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Blink	By : yeagerbomb Category: Gravitation > General Views: 2675 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Gravitation, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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I walked in the apartment to find it empty that afternoon. �Tohma-san?� I called. But he didn�t answer. I found a note saying he was meeting with someone that afternoon, but he would be home for dinner. I smiled and searched the fridge for a snack. He came home a few hours later, as I was trying to do my homework, complete with pizza. I looked up and smiled, seeing the box. I threw down my copy of Old Yeller, and ran to the kitchen. I pulled down plates and grabbed cups and he laughed as he got out the cola.

�Somebody�s hungry,� he said. I just nodded. Together we said, �Onegaishimashu!� and then we ate.

�So how was your first day?� Tohma asked.

�It was okay,� I said. �My Math teacher�s a jerk, but I can�t fix that.� I didn�t go into the adding problem I�d had, knowing it was just because I�d been nervous. �The rest were pretty cool though.�

�That�s good. Did you get any homework?�

�Um, we were given books for Reading, but we only have to read the first chapter. In English we�ve got to write about what we did for the summer.�

�Okay. If you need any help, I�m always here,� he said. We ate silently for a few minutes, and then I asked what he�d done without me. �Not much. I was visiting a friend I haven�t seen in about a year, but that was about it.� When we finished eating, I went back to the book.

I was still on the first page, the first paragraph really, and I still couldn�t understand it. I struggled through reading the page four times before giving up. I couldn�t figure out what the words were. I set the book aside and started my English paper. I�d written the heading, �My Summer Vacation�, on the paper during class, when it was up on the board. But if she hadn�t read it off, I wouldn�t have had a clue what I was supposed to do. I stared at the paper blankly, and sighed. I knew what to write, I just didn�t know how to make it be English. I gathered them up and walked to the living room.

�Tohma-san,� I said. He turned away from the news to look at me.

�What is it, Eiri?�

�I need help,� I whispered, ashamed that I couldn�t do this for myself. He turned off the TV and told me to sit.

�What are we doing?� he asked. I produced the book. �Old Yeller, huh? What�s the problem?�

�I can�t read it,� I said plainly.

�Of course. Well, let�s see if we can.� We sat there and I read it aloud. It was easier to understand that way, but some of the bigger words I didn�t know. And I pronounced some incorrectly. He had to help me then. When we�d finished the first chapter it was nearly nine o�clock. �Anything else?� he asked. I nodded.

�My essay.�

�Okay. You read the book by sounding out the letters, so write the words the same way.� I thought I understood, and sat at the table. I said the words as I wrote them, and was done by eleven. Tohma read it, and I could tell there were major mistakes by the look on his face. �Well, it�s written nicely, you just have a lot of spelling errors.� He helped me correct them, having me look up the words in a dictionary as I had the words I didn�t know when we were reading. All in all, we were in bed by midnight.

I slept uneasily and again almost missed the train. Willow, Delilah and Dee were in the car I rushed into moments before the doors closed, and I stood with them, talking. We went into the school together, and then we each raced off for our different classes. Mr. Mignion took roll, then called on me to start us off with the pledge. I had completely forgotten about it, and I couldn�t remember a single word. I sat staring at him for a moment, before standing and putting my hand over my heart as we had the day before. My mind was reeling, searching for the words. Just the words Walker had said before everyone joined. I glanced at Dee, and she lipped at me the line. A small smile of recognition crossed my face, and I said it, whistling the �c� in �allegiance�, then just lipped the rest of the way through. We sat, and Mr. Mignion placed a piece of paper on my desk.

�I told you not to whistle,� he said, going back to the front of the room. I read the time on it and tucked it away as he started the class. When he called my name to answer a question, I thought for a long moment, trying to remember the English number, but it wouldn�t come to me. I kicked myself after giving the wrong answer, before I started my pushups. I knew the numbers, but every time I walked into his room, they flew out of my head.

At the end of the period, I walked out, Dee right beside me. �I can�t believe he did that! He�s such an ass. No, he�s Devil�s Spawn, you know that?� I nodded in agreement. �DS. That�s who he is from now on. I�ll see you later, Eiri,� she said, going to her own class.

Barbie handed out our textbooks and had us read out loud around the room. When it came to me, I did as Tohma and I had the night before, carefully sounding out the words until I understood them. The harder ones she said for me, and I only read one paragraph, while the others were reading two. I was embarrassed, but proud of myself for having gotten through it and she only had to tell me three words. On my way out, she stopped me.

�Eiri, do you have difficulty reading in your other classes?� she asked me. I looked at the ground and nodded. I glanced up as she smiled. �Alright. Go ahead, before you�re late.� I bowed reflexively, and took off for History. Mrs. Ernst was different. We didn�t read from our books, but took the notes she had already written out on the overhead. I copied it all down, listening carefully because the words were telling me nothing. I would have to read them later. Tohma had done some reading with me over the summer, but only enough to teach me the letters and their basic sounds.

