(Notes:
1: If you haven't read them yet, I recommend reading "Til Death Do Us Part" and "Haunted Legacies: Season 1" first. But they are not required to enjoy this season.
2: Once again, this season will be updated every Friday, early in the morning. So keep an eye out.
3: This season will feature chapters with various characters and even ones starring entirely different fandoms, though all link together in the same universe and intertwine with one another.
4: If at any point you think you know what's coming next, think again.)
Episode 20: Precious Jasmine
The sky was clear and the whistling of the wind through the grass on the small hill outside of town was met with the blare of trumpets shouting to the heavens. The crowd seated on lawn chairs spread across the grass in neat rows and lines watched as the small parade of students in black robes marched single-file toward the front of the gathering. Cheers erupted from parents and families as each reached the principal of Casper High School to receive their ticket to the rest of their life.
"Dash Baxter," The principal called. The entire crowd rose to its feet around Sam, Danny, and Star as the massive boy walked up the steps to the podium, waving as if to a crowd of adoring fans.
Sam leaned over to whisper conspiratorially to her friends. "Yeah, I'm glad to see him gone too." Danny and Star hid their chuckles behind their hands.
They watched the procession of former students making their way around and then back to their seats in the front rows. The line of students crept on until at last, Danny heard a good reason to cheer.
"Jasmine Fenton." Danny, Sam, and Star all leapt to their feet, clapping their hands together. To Danny's surprise, most of those seated in the audience rose to their feet as the red-headed Fenton girl approached the Principal with a broad, uncontained grin on her lips. After she retrieved her diploma and shook her principal's hand, she turned to the crowd and pumped the diploma into the air, causing the crowd to roar even louder.
Danny heard a sniffle from behind, and turned to comfort his mother, but instead saw his father hunched over nearly in tears. "Our baby girl is growing up so fast."
"No Jack." Maddie patted her husband's shoulder with an understanding smile. "She's growing no more, she's a woman now. Soon she'll be off on her own to college. Oh…" She sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye. "I'm so proud… aren't you proud Danny?"
"Huh?" Danny was snapped back to reality after drifting off for a moment, realizing his mom was looking right at him. "Oh, yeah." Danny turned to face forward again, watching his sister skip merrily from the podium down toward her seat. "Proud…" He wanted to feel it, but it was something else that suddenly filled his heart to the brim.
After the ceremony had passed the families and graduates stood to find one another, and Jazz came charging up to them, nearly bouncing on the balls of her feet as she walked, making her thick black robes bounce around her ankles. "I did it! I did it! 4.0! Harvard here I come! Yyyeeeeee!" She squealed in excitement and wrapped her mother in a tight hug.
"I'm so proud of you, sweetie!" Maddie grinned wildly and clutched her daughter close to her.
"Yeah, great going, Jazz." Star grinned and hugged her from the side, since Maddie still had her from the front.
"Congratulations," Sam added with a more subdued smile.
Danny thought to say something, but he couldn't make himself speak.
"We just HAVE to celebrate. We have to." Maddie finally let her daughter go. "We should all go out for a fancy dinner as a family."
"Can Star come?" Jazz draped one arm around her best friend's shoulders.
"Of course." Maddie nodded.
"There's only one meal fit for a time like this." Jack waved his finger in the air, signaling that what he was saying was important. "The thickest, juiciest, bloodiest steaks money can buy! Come on, I know just the place!" Jack grabbed Jazz and Star to carry them back toward the Fenton Ghost Assault Vehicle like a pair of footballs. Danny watched Maddie follow after them with a look of concern on her face, feeling strangely numb with the proceedings.
Suddenly a hand touched his arm, drawing his attention to Sam, who was looking at him with worried eyes and a gentle smile. "You okay, Danny?" Her arm moved down to twine her fingers with his. The shining gold wedding ring on her finger pressed against his hand, reminding him, as always, that they could share anything.
Danny shook his head, finally finding the will to say two words. "She's leaving."
