Stop Being Human

Chapter 5

When I wake up the next morning Melody is already wide awake, dressed and all. "Good morning sleepy head!"

I flutter my eyes open and let out a wide yawn. I look over to our clock to see it's only nine. Our classes don't start until ten. Thank god for that, by the way. Melody kept me up last night with studying more about this place and explaining all these stories of her and Axel. I don't think she truly knows how head over heels she is for him. I curl myself into a ball and grip my warm covers, closing my eyes again.

"Oh, no you don't!" Melody says, yanking my covers. The cool air in the room slithers up my legs and I get goosebumps.

"No!" I whine as the chilly breeze hits my exposed legs. "It's cold!"

"Come on! Get up! I want to get morning coffee and some breakfast." Melody stomps her feet at me like a child. I slowly sit up and stretch, "Yay!" She says when I finally start moving.

"I'll get up and ready. You," I lazily point my finger at her, "Go get coffee or whatever."

Melody looks at me suspiciously. "Go seriously. I'll get up." Melody happily smiles and pretty much jumps out of our room. She must really want some coffee.

I rub my eyes and slowly stand from the bed. If I stood up too fast, I knew I would get light-headed. Once fully up and somewhat moving, I grab my hairbrush from off of our shared desk that we turned into a vanity. I run the brush through my silky hair, careful to not hit my ears.

Once I am finished, I grab my small bathroom bag and leave our dorm.

The halls are vacant, either everyone is still sleeping or is in their morning classes. I make my way to the dorm bathrooms and open the door. Thankfully, no one is at the sinks or in any of the stalls. I quickly take out my toothbrush and paste and brush my teeth. Right as I am bent over the sink, toothpaste foaming out of my mouth, I hear the door open. I quickly spit and keep my eyes down.

"I know that's, like, pretty crazy." A girl's voice says, their heels clicking on the tiled floor. The clicking stops as they enter the open room, and I'm pretty sure they are looking at me.

I rinse my mouth with the paper cups and peek in the mirror. Yeah, they are looking at me.

There's two of them, both the same creatures. By the blue-purple tint in their skin and the fin-like scaly ears they have, I can tell they are either mermaids or sirens. I don't know how to tell the difference.

I stand up straight and pack my things back up. The other girl speaks up, "So this is the panther everyone is talking about." Her attitude is strong and straightforward. Up close I can see the blotches of scales in random places on their bodies. I'm definitely jealous of how long and thick their hair is.

I give an awkward smile in the mirror and finish packing, ignoring them. As I head for the door, they block my way. Her friend looks me up and down, "She isn't even much."

"She's just some girl with some ears and a tail. I don't see the hype." The dark-haired, bitchy one adds in. I look around, not knowing what to say, like I am standing right here. I just want to go back to my room. Is that too much to ask?

"Hey- oh." I hear Melody's voice come from the door. The girls split up, allowing me to actually leave this time. "I got us food." She nods her head out the door and holds it open for me.

"Thanks." I mumble, more for saving me, rather than the food.

"What just happened there?" Melody asks me after the door shuts.

"Apparently," I tell her as we make our way back to our room, "They don't get the "hype" over me." I added finger quotes to hype since it was the girl's exact words.