Grimm Reaction: A Price to Pay

Chapter 3: falling asleep

"Max!"

I slowly lifted my head off my desk, "What?"

The kid sitting in the seat next to me glared down at me, "Are you even listening to me?"

I sighed. 'What a pain...'

I rested my head on the palm of my hand, giving him a small grin. "Not even the slightest." I answered.

His left hand gripped his pencil tightly. "I said," he said slowly, "Did you finish your part of our project? Or did you just blow it off?"

"Hmm...what if I told you that I don't care?" I asked tiredly.

I watched in amusement as his jaw clenched and his face turned red.
"Max..."

"Oh, cool it, Jake. I'm just kidding. I finished it a while ago." I reassured him, reaching into my backpack and pulling out a thick folder. I lazily tossed it to him.

"It better be good. I don't want to have to do your part myself." He said, flipping through the pages.
"From the way you talk I would have guessed that you'd like it better that way." I mumbled.
Jake suddenly stopped, his eyes wide. "Th-this is actually good." He said, shocked. I only rolled my eyes, 'If it had been a solo project I wouldn't have done so much. I only did it so that you wouldn't blame me for a bad grade.'

"You even have the dates of when he attended college! A backstory? How did you even find all this?" Jake asked, pointing at the folder.

I shrugged, "I went to the library the day we were paired... Anyone who can read could have done it."
He frowned, "You started working the first day?"

"Yep."

"I'm sorry."

"What?" I asked. 'Did I just hear Jake apologize?'

He looked down at his desk, the folder laying between his hands. "I shouldn't have been so hard on you. I just thought..."

"Don't worry about it. I fail my own classes, not other people." I stood up shakily.

Jake looked up at me, "Hey, are you okay? You don't usually act like this."

I smiled weakly at him, "I already told you not to worry about me. I'll be fine."
I walked toward the door.

"Max! Where do you think you're going? The bell hasn't-"

"Bbbrrrriiiiiinnngggg!"

I smirked as my teacher was cut off by the bell. If I had been feeling better, I would have turned around and asked him what he had been trying to say.

'Oh, well.' I thought as I stepped into the hallway and made my way to my next class.
Liz stood outside the doorway waiting for me.

"Sup." I waved half-heartedly at her. Her eyes looked distant and far away. I frowned, "What's wrong with you?"

"Hm?" Liz blinked in confusion, "Oh! Hey Max! When did you get here?"
I chuckled, "Just now. I used a teleporter."

She smiled, but I could tell that something was still bothering her.

"Alright. What-ugh!" I fell forward as someone bumped into me, and for the second time that day. I had wound up on my knees.

"Watch it freak!" I heard them call out as they continued down the hall.

"Jerk!" Liz shouted back angrily. She bent down to me, "Jeez, you're really out of it."

I opened my mouth to say something witty, but felt an overwhelming tiredness wash over me. "L-Liz?"
"Yeah?"

"Can you help me up?" I asked, struggling to speak.

"Why? You getting fat?"

I looked up at her. She frowned, "Max? What's going on with you?"

"Tired..." I said quietly.

She nodded her head in understanding. "Okay. Come on, let's get you inside."

I felt her arm slip under mine supportively, and I was able to stagger to my feet. She guided me into the classroom and set me down in my chair.

"Do you think you need to go to the nurse?" She asked.

I shook my head no. "I usually sleep in this class anyway.....wake me....up before...the..." My head slowly dropped to my desktop. Darkness welcomed me.

Liz's perspective...

I watched as Max's head lowered. She didn't even seem to feel it when she made contact with the hard wooden surface of her desk. 'She was just fine this morning, what could have done this? I've never seen her like this. Never.'

"You should pay more attention to your surroundings. You never know what can pop up around corners."

I thought, remembering what strange substitute had said. 'He looked pretty interested in me when he noticed that I had covered my nose. Who is that guy? And what does he have to do with that strange frost-smell?'

I sat down in the seat across from my unconscious friend. I considered telling our teacher about what happened, but decided not to because of Max. She would be pissed if I had brought attention to her.

"Good morning."

My head snapped up as the familiar voice spoke. My throat went dry.

Mr. Damond calmly gazed at the students in front of him while he talked, and just like in my first hour, his gaze lingered on me. My hands gripped the edge of my desk. I stared back at him intently, not wanting to draw attention to Max. 'Why am I so worried about this guy? I can't prove that he's done anything.' I tried to reassure myself.

As Mr. Damond looked at Max, he stopped talking. Making me freeze, 'This isn't right...'

His eyes flickered, and then he approached her seat. Other students murmured to each other, some snickered.

"She fell asleep again..."

"This is going to be hilarious."

Mr. Damond stopped beside her chair. He stared down at her, his eyes reminding me of an animal's. He reached out and gently turned her head.
'Please wake up.' I mentally begged my friend.
He leaned down and closely examined her face, then snapped his fingers in front of her eyes. She didn't move. His mouth twisted into a hopeful grin.

He quietly whispered something into her ear. I strained to hear.

"Dayaku dà....sèone?"

Max's hand twitched.

"Yakia?"

"Fada." Max mumbled. I blinked, 'What kind of language is that?! And how does Max know it?'

His grin widened. "I'll just let you rest for now. You'd better gain control before the seal brakes."

Mr. Damond straightened. "Alright! Get to work!" He said, addressing the class.

The sound of shuffling papers filled the room as everyone prepared for math. I sat and stared at the strange man, 'What did he mean 'you'd better gain control before the seal breaks'? What in the hell did he do to Max?!'

"I don't know who you are," I said quietly, so that only he could hear me, "or what you've done to her, but I'm not going to let you do anything to my friend."

He raised an eyebrow, "Oh? So you do know this girl. I'll give you some advice; forget that you ever met her." He walked away, leaving me alone.

I clenched my fist, "Never."