Sam smiled wider and squeezed his hand, speaking in a soft tone. "Yeah. She is."
"I just realized." Danny gulped. "I always knew it'd happen, but it's like… I never thought about it. It was always later, and now it's almost… 'now'."
"It's what Jazz has always wanted. I don't want to see her go either, but we can't stop her. She's living her life. Finally, after all that happened before…" Sam trailed off, but left no doubt in Danny's mind what she was referring to. Hope, the daughter she had had, and been forced to give up.
"Yeah. I know." Danny sighed. "Come on. They're waiting for us." With a gentle tug on Sam's arm, Danny walked toward the Fenton RV pulling Sam behind him. The jingling of the chains on Sam's leather pants warned those in the RV that they were coming.
Their hands remained locked as they climbed into the vehicle and slid the side door closed. Jazz and Star spoke in high, excited voices about what the future would bring, all of the things that Jazz would do in the rest of her life. The subject never turned to the fact that Jazz would soon be leaving Amity Park, even though Star had to be realizing it as well. Over the last year they had grown extremely close, and did almost everything together.
For the most part, he was able to act happy through dinner. Sam stayed by his side the whole time, knowing with almost psychic intuition when he was about to break down, and taking his hand beneath the table to keep it from happening. With her support Danny made it through dinner and the ride home in the growing darkness of night, where everyone began to split off in their separate directions. While Jazz volunteered to walk Star home, Danny and Sam retired to the room that used to be Danny's, but which they now shared as husband and wife.
Danny sighed and plopped down on the side of their king sized bed while Sam walked to the fancy armoire sitting against the side of the purple-painted room. She sat down on the chair and pulled off her leather vest, throwing it to the floor near the door with one hand while the other plucked the ponytail out of her hair to let it fall around her shoulders in a bowl-like shape. She began to brush her hair while Danny fell back onto the bed with a plop.
"I just don't know how to feel about this." Danny rubbed his eyes with one hand. "I know I should be happy for her. I know I have to support her. But I just want everything to stay like it is. This past year has been perfect; I don't want it to end."
Sam replied, "I know what you mean, on both counts. But you know that trying to stop her would just be selfish. She's worked hard for this, and she deserves it."
"Yeah, yeah." Danny sat up again with one arm dangling from his knee. He watched Sam get dressed near the closet, where she was changing into her deep blue satin nightgown. "Knowing the right thing to do doesn't make it easy to do it."
"Truer words were never spoken." Sam closed the closet and turned to walk back to the bed, sitting beside him. He only now noticed that she'd removed her makeup, looking at him from a face not touched up like a painting, but like a normal girl with beautiful violet eyes that drew him in. "But I know that doing the right thing, however difficult it is, is something that you do best." She gave him a comforting smile and took his hand in hers. "You can handle this."
Danny took a deep breath. "Yeah, with you here to help."
"I'm not going anywhere." Staring into his eyes, Sam slid closer on the edge of the bed, her fingers twining themselves around his and holding tightly. "I'm going to be here for you, for the rest of our lives."
"Because some things never have to end…" Danny's lips curled into a smile for the first time since the ceremony as he leaned toward Sam. Moments later their lips met in a gentle kiss that enveloped them both, and even seemed to envelope the night around them.
Star walked down the sidewalk with her hands behind her back, humming a merry tune in time with Jazz, who was humming the same tune in harmony with her. It was something they enjoyed doing over the last year. Sometimes they even began to hum the same song at the same time. It had started as an exercise Jazz came up with to help Star feel in-tune with others, but soon it had grown into something else. What it was, Star couldn't say. But it always made her feel at peace.
Not now, though. The reality of Jazz's imminent departure was weighing heavy on her heart, dragging her to a place her mind hadn't gone since Paulina had vanished almost two years ago now. Jazz hadn't even left yet and she could feel the void opening in her heart, a void deeper than the one Paulina had left, deeper than the one she'd felt when they left home to move to Amity Park, leaving all of Star's friends behind. She felt terrible…
But she refused to let it show in her merry humming, which continued until they reached Star's home on the outer fringe of Amity Park.
