URBAN FAIRIES
It wasn’t great. The power point wasn’t perfect. Sometime between my shower and my presentation, the latte had worn off.
Worse, I’d crashed.
All the caffeine, all the sugar hit my system and left just as fast. By the time I got everything set up, I knew I would flunk. I’d flunk, and my grade would plummet. This was bad. This was really, really bad.
“Eric?” my professor asked, her sharply pointed ears twitching as she studied me.
I swallowed. I had to have an Elf for a professor. She’d only been studying and teaching about this for a couple hundred years. She’d only seen a million presentations - all of them way better than mine. She’d probably already failed me.
“Are you ready, Eric?” she asked.
I nodded. Sure. Not really, but sure. I powered up my laptop and cast the power point to the classroom’s scene. The first slide came on.
I read the title aloud. “The Extinction of Humanity.”
The entire room yawned. I wanted to freeze. I wanted to go home; I wanted to sleep. But Professor Conlis tapped her desk expectantly. So I kept going.
“Though once a thriving civilization that outnumbered Elves, Gnomes, and Sprites combined, the last remnants of humanity are thought to have disappeared around 400 E.S. Today, there is debate whether they ever existed. I say they did.”
I braced for the groans, and they were louder than I’d expected. Professor Conlis shot them that famous cold Elven stare. The room fell silent, and I wondered if that was why so many Elves were professors.
“Go on, Eric,” she said.
I nodded and continued my presentation. But no one was listening, and I couldn’t focus. I said the words and played the slides, but I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t even know if I’d finished it when I sat back down.
“Thank you, Eric,” the professor said. “Bertha, I believe you’re next.”
A female Dwarf walked to the front, but I didn’t hear what she talked about. She’d probably put a lot of effort into, but I couldn’t listen. I just sat slumped at my desk, knowing I’d gotten a zero on my presentation.
Eventually, the class ended. All the students stood up, and we headed to the door. My bag felt heavier than before, its weight dragging my wings down.
“Eric, please stay for a moment,” Professor Conlis called.
Great. Had I done that bad? Did she have to tell me I’d failed right now? I wanted some sleep before facing this mess. Some sleep and a coffee, maybe. But I walked to her desk, trying to look more alive than I felt.
“Yes, professor?” I asked.
“Your presentation. Do you honestly believe that humans existed?”
I winced. Another skeptic, who thought I was an idiot. Someone else who wouldn’t listen but would laugh.
“Yes ma’am, I do.”
“Interesting.” She tapped her fingers together, and her ears twitched. “Out of all students I’ve assigned that topic to over the years, I believe you are the first to personally support it.”
“Oh, um… thanks?”
“Would you be interested in more assignments with this topic?”
“Sure…?”
“Excellent. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. Have a good day, Eric.” She smiled and nodded and then shifted her attention to some papers on her desk.
“You too.”
I turned and headed out the door. What was that about? Maybe I’d done better than I thought. Maybe I’d actually impressed her. They say “anything is possible”, right? Maybe this was one of those times.
I wondered, but then my stomach growled. Food. I never ate breakfast, and I wanted some before heading to bed. My phone dinged. Lifting off the ground, I pulled it out. Great, it was the notification for my next class. Could I skip it?
No, I couldn’t. There was supposed to be a test today, and my grades weren’t high enough for me to miss it. So I had twenty minutes to find some food and just not die. I sighed. Well, food first. Then I’d try to stay alive.
I swooped back to the ground. Landing, I hurried to the cafeteria. Students stood in line or gathered around tables. I scooted through the line as fast as I could and settled into a table near the back.
The pile of bacon I’d grabbed sizzled weakly. Despite that, I wolfed it down, but I couldn’t remember its taste. Honestly, it could have tasted like cardboard; I probably wouldn’t have noticed. I glanced at my phone again. Ten minutes. I had to get a move on.
I dropped my plate off and raced to the main hall. I lifted off the ground as soon as I could. Winging my way above the earth bound students, I dodged the other flyers and made it to class with a minute or two to spare.
I dropped into a desk and slung my bag on the floor. I heaved a sigh of relief. Not late. That was one plus, at least.
A girl slid into the desk in front of me, no bag but a pencil behind her ear. The sharpness of my point told me for sure that she was an elf, but the hair would have been enough. It fell almost to the floor, shining all the way.
I wanted to touch it. It was probably softer than even pixie silk. It must have weighed pounds. I wanted to touch it so bad. My fingers itched to just edge a few inches and touch it. I clamped my hands in my lap. She’d hated me if I touched her hair, and no one can hold a grudge like someone who knows they can always just ruin your family’s next generation.
Then the professor walked in and started handing out the test. I forgot about the elf girl. All my focus shifted to the paper in front of me.
After the test, I hurried out and headed home. If I didn’t get some solid sleep soon, I would crash so hard. The moment I was out of doors, I stopped walking and started hovering. Flying fast, I stayed close to the ground.
Other students walked, flew, and talked all around me. Dwarves traveled in groups, designer clothes and custom accessories flashing. Gnomes and pixies sat around on their phones. I avoided them all and just flew as fast as I could. Dodging another sprite, I ducked around a tree.
And I smacked into an elf. We both hit the ground hard, and books went everywhere.
“Ohmigosh! I’m so sorry; I didn’t see you!” I apologized, picking up books.
“Obviously.” The voice was cold enough to be an elf.
I glanced up. Oh, it was an elf. The elf girl who’d sat into front of me during the test. Leaves and dirt now stuck to her long hair, and her albino red eyes glared at me. I swallowed, hard.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
She stood up. “Yes.”
“Oh… good….”
She picked her pencil up. Then she turned and stalked away as only an elf could. I watched
That went well, I thought. She’d said all of four syllables to me, but hey, the last girl I talked to under bad circumstances had called me a stalker. I was definitely making improvements. Sighing, I shook my head at my own patheticness.
“Go home, Eric,” I told myself.
I picked up the last of my books and kept heading home.
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And that's the second chapter. Thoughts? Where would you like the story to go? Did you enjoy it?
Let me know, okay?
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