Carlos said good-bye to Dana after physics, and started for his next class alone, schedule in hand. Trigonometry.

Not quite unscientific, but entirely less interesting than physics. It was simple for him, and often times he didn't need equations explained in order to figure them out. He knew most of the symbols and understood mathematics well enough to get through it without help, but most of it was boring. He would have rather been using these equations or writing them himself to experiment.

He'd asked Dana before she left if there was a bathroom on the way to Summerset Wing. She was headed in the direction of Hansel Wing, which was the opposite direction, so she didn't have time to show him in person.

He found the bathroom just fine from her directions, but the directions to his next class were a bit more vague… She'd mentioned some stairs and left turns, but where and when weren't mentioned.

He sighed as he exited one of the stalls. They were all very clean, as he'd noted, and that was appreciated. What wasn't appreciated, as much was the general oddness of the entire student body. He didn't like to judge… he might have been a scientist, but he'd never believed that was his place. But how can an entire class believe that a commercial airliner could just show up and then poof in the middle of a school gym? Seeing is believing, sure, but none of the class had scene it, and not a single one was even the slightest bit skeptical. What the hell kind of place was this?

Were they all just messing with him?

Still, he couldn't help the itching in the back of his mind. The one that urged him to admit that an appearing and then disappearing giant plane wasn't something he wouldn't be interested in seeing.

Regardless, though he did like Dana, after class he'd tried so hard to get her to explain why everything here was so strange. But she didn't seem to even comprehend the fact that things were strange. It wasn't just the airliner. Those lights from last night, which he'd forgotten until this moment and failed to ask about. And what the hell is the purpose of a forbidden student lounge? None of it made any sense and the scariest thing was that no one seemed to mind that, or even realize it.

Someone had to have an idea of what was going on in this place. He wished he could have remembered his old professors name. He'd been hoping even before arrival that he'd go out of his way to meet Carlos, but that was yet to happen. There must've been someone else, though. Someone he could find, he just had to look in the right place.

The right place did not appear to be to the left of him, because what was there made him jump, slip on the droplets of water that had splattered from the sink, and nearly fall on his back had he not caught itself.

It looked at him, big, brown, intense eyes. He could here a soft purr… literally, a purr. It was purring.

A cat. A living cat in the bathroom. Which, wasn't actually that strange in comparison to his day so far, but that was before you accounted for the fact that it was floating. About four feet above the ground, next one of the further sinks.

"I see you've met Khoshekh." A voice came from behind him. He gathered himself and looked back, straightening his coat (he'd chosen to wear it for the day as he had a chemistry class later and didn't fancy changing) in the presence of a tall, blond man. Young looking, likely a student.

"He's the NVH broadcasting booth's pet." The man explained as he stepped up to the sink and began washing a weird green liquid off his hands. Carlos chose not to question it.

"Am I near there?" Carlos asked. Why? Why was he asking that? How could he ask perfectly normally questions when there was a fucking silver tabby floating by the fucking sink and best of all it was someone's pet.

"Yeah." Came the reply. "Cecil's the one who named him, I think. He brings food, and we turn the sink on and off so he can get water." He sounded proud. "I'm Leland." He introduced, sticking out a hand. Carlos shook it, voluntarily, but also warily.

Great. More on Cecil. The guy who probably hired Carlos's barbarous roommate to rummage through his luggage last night. The next time he saw that guy he swore he was going to punch him in the jaw.

Well, no, he wouldn't. But he'd imagine doing it in great detail.

"Carlos." He said his name, distantly. He made a point to not look in the direction of the cat. It was impossible and strange and it seemed like a part of his mind was already blocking it out. It was his first day at a new school and he couldn't be burdened by these things. His natural curiosity would not get the better of him.

"Do you know the quickest way to Summerset Wing?" He asked.

"I'm headed there, actually. You can follow…" He trailed off, eyes refocusing on something behind Carlos. "He's staring at you. I think he likes you. You should pet him."