"Thanks for coming with me." Jazz giggled. She hadn't stopped grinning since the ceremony, carrying her diploma around to flash at random and even show to any passerby who glanced in their direction. "This has been such a perfect day I don't want it to end. This sort of thing only comes once, y'know."
"Yeah, it sure does." Star forced a smile onto her lips. "I'm so happy for you, Jazz. You can do anything you want from here on out, become anything you want."
"True!" Jazz grinned. "But I think I'll stick to my first love, psychology. So many people in this world are just lost and need guidance. I want to be the one to pick up the pieces. If I don't, who will?"
"Well, I know you'll be great at that." Star winked. Jazz giggled again. "I know I have you to thank for having my sanity right now. Without you…"
"Oh stop, you've thanked me more than enough times. I'm just glad you're okay." Jazz smiled. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow. We're hitting the water park, right?"
"Y-yeah, that sounds good." Star forced another smile.
"Great. We'll meet outside the park at two P.M." Jazz waved and turned to skip down the sidewalk away from her. Star was gripped by a sudden urge to scream out to her, to call her back. But she bit her tongue, and watched Jazz walk into the night.
Silently Star turned to open her door and step into the small wooden shack her mother favored so much. The door closed behind her with a soft click and she turned her eyes up toward the back of the house. She thought to get to her room, but she didn't have time before the tears overtook her and she collapsed to her knees. Her eyes closed, but that did nothing to stop to stop the stream of tears that flowed down her cheeks from emotions that had been pent up all day.
Her eyes opened again and she looked up with a sniffle when she heard a pair of footsteps stomping across the wood toward her. She must have looked so pathetic, on her knees sobbing in the doorway. But her sister, Moon, didn't look smug as she leaned down to take the smaller sister in her arms, holding her close in a tight embrace.
"You need to open up, Star." Moon's voice was soft and soothing as her breath brushed against Star's cheek. "You need to open up completely."
"I… I'm gonna miss her…" Star sniffled into her shoulder. "She's the best friend I ever had."
"That's not what I meant," Moon told her. Star pulled back slightly to give her a quizzical look, but Moon just smiled. "Just try to relax, sis. Come on, maybe some cocoa and rest will do you some good." Moon moved away from her and turned to lead her into the kitchen.
For a moment Star stared after her, trying to figure out what she meant. But in a moment she shook off her confusion and rushed to join her as she wiped the tears from her eyes. She needed to open up completely? About what?
The next two weeks passed without incident. It was that precious summer time when nobody had to go to school, so the four of them spent a lot of time hanging out at the water park. Occasionally Paulina would join them, a fact that still made Sam a bit nervous, but she put up with for the sake of Star and Jazz, who enjoyed the extra company. Sam supposed their experiences with Paulina a year ago were long gone and should be forgotten, but it was difficult to forget the person who tried to kill you several times.
Time was growing short, so they spent as much time as possible with Jazz, whose upbeat attitude and optimistic nature were infectious. Still, Sam noticed a growing pall over their crowd, especially from Danny and Star, who by the end of the two weeks were nearly sleepwalking through their days. Jazz either didn't notice or pretended not to, instead opting to guide them by the hand through the water park, or the regular park, or wherever they decided to spend their days together. Sam didn't think it was possible that she didn't notice… she probably just didn't want to leave tears behind.
Now though, with one day left before she was scheduled to leave for college, it seemed like the dam that had held Danny back was about ready to burst, and there wasn't anything Sam could do to stop it. She woke up that morning to find herself trapped in Danny's arms, clutched against his chest like he was desperately trying to keep her from leaving. She did her best to comfort him, but throughout the morning it only got worse and soon they were to have their last trip with Jazz to the water park.
"Come on!" Jazz's yell drowned out the trickling streams and waterfalls of the various rides as she ran up to a small hill in the middle of the park. "We only have a few hours left! We need to hurry if we're going to hit every ride before tomorrow." Star and Danny both remained silent, staring at Jazz with quiet, mournful looks. Jazz turned to them and pumped her fist energetically in front of her. "Come on! In the spirit of adventure, who's with me?"
