"Look alive, class! Today, I'll be announcing the scores of yesterday's exam. Those of which who got lower than fifty will be required to make a whole research paper for two weeks as additional credit for the failed remark. Starting off with the highest!" Let's not hope I'm not a part of that group where I'm supposed to make a research paper for two weeks and still fail. "Forest Young."
Forest, Forest?
I turned my head and saw her sleeping by her arm chair – again. I stared at her who didn't walk up to get her test paper. Normally, the students would clap their hands and praise her but the class was quiet as if something miraculous happened which for some reason is really miraculous considering that Forest never paid attention in class. Everyone was just as amazed as I am. How in the world—
The moment Mr. Oliver landed our exam sheets on the table, I couldn't help but think of Forest. I don't know why she refused to take my notes home even if she was fully aware that we were taking an exam today. I can't comprehend any reason why she'd be so calm and chill about this without having anything to read. "Go!" Okay. I'll finish this fast and I'll just have to share her my answers. Okay. That's the plan.
After a few minutes, I finished answering the seventy item test. I looked at my back after seeing my teacher looking down on a book and saw her dozing off. Dozing off – in the middle of an exam.
I tried to kick her chair but she wouldn't budge. If I kicked harder, then it would be more noticeable and I can't risk having to fail this exam and retake it next semester. "Forest," I tried to whisper but she wasn't waking up - still.
If only I could reach her without looking suspicious. Oh God. I sighed in defeat. I'll just have to help her with her make-up project. Why is she acting like this, really? Isn't she worried about failing? How fascinating.
"Last three minutes!"
I looked around and felt my fingers trembling in anxiety. I still couldn't wrap my head around the fact that she's literally sleeping during an exam. She's very odd. I fidget my fingers still trying to come up with ways I can at least share a few answers for her to score. That way Mr. Oliver would think she—
"Pens up! Pass your papers forward."
I blinked and passed my paper forward. I turned to my back and saw her finally rose from her seat. She handed her answer sheet to me so I passed our paper forward as well. I stared at her. "Did you even look at the test?" I asked and she just turned to me with her usual lazy face. "Why were you even sleeping? You should have just guessed the answers if you didn't know the answers."
She rolled her eyes and walked away wrapping her bag around her chest.
****
"Forest Young."
Forest?
"Forest Young topped your exam."
Topped...
"She did answer." I mumbled to myself and turned back to her with a more amused smile. She answered but she was even faster than I did. She never failed to surprise me. Who would have thought that she'd ace the test when she was basically sleeping the whole test and during classes.
"Ms. Young actually, well," Mr. Oliver cleared his throat. "Got every question correct so," Got everything correct? While sleeping during lectures and even on the day of the exam? "Let's all give her a round of applause." I was still in shock and I think the same goes with everyone but they did clap unsurely and she was still sleeping so I don't know why we're still doing this for some reason. "Even if she's sleeping. Let's just appreciate her amazing gift." Amazing gift? "If you all may have noticed, I let Ms. Young sleep in my class without scolding her or sending her to detention, let her in even if she's forty five minutes late but Ms. Young was actually a student I've been sending to quiz bees before for compliance to make up for her absences in school. You're probably wondering why I send her to quiz bees and how she did well and believe me, I would have suspected her cheating but the thing is, Ms. Young is a very special student." Special? "She has the rare gift of photographic memory which makes it easy for her to remember everything she sees." Photographic memory. "Okay! Next up, 61. Kira Alm—"
Photographic memory. I guess it makes sense. She was naturally, effortlessly smart. That makes perfect sense. It never occurred to me that she would possess a skill like that which is really as per said by my teacher. I never would have thought that she'd be a part of that 1% group who possesses that skill. That's why she was just firmly looking at my notes before because she was trying to picture it in her head and they must have just remained there, in her brain, I guess.
"So, photographic memory." She turned to me with her forehead wrinkled in frustration of seeing me again. Typical reaction of whenever she realizes I'm sitting next to her or whenever I'm just near her parameter. "You never told me you have that before. That's really cool! You can be the valedictorian without even trying so hard."
"I'm not trying to." She answered briefly.
"But photographic memory! You could have told everyone that and everyone would be lining up to be your friend."
She glared at me. Her glares are always terrifying. It made me wonder if I just babble too much at this point. But her eyes look beautiful so I guess it's less terrifying if I focus on them without the part that she's mad.
"I don't tell you anything. I don't even fucking talk to you so why do you think I'd let you know about that?" She replied coldly but I keep the smile on my face and took a moment to appreciating her more. "Can you fucking stop smiling like a creep? If you think you look so good on it, check out the mirror and see how much of a monkey you look like."
I blinked and my smile slowly curved the other way around. "I thought people always look best with smiles on their faces."
"Well your good heavens exempted you to be a part of that assemble."