"Oh." Carlos looked back at the hovering cat, considering. There was a long pause before he stepped forward, reached out, and scratched it beneath the chin. It looked, and behaved like a regular cat. To be honest he'd half expected to be electrocuted to death or separated into atoms upon touching something so impossible. But nothing happened.

"Do you know how it floats?" Carlos asked.

"No." Leland shrugged. "I heard they looked for wires and projectors when they first found him here, but there's nothing. It's a real cat, floating."

A real cat, floating… Carlos's mind was racing. Not a single scientific explanation he had could even begin to explain this but his mind was humoring every single once that came remotely close anyway. How? How?

"They?" Carlos looked back at Leland. "How long has he been here?"

Leland shrugged. "A long time, I guess. Since before I got here."

Carlos looked back at the cat. It couldn't have been older than five or six. Ten at most.

"Can it move around?" He asked

"Nope. It's always right there in that spot."

Carlos stood up straight, away from the cat, who looked at him in sad askance as he turned away. "Let's get going." He said, straightening his glasses. "I wouldn't want to be late on my first day."

"Right." Leland agreed, and turned to lead the way. He stopped at the doorway and looked over his shoulder. "Nice hair, by the way." He commented, and continued. Carlos thanked him but only went back to the thought that he definitely needed a cut.

On the way, Leland kept trying to talk about the intern life, but Carlos wasn't really listening. He heard something about Leland being a brand new addition, and that it was so exciting that he was finally getting job experience. Carlos kept trying to retain his words politely, but he kept thinking about the cat.

"Leland." He interrupted the man, who looked surprised by it. It had suddenly come over Carlos to ask about the lights from last night… but he lost his train of thought when someone crossed the intersection in the halls in front of them.

Said someone was wearing a brown, medieval robe that went all the way down to cover his or her feet. The robe had a hood, and when he or she turned to look at them, the fact was completely shadowed by it.

Carlos felt a chi8ll as the person disappeared down the next hall. Recovering with a shudder, he turned to Leland. "Who was that?"

"Who was who?" Leland looked at him, confused, then looked around, as if also confused by his current location.

Carlos blinked, but chose not to question this for now. Get to class was first priority now. "Come on." He continued forward in the direction the hooded figure had gone.

o-o-o-o

He wasn't surprised not to see anyone he recognized in class. That wasn't disheartening either, as anyone he would have recognized was a nut job or had invaded his privacy.

He chose an empty seat next to a bored-looked student that was slouching with his arms crossed and… possibly his eyes shut. Carlos didn't look at him long enough to be able to tell.

He normally wasn't too fond of this type, but he made the decision in hopes that this guy wouldn't bother feeling obligated to speak to him, and that Carlos could simply wait for class to start in peace.

He miscalculated.

The guy looked in his direction before he'd even finished sitting, gave a sarcastic smile, and then scoffed as he turned back to face front.

"You're the new celebrity from the broadcast this morning." He said.

Carlos sunk a little lower in his seat, and nervously pushed some of his hair behind his ear. The other student seemed to observe this gesture interestedly. "I guess." Carlos said, and straightened his glasses.

There was a pause, and then continued speech. "Wish I'd gotten a special announcement when I first got here." He snickered. "But I guess I'm on the radio all the time these days without even trying." He was smiling and Carlos didn't know why… the smile might have been a bitter grimace instead. Or maybe both.

Regardless, he was so far exactly what Carlos had expected. Cynical, sarcastic, snide. Carlos often wondered why these sorts even came to class if they had no intention of giving a shit about it.

"Radio?" Carlos questioned.

"It's what some people call the NVH broadcasting system. Easier to say than NVH broadcasting system."

Carlos nodded, accepting this logic.

"Steve." The boy held out his hand, despite the fact that Carlos had hardly said three words to him so far. At least he was polite enough to introduce himself. Carlos shook his hand.

"Carlos." He answered.