"Will you stop it!?" Star screamed suddenly. All eyes turned on her, even those of the random passersby on their way to the nearby Log Ride. Star's face turned red and she turned to run toward the bathrooms.
Jazz's smile faded for the first time in the last two weeks, fading into an unsure grimace as she watched her friend vanish into the bathroom. Her gaze swept then over Sam and Danny, who were watching her with expressions mixed between sadness and shock.
Jazz looked helplessly between them. "I just wanted to spend my last few days here having fun."
"We know, Jazz," Sam said with a comforting smile. "But that doesn't make things any easier for some of us…" She trailed off, then with a cough said, "I'll go talk to her." Sam rushed toward the bathroom, half because she wanted to make sure Star was okay, and half because she was feeling herself the pain of letting Jazz go. Sam and Jazz hadn't spent much time together, but Jazz was always supportive in her own way. She felt like a sister.
Sam opened the bathroom door and stepped inside, closing it behind her and making her way toward the back. The sound of choked sobs was echoing from one of the stalls. Though bending down, she couldn't see any feet touching the floor. Sam stood straight and walked along the row, running her fingers over the doors.
"Star? Are you alright?" Sam called softly.
"Why even bother asking?" Star's sniffle came from the back of the bathroom, where the door of the last stall was closed and locked. "Of course I'm not okay. She's leaving and she wants to act like nothing's wrong! Like we're not going to be apart! Like she doesn't even care!"
"Of course she cares, Star. I know she does." Sam approached the stall and pressed a hand against it, listening to the soft sobs of her friend beyond the door. "But this isn't goodbye forever. She's going to spend a few years in college, and then she'll be back. I'm sure she'll be back before you even realize she's gone."
"It already hurts! I… I…" Star's voice shuddered as another sob gripped her. Sam bit her lip, but didn't speak until Star calmed herself enough to continue. "I already miss her. She was the only person who made me feel… feel like I do."
"And… how do you feel, Star?" Sam suspected she might know the answer already.
"I don't even know," Star confessed in a whisper that barely carried through the door. "But I don't want her to leave. I want her to stay. I want her to help me like she has been."
"I don't want her to go either." Sam smiled slightly. "But… we don't need to cry. If we feel something, it's best to say it, y'know?" Star remained silent on the other side of the door. "So come on. You and me, we'll go tell her what we're feeling. We'll tell her that we don't want her to go, and we'll see what happens from there. Is that okay?"
"Y-yeah…" Star replied in a soft voice. Sam's lips curled into a smile when she heard the click of the stall lock being opened.
Jazz watched Sam vanish into the bathroom, biting her lip and hugging herself nervously. She'd never intended to hurt anyone, least of all Star. She thought the last two weeks were going pretty well, but it seemed she was the only one having a good time. Now she stood alone in the middle of the water park, face-to-face with Danny, whose face seemed no less tense than Star's had right before she stormed off. Was it really so hard on him as well?
"Danny." Jazz approached with one arm rubbing the other. "Is there something you have to say to me?"
"What is there to say?" Danny shrugged his shoulders and turned away from her, his arms folding across his bare chest. "That I'll miss you? That even though you can be a pain in the butt sometimes, I don't want to see you leave?"
Jazz couldn't help but smile. She walked up behind her bother and hugged him from behind, pulling him back against her. Only now did she realize how tall he was getting. The top of his head was several inches above hers. She was so used to having a little brother she never noticed that he wasn't so little anymore. This only made her smile wider. "Danny, I'll miss you too. I promise I'll keep in touch, though. I'll keep in touch with everyone back here in Amity Park."
"World famous scientists usually don't worry about the people in their hometown…" Danny replied softly.
"The smart ones know that it's important to remember your roots. And as a psychologist, I recognize the importance of familial bonds. More than that, I love you. I'm not going to leave you forever Danny, I'm just going to learn more, and then I'll be back here. Of course, by then you might be in college yourself."
