Lost

Weeks have gone by since that day. I try to see Mai as often as I can. It's usually over the weekends when Samantha and I have nothing to do. Every once in awhile, we'll run into Ashley at Bruce's house.

Sam and I went on our second date. We made a pillow fort in the living room and had a movie marathon. Willow brought us snacks. Samantha won't admit out loud, but she did quietly say thanks to Willow as the woman left.

Besides that, there's been nothing eventful going on. School has been a serious drag and it's only been a few weeks! I know school is long, but this is starting to kill me!

"Math sucks ass!" I grumble, watching Samantha take her test from her shoulder.

"Shh!!" Samantha hisses as she taps her pencil on the paper.

I frown and lean back, letting my arms prop me up. "Okay, Okay."

Samantha has been in a state of panic for the last couple of days over this dumb math test and has been taking her anger out on me. It's nothing I can't handle though. There no need to worry.

The minutes tick by ever so slowly. The more they tick the more frustrated Samantha gets.

I look at the problem casually, the same problem Samantha has been stuck on for the last couple of minutes. "You forgot to carry the two."

Instead of being praised for helping find the problem, Samantha grabs me in a fist and shoves me in a small pocket in her backpack.

"You're staying there until lunch," Samantha growls lowly.

She zips up the pocket to the point where there's a crack of light pouring through. It shines right down on my face.

I slouch in the pocket like a hammock and sigh. "I was only trying to help."

This is my punishment for helping. Serves me right, I guess. Samantha has been stressing over this test for the past week and I'm sure I make things worse by distracting her. Maybe if I just apologize, she'll take me out of the stuffy bag. Is that a good idea though?

Yes!

I struggle to a stance. It's like standing on a waterbed or surfing a wave. I reach for the top of the zipper and grab hold to pull myself up then squeeze through the small hole.

Samantha is furiously tapping her foot while she stares down her test again. It looks like an interrogation. She's silently demanding all the answers from the questions.

It looks like I'm in the clear and crawl out of the pocket. But things don't go as planned.

The bell rings!

Every student audibly groans and picks up their test, books, and packs.

Out of fear, I scramble back to the pocket, but when Samantha blindly reaches for her pack, I'm jostled about and miss the opening completely. Sliding down the slope of Samantha's pack, I release a scream of panic! The nanotech Willow gave me comes to life and wraps around my body before I can hit the floor.

I hit the ground hard, but the tech seems to have taken most of the fall damage. It doesn't stop me from groaning in pain.

"Damn!"

There's no time to act when the chairs move students start to walkabout. In a panicked state, I rush to get under cover instead of screaming out for help.

I am in a panic, okay! So don't be all like "Caesar, you idiot. Why didn't you call out for help or climb back up the backpack, hm?" People do stupid things when they are in a panic. Have you ever watched horror movies before? Plus this is a high school people, no one leaves their class rooms quietly. Ever!

I take shelter under a desk and search the area in hopes of finding Samantha before it's too late. If I'm lucky, maybe Ashley will spot me. With the shitty luck, I've been having lately that may not be possible.

The classroom empties out into the noisy hallways. I know I can't stay here when the next set of students start to fill up the room. For now, I'll have to be careful and stay hidden under the desks while I make my escape.

As kids start to fill the seats, I play the game of dancing with death. Dodging shoes and unwanted eyes while crossing the room to the front door. Even looking up is bad.

That one dumb anime trope where guys look up girls skirts, yeah that's why.

A shimmer of hope shines down on me when I see no one else coming into the class. This is my only chance and I make a break for the door.

Nothing gets in my way, surprisingly.

The bell to start the next period rings. The halls look like an old western town. I half expect a tumbleweed to blow through. If only.

Every one of my senses is put on high alert as I hug the wall, walking down the abandoned hallway.

"I need to find the science hallway," I tell myself. "Sam is in Anatomy right now and I have forty-five minutes to find it before the hallway is flooded again."

The only problem is that I have no idea where the hell the science hallway is. There's no indication of the science hallway even existing!

I come to a crossroad and look right. More lockers and classrooms. Then to the left. More lockers and classrooms.

I want to scream and rip all of my hair out!!! Everything looks the same!

My heart clenches and a swell of panic rises in my stomach.

I take a step back and sit down against the wall.

I need to keep a level head or else I'll give myself a panic attack again.

A few deep breaths keep me calm and relaxed. I wipe the fresh tears that prick my eyes out and think for a moment.

"Okay, okay okay okay okay..., okay. You can figure this out, Caesar. It's not a life or death situation." That's what I tell myself to keep my nerves from getting shot.

Where does Sam usually go? She goes back and forth between hallways, but where does she go first?

Screw it, I'm going right!

I peek around the corner to see if anyone is coming. The hall is empty like it should be.

I step around the corner to begin my journey to find Samantha or some help. Some friendly help.

My eyes always wander to the digital clock on the wall while walking. The minutes are ticking by faster than expected or maybe I'm just slow. I think it's the first option and not the latter. Or maybe I'm just thinking that to make myself feel better about my slow pace. It's a big hallway. It feels like I'm crossing a desert.

With every door I pass, I get skittish. The fear of that huge door swinging open and a stranger stepping out to find me wandering the halls just to take me home and do whatever the hell they want is at an all-time high. It's like kidnap, but no one is stopping them from taking a tiny.

The only thing keeping me from curling up into a ball and crying my eyes out is Sam. She'd be heartbroken if she found out she lost me. I can't have her worrying about me, she already does that enough.

There are only fifteen minutes left of class which means I have to hurry and find Samantha before all hell breaks loose in the halls.

I rush past the next door not knowing my worst fear is about to come true.

The door swings open with a loud creak. The sound of wood crackling makes a shiver of fear run up my spine.

I turn to face whoever is coming out the door. There's a small chance it's Sam or Ashley, or maybe even Bruce. It's not.

A girl with long blonde hair and green eyes comes walking out. Olive.

She shuts the door behind her. Her backpack is hanging onto one shoulder. It looks like she's leaving.

Olive blows a pink bubble between her lips, looking down at her phone and scrolling through whatever social media she's on. The bubble pops and she sucks the gum back into her mouth. chewing it so she can blow another bubble.

As long as she distracted, I don't care.

I run in the same direction I've been heading in. Right now, I'm living on a prayer that she won't find me.

Those chances are slim since she's going in the same direction I'm going in. There are no lockers Low enough for me to climb into, no janitor's closets for me to hide in, nothing for me to sneak into. I'm stranded!

If I can just make it to the next hallway then I might have a chance.

That's smashed to bits when I hear the heavy footsteps of the giantess grow louder. Maybe she's just walking or maybe she's not. I don't want to-

"Gah!" I yanked off the floor by the hood of my jacket. She's found me. Shit. Shit!

Without a second thought, I slide my arms out of the jacket and fall back on the ground, the nanotech absorbing the fall again.

"Smart." Olive comments.

I run away as fast as I can, but it doesn't matter. I'm swept off the floor and into a fist.

"But not smart enough." I can hear the proud smirk of Olive's face.

I'm shoved into a pocket in her skirt, her hand still wrapped around me. She's smart enough to keep me secure and I mentally curse the girl for that.

"Don't worry, little fella, you're in good hands," Olive says as she continues to make her exit.