"Welcome to North Vale, Carlos." Steve said. "Among the best advice: ignore the guys with the hoods, don't try to remember the English professor's face, because you won't. Stay away from the crates in the corner of the storeroom, and don't acknowledge or speak of that weird-shaped thing in the courtyard."

"Didn't you just speak of it?" Carlos pointed out.

"Speak of what?" Steve grinned knowingly. He had abnormally large, sharp canines. His smile was a little terrifying.

"And, this just in, I guess. Don't go near the student lounge." He snorted.

"Yeah… and why is that?"

He never got an answer. "You're still questioning things, good. But, either way, you'll be just like the rest of 'em in a couple weeks."

"Excuse me." Carlos squinted. The rest of who?

"You're talking to the only guy left in North Vale that's been here more than a month and still seems to understand that floating cats aren't normal." Steve said. "I can't remember my family, my old life, or anything before this. But I remember that."

Carlos didn't know what to say. "…I'm sorry." Was the best he could do. Because… it sounded tragic, right?

Steve just snorted again. "Thanks."

Carlos wanted to ask him things. His opinion on some of the crazy things going on around here, but it seemed too soon to start bombarding him with questions and class was probably about to start. Before he could open his mouth, the man who'd taken his place at the front of the room began to speak, and Carlos turned his head, choosing to focus.

o-o-o-o

As soon as Professor Hart, who may have been the strangest person Carlos had seen yet (based only on the fact that she'd gone into a hysteric rant about how birthdays don't exist when one of the students mentioned her birthday coming up) ended the lesson, Steve turned his attention back to Carlos.

"So." He started. "What's your next class?"

Carlos blinked, and then reached into his bag, fumbling to pull out his schedule. "…Uh, looks like I have a free period, and then Chemistry."

"So that's why you're wearing that coat." Steve observed, and then commented. "It suits you, though. Are you a future Science major?"

"Physics, probably, yeah." Carlos replied. "Minoring in microbiology." He added.

"Well!" Steve stood. "I've got history next period. But I can be late if you want me to show you where the cafeteria is. Trust me, you'll want to eat. I recommend the hell out of Big Rico's, shamed as I am to say it."

Carlos opened his mouth, then shut it. Truth be told, he'd planned to get some of the work done from his first two classes during this break, but… well, he could do that and eat at the same time.

"Thanks." Was all he said.

o-o-o-o

Steve lead him to the cafeteria at a leisurely pace, obviously not worrying about getting to his next class on time at all. He must've known the professor would still let him inside.

"So…" Carlos started, straightening his glasses. Steve turned to him immediately in askance.

"…Do you know anything about that airplane incident?" He asked.

Steve let out a short, sharp, 'Ha!' "Trust me." He said. "The less you think about that, the better."

Carlos frowned. "Why?"

"You're a scientist type, right?" Steve implied." Curious, always needing to explain things? …Do yourself a favor, and just let some things go around here. You're just going to waste your time, and possibly go insane."

Carlos felt his eyebrows furrow. He wanted to argue, but he wasn't sure how, and honestly, considered that maybe this guy was right. He didn't know where to begin for most of this. Maybe, if he found something specific that he had some leads on. He could start there? Or, if he just jumped in head first, he'd come to reveal all of this as the obvious hoax it was.

"You're here." Steve informed, and when Carlos looked up from his thoughtful gaze toward the carpeted floor, he found a massive circular stadium-sized room, filled with circular tables and lined with different food joints. Some he'd heard of, like an Arby's, and multiple Applebee's, and that was a mystery in itself. Others he didn't recognize, like Gino's, and Jerry's Taco, which looked to be closed for maintenance.

"Take your pick." Steve said. "Big Rico's is over there." He pointed. "Just throwing that out there." He gave Carlos a pat on the back.

"See-ya 'round, Carl." He said, and Carlos whipped around to protest at the nickname but stopped because Steve was already pretty far down the hall, waving backwards toward him like he'd expected him to turn around.

