Trip to Trouple

Omami

I was sitting in the empty hallway, leaning against the cold wall, feeling the decaying sun on my skin. It was a long day, and I needed a minute to calm down and feel the breeze brush through my hair. After slowly opening my eyes, I gazed at the thin curtains, dancing in the air like algae in the sea, bewitching everyone who took the time to admire them. My mind was blank, the still silence appeased me as I breathed steadily. I loved the smell of the purple carnations which were standing in an elegant pot on the windowsill, throning like monarchs with their unparalleled beauty.

It was the end of my first day in this new high school, new environment, surrounded by new people. It was exhausting the least to say, but also enriching. Everyone was so kind, thoughtful, and open, I immediately felt at my place between my peculiar but endearing classmates. I learnt so much in so little time, and though I was interested and invested, I had to admit that I dangerously needed my alone time by the end of the last class. Hopefully the next days I will not be the center of attention like I was today, I prefer collecting my thoughts on my own.

A gush of wind bent the flowers and fluttered the fabric above me as if approving my train of thoughts. Hearing the rustling of the trees and the far-away chirping birds reminded me of my travels and adventures in the deepest and most mystic forests of our planet. I wish I had the energy to spring up and take a walk outside to observe some animals and plants, but instead I continued my daydream of reminiscence on the linoleum floor.

However, as I was dozing off, I heard a creaking sound from my classroom, as if someone was discreetly opening a window from inside. It was strange since I remembered firmly that I was the last one to leave the room and nobody entered it ever since. But I could not cogitate much as I heard the thump of someone jumping onto the floor swiftly like a cat landing on their feet. I stood up in awe, pondering how could anyone break into the building from the second floor, but I could not deny my senses which made me know that the intruder began scribbling with chalk due to the unpleasant and familiar noise of scratching. The artist started humming a cheery tune along, not caring much about the exploit they just did so effortlessly.

I was standing dumbfounded, not sure what to do or what to think. My common sense told me to panic, and either be brave and confront the burglar directly, or be reasonable and call the cops, but my instincts told me otherwise. Somehow, something inside me pushed me to find out who was this mysterious person, to figure out their identity, I was curious. I did not feel in danger, after all they were simply innocently drawing, not stealing belongings or such. And who in their right mind would want to rob a school anyway?

I closed in discreetly, putting my hand on the icy doorknob, continuously listening to the person's behavior to check whether I was heard by them or not. The melody they sang was cute and childlike, it was a combination of different TV shows' theme songs, with the most prominent one being Inspector Gadget. When they got to the "Go, Gadget, go" part, I had to hold back my giggles, muffling my amusement into my left hand. Not wanting to eavesdrop more, I pushed in the class's door to finally meet the one behind, eager to see the shameless trespasser.

Before even stepping inside, I just leaned in, glancing in the direction where the person must have been operating. And my eyes met a pair of amethyst ones, ogling in surprise from being caught in the act. He was small, and his hair was battling on the top of his head with unbrushed curves and lilac hues. His body was thin and frail, his white attire as well as his checkered scarf oddly suited him. He was holding the incriminating piece of chalk in between his long and pale fingers. Perhaps it was the sunset, but the light gave him an unnatural but charming color, making me wonder for a second if I was in fact face to face with a pixie or a tiny elf by any chance. As I observed him, he turned in my direction even more, acknowledging my presence too, silently eyeing me.