I pouted and followed her out of the room. "So how does it feel? To have photographic memory? Is it like, you just set what you want to remember and you just remember it?" I asked trying to keep the conversation going. When she doesn't reply, I got scared so I opened my mouth to say more. "I imagined it to feel like when people teleport." I peeked over at her direction and she still didn't seem willing to talk to me. "You know, when they teleport to a different location, they just—"
"You just see the images in your head again,"
"But how though? Is it like Lucid dreaming?" I asked more but she wasn't answering me now. I knew if I kept talking, she'd probably scream at me any moment now but if I stopped talking and she doesn't scream at me, then I missed my chance to talk to her. "Or like being hypnotized? You know since, hypnotists are supposed to bring you back in a certain point of your life and make you feel like you're in that situation over again." I turned my head towards her again and if I didn't saw her eyes, I'd think she'd already be asleep but her eyes were wide open and they just looked afar, lips parted and eyes droopy. "Hey," I poked her shoulder but she doesn't even turn her attention to me. "Four, Four, Four." I kept poking her until she stopped, bumping my shoulders with her. I see her balling her fist. She's mad. I'm dead. She's mad.
"I don't fucking know okay?!" She's really mad and she screamed at me which is normally a bad thing. "Stop asking me questions even I can't answer!" She exclaimed and I felt my heart jump in fright. "For fuck's sake, just let me have a peaceful day."
I froze a little shocked by the rise of her voice but I managed to get back on the ground and kept it going no matter how pissed I'm about to get her. I just had to talk to her any way possible until she basically gets tired of me and that's fine. "I was nudging you yesterday. I thought you didn't answer your paper." I didn't know why I thought it was a good idea to bring up the exam but at this point, I was just trying to come up with different things just so I don't keep my mouth shut. "I was supposed to let you copy mine—"
She stopped walking again and turned to me scratching her head. "Can't you just shut your fucking mouth for fucking two minutes?"
I pressed my lips together, arching my brows higher while showing up a thumb. "Better?" I mumbled but I guess she didn't understand what I really said and she just understood what I was trying to say.
"You fucking dumbass." She squints her eyes and leaves.
****
"She has photographic memory!"
"Photographic – what?" Haechan repeated as we wait for our turn to receive food from the cafeteria counter.
"Photographic memory!" I repeated for him but he just doesn't seem interested with anything that involves Forest. It's like his mind automatically knows when to shut down every time I say she or her. "She can remember things just by looking at it."
For a moment, I was convinced that he was a little moved by this skill but he doesn't show any hint of admiration of that rarity. He doesn't look amazed like I was expecting which is exactly what I expected from him is that makes sense. "So? Why are you telling me? Seriously? I'm not interested with the likes of your," he paused trying to think of words he wanted to use to further push me back away from trying to pursue Forest. "Whatever disgusting affection towards that demon." He did not, not one time, look at me as he said those words.
I tried to watch out for some sort of impressed expression from his face but none of it showed. If we were in line right now, in a normal situation, talking about hilarious stuff about school, I'd think he was just impatient with the unusual long line for getting our food and maybe he was a little impatient and talking about Forest just made it worse for him.
After about ten minutes of waiting in line, we finally had our food trays filled with food that seemingly looked familiar from the other day's menu. Well, except that they gave us chocolate pudding today which always is a yes for both Haechan and I.
"Mr. Oliver even sends her quiz bees because she's smart enough to go with her ability!"
Haechan dropped his food tray extra hard as we reached an empty table, and I felt my body flinch a little in fright. He sat down, glaring at me unable to fix his bag properly because of how furious I got him.
I gulped as I sat across him with no problems of setting my bag aside.
"Can you please—" It almost made me laugh at how funny his voice sounded before he paused. His voice sounded like they were squeezed inside his esophagus so when he realized this, he clears his throat and I see that he was a little embarrassed when I let out a thin smile – my failed attempt to hide how funny it was apparently. "not talk about her? Can you do that for me? Please?"
I examined his face. He looked determined – like he was absolutely full of me talking about her for the past few weeks. But if I don't talk to him about her, I'll end up bottling up my feelings for her and that's not healthy for anyone. It's just going to explode anytime soon and I was sure that the least he wanted right now is for me to talk about her non-stop. "But she was photographic memory." I squinted my eyes preparing my ears to receive a loud complain.
"Why do you keep saying that?!" Haechan exclaimed. The few people who occupied the tables near us turned their heads toward us and I wasn't even embarrassed. I was just finding it amusing to see Haechan act this way. "I get it okay? She has photographic memory." The way he said photographic memory had a pinch of mockery but I don't mind. This was Haechan. My friend who absolutely hated me the moment I started taking interest in the one woman that caught my attention. "Who cares? Everyone has it! Sort of." He seemed unsure which was good for me. I want Haechan to see the beauty of Forest – not the physical aspect (but that works too if he sees it) but her inner self.
