I? Uh, pretty seatmate, let's read our textbooks," he said, and a large bell chiming slowly answered him.
Ding!
Dong!
Everyone rose to their feet, clearing their desks, arranging their tools, taking off their aprons, heading out for the break.
My tummy growled. I had just a slice of bread that morning before rushing for class. On Mondays, classes started by seven in the morning. I could barely wake without my alarm ringing several times.
So Valen and I waited in class for the break hour without doing a thing.
All I did was count the potions on the potion racks around the class, then read off all the names of the potion books arranged on the shelves. Janine had pulled back the drapes, and now, the windows were open, white curtain billowing in and out of the pretty class. Valen nearly dozed off if not for my constant tapping. I couldn't risk Janine deciding she wanted to add extra hours.
When everybody else returned, the drapes were back, and so was the monstrous heat. They began to battle with their potions, and for the next hour, I watched everyone do meaningful things with their potions. At the end of the class, not everyone had the required peach color. Some had close to it, but at least, everyone's voices were enhanced. Some even sounded like they'd used auto tune. I smiled as they all got excited to see Janine arranging their potions in racks labeled with scores she felt were appropriate for them.
However when they left, I was faced with starting over for my potion. I looked closely at Valen this time, as I did mine.
Sweat poured down my face, and my apron was soon covered in the stain from my fingers.
Damn, they ought to provide gloves for us too.
Valen had to pack his front hair into a ponytail as it kept falling over his foxy eyes.
He finished first.
And I was all too aware of the minutes that had meandered into hours.
"We're done, Miss Janine," Valen's potion was a beautiful peach that made Janine smile, while mine was like peach that had been diluted with water. It was so faint that her smile died upon seeing my potion.
Valen and I exchanged potions, and his expression crumbled when he saw my potion. He smelled it, and blinked hard, looking at Janine.
"What? Will you quit staring at me?" She snapped, and I could tell that something was horribly wrong with my potion.
Beads of sweat began to roll in rapid balls down my neck and forehead, while my lips kept drying up the more I moistened them. This was messed up.
I spoon-fed Valen with a shaky hand, and he took it, swallowing it with a worried look for me.
Next, he held up my pale watery potion which ought to be thick. Guys, I know, I tried my freaking best! The damned potion just didn't want to thicken. How could I start again when it took such time to prepare?
"Open, stop wasting our time, Perez!" Janine snapped, and my lips parted.
My eyeballs went from Janine to Valen and back, as the spoon went in.
What did I say?
I said: The spoon went in