CHAPTER ONE

The melancholy tones of the hallways rang with the inaudible sound of children's laugher and the deft tones of young children's footsteps. The walls, usually filled with the products of students' creativity during the school year, were now blank and white; the year's creativity lost to the summer's clean up schedule. It was as if the people who attended the school during the summer weren't 'real' students, just made up apparitions that were forced to attend due to low scores on tests and assignments that really meant nothing if you were actually expecting to advance in that field.

All that aside, summer school sucked, and after five years of being stuck inside the monotonous schedule alongside certain, less intelligent individuals with a bit stronger intentions, the intricately dressed individual had finally stepped outside of the cycle, free to do whatever he pleased with his summer. That was, after he picked up his younger sister from her advanced summer learning programs every day, and that wasn't any easy feat. Walking down the hall of the Elementary schools was torture, the memories of bullies and certain… instances, came flooding back to him. Specifically ones involving a certain childhood friend he hadn't spoken to in years.

The painful walk down the hall led to the opening of the fourth grade classroom, and the awkward silence of the young children as their attention turned from the teacher to the gawky teenage boy holding his keys on a purple lanyard in his left hand. The tiny little blonde girl in the front row was waving furiously at the teen, but he paid no attention. Memories flashed as he envisioned the room full of laughing students, a young boy in the front with a face full of red, the papers in his hand shaking. The young girl sitting in the class, her blonde hair down to the middle of her back, and her face a similar shade of red, was shaking her hand furiously for him to sit down. After a few moments standing, flabbergasted at the front of the room, the teen shook his head clean and stole his way to the back of the room where he found a seat.

The teacher looked at him fondly, with her old, knowledgeable, and wise eyes and her lips curled into a soft smile. She'd been in class that day too; he'd never forget those eyes, or the kind words spoken to him that afternoon when class was finished. "We'll be done soon, Eridan. There's only about an hour left of class, but I'm sure you know that."

Eridan nodded in recognition, but didn't return the soft glance that she'd given him; his face was turned to the side, eyeing the desks in the rows beside him, the innocent carvings of love, hope, and desire left by past love-struck fourth graders. Silly children, love was a myth, even though Eridan may have never given of hope of seeking it. Trying to pass the time was always an issue the gawky teen had, and even though he knew he was early, he never wanted to turn back. In fact, early was how he liked it. One hour. Exactly.

His eyes followed the minute hand around the clock as he waited, and his long, thin fingers found home tracing the graffiti on the desk. A special heart in the corner caught his attention when his finger found it, and he glanced down for a moment.

Who would have remembered it, so long ago, so many memories that gave precedence to this one. The pathetic, love-struck, short and squatty ten year old, was somewhat of a purposeful blur to the now tall and gangly, hopeless, sixteen year old boy. Still, tracing the carving with his finger sent chills up his spine, whether they were chills of happiness or of terror, he couldn't have been sure, but and his finger drifted back to his other hand, his eyes drifted back to the methodical tick of the clock in the front of the room.

How long had it been since he counted down time on a clock in a classroom, years maybe? Months, even? The worst characters had been in his classes, and even the upper-middle class kids who [s]looked up to Eridan[/s] admired Eridan's personal belongings and familial wealth couldn't help but snicker when he tripped up the stairs or was rejected by the ugliest girl in school. How low he'd stooped, the people he questioned, the friends he'd made. The poor boy was out of options, and it wasn't as if suicide had never been contemplated as a solution before…

It wasn't, though. Eridan had decided against that, he had too much to live for, too much pride. In his head, he told himself how great he was, and how he would succeed so much greater than the other level-headed idiots in his grade and school. This boy had a passion, a pure obsession, you could say, for art and nature. Photography was beautiful and it captured a side of life people who didn't seek out the beauty weren't ever able to visualize. It was sophisticated, and admirable, even when you were one of three students in the photography club, and you led it up, camera collection and all.

"That's the end of the lesson, make sure to complete lessons one through five tonight on simple radicals. And remember everyone, only two more weeks until school begins again!"

Half the younger kids cheered, and the other half jeered. The thought of seeing your school playmates again mingled with the nightmare of endless hours of homework that came with the step up to middle school.

"Ready to go, Eri?"

Eridan looked over to his side where his kid sister stood, pink backpack and all, with her small pink poinsettia pin clipped into her natural bleach blonde hair. Her cheeks were highlighted in baby pink, and her smile was that of an angel. On her teeth were clear braces, with clear bands, just a small mark of their societal standing, but on her wrist she wore a true amethyst bracelet, a present bought especially for her by one of Eridan's friends when she was born. It was worth more than her entire designer outfit, dental work, and all.

"Y-yeah…" He replied, finally, tearing his eyes from where they now stared at the desk, and pushed himself up with a shove. "How about we go get some pizza and ice cream Elli? How does that sound?"

Elli shrugged and batted her eyelashes, as she latched onto his hand.

The two