Chapter 7

*knock knock knock*

Someone knocked on the door to my room. I stretched as I got off of my bed. My human eyes were somewhat blurry. I rubbed them until they cleared. While yawning, I opened the door. I wanted to see who had awoken me from my rest. 

The open door revealed a small human with scarlet hair. The hair covered her eyes and nose. She seemed to be searching for something. After a couple seconds of my staring, she seemed to find what they were searching for. It was a key, which they quickly picked up, before beckoning me to come closer. I complied, with curiosity and expectation filling me. Perhaps she will become my friend?

She leaned in next to my ear and whispered in a stern voice.

"Tnatropmi si siht, lrig wen."

 

She just as quickly backed up and looked left and right. She quickly handed me a sheet of paper, and then ran down the hall. She took out the key and unlocked a door at the end of the hallway, and entered and quickly shut it. 

What just happened? What did she say? What did she give me? 

I took out and unfolded the sheet of paper she gave me. A coin fell from it to the floor, which I picked up and inspected. It was an old dime from 3610. The paper had a 4x4 grid, with strange symbols written in the boxes filling it up. 

I sighed, and put it and the dime on a desk. I walked to my bed, and found my card, which I hugged. I then opened a curtain to see the sky. It seemed to be about 7:00 am. I looked at my card and held it up to the rising sun.

"When will Seuyz get here?" I muttered under my breath.

…

*knock knock knock*

"Bloody, are you awake?" 

A voice woke me up from my nap. I waited for Seuyz for about an hour before nodding off. I stretched while responding.

"Yes, I am now!"

I opened the door, and saw Seuyz.

"Now then, Bloody, do you have your card and key?"

I nodded and then held them up.

"Good, then follow me." 

We went to a staircase, and began to walk down.

"Why didn’t we take the elevator?"

"It is because it is faster to get to our destination this way, Bloody."

…

We went up seven flights of stairs before we entered a spacious lobby. The lobby was very ornate. The walls were different colors. One wall was green, one was blue, one was red, and one was a dark black. 

The green and blue walls were opposite of each other. The green door had a sliding window, which showed a small grey room that had people working in it. The blue wall had a door.There was some sort of shiny metal moving and twisting on the walls, forming delicate fractal like patterns. 

There was a golden fountain in the center of the room. But, instead of water filling it, it was filled with a tan-silver liquid. The fountain was surrounded by chairs one would expect to see in a doctor's office.

"Follow me, we are going to find you some classes." Seuyz turned towards me and smiled. "Do you know which you want to join?"

"That is easy!The classes with the most friends!"

"What is 27 +54?"

"…81!"

"13 x 7?"

"………91!"

"6 to the power of 3?"

"….What?"

"If X-5 =6, what is X?"

"…11!"

"A right triangle has a leg length of 2 and another of 3. What is the hypotenuse?"

"…is this magic?

"So I think you need a math class. You should probably start with a geometry or algebra 1 class."

"Why, will I be able to find friends there?"

"Depends, what do you think a friend should be?"

"…. A friend is someone who talks and is friendly to me?"

"If your friend is hurt, what would you do?"

"Help them of course!"

"If your friend hurts someone else, what would you do?"

"Stop them!"

"Would they still be your friends after you stopped them?"

"If they still want to be…"

"If your friend hurts you, what do you do?"

"Tell them to stop."

"What would you do if they didn't?"

"Stop them myself."

"Will you hurt them in return, Bloody?

"No!"

"Would they still be your friends after that?"

"Maybe, it depends…"

"But they continued to hurt you when you told them to stop."

"But they are my friends. I can’t abandon them!"

"Even if they hurt you again?" 

"No, because that means they abandoned me…"

"If you make, let us say, 100 friends, what would you do if one of them told you that they wanted to spend more time with you?"

"Spend more time with them!"

"What if your other friends are hurt because you spend too much time with this one friend?"

"….spend time with them?"

"What if the other friend is hurt because they think you have abandoned them?"

"Tell them I didn’t abandon them! I don’t abandon friends!"

"Do you think 5 close friends is better than 50 not close friends?"

"What is the difference?"

"Close friends trust each other, they help each other when things get tough, they have fun together, cry together, and are like family. Not close friends might trust each other and help each other, as long as it doesn’t hurt them to do so. They have fun together, but dislike showing emotions to each other."

"Then I want 50 close friends!"

"That will almost be impossible, Bloody."

"Why?"

"Because a close friend doesn’t appear from nowhere. If you and a not close friend talk and become close, then they might become a close friend."

"So, why is that impossible?"

"Time and responsibility. It takes time to get close to someone. Then you must be responsible and there for them."

"But why is it impossible?"

"If 1 friend doesn’t like another of your friends, but likes you, what should you do?"

"…"

"If six of your friends get into an argument and decide to stop being friends with each other, what would you do?"

"…*sniffle*…"

I don’t know when it began, but I was crying. Seuyz had her back to me. She doesn’t see me. I don’t want to hurt her, so I will continue to soldier through it. Even if it hurts, Seuyz…. would she stop? Her questions are making my chest hurt…

"If—"

"Seuyz stop that! You are hurting me!"

Seuyz turned around and then looked at me. Her face widened in alarm before she hugged me.

"Don’t worry Bloody, I will stop."

I don’t need to soldier through anymore. I began to sob. It is finally over. 

…

At first it was awkward, and Seuyz was hesitant to speak, but after a couple of minutes of talking, it wasn’t anymore. Seuyz enrolled me in class. Then we went to get books. She returned me to my room, where I put down the books. When Seuyz left, I grabbed that piece of paper and the dime. I then went to the room of the person who gave them to me. It was room ten.

*knock knock knock*

*click*

The door opened, but there was no one there.

"…Come in"

A muffled voice said. I went in, and looked around. No one was there.

*Slam* 

I turned around and saw the girl from this morning there. She walked really close to me and waved her hand in front of my face.

"…Did it work?" 

She mumbled while looking at the floor. She was strange, but maybe she wants to be friends?

"Will you be my friend?"

"Will you be my friend?"

…