Why Would I Fall for You

Ornamental

The atmosphere in the jewelry-making classroom was bright, and students were collaborating at different desks. Some threaded sparkling beads onto string, others twisted golden wire or were bending metal bands in the corner. 

Gale was carefully polishing a copper ring with a small stone in the middle: a simple piece of turquoise she'd shaped into a vague heart shape. The piece was nearly finished, and she was proud that she'd be submitting this week's assignment on time. At her old schools, she rarely turned in work in a timely manner. Gale held the ring closer to her face to inspect the shine, appreciating the smoothness. Maybe she'd wear this one, she liked the colors and how they looked like a bright ship on a rambunctious sea. 

A blur of pink caught her eye, and Gale glanced up to see Nixie crossing the room. She was showing a delicate bracelet to one of her friends, the charms glinting in the light. She didn't have too many classes with Nixie, seeing as she was a performing arts focus and Gale specialized in woodworking and welding, but they'd ended up in the same elective this semester. 

Gale squinted at Nixie's bracelet as she showed it off, looking for something wrong with it. There wasn't a thing. Every chain had been expertly connected, and the mother-of-pearl charms were just the right size for the scale of the links. By the gods, why was Nixie always so PERFECT?! It was if she didn't have a single flaw. It wasn't fair. Everyone loved her. It was always Nixie this, Nixie that, did you see what Nixie did? Her latest mermaid performance was SHOWstopping, you just HAD to be there. Did you see the way her fins glinted in the light? Isn't she SUCH a good swimmer? I bet she could-

At the front of the room, the substitute teacher, Mr. Wriedt, clapped his hands. "Students, since Miss Ellery is in Berlin for the week, I don't have the next assignment ready for you. But I had an idea."

Everyone's eyes were on him. He tossed his braids behind his shoulder and grasped the cord necklace he wore around his neck. "This stone is jasper." He showed the pendant to the room. "My husband made this for me when we got engaged. It's a piece that's very special to me." He leaned against the desk, taking in everyone's expressions. "You all have a lot of talent and creativity. But I want all of you to come out of this class with at least one piece that MEANS something to you. I want your jewelry to tell a story. Whether you found a certain rock yourself, or made a necklace in the same style as a relative's usual accessories, I want to make you to put your heart into this one. Don't make it about the grade, make it about the story."

The classroom looked back at him, a little skeptical. They were at Shadow High to impress their peers and teachers with their art, not to make sentimental trinkets. 

Mr. Wriedt grinned. "But to make it fun... whoever impresses me the most gets a feature in The Reflection. With their story."

The students began buzzing excitedly. Only the most popular and talented students got permanently printed onto the glossy pages of Shadow High's school magazine. You got bragging rights for MONTHS and a lot more respect in the halls. 

Gale perked up almost instantly. That was it. The way she could prove that she was better than Nixie. With her metalworking skills, she'd be able to create such a stunning piece that Nixie's little sparkly mermaid baubles would be left in the WAVES. Ideas instantly started flooding through her brain, and Gale grabbed her sketchbook, eager to get her inspiration on paper. She twiddled with her snake bite piercings, thinking about vast ships and stormy waters. She could make a ring again, or a pair of earrings... no, that wouldn't do. Something more out-of-the-box. Ooh, what about a statement nose piercing? Snaking through the septum, cresting the bridge of the nose... her pencil began flying around the page.

"I have the PERFECT idea for this!" Nixie's melodic voice bubbled into Gale's personal space, as it so often did. "I have this memory of my older sister, and..." Gale's face contorted into a grimace. She'd almost forgotten the jewelry had to MEAN something. But what? She just wanted to prove she was better. She didn't want to attach some stupid, silly sob story to a piece of metal. Art was her escape from her home and her family, she didn't want to go back, even just in her thoughts. 

...but the feature. Gale tapped her pencil on her paper. Was it manipulative? Was it using her background for clout? Yeah. But Gale knew that she could EASILY blow Nixie out of the water with some sort of stupid heart-wrenching story. Gale thought of her father and her stomach clenched. What if he heard about this? Should she soil the Vikernes family name? She brushed aside the feeling, if slightly unsuccessfully. It was just the truth. It'd be over and done with. For the feature. She'd done worse. 

The bell rang, and Gale quickly shoved her things into her dark blue messenger bag. She couldn't wait to see the look on Nixie's face when she realized that Gale was the more talented artist all along. She was going to prove it.