Studying (with) You

Path 2: Test of Distress

Sandbar only spends an hour on his project before he notices the heaviness of his head and how weak his eyelids are, not being able to keep themselves open for more than five minutes (not counting blinking obviously) before shutting themselves for a few seconds, enjoying the sensation of rest and relaxation. He was able to forget about the incidence by distracting himself but from time to time the imagine of Gallus' expression and the cold stare he gave him popped into his head, causing him to mess up a stitch or two and forcing him to fix it once his mind became clear again. From time to time he could've sworn that he heard something that sounded like a loud bang, as if something hit something with incredible force but he tells himself that it was nothing but his imagination and his remorse working hand in hand to teach him a lesson he was sure he already learned or maybe just a mixture of the sounds he hears coming from the hallway.
I can't work like that..., the stallion decides as he turns off the machine and drops his entire body onto his bed, face first into the pillow which muffles his groaning and every other sound he makes. He feels the images coming back as the scene begins to start all over again, like a never-ending loop of emotional catastrophes, uncomfortable realizations and a pain in his chest and his head. A pain that feels like it had the power to kill him but instead just tortures him over and over again, not letting him rest.
I can't handle that! I CAN'T! I need something to distract me! What was it what I wanted to do again? Study! Perfect!
The teal-maned stallion immediately gets up from his bed and searches for his notes from the classes, which he always stores inside one of the drawers of his desk. He opens the middle one and takes out a huge pile of scrolls, which are color-coded with a piece of ribbon to seal it. Dark red for Honesty class, yellow for Kindness, green for farming and so on. While looking through the pile in search of a purple, a white (which stand for Generosity class and Sewing/Fashion) and a few other colors from classes he really needs to recapitulate, he notices the sudden silence that flooded the room. No more bangs and no other strange sounds from anywhere. Sandbar stops his search for a second and tries his best to concentrate on any sound he could hear but nothing, as if everyone else but him just became mute.
That's... even more uncomfortable..., the male thinks to himself as he continues his search for the last pages and, after finding all of them eventually, he heads back for the bed and lays on top of it. He turns himself on the side and begins to read the pieces of information the little rolls of parchment contain. Hours go by and one scroll after the other reveals its secret to the little pony as the sun fades away behind the mountains and the moon comes out to play. From time to time Sandbar takes a quick break and looks out of the window or tries to find something to tidy up or just distract him so he won't get the urge to annoy Gallus, who is still flying through his brain from time to time accompanied by the drama they had to witness together. This cycle continues until his body succumbs to the lack of energy as the midnight-hour signals the start of an new day, the last day to prepare.

Sandbar consciousness slowly returns as he opens his eyes and, much to his surprise, he sees nothing but darkness.
Is that another dream? That's the last thing I need right now..., the stallion's voice echoes in his head but one slight movement of his head allows a glimmer of light to meet his retina.
He moves his head a bit more which results in even more light appearing, almost blinding him with their overwhelming contrast to the formerly dark environment he found himself in. With one quick jerk of his head he finally escapes the object that causes his temporary blindness: One of the scrolls he read during the night before. It must have fallen on his head when he fell asleep while analyzing it. The pony notices a red piece of ribbon attached to it's back, which categorizes it as one of his notes from Miss Applejack's Honesty Class, and takes the piece of parchment into his hooves to bring it closer to his face so he can read it.
"Honesty Class, Session 7: The Pros and Cons on Honesty", he reads and quickly scans the document while catching all the important details of it.
" 'Pros are honesty is the only way to resolve problems, an honest opinion can benefit everyone involved, being honest prevents lies and their consequences. The Cons are that honesty can cause strange and uncomfortable situations and hurt other pony's feelings'... or a griffon's feelings..."
He gulps as he feels how his chest gets heavier and heavier as the memories of the day before return with full impact. Sandbar lowers the parchment and drops it onto the floor before getting up from his bed and, after feeling a strong pain in his head, opens his window to get some fresh air. A great idea if one has a headache but for Sandbar's situation... not a good moment.
My head feels like a drum played by Miss Pinkie Pie..., the pony with the three turtles as a Cutie mark thinks as he puts his left hoof to his head and strokes it softly while closing one of his eyes. The School seems to be empty right now since he can't see any students entering or leaving it and, judging from the sun's current position, it should be lunch time or a bit past it so the emptiness is even more telling.
I should get something too. I haven't eaten anything for a day... but I'm not really that hungry. I'm sure I can find something in my room.
He averts his eyes from the big building and scans the inside of his room before focusing his messy closet.
Somewhere in there should be a package from my mom with cookies or something like that so that should do.
He turns around again and lets his eyes wander for a bit.
I wonder if Ga-AHHH!
While in thought he suddenly spots the blue griffon-male, who just exited the dorm with his bag around his shoulders. He takes a few steps and it seems like he's aiming for the school. Sandbar watches him for a bit even though his head tells him to hide or just get back to the bed but something inside of him prevents that. It could be the fact that he has not seen him for a whole day and his worries are taking control of his body.
"Gallus... I'm sorry...", Sandbar mumbles and, as if the feather-covered creature heard him, the recipient of his apology turns his head slightly, causing their eyes to meet for at least a second before the pony's brain takes over the control again, causing him to quickly withdraw from the open window while almost tripping two times over his own hooves.
He saw me!, the pale-green stallion's inner voice shouts out in panic before shutting up for about 10 seconds. Sandbar slowly sneaks back to the window and risks a quick look while trying his best to not be visible from the griffon's lower position.
He is... gone?
Indeed, the place Gallus was standing before is now no longer occupied and no trace even hints at him being there in the first place. A part of him is relieved about the griffon's disappearance but a different part of him enjoyed seeing him again after a longer time and wanted to see him more, risking another conflict and an extremely uncomfortable atmosphere. After this shocking experience he decides to go back to studying but the image of the griffon in his mind got reinforced by their recent, indirect meeting, causing him to lose focus, reread the same line multiple times without noticing and, all in all, messing with his head in different ways and on different levels until sleep knocks him out and finally puts his head to ease for now.