The wind from the night before had persisted long past sunrise. There hadn't been any snow yet, but the wind still blew, ice-cold and ruthless. Even as Susie watched, it caused the frame of the windowsill by her desk to rattle dangerously.
She was getting distracted.
Susie turned her attention back to her spiral-bound notebook. It was covered in writing – chicken scrawl, dipping randomly over and under the dotted lines as it pleased. This was partly due to Susie's poor writing habits, which had persisted up until late high school, but it was also because most pens and pencils were too small for her to use comfortably. She could never get a good grip, and sometimes she'd break the damn thing just trying.
Well, it didn't matter how messy her notes were as long as she could read them.
The professor's voice faded back into Susie's world.
"…is an example of the invisible hand in action. When citizens are left to their own devices, social value is maximized, and the best interests of society are fulfilled."
The professor, a wiry, green monster, vaguely dinosaur-like in shape, was explaining an economic theory that Susie already knew. She listened anyways.
"If you think about it, it's a little bit of a miracle," the professor said, turning from his slide presentation to face the class with a cheeky smile. "How the self-interest of individuals such as you or I can bring such prosperity to the monsters around you."
A pause. He chuckled dryly. "Though I'm sure some of you would prefer to think of it as ironic."
A ripple passed through the class, barely audible. An acknowledgement that the professor had attempted a joke.
"Mm. Tough crowd. Now, let's move on to the material covered in Chapter 5," the professor said, clapping his two sets of hands together.
Susie glanced down at her textbook, already open to Chapter 5: Elasticity and the Law of Demand. This was the reading material that the professor had assigned for this week. Susie had already read it once, when she'd originally taken this course in the Fall, and a second time last night, in preparation for today.
"Now, before I start putting you all to sleep again with my lovely speaking voice…" the professor said. Another ripple passed through the crowd, and the professor gave everyone a sympathetic smile. A 'thanks-for-trying' smile. "Who can tell me the definition of elasticity?" he asked.
A few monsters raised their hands, Susie among them. The professor gestured towards her.
Susie sat straight up in her seat and cleared her throat.
"It's, uh – elasticity basically measures how flexible a product is. Like, how price affects demand. So, if the price of oranges goes up, but there isn't a good enough substitute for oranges, people will keep buying them even though they cost more. Something like that's called inelastic."
Too rambly. She'd also gone off-topic.
The professor nodded curtly and gave Susie a dry smile. A 'thanks-for-trying' smile. "Good," he said simply. With that, he turned back to his slide presentation and continued with the lecture.
Susie leaned back into her seat. It was an easy question, and although her answer hadn't been elegant by any stretch of the imagination, she was at least confident that she understood the concept. That was most important part.
Anyway, she'd better understand it. This stuff was first-week material. If she didn't have it drilled into her head by now, she was hopeless.
As the professor continued the lecture, Susie redoubled her efforts, furiously copying down notes to a chapter she'd twice read.
She was not about to fail this course for a second time.