Carlos scoffed. He hated, hated being called that. The last thing he needed was his name to be Americanized.

o-o-o-o-o

"Carlos!" Dana had basically exploded out of her seat, causing him to jump a and shrink away, protecting his tray of pizza. "Sit with us!" She commanded, and pulled out an empty chair for him, and there were many of those.

At the table there were only four people currently, Dana being one of them. The others included Cecil (cue imaginary jaw-punching), who appeared to be trying to look in any direction aside from at Carlos. A younger boy, definitely a freshman, short, and behaving shyly. Lastly, an older woman, much older. She must've been a professor, that or she flunked more times than humanly possible.

There was also a plate of some sort of muffins in the middle of the table. They were sort of yellowish, and Carlos would have guessed corn muffins. He decided on approach that he wouldn't take one unless offered, though they did look good. He set his tray down as he pulled out his chair, and sat.

"So! How was Trig?" Dana asked between sipping at chocolate milk through a straw.

"Like it usually is." Carlos shrugged, and turned his plate so the tip of the pizza was facing him.

"You went to Big Rico's, huh? Good choice!" Dana said. "Cecil pretty much never eats anywhere else."

"No one does a slice like Big Rico, Dana." Cecil said, matter-of-factly.

Carlos cleared his throat. "Cecil." He looked directly at the man across from him, who squeaked, and jumped at the address.

"Would you mind telling me who the anonymous student was that looked through my stuff?" He already assumed it must have been Telly, but he wanted to be sure before pointing fingers.

"Sorry." Cecil seemed to be struggling on the reply. "I have to respect a private informer's desire to remain anonymous." He explained. Carlos was staring him down, not amused.

But Carlos himself ended up a little uncomfortable and intimidated when he didn't back down, or look away. He looked like he may have been slightly bothered by the daggers Carlos was glaring but he kept looking straight back at him anyway. What the hell was wrong with him?

"It's not Cecil's fault." Dana cut in. "He has to report news, it's his job." She insisted. "He doesn't write… most of it…"

"Whatever." Carlos sighed. "Tomorrow I'd just like to be old news, if you don't mind."

The older woman with them started to snicker. "Oh, he'll never be old news." She said, not appearing to be speaking directly to any one of them. In fact she appeared to be looking straight at the chair next to her, which was empty.

"Not with perfect hair like that." She nodded toward him, and Carlos lifted a hand to touch it insecurely. A haircut has definitely been pushed to the top of his to-do list. Maybe he could let by-gones be by-gones and ask Telly to do it tonight.

He picked up his slice of pizza, and took a bite. Based on Steve's recommendation and what Cecil mentioned about "no one does a slice like" (…which, he was beginning to remember that having also been said on the broadcast this morning.) he was expecting something more spectacular. It was good… but… he'd had better. He decided not to comment, though, and kept eating.

"Dana." The short boy spoke up. "Did you see Richard yet?" He asked.

"Damn it, no. I haven't been able to find him." She sighed. "I can't think of anyone else who would have been in the gym this morning."

"Richard?" Carlos was immediately intrigued.

"Yeah, why?" Dana asked.

"I… well, I want to talk to him too." He said. She looked confused, so he went on to explain. "This place is the most scientifically interesting community I've ever come across. I've seen one thing here that is scientifically impossible, heard of at least one other, and there are plenty more just plain weird things I could mention." Now the entire table looked confused.

"Whether all of these things are real or not the opportunities they present for study are impossible to ignore. So, yes, I'd like to talk to Richard about the airplane. If you find him, I'd appreciate if you give him my name."

Everyone was staring at him. He might have heard a cricket chirp in the midst. He squirmed under their incredibly lost gazes, and, hoping to pull them back to earth and rekindle some comfort toward him, he smiled as best and as sincere as he could.

It disappeared immediately and was replaced with horror when all four of them sighed, as if dreamily.

He decided not to read into why, and busied himself with his pizza.

"Um, okay." Dana cleared her throat. "Cecil, if Richard comes to work, let him know Carlos and I are looking for him, okay?"

Cecil was the only one who was yet to stop staring.