"I don't know, college might not be for me." Danny shook his head. "With my powers I can do so much more. Like the Teen Titans. Seems like they save the world all the time."
"Do what you think is right, but don't neglect your responsibility to yourself." Jazz smiled. Danny looked back at her with a soft smile on his lips, letting the silence speak for itself.
Jazz's attention was drawn away from her little brother by the approach of Sam and Star, who both had solemn looked on their faces. Star's eyes were bloodshot from her tears, but she now carried herself with some sense of composure. Jazz couldn't help a pang of guilt in the pit of her stomach, though she knew it wasn't really her fault. Jazz had done all she could to help Star. Perhaps a little too much, she now realized. Star had come to depend on her, and now she was about to leave. She should have realized it would be harder on Star than anyone else.
Taking a deep breath and steeling herself for whatever would come, Jazz took the initiative and approached her friend. "Star? Is there something you'd like to say to me?"
"I…" Star stuttered for a moment, then looked away as her hands clasped in front of her. "I don't want you to go."
"I know." Jazz's smile met her friend's shamed glance. "I'll miss you too." Jazz stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her friend, pulling her into a tight hug. She felt Star's arms instantly wrap around her waist while her face buried itself against her shoulder. "But this isn't goodbye. It never has to be goodbye, as long as we're alive. We can keep in touch, and in a few years I'll come back. It doesn't change anything."
"A lot can change in four years." Star's voice was muffled against the flesh of Jazz's shoulder.
"But it won't, Star. Trust me." Jazz placed her hands on Star's shoulders and gently pushed her back to arm's length to look at her eyes. Star still refused to meet her gaze, though. "Friends never have to drift apart, even if they move miles away from one another." She took a deep breath and looked around at Sam and Danny, who were watching them with somewhat uncomfortable looks. "Do you want me to walk you home?"
Star's slight nod was the only answer she gave, gazing at the floor as if afraid to look up. Jazz nodded. "Okay. Danny, Sam, I'll catch up with you two at home."
"Yeah, we'll see you there." Danny nodded. Jazz took Star's shoulders to guide her toward the changing rooms on the front side of the water park.
They found their things, dried and dressed in separate rooms, and were soon walking down the sidewalk toward the modest wooden house on the edge of town where Star lived with their packs slung over their shoulders, which contained their bathing suits and towels. Neither of them spoke on the way, and Jazz didn't like the silence one bit. This was really bothering Star, but what bothered Jazz most of all was that she had no idea what to do about it. More than anything else in the world, Jazz hated being helpless.
They approached Star's door in silence and they turned to face one another, at the same time facing the uncomfortable aura that had filled the air during the walk home. Jazz didn't know what to say, and it was obvious Star didn't know either. She'd said what she planned to say, but it didn't seem to be enough. Now she was at a loss. She couldn't stay here in Amity Park, not if she wanted to continue her education and get her degree.
"Jazz." Star stepped forward and looked up at Jazz's eyes at last, though her hands remained tensely knotted together in front of her. "I feel… I feel like if you leave, something will be going with you." She gulped, but her eyes never left Jazz's. "I feel like you hold the best part of me in your hands, and without you… without you I can't be the girl you've tried so hard over this last year to help me become. I feel like I need you, Jazz."
Jazz cocked her head to the side with a gentle, but studying gaze. She could see the sincerity in Star's eyes, locked now with her own in a deep, desperate stare. Her words were those of a precious friend, but her voice, and her eyes, carried something deeper. Something that genuinely surprised Jazz when she realized what it could be. She was careful not to let her surprise show, instead reaching one hand forward to place it on Star's shoulder.
"Since you moved to Amity Park, you've relied on others." Jazz was careful not to break their eye contact. "But what you've become has nothing to do with me. What you've become, the sweet, kind, and genuine girl I love to hang around with, is from inside of you. Nobody can ever take that away from you, not even me. You are who you choose to be, regardless of what I do. I've tried to help you… but if this girl wasn't inside you all along, I never would've been able to bring her out."
