Layne stared out of the classroom window, bored out of his mind. Nothing, in all 12 years of public education, could have prepared him for the horrors of college. Not necessarily the difficulty of classes, teacher interactions, or finding an apartment. No, he had those down in the bag. It was the boredom that got him.
“I was told that college was supposed to be crazy,” he thought. “This is just high school that I have to pay for.”
He sighed. While Layne loved chemistry, did Professor Heisen need to go over valence again? He’d learned that in middle school! Middle school!
“Oi, Layne, you’re dozing off again,” said Hale, poking him. Layne turned to stare at his tall, obnoxiously blond friend. “You’re probably thinking about how boring college is again, aren’t you?”
“... yes,” admitted Layne. Hale had been Layne’s friend for years, even following him to Trijones University. Hale knew Layne’s habits and quirks down to which drawer he used for socks.
“Ah, come off it, ya dope,” pushed Parsely. Layne had met Parsely at the incoming freshman tour, and she managed to push her way into Layne’s inner circle with ease. Or rather, his only circle, maybe even a triangle, but Layne didn’t like to think about that.
“If Layne already knows whatever the frick Mrs. Heisen is talking about, then he should sleep!” argued Parsely.
“He should still pay attention!” retorted Hale.
“Nuh-uh!”
“Yuh-huh!”
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Children.” came a voice behind the group. Parsely and Hale both jumped, while Layne sighed. “Other students are trying to learn, and you are being a… distraction. Kindly refrain, or I’ll give you all extra work.” Mrs. Heisen, who had somehow appeared behind the group, stated before walking back to the front.
Hale turned to Layne. “Do you have any idea how she does that? I could’ve sworn she was writing on the whiteboard the moment before!” Mrs. Heisen shot Hale a glare, but he continued anyway. “She’s got to be teleporting. Only explanation.”
“People can’t teleport,” said Parsely. “Trust me, I’ve tried enough to guarantee.”
“Oh really? What were you trying to teleport away from, your calculus grades?”
“Hey! I’ll have you know that I got straight B’s in that!”
“Sure, sure…”
Layne felt a small smile come on his face from listening to the two bicker, before looking up at the clock with a frown. 47 minutes remained, and he couldn’t be bothered to… to…
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The bell rang and Layne shot up like a rocket, looking frantically around the classroom. Everyone had already left the class, besides Hale and Parsely standing with bemused grins. “I fell asleep, didn’t I,” said Layne.
“Yup.”
“You got it.”
“Do either of you have the homework, please?” Layne asked, giving his best “I’m sorry please help face.” “Mrs. Heisen is going to whip me a new one if she catches me without it.”
Hale sighed, while Parsely grinned. “I’ll give you it, but only if you do me a favor,” she stated, puffing out her chest. Layne, seeing that Hale would be no help, frowned and nodded. “I want you to go with us to the new haunted house! I heard they opened only a few days ago, and Hale is already going. Deal?” asked Parsely.
Hale groaned. “I still can’t believe that you want to go to a haunted house. It’s mid-February!”
“Oh shush. You know I love haunted houses, this is perfect! We’ll be the first group through as well, I got premium tickets!” triumphed Parsely. Hale and Layne looked at each other with long-suffering faces. “Yes, I know the previous house was designed to scare four-year-olds, but that’s beside the point. We’re going!” shouted Parsely.
“Fine.” stated Layne. “I’ll go to the dumb house. Now, what’s the homework?”
Parsely grinned the grin of a triumphant dragon. “Write down the valence of every element on the periodic table, and turn it in next class.”
“Seriously?!?” thought Layne “That’s the easiest assignment she could give! I thought this was college?!?” Layne looked at Parsely with a tired grin. “You got me there.”
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The group moved outside the classroom, with Parsely and Hale discussing the proper way to cook Mac-n-Cheese (¼ butter vs. x2 butter) and Layne stewing in his thoughts. “This week couldn’t get any more boring. 8th-grade-level homework, the drama of Valentine's couples melting like the chocolates they gave, and now a haunted house? That was likely designed for toddlers? Give me a break.”
Little did Layne know, but the break he sorely wished for was coming, and coming for him.