"Cecil." She repeated, and he slowly, almost bitterly, turned to face her. "Yes, I heard, Dana." He spat, and grudgingly took a bite of his own pizza. Mouthful, and no regard as to whether he could be understood or not, he went on. "I'll elp neeway ican." He said, it was hard to make out behind the food in his mouth. But the reply was easy.

"Thank you."

The older woman leaned forward, and pushed the plate of muffins toward Carlos. "Would you like one?" She offered, and Carlos didn't hesitate to nod as he took one.

The bite was… well, it wasn't bad, but it tasted off. Like something was missing.

"Sorry, there's no salt in them this time." She folded her hands apologetically. "The angels took all of mine with them for a godly mission, and I haven't had time to buy more."

Carlos forced the first bite down with a trained smile, and set the remaining next to the pizza on his plate.

o-o-o-o

"Where are you guys headed for next period?" Dana asked as she stood, holding her lunch tray in hands, preparing to throw away what was left behind.

"Chemistry." Carlos said without any specific emotion, his mind elsewhere.

"I've got to head to the studio to get things ready for the second half of today's broadcast." Cecil said. "Chad will be joining me." He presented, finally, the name of the boy sitting next to him, who hadn't bothered to introduce himself earlier.

Dana sighed. "Ugh. I hate being off. Missing out on all the fun, having to go to class…" She sighed.

"You're in tomorrow, aren't you?" Cecil sipped classily at some drink he had, even though it was most likely water or soda.

"Yeah." She shrugged. "But so much happened today! I always miss the good ones!"

"Wait." Carlos interrupted. "You mean there's going to be another broadcast today?"

"Sure." Dana nodded. "There's one every morning, and then one every afternoon for about ten minutes during the last period of the day. For anyone who's not in class that period, you can also dial 17 on your room phone and listen."

"Ah…" Carlos took that in, and then nodded slowly. He couldn't say he was excited to hear any more of the nonsense, but at the same time, maybe it would help reach some conclusions? Furthermore, if the whole student body was always listening, it would be a good resource for sharing any information he did find. He'd have to keep that in mind.

"Anyway, it's about time you all get moving, isn't it?" The older woman tossed a smile around the table.

"Right." Carlos cleared his throat and stood. "Pardon me… I didn't catch your name?" He asked her.

"Oh, just call me Josie." She said, giggling, and he could have sworn she was blushing. "Feel free to leave out the 'old woman' part that Cecil always seems intent on including." She presented the broadcast host, who was too busy hurrying to stuff his face before leaving to notice he was being talked about.

"Carlos." He said, sure she already knew, but figured it would be polite anyway.

She nodded with a smile, and stood, taking up the plate of corn muffins with her. "It was great sharing a meal with you four." She said. "Come on, Erika."

There was no one there.

"Hey, by the way Carlos! A bunch of us are going bowling tonight, are you interested?" Dana returned from dumping her trash peppy clap as she hopped and landed beside him.

"No, no." Carlos shook his head. "I have a lot of work to do. Some homework, and there are some personal projects I want to look into." He gave his best apologetic smile, but it didn't stop her from looking disappointed. He was used to this, though. He had always put his scientific curiosities and furthering his involvement in the scientific community before making or keeping relationships with other people. He didn't like disappointing her, or anyone. But his work was important.

She would be all right. They'd have loads of fun without him and wouldn't even remember he was invited.

"I'll see you tomorrow if nothing else." Carlos said. "First period?" He hoped this would bring her back from her sad reaction. She glanced over at Cecil, though he didn't follow her gaze to find out why. Then she sighed.

"That's fine." She smiled, and it looked sincere, so he was able to smile back, brightly.

"Right! Good." He said, glad that she was so understanding, as he backed away to leave. He nodded awkwardly at the other two that were still there, and waved. Cecil was also waving, and Chad was busy digging through his bag. He didn't bother waiting for the kid to look up before turning around, and moving for the exit.

He turned the corner and nearly ran straight into someone, stopping just barely in time before they clunked heads.