"She sleeps in class." I gulped after taking a mouthful of the chocolate pudding. It still tasted heaven. I opened my mouth again to speak despite the leftover pudding hanging by the roof of my mouth. "She finished the test in five minutes. You wouldn't even notice that she bulged her paper." I feel like I'm starting to catch Haechan's attention – I truly feel it! "Everyone has it? You can't even finish a simple test for an hour, Haechan."
He looked away embarrassed and faked a cough before turning back to me. He knew I was right and he got nothing to say against it so I smiled victorious. "You see, if it were Connie Scott, it would have been better but F-Fo—" He started making weird gestures of disgust.
"Forest." I raised a brow as I finished of the name he refuses to say.
"I can't even say her name because I'm too worried that I might get cursed if I did."
I let out a small chuckle. "You're being over dramatic – as usual. She's really cool, Haechan. I've never been this amazed by a girl before and I never knew someone would make me feel like this. I'm sure you'll see how awesome she is if you don't let rumors of her get in your head."
Haechan stopped eating and crouched closer to me as if he's about to whisper his deepest secrets so lean close to him as well in anticipation. "Lee Chaeyeon, a great dancer." I immediately creased my brows but I can't help but smile at how ridiculous he was. "Kim Taeyeon, amazing singer. Kim Chungha, can do well with both. Kim Jennie, awesome rapper!" If Haechan was good with one thing, it was this – girls. "Who needs a girl who can picture a book and magically remember everything in it?!"
He was clearly missing the point. I laughed as we both pulled away from our awkward half-bent bodies. "You sure are knowledgeable of girls you like, Haechan."
"That's what they call 'good taste', my friend." He flashed a smug smile then he laughed vigorously almost catching everyone's attention inside the cafeteria. "Oh right! You don't know that because clearly you have the bad one."
I laughed harder. Haechan was never this infuriated by someone.
"If she wasn't linked to the demon or something, I would spare you my blessing of taking her out but she literally lives in hell, Mark Lee. I don't know why you can't see that." He stated matter-of-factly.
"I don't know why you can see that. You're the weird one." I said before feeding myself another spoon of the chocolate pudding. It surprisingly goes well with how Haechan was acting. They're both adorable to experience.
"I don't know why you can't see it!" he exclaimed madder than when we first made our points. He basically just threw the same question at me which was weird because you can't do that when you're arguing otherwise you're done – you lose.
"You're impossible." I let out a wheeze looking at him in disbelief. It's one for him to not be moved by her striking visuals and another for him to not acknowledge that her skills were beyond better than of those he mentioned about the girls who can dance well or sing well. "What would you do then if you and she were the last human beings on Earth?" I asked out of nowhere. I was genuinely curious of what he'd do in a situation like that.
He smirked. Of course, he knows it's never gonna happen but he answers still. "I'd rather die and commit suicide if that were the case."
I laughed. "Are you really not impressed by her photographic memory? Is it just me who's impressed? I mean, that's like a super power any student would want in school. Her abilities makes it easier for her to be on school." I shrugged in confusion. Haechan can't seem to see the benefits of having such skill and how awesome it was.
"Okay!" Haechan lifted up both his hands in the air for a brief second before he dropped them back down. "Maybe it's a little cool that she has photographic memory," He admitted and I saw a glimpse of hope that he might actually like her if he sees through her. "But it doesn't change the fact that everyone still calls her the daughter of Lucifer. If she cleans up that name of hers, I might change my mind but I'm only saying this out loud because I know it won't really happen so,"
"It's not impossible."
"It is."
"I'll clean her name for her and prove you wrong."
He squinted his eyes at me questioning if I was seriously doing this but I wasn't going to tell him I was kidding anytime soon. So when I haven't said anything else, he said, "You do know you're putting our friendship on the line here, right?"
"Oh, we're friends?" I teased.
He glared at me. "I hate you."
"I'm kidding!" I extended my arms to reach his shoulder to poke. "Don't worry. I promise I will always have time for you even if I'll be busy persuading both you and Forest." I teased smiling and he doesn't take it. He was still pretty pissed.
"I won't like her even in your dreams."
"I can do it, you know."
"You're nuts if you think so."
"I am." I agreed and continued eating my past. "So am I for her." I added and he made a disgusted face. "And does my smile really look like a monkey?" I turned back to Haechan with a forced smile. He surprisingly snorted out loud and covered his mouth making me feel a little upset that he's showing this reaction of approval.
"Did she tell you that?" He laughed.
I frowned and looked away in shame.
"We might agree on something similar for once."
"That's mean." I frowned and we both burst into laughs like there was no war about Forest that happened today.