The Kramorian Exchange

Chapter 6: vomit in my mouth

What feels like a year later, my computer pings, shrill and completely welcome. The lights inside my pod turn up bright and I blink as the word 'Recess' flashes in front of me in multi coloured glitteryed letters, and with bright fireworks in the background. I may have customised that myself.

Looking up at the ceiling I see the chandelier lights turn to green andI breathe out a heavy sigh of relief and. Oh thank heavens. I sit back in my chair with a groan. As my pod roof lifts open I stretch my arms high above my head, gripping the back of my chair behind me. I close my eyes and try to repeat back the list of words I've just spent the morning learning to myself.

That final language test is only a week away and man do I need to ace it, if I want another entry into the selection barrel anyway. The highest score from a final exam earns you an extra entry into the exchange program lottery.

Plus, There are only four months left until the end of term. And Summer holidays! and if I don't get good grades this time my life is just totally over.

I lower my arms and open my eyes to find Spignek leaning right over me, so close that his nose is almost touching mine. I let out an embarrassing loud, and super girly, Yelp and Spig collapses to the floor laughing.

Hearing some of the other guys laughing also I lean over the edge of my pod and hurl my headset at spig. Naturally he catches it easily (stupid alien reflexes) and throws it right back, catching me on the nose.

"And that, my friend, is why you'll never play football" teases Spig, standing up and ruffling my hair. He knows I hate that!

"Oh whatever," I say, pushing his hand away and climbing out of my pod. "Can't all be star athletes like you". I grab my bag and we head out of the classroom, headed for the quad outside.

"It's true, it's true," Spig always was sooo modest, "though my skills are super put to waste here. Football and soccer are fine, but give me a game of Lurvax any day".

We've had this discussion heaps before. Back on Kramoria, Spig is a total sporting super star when it comes to Lurvax. He always says he wishes he could play here but I'm afraid we're yet to teach our horses to fly. Shame.

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School may have changed dramatically from past generations, and lord knows my father has made me super grateful that I go to this one, but recess is still only 20 minutes long. Spig and I head down the elevators and right for our usual tree-bench spot, but before we can get there someone blocks our way.

I had been looking at the ground and kicking a pebble ahead of me while we walked so the two big, fat, scruffy sneaker covered feet appearing right in front of me was a surprise. I stop short and look up and there he is. Lonny Carlson. Oh great, here we go again.

"Sup Spigface?" Lonny says, ducking in quickly so he can breathe it loudly right in Spig's face. Lonny hates Spignek, hates him. And even with Spig's height advantage Lonny can still manage to get in his face menacingly enough.

"Lonny." Spig says, pleasantly enough. But I notice that he is looking over Lonny's head, rather than in his eyes, when he speaks. Spig was never one for confrontations, unfortunately. If I was as strong as a Kramorian I would have flattened Lonny back in the second grade!.

Lonny Carlson is a grade ahead of Spig and I, but still 2 grades behind where he is meant to be in school. He lives a few streets away from us, with his mother and 7 sisters, and comes to class when he feels like it. He is massive. And I do mean massive. He might only be fifteen but he is already six feet tall, and about the same size around his waist. Even Spig is just a bit taller than him. He has flame red hair that is always greasy and dirty and mostly plastered to the top of his head, a face full of freckles and tiny brown eyes that he squints even smaller when he talks to people. As always his clothes are filthy and today his t-shirt is full of holes.