"Hey! That was easy." He recognized the voice. It was Steve. "My class was near here, so I figured I'd go ahead and pick you up. Make sure you found your way around."

Carlos blinked, and then was grateful. He hadn't thought of it, come to think of it he should have at least asked Dana for some directions, but it didn't cross his mind.

"Oh! Thanks!" Steve was a lifesaver.

Carlos didn't know why, but he just happened to look over his shoulder, back into the crowd of students in the cafeteria that had all just finished eating. Somewhere among them, he locked eyes with Dana, who was frowning. She glanced at Steve, then back at him, and then turned away, and left.

Carlos thought nothing of it, and turned back to Steve.

"So, Chemistry with who?" Steve asked.

"Looks like… McDaniels, Royal Wing, room 005."

"Damn, all the way in the basement?" Steve sighed.

"Are you going to make it? You don't have to walk me—,"

"It's fine." Steve interrupted. "Watch yourself around that guy, though. He's nice, and good at his job. But sometimes it's like he has five different personalities, and you're never sure which one you'll get."

"Thanks, I'll remember that."

"Also." Steve started to walk, and Carlos followed. "We have to go by the forbidden student lounge to get down there. It's no big deal, except instances of people disappearing upon getting to close or losing their minds after looking at it for too long have come up." He said. "No big deal, just walk fast and don't look."

Carlos crinkled his nose. "That's ridiculous. I might as well just go inside."

Steve laughed, loudly. "And I will nail you to a cross to stop you if it means saving your life." He'd expected this answer from Carlos.

"That's going a little overboard."

"Maybe. It does sound like work. But I like you a lot, so you might be worth it." Steve tossed a smile over his shoulder, and Carlos had to look away. "Think of it as trusting those who are older than you. This place isn't normal, and you can't treat it like it is or you'll be dead in a day."

"You shouldn't fear things just because you don't understand them." Carlos argued.

"Yes, you should." Steve answered, firmly. "Here, you should."

o-o-o-o-o

Steve managed to drag Carlos passed the student lounge when they arrived nearby, completely nonchalantly weaving through two more people in hoods that seemed to be just passing through the same area of hall at the same time. Carlos was less nonchalant about them as he was dragged through. He impulsively avoided looking straight into their hoods. It just seemed like a bad idea. But he could feel his heart beating harder and faster as they slowly turned their heads to follow the pair passing between them as they went by.

Before he knew it, they'd passed, and the student lounge was long behind them.

"Okay." Carlos yanked his wrist out of Steve's hand. "What in the hell are those things?"

"We don't know." Steve said. "No one really does, except maybe the board, or special security… but they're supposed to be on our side." He explained, which really just made Carlos even more lost. "Whatever that means."

"Are you saying they're not people?"

"Could be." Steve shrugged. "Wouldn't want to touch those hoods and find out, personally. You're not even supposed to approach them. And if they're doing something, no matter what it is, you don't get in their way."

"This place is like a whole other world." Carlos sighed. It was a little exhausting. He couldn't take this in all at once, but he wasn't the type to just block things out. This was all, at its root, extremely interesting. Whether it was the skewed psychology of the locals or these things were actually happening, it was a gold mine for investigation. And there was nothing Carlos loved more than figuring things out.

o-o-o-o

The Chemistry room was different, as expected. Full of beakers and humming electrical equipment, just like some of the supplies he'd brought with him for personal studies. Also, of course it was full of wide black-topped tables as opposed to desks with Bunsen burners and sinks attached and within reach. It wasn't anything spectacular, but he could tell it provided, and that was all he really asked. He wasn't the sort that needed the fanciest equipment to draw any conclusions. He worked with what he had.

The professor was present, sitting in at his desk, studying some sheets of paper, maybe last minute grading? Who knew. Behind him, taped to the wall, there was an image of a clearly western portrayal of a dragon. It had five heads, too, all different colors. Most intriguingly, it appeared to be hand-drawn and water-colored. He could tell by the slight warps in the paper as it was not the type made for watercoloring. Why would a student draw something like that for a teacher? …Were five-headed dragons his favorite animal?

