Chapter 5 #3
After a few awkward minutes of silence as I hang my clothes in the small closet, I attempt conversation again.
“The secretary said you’re new to this school too. I’m really excited to get out and explore the campus.”
She nods as she files her crystals into slotted drawers on a desktop organizer. “Mhm.”
“So,” I say another minute later, because the silence feels oppressive, “the secretary mentioned you're a vampire?”
Max's hands still on the organizer drawer. She turns slowly, and for the first time I notice the dark red shade of her irises.
In a quiet, cold tone that’s more terrifying than if she’d been yelling, she asks, “Is that a problem?”
“No! No, not at all, I just—I didn’t know vampires were real until less than an hour ago, so I'm just curious, you know—”
She cuts me off, glaring. “Friendly tip, since you’re new here.
” She stands, and she’s taller than I expected her to be, probably near 5’10”.
“Me being a vampire isn’t some fun little discovery for you to pry about under the guise of friendly conversation.
I’m not your friend, and I’m not your teacher, so don’t expect late-night girl talk or for me to educate you about all the things you’re ignorant of. ”
My heart sinks. “I’m so sorry. I really didn’t mean to offend you. Like I said, I’m new to all of this. Not just the school, but magic in general.”
“Whatever.” She sits back down, returning her attention to her desk with clear dismissal.
The conversation, which I royally fucked up, is clearly over.
Realistically, I know she must have some attitude issues to begin with considering how she had replied to my simple request for directions earlier, but the rejection still stings.
It’s going to be a long couple of years if we’re stuck as roommates the entire time.
I begin unpacking in silence, conscious of every sound and movement I make.
After putting my clothes away, some hung in the closet and others folded in the dresser, I find the two small picture frames wrapped in old T-shirts that I’d carefully sandwiched into the middle of my bag, between piles of clothes where they wouldn’t get broken.
I unwrap them and set them on the shelf above my bed.
One shows my family all together and smiling at the beach of Lake Mead quite a few years ago, with Christopher flashing a gap-toothed smile, Matty clutching Mom’s leg, and Dave flashing the camera two thumbs up under his wide-brimmed hat.
The other photograph is the one I’ve had since I was old enough to not break it—the picture of my dad.
Besides that, I don’t have many personal belongings to display.
Where my roommate seems to have dozens of knick-knacks, I have two picture frames and a mini-painting of a pothos plant that my mom got me for Christmas last year.
I couldn’t bring any of my real plants due to all the traveling, which was devastating in itself.
At home, I only left Mom the ones that are almost impossible to kill, and I gave the others to good homes.
I’ve put too much care into them to let them go to waste.
Mostly done with my unpacking, I plop down on my bed and reach for my pocket to pull out my phone before remembering it’s useless here.
In my peripheral vision, careful to avoid eye contact, I watch as Max rises from her desk, makes her way past me to open the window, then sits back down.
Taking two of the jars from her carefully organized stash, she taps out herbs into a small bowl then hovers a hand over the top of it.
Curious now, I watch as she stares down into the bowl before it illuminates from within with a flickering flame.
My breath catches in my throat. Magic.
Talking about it in theory is one thing, as is performing it myself, but seeing someone else so casually create fire from a mere thought is… exhilarating.
Max simply raises an eyebrow at my blatant staring as she stands and circles the room, moving the bowl just enough for the curls of gray smoke to reach every surface of the room.
“Can I ask what you’re doing?” I question in a small voice. I don’t want her to get even more irritated with me, but my curiosity wins out this time.
“You really are new to magic, huh?”
I nod. “Yeah. I didn’t know it existed at all until a few weeks ago.”
“Well, to answer your question, I’m cleansing the energy of the room. Even if nothing feels off, it’s a good practice when you have a new living space.”
“Good to know. Does your power relate to fire?” I ask hesitantly. I have so many questions but lack the proper guidance on etiquette when it comes to discussions of magic (and hostile roommates).
Max glances at me again with a look that I’m certain means, Are you a total idiot? But to her credit, she answers my question. “No. This is basic elemental manipulation. If they’re making you take all the magic Gen Eds, you’ll learn it this semester.”
“That’s so cool.”
She simply shrugs and, once she’s covered every square inch of the room, she places the bowl of burning herbs back on the desk to let it burn out.
I busy myself by pulling out the welcome packet and paperwork I received from the academy a few weeks ago, reviewing it in an attempt to commit everything I possibly can to memory.
I have a meeting with my academic advisor tomorrow, the Friday before the influx of students moving in or returning to campus over the weekend, and I find the indicated office on my map of campus.
“What’s your schedule?” Max asks, not unkindly, nodding to the stack of papers. I pull out the paper detailing my class schedule and extend it toward her.
She snags it and with a cursory glance says, “Jesus, that’s brutal. Who’d you piss off to have such a shitty schedule? Fifteen credit hours in one semester for a grad program is insane.”
I chuckle, trying to hide my underlying panic about how difficult this semester will be.
“The woman I talked to from the admissions office said I’d need to do all the basic magic classes and my Affinity classes on top of normal classes.
So, unfortunately, this’ll probably be the norm for my time here. ”
Max hands the paper back to me. “Good luck.”
“Thanks, I’ll need it.” The sky outside is still gray, but the rain has stopped, so I say, “I’m going to explore campus, so I’ll get out of your hair for a while.” I smile, but Max doesn’t smile back. She simply returns to organizing, now focusing on the stack of books against the wall.
As I’m walking out the door with my schedule and campus map in hand, she speaks. “Dining hall right next to the castle should be open for those of you who eat normal food.”
Her words catch me off guard, and I whip my head around to see her with a self-satisfied smirk at getting a reaction out of me. Then, she grins with something between mischievousness and malice, revealing a sharp set of fangs beneath her deep red lipstick.
I quickly close the door behind me, my stomach clenching, and hope to god that my roommate has an inkling of kindness hiding somewhere deep beneath her uninviting exterior.