"I understand." Star nodded. "I'm just so confused… maybe I should try to get some sleep."
"If you think that's best." Jazz pulled her hand back. "I hope you'll come see me off at the airport tomorrow. I know it'll be hard saying goodbye, but I want your support. To be honest, this is sort of scary for me too. Leaving home for the first time…"
"That's always scary… yeah, I'll be there. You couldn't keep me away if you tried." Star smiled warmly. They shared a gentle hug and Star waved her way inside the house while Jazz turned to walk down the sidewalk toward FentonWorks again.
Was she imagining what she thought she saw in Star's eyes? It was possible, she supposed. Even if she wasn't, it only proved how strong Star's attachment to her was, and how good it would be for her if Jazz left. She needed to learn to operate by herself for a while. It would be a learning experience, however hard it would be. Still, these facts didn't make her heart any less heavy as she took the steps outside of her home one at a time, and went inside.
This was it. The day Star had been dreading for the past two weeks. The day Jazz would be leaving Amity Park to continue her education at Harvard University. Often Jazz had spoken of this day, and Star had always nodded and smiled, trying to share in her excitement. But it never took long for her thoughts to turn to ones of being alone.
She considered briefly that she could turn around before she reached the airport terminal Jazz was scheduled to leave from, but she couldn't make herself do it. Instead she marched on, her feet moving of their own accord as she walked the last few yards through the airport into the terminal where the Fentons were gathered near the gate. Jazz was hugging her mother, while her younger sibling couple watched with wet eyes and her father bawled like a baby against the glass window, through which her plane was plainly visible.
Star walked up behind Sam and Danny, who looked back in surprise to see her, then smiled and waved for her to join the small group. Star forced a strained smile onto her lips as she joined them, watching mother and daughter pat each other on the back.
"Now remember sweetie, if anyone offers you 'fun candy' or whatever it is kids call it these days, you say no," Maddie said.
"I'll remember that, mom." Jazz smiled and patted her mother's back once more before pulling back and turning to look at the others. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise when she saw Star, who smiled a nervous smile and waved a nervous wave. Jazz smiled back and approached the three of them.
First she looked down at Sam and Danny, who were standing side-by-side with their hands clasped between them. "You know, when Sam first told me you were gonna get married, I had my doubts. How long can a couple of teenagers make a marriage last? Now look at you, over a year later and you've held it together all this time." Jazz smiled and wrapped an arm around each of them, pulling them into a tight hug. "I have never been happier to be proven wrong."
Sam coughed. "Um… thanks?"
"Glad to know you have so much faith in us, Jazz." Danny quipped from the other side.
Jazz pulled back with a blush on her cheeks. "I didn't mean it like that." Danny and Sam waved off the comment with smiles, then moved aside when Jazz raised her eyes to Star.
Star's heart began to pound, and she swore she could feel the tears already beating at the back of her eyes desperate to escape. But she held them back as Jazz walked up in front of her with a gentle smile.
"Star. Thanks for coming," Jazz said.
"I told you I'd be here." Star sniffled and looked down, then mentally chided herself and forced herself to meet Jazz's gaze again. "Guess this is… goodbye." Her breath caught in her throat, and she gulped in a vain attempt to unclog her windpipe. She felt terrible, something Jazz clearly noticed, though she said nothing about it.
"Goodbye for now." Jazz stepped forward and wrapped her in a tight hug again. "Take care of yourself, Star. You're strong enough to do that for me, I know you are."
"Y…" Star trailed off for a moment. "I'll be okay…" Star forced a smile onto her lips when Jazz pulled back, trying to show her that she would be okay.
"I know you will." Jazz wiped one of her tears off of her cheek with her thumb, then knelt down to pick her bag up off of the floor. "You have my e-mail address. I know it won't be the same, but we don't have to lose touch."