On my way out of the classroom, Delilah handed me a note. I looked at her, and she said, �Don�t get caught reading it during class.� I nodded. I walked into Mr. Nessler�s classroom and sat down. I opened the piece of paper and looked at what she�d written. The only thing I recognized was my name at the top and several times it said �DS�, which must have been referring to Mr. Mignion. Dee must have told them. I would have tried to read it, but it was all in short hand, so I just folded it and put it in place of my book mark in Old Yeller.

�The bell has rung,� Mr. Nessler said. �Everyone get your books out. Who would like to recap the chapter for us?� No one offered. �Alright then, buckaroos. Eiri, honey, why don�t you?� I went red in the face for two reasons. One, he�d called me honey. The only person I could ever remember calling me that right then was Mika. Two, he�d called on me to recap the chapter. I cleared my throat and did it as best I could, and he thanked me. �Okay, let�s start the second chapter. Who�d like to start?� A few girls rose their hands tenderly. �Alright sweetie. Alexa, you go.� She started, and I followed carefully, understanding it better when it was read to me than when I read it myself. Suddenly someone picked me to read and, even though I had been following along, I lost the place. It took me several minutes to find it again, because I didn�t know what the word I last remembered looked like. The girl beside me, Meghan, had to reach over and point to it. �Thank you,� I muttered. I started reading in my choppy way, and he let me call on someone after two paragraphs. I felt utterly humiliated for the second time that day.

Mr. Nessler watched me walk out, but said nothing to me. I walked into English and sat down by Dee. Mrs. Juby didn�t care where we sat at all. I handed Dee the note Delilah had given me. �I don�t understand it,� I said. She told me the basic gist of it; Delilah was appalled at what DS had done. She said not to go to the detention, but I didn�t want another for not going.

Mrs. Juby told us to hush, class was starting. She made us read our essays to the class, and I had to go first. Yay. I looked at the paper in front of me and just watched it as I recited what I�d written. It was easier than trying to read it; I�d already embarrassed myself enough times that way for one day.

�This summer, I had the most fun I can remember. Tohma, my sister�s fiancé, brought me to New York and took me out everyday. I saw the subway, central park, every bookstore in the city, and the Bronx Zoo. I learned English, and found a place I feel I fit. I never want to leave.� It went on, and I handed it in when I was done as everyone clapped. I felt proud again, and smiled as I sat down. Afterwards, it was time for lunch. The rest of the day went smoothly, and I reported to my detention as told, accompanied by Delilah who�d mouthed off again.

�I�m gonna make him give me a detention every day,� she said as if it were a good thing. �If you�d have skipped, I�d have gone with you.� I just shook my head. We sat through the period, doing worksheets. These I could do easy enough. Math was the only class I�d done any good in back home, so I was done with half the detention to go. I sat, silently watching DS. He looked up and spat at me to get back to work.

�I�m done,� I said.

�What?� he exclaimed. �You can�t be. I�ve watched you struggle with the simplest questions. Let me see that!� He grabbed them from me and quickly glanced it over. There were no mistakes at all. His face turned bright purple. He handed me four more papers. �Be done in thirty minutes.� I stared at him, then started them. When he dismissed us, I handed him the papers, all completed, with no more mistakes than the others, and she gave him her two.

We rode the train together, and talked some. I didn�t really know her as well as Dee. Delilah and I only had one class together, and Dee and I had four. I found out Delilah and I liked a band in common, and she knew some Japanese. Swears mostly, but that was alright. I taught her �baka�, which means �idiot�, and she taught me some English swears I, somehow, hadn�t yet picked up. I left her at her house and headed home, wondering if Tohma would be there or not. He was.

�Eiri!� he exclaimed as I came in. �Where have you been? You should have been back an hour ago.� He looked like he couldn�t decide whether to hit me or hug me, but he just pulled me to him for a moment.

�I�m sorry, Tohma-san. I got a detention from-�

�A detention? Eiri, on the second day,� he said, sounding disappointed.

�I�m sorry,� I repeated. �It was from Mr. Mignion, my Math teacher.�

�What was it for, Eiri?� I looked up at him.

�I was� I whistled in class,� I said, feeling like I shouldn�t have, when I couldn�t prevent it. He looked at me quizzically.

�Whistling?� I nodded. Tohma sighed. �Alright. Go do your homework, okay?�

�Okay.� I grabbed a dictionary and got through the fourth chapter Old Yeller, even though we only had to read the third, and finished the chapter we�d been reading in Science before dinner was ready. I think as punishment for the detention he made me eat vegetables, but I did it without complaint, guilt wafting over me under Tohma�s eyes. Afterwards, I went back and read through my History notes. I fell asleep working on Underneath, and woke up under my covers the next morning. Tohma must have tucked me in.~
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