Chapter One

It's not unusual for a child to play outside. To smell the freshly cut grass and feel it, as it tingles on the bare feet. It's not unusual to stare in the sky for a time that seemed like years back then and try to figure out the shapes of the clouds. And just like every other kid in the world Jemma used to do these things, too.

The difference was only in the way Jemma would look at these things.

Where her friends ran around she would pick up single grass straws and analyse them as deeply as she could. She'd take down notes of how fast the grass grows, where it grew the greenest, what to do so the straws felt softer. She would stare at the clouds, too, but she would look beyond. Jemma would look at the stars and she would try to figure out the different constellations, the rhythm of the moon, the movement of the sun.

Jemma wasn't quite like other children her age. She loved to go to school and learn how to count and write and read and history and geography and every single subject, really, but it wasn't just that she loved to do these things; she was also really good at all of these things.

Jemma had never seen studying as "studying". More of she saw it as a discovery, a journey that had to be mastered and thinking like that, of course, helped her motivation. She loved to learn new things and she loved to follow rules. It made her feel nice. And even though she already knew what the teacher was tutoring in most cases, she still loved to listen and hear their way of explanation.

But there are moments when even Jemma couldn't listen to the teacher explaining the same thing for the tenth time anymore, instead she would begin to analyse her fellow classmates with a narration that sounded like the voice-overs on documentaries.

"Here we see a group of young homo sapiens gathered. It is very likely to assume that this is a group of so called 'students' although their behaviour leaves my assumption unconfirmed. They might be in disguise so that the alfa-student, called 'teacher' will not attack the harmless youth."

But now, before Jemma had to go to work she was sitting in the local library. Her face was hidden behind a thick book on Einstein's theory of relativity when an unfamiliar voice interrupted her exciting read,

"Don't tell me that is what you do for fun."

Jemma looked up to find one of her fellow classmates looking at her with a certain disinterest. She knew that girl. Her name was Skye. Skye never talked in class, though, or not enough that Jemma could remember what her voice sounds like. Skye was that kid in class who'd sit in the back of the room and would either be sleeping, eating, on her phone or she wouldn't even be there in the first place. She hardly ever paid any attention and as far as Jemma knew it showed with her grades.

"Can I somehow help you?"

Jemma asked, raising one eyebrow in a fairly snarky way.

"Jeez, and there I thought you Brits would be polite."

Jemma only looked at her in response, still waiting for a question, the eyebrow still raised.

"Dude, I only wanted to start a conversation but shit, you can probably not even hear me from that high on your horse."

Skye shock her head in disbelief and went off. Jemma could only make out a "bitch" on her way out.

In the following weeks, whenever Skye and Jemma crossed paths they'd only stare with hatred in their eyes or one of them would roll their eyes annoyed simply by the sight of the other.

It was the last class of the day and more of that it was the last class on a Friday. Skye was keeping herself entertained by throwing paper balls at Jemma's back. For this sport she even sat further in the front, just to annoy Jemma on a more effective level. Also, whenever Jemma knew the correct answer to a question by Professor Hill, which is basically always the case, Skye sighed loudly or would hide "geek" under a cough.

In the last minutes of social class Professor Hill gave the class an assignment. She handed out a baby doll to every second student then she held a hat with names, which she had written while class, to the students without baby.

"I think it is pretty clear what your projects for the next two weeks will be. For those of you who haven't gotten the memo, yet:

Every student without a baby will pick a name from this hat. The two students together will be the baby's parents. You will have to give the baby a name, feed it and take care of it for the next two weeks. "

Skye picked up a piece of paper and unfolded it carefully.

"Oh, fuck no" she sighed.

"Can I pick another name?"

Skye asked desperately, almost begging.

"Nope"

Professor Hill answered coldly while continuing her walk through the classroom and without even turning around Jemma already knew. She threw her head in the back of her neck, rolled her eyes and mouthed:

"Oh, shit."