Game Theory × NH

067 | holmium

× Mercury

It was the last day before winter break and I honestly couldn't be more excited. Christmas was a little over a week away and I could already smell all the goodies Grandma was baking up.

Environmental Science was the last class of the day, and I was currently sitting in the back corner as I tapped my pencil against my lips, staring down at the test in front of me. Because it was the last day before winter break, that meant finals. I had been studying nonstop between soccer practices, my job at The Courtyard Bar, and any routine phone calls back home. I was pretty confident in my classes to keep up my GPA, but the thing was... environmental science was so boring.

"What the hell is chlorofluorocarbon?" I whispered to myself.

I get that climate change, biodiversity management, pollution control, population dynamics, and ecosystems are very important, but I honestly didn't really care. I reduce, reuse and recycle, I turn the lights off when I'm not using it, I wait until I have a full load of laundry, I take short showers... but that didn't mean I had to learn the ecosystem of a pigeon. But I had to because it was either this or biology, and I had dissected one too many animals in my life to go into biology.

Eventually I finished the test (to the best of my knowledge) and turned it in at the desk in the front of the room and left, making my way to the registration office.

After talking to Thomas in the art building, I got to thinking and knew that he was right. I needed a backup in case something was to happen to me in the future, especially with the history of my ankle. So I decided photography. I could have registered online, but I had questions. Like if I needed any other classes to get the degree or not.

Unfortunately, I did, as I expected. However, I already did some of the requirement classes when I was taking my electives, like Art History and 2D Design. I still needed to take 3D Design and Photojournalism as well as the photography class, though. Next semester was going to be packed full; my job at The Courtyard Bar schedule might have to leave my calendar for good.

After I went to the registration office and secured my spots, instead of leaving to my dorm so I could pack, I turned left to the building next door and dug out my camera from my backpack. When I stepped through the door of the dark room, I paused in the doorway.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was in here," I said and began exiting.

"No, wait, it's just me," Liam said, turning away from his work. "It's my fault anyways; I didn't put the sign up saying it was occupied. Come in if you want."

I was hesitant, but I really wanted to print my work and show Grandma for Christmas. So I stepped inside and plopped my backpack on a table and got started. It wasn't until I was placing the first photograph in the solution did I discover Liam and I weren't the only ones in the room.

"I'm hungry," the little boy said, tugging on Liam's shirt.

From the sound of the new, much higher voice in the small space, I jumped. The kid seemed to be around the age of seven, though it was hard to tell in the dim lighting.

"I'm almost done," Liam assured him. "Then we can go to McDonald's."

The boy huffed with a pout and crossed his arms.

I ignored them the best I could and continued my work. I should have brought earplugs and listened to some music, but this was kind of a spur of a moment and hadn't thought to bring them with. But it didn't seem to matter as time quickly passed and the next thing I knew it had been an hour.