Incessant Sloom

The marker flew across the board, the arm casting a looming shadow over the work. The stopwatch's ticking was muted by the sound of the incessant squeak of the jet black marker on the pristine board. Students sat straight in their chairs, breaths as silent as a feather fluttering to the ground. She capped the marker, setting it down on the tray. The metallic clang cut through the silence like a hummingbird's wing sliced through the air.

        "Excellent, Chenda. Although, I advise for you to concentrate more on the task at hand, dwelling on destructive thoughts will not assist you in employment," her instructor stared at her stopwatch, recording Chenda's time to the millisecond. Chenda pried herself from her spot in the front of the class room and daintily sat down at her desk, wringing her sweaty hands.

        This wasn't an ordinary thing to happen. Never had her hands begun to profusely sweat. Never had she felt 'anxious', as she believed this emotion is called. Digging through the archives, and finding a dusty, torn dictionary allowed her to learn the emotions of their ancestors. In biology, they were taught how their emotions faded away after people integrated technology into society. today, experiencing emotions was seen as a detriment. She was fascinated with the idea, and was still curious about the topic. She longed to find out more about the topic. Why was this necessary evolutionarily?

        Chenda's fingers curled, her nails creating crescent shape indents in her palms.What would happen to her if someone found out? Her senses heightened making her fidgety and worrisome. She felt as though she were a mouse finding her way through a maze as the scientists studied her every move.

        The instructor called forth another student as she wrote down the next problem. Nobody but Chenda seemed to be effected by the screeches of the marker. The boy flew through the problem,as though he was sure of his answer even before he stepped up to the plate. He retired to his desk as soon as the marker hit the tray.

        "Wonderful, Astra. Done in record time as well."

        Chenda scowled at 'Astra'. Why couldn't she be as prodigal as him? Why was he the only one who seemed to receive the instructor's praise? This feeling wasn't normal either. Lack of emotions was normal. This emotion made her heart coil and growl, warning its competitor to back off their territory.

        Her legs couldn't stay still, kicking back and forth until class was dismissed. When, her heel had hit the metal of the chair legs, emitting a sharp ring throughout the room, the instructor looked up from recording the remaining students' times. Chenda rearranged her limbs before the instructor's gaze reached her side of the room.

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        Chenda opened the door to her apartment. Her mother sat in the living room inspecting a slide in her microscope. On the right side of the instrument there was a small, white, dismembered, oval shaped box. Wires jutted out like spider legs. News highlights played on the Holographic Television. Her father was printing out a set of silverware in the kitchen.

        They paid no mind to her, as she padded on the tile floor and up the glass staircase and landing. The door slid gently open as she entered her small, vibrant room. The natural light gave it an airy atmosphere. A twin bed sat at the back left side of the room, directly bombarded by sunlight; a round desk with a table lamp on the opposite side. The wall directly left of her was all mirror.

        Chenda stopped in her tracks, eyes wide. She shifted her stare to the only detail that she couldn't recall being in her room. There was a wall directly beside of her that was all mirror. When had that gotten there? How had she not noticed the elephant in the room before? Chenda couldn't recall ever seeing the mirror before today, but she had the feeling that it had always been there.

        She placed her leg in front of the mirror watching as a pure white sneaker and pants appeared. She had never actually seen herself before. She wanted to see herself.

        Was this something that their ancestors enjoyed? It was a strange concept to snatch from the bowels of unfeelingness and into the light of reality, but since the reappearance of emotions she had the ability to feel the longing of temptation.

        She inched in the mirrors view until her shin appeared. She repeated the action for her thigh. It would be awkward to have to elaborate on why she was leaning on her left knee, torso compacted so it didn't appear, leg stretched away from her. Her body was not akin to this kind of activity. She felt the cold, heart-gripping fear of dread crawl up her spine as she anticipated her next action. She unfurled her arm from its cramped position at her midsection. Her arm was a strong copper color, knuckles bony, and nails bitten down to the beds. Had she done this to them throughout the day? She didn't remember chewing off her nails. In class, they had been long enough to make indents in her palms. The wave of dread flooded back over her prior to her placing her full body in front of the mirror. It was hide-tide as chemicals mixed together in her brain, and pulled her torso up, piercing the ground with her gaze. Her left leg found its place next to her right leg. She met her own eyes.

