I Live by the Woods [On Hold]

Chapter Six: Mondays

"You would not believe my day." I commented as I slid into my seat at the front of the classroom. Mrs. Goldsef smiled sadly and set her reading glasses down, turning her full attention to me.

"Care to chat?" She asked kindly.

"Slightly. Let's talk after class; I don't want any other students listening in." I replied, glancing at the door that was allowing students to enter. Mrs. Goldsef sighed.

"I understand. Tell me if you need anything, my dear. I'll see what I can do."

I nodded in response, pulling my hair into a high ponytail as the tardy bell rang.

Mrs. Goldsef stood, closing the classroom door. "Today we'll be working on the proper way to crack an egg. This will be helpful to most people according to last Monday's activity." She glared at the two people who had nearly a while eggshell in theirs. They slumped a little into their seats.

I pressed my lips inside my mouth to hide my smile as the door opened, Enoch walking in. I turned my head from him to the class, noticing that the teacher had no attention from anyone. Chelsea and I made eye contact and she sighed, her face tired from the day. I widened my eyes in question, and Mrs. Goldsef nodded slightly, giving me the go.

I stood up from my seat and waddled to the front, thankful my cast was off and I only needed a boot. I grabbed the small item from the cabinet, and Mrs. Goldsef handed me her microphone, smirking slightly. We exchanged evil smiles and I placed the item to the microphone, signaling Chelsea to plug her ears. I turned to the class and made eye contact with Enoch, smirking at his worried look.

In one swift move, all sound was replaced with an ear splitting shriek and everyone jumped in their seats, turning to see where the sound was coming from. I stopped the horn as everyone plugged their ears and glared at me.

Laughing slightly, I returned the air horn and the microphone. My ears were ringing, but it was totally worth it as the whole class turned their attention to a laughing teacher. I smiled as I sat down, and soon class was in back in session, everyone being put on the task of cracking eggs into a bowl.

I was assigned to crack 100 eggs, but Chelsea and I shared a glance as she said so. I understood why she gave me so little; Enoch was on my team again.

She assigned us to our kitchens, giving everyone but me two cartons. She handed me around nine cartons, and instantly I got to work, pulling out the garbage can and cracking two eggs at once. It's pretty amazing to be able to crack an egg with one hand, and I just so happen to have mastered that skill.

In two minutes flat I had finished all of mine perfectly and went to assist a mesmerized Enoch. Apparently he had been watching me fly through my cartons. I showed him how to crack an egg; hard, but soft. He caught on pretty quick, so I showed him how to carefully open the shell and let the egg drop into the bowl. When he got the hang of that, I washed my hands and sauntered over to Chelsea, smiling as she caught sight of me.

"Finished?" She asked as she pulled a chair out for me.

"Yep. I had to help Enoch a little though, so I'm slightly later than I expected." I answered, sitting down in the chair and adjusting my boot. I sighed. "How have you been lately?"

Chelsea looked up from her book, a confused look on her face. "I'm doing good. Why do you ask?"

I shrugged. "I noticed you were looking pretty tired today, and I wanted to know how you're doing. Are you sleeping well?" I couldn't help but ask.

She sighed, marking her place in the book and setting it down. "Honestly? No. All of the schoolwork I have keeps me up late, this job doesn't pay enough so I started working another job at night, and my husband has decided he wants nothing to do with me anymore. Ever since Bethany passed he hasn't been himself. I'm starting to think the only reason he stayed with me was because of her. Now that she's gone..." Chelsea trailed off, a stray tear slipping from her eye. She wiped it off her face and smiled sadly, then fanned her face, drying up any tears yet to come. She swallowed. "Never mind that, though. How are you holding up?"