"Yeah." Star smiled through the stream of tears she could no longer contain. "I'll write…" She could say anything else, but Jazz clearly didn't expect her to. Instead Jazz gave her one last smile and turned to look at her family again, looking back and forth between Sam and Danny, and Jack and Maddie.
"Goodbye." Jazz hugged each of them once more in turn, then pulled away and backed toward the terminal, hefting her bag over her shoulder. Star watched her go, but Jazz didn't turn back again. Her steady march toward the plane continued unabated until she vanished from sight. The Fentons stopped waving and turned to watch the plane through the window, watching the barely visible people step onto it.
Star approached the window, her mind racing. She wanted to tell Jazz something before she left… and now the chance was gone. She didn't even know what she wanted to say, her mind was a jumble of thoughts and feelings, each of which seemed to conflict with the others. She didn't want Jazz to go, because she was her best friend… no, it was something else. Something digging at the back of her mind, making her heart burst until she could barely take it anymore.
Just as she thought she was beginning to go insane, a thought occurred to her. And a memory from over a year ago, when Danny had been trapped in a girl's body…
Slowly, Star slipped across the floor until she was beside Jazz to whisper. "When did Sam become Gay?"
Sam turned to look back at her, amused rather than angry. "When I remembered the person who made me smile when I didn't think I ever would again."
"Didn't think I ever would again…" Star mumbled to herself, her mind finally clearing. All at once, the confusion dissipated, leaving an empty, throbbing hole in her heart as she watched the plane taxi out onto the runway. She was gripped by the sudden urge to run after it, to scream her new revelation to the world and call Jazz back to her. But she didn't. Instead she clasped her hands behind her back and watched it pick up speed down the runway until it left the ground to carry Jazz out of her life… for now.
NEXT TIME on Haunted Legacies
"I am not your friend." Mrs. Moorehead walked around her large desk to stands in front of Jazz's glaring down at her with a cold glare. "What are you crying for? That's a completely inappropriate psychological response to the promise of becoming better than you are. The only people who cry randomly at everything they see are the weak and pathetic masses who don't know how to process new information properly. Are you one of those, Jasmine?"
"N-no…" Jazz squeaked softly.
"Then stop crying! It bugs me." Professor Moorehead narrowed her eyes dangerously, peering down at Jazz with a venomous glare. Jazz sniffled and tried to contain herself, staring up into the Professor's eyes until finally she stood up straight and clasped her hands behind her back. "All of you take this first lesson to heart. The most important psychological principal in this classroom is discipline! If you don't have it, you'd might as well leave right now."
"Now, if nobody else feels like losing their mind for no apparent reason, we can begin our real lessons." Professor Moorehead glared down at Jazz a moment later, then turned to walk back to the blackboard.
Jazz tried to wipe her eyes clear, but a wad of paper bounced off of her head to the table in front of her. Curiously, Jazz spread it out to read what it said. 'Hahahahahaha.' Jazz looked to the side to see Mandy miming uproarious laughter and leaning back against the wall. Jazz knew it was a childish gesture, but she couldn't stop her cheeks from growing hot in embarrassment. This was worse than being in fourth grade…
And worst of all, when she finally pulled her attention to the teacher's lessons, she could barely understand what she was talking about. Principals of this and theories of that… stages of something else and properties of that except if this situation was applied. Her mind and pencil raced to keep up with it all, but they were nothing more than words. The concept secluded her, and that nearly sent her into a panic. What if Professor Moorehead was right? Was this the proof? Was she doomed to fail here, unable to advance any further?
Two hours later, Jazz found herself curled up at the head of her bed in her dorm room, shivering with her arms wrapped around her folded knees. "It doesn't make sense. This is supposed to be a higher learning institution. With responsible teachers whose passion is teaching, and dedicated students whose passion is learning. It's not supposed to be like High School. But no… it's worse! I can't handle this! I can't do it! I'm in over my head! I'm in over my AAAHHH!" Jazz shrieked in surprise when the door opened.
Episode 21: Run, Don't Walk, Toward the Future