        Her stomach lurched. She wanted to vomit, to run away as fast as she could. Away from her reflection. Where no river or stream could entice her to its liquid gold. Was this normal to feel when their species still could? Did they feel incredible want - need - just to hear the crack of a whip before it lacerated their backs, tore apart their flesh. Chenda couldn't put out the inferno around her. The feeling as her lungs struggled mercilessly to breath as smoke filled them. As she looked at herself she grasped for something she could focus on that was positive. She failed. She didn't hate her body. In fact, she enjoyed the great expanse of her copper skin. Her straight, brown hair curled back up right before it touch her shoulders. She was lithe, arms muscled. Her eyes were a dark brown. Her cheeks were so rich with baby fat when she experimentally smiled (She believed that was the word that she had read in her books. It was often used to express happiness in characters.) she looked youthful. The only discomfort that she had about her body was how it was tailored for her, but not her size. It was shocking how that made all the difference. As if something inside her was trying to cling onto something to keep itself planted.

        She jolted away from the mirror when her father called her for dinner, and stammered out that she was full and that he could keep it in the fridge for tomorrow. She had lost her appetite.

        She shakily crawled into bed, burrowing her face in the pillow in an effort to suffocate her new found feelings. Living in unfeeling for her entire life didn't prepare her for what her ancestors had to deal with. No wonder they forced down their feelings over time.

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       When Chenda awoke for school. Her mother was still stooped over the microscope. The small box was now beyond repair- insides dissected from it.

        She decided to break the silence,"Hello."

        Her mother jumped, startled, but quickly regained her composure," Hello, darling."

        "May I inquire what you are studying?"

        Her mother looked back at her. Her glasses were settled atop her head and her bun was tied up wildly, "I'm inspecting some chips from the lab. Why? Are you interested in becoming a neuroscientist?"

        Chenda replied,"Yes."

        Her mother nodded, "I am sure you'll excel in this field. You're a smart girl."

        Chenda was a step out their apartment door when her mother asked,"Has anything been bothering you lately?"

        She paused before she answered, trying to put on a facade of unfeeling, "No."

        Skyscrapers loomed over her as she walked. Roof gardens sat atop the smaller buildings, kids and adults alike picking the produce. Trees with bright leaves were planted in boxes on the sidewalks. The city was a dull white but with the vibrant greens, looking at the city was slightly tolerable. The other children were heading toward the academy.

        Chenda put herself on the same route to the academy as usual, pondering whether or not her mother knew something that she didn't.

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        Chenda came to the conclusion during History that Astra was partially on her side. His moves were fluid unlike the other kids'. He answered the questions with unease, finally unsure of himself, his legs swinging back and forth; No one else showed the same signs. To think, just yesterday Astra had been on top of the game. Hiding in the shadows at lunch was Chenda's solution to find a way to further observe his actions. He was wary of the other kids, calculating their every move. She need to lure him over to talk. To see weather or not he knew what was happening.

        She had thought that the change between feeling and unfeeling had been too sudden. How could that have happened? If they were born to have feelings wouldn't they have always felt them? He had to know something.

        Inspected the dumpsters behind her. After some rummaging, She found a glass vial, one of the ones they used in chemistry, and threw it to where Astra was sitting. It shattered against his leg and the metal of the bench. He looked to where the vial came from. Their eyes met. Still hidden in the shadows, Chenda gestured for Astra to come over. Astra swiveled his head around to see if any one was staring, quickly heading over to her one he saw the coast was clear.

        "Do you have any idea what's going on?" She asked accusingly.

        Astra shook his head, suspicious, "Do you?"

        Chenda mimicked his action, "No, but it seems as though we should stick together."

        Astra's face flashed a disgruntled look, but reversed back to his wary state. He was going to be troublesome to work with. Chenda insinuated that he would be stuck in his ways; he wouldn't back down from  what he believed. Stubborn, like a bull.

        "You should stay on the down low," she snapped belittlingly, "When you're looking around like that it puts yourself in danger of someone discovering you."

        He scoffed, "Says the girl who threw a glass vial at someone."

        "Oh, piss off."

        "Get over yourself."

        They held each other's seething glares, seeing who could break first. The bell rang,dismissing the students for math.

        Chenda broke,"Meet me later at the entrance."

        "Fine", Astra grunted.

        They headed off to math, with the others, melting in with the crowd of the unfeeling.

Author's Note

Give me advice on the characters, grammar, dialogue, etc.