It seemed unlikely.

He didn't further question it before taking a seat.

o-o-o-o-o

His final period was English. He'd never been very interested in the ways language worked. Nature was always more interesting to him than culture, which explained why he was more interested than math and science than history and English. Science was a law. A theory, in all regards, technically, but when truth was found, if it ever was, it was unbreakable. It was solid, and definite, and debatable only by further research as opposed to difference of opinion. Whoever discovered the most, knew the most… and that was that.

History, man kind, culture, language… of that came with a struggle for right and wrong, arguments and ideas that could never be completely investigated due to being too long ago or simply because there is no truth. No right answer. He didn't frown upon that concept at all, but it didn't feel quite so secure.

These, among other reasons, are why he was so surprised to see a familiar face! Familiar, definitely, all though indescribable. But he could never forget the tan jacket, or that weird deerskin suitcase he took everywhere but never seemed to open. When Carlos asked about it the last time, his professor had only joked that it was full of flies.

Carlos had forgotten this man's name, and he felt terrible about it… but, just as quickly as he felt bad he began to remember… his first name! Wasn't Emmett? Or Everett? …Or Ernest?

The man smiled at him, and Carlos took it as an invitation to walk over.

They talked about the weather, how it was hot, and dry. He asked how Carlos was getting along in the new school, and Carlos said fine. Carlos asked why he'd become an English professor when he was formerly a biology teacher, and was told he excelled in many subjects.

After a few minutes of light conversation, he told Carlos that he had to start class soon, and to have a seat.

As Carlos walked, he smiled with nostalgia at having spoken to his old teacher. Then his smile faded, and slowly turned into a sneer. Why did he say everything was fine? Why didn't he ask about the weird shit that kept happening around here? Why didn't he demand to know why this guy didn't tell him what a strange place this was?

He didn't know why. But he didn't turn back around to ask, either. And never would.

The class went by quickly. Carlos may not have been that interested in the workings of the English language (it was his second language, but he knew more about it than most native English-speakers, at least in America) but he wasn't puzzled or bored by them either.

But when Professor… Professor… …

When he ended the class, it wasn't dismissed, and Carlos already knew why. Closing broadcast. What kind of crazy shit would he hear this time?

It started off with something about a water park, and Carlos's face was immediately in his palms. Water supplies were probably dwindling enough as it was, and someone thought it would be all right to build a water park outside North Vale for recreation? ...And did he just say there wouldn't be any water?

Carlos wanted to sleep. Or leave. He had so many better things to do than this.

"A few reporters witnessed a speech given by our new scientist today during our lunch hour, who I will now reveal is called Carlos."

Oh… dear.

"He has a square jaw, and teeth like a military cemetery."

Please no.

"His hair is perfect, and we all hate and despair and love that perfect hair in equal measure."

That was a much more than mildly disturbing way of putting it. It was final, he was definitely getting a haircut. Tonight. He didn't care if he had to wait until after midnight for Telly to get back. It would be short in the morning and he would hear no more about it.

"Carlos said that we were the most scientifically interesting community he'd ever come across, and that he was going to study, and investigate all of the weird stuff that is going on around here."

Is this important? Seriously?

"Then he smiled, and everything about him was perfect."

"And I fell in love instantly."

Carlos sunk down in his seat, and shut his eyes, ignoring the possibility that half the students in class with him were now looking at him, as well as the urge to check. All he could think was cut if off. Cut it off.

Someone just get rid of it right now. This is far too embarrassing.

Cecil went on to talk about ghost cars passing by and seen from the windows at night, but Carlos had long since lost the ability to pay attention to that voice. He'd opened his eyes, and tried to remain nonchalant for the remainder, but he couldn't focus on the words, nor did he want to.

All he could hear in his head was that last coherent line, before he blocked it all out despite it being already too late.

And I fell in love instantly.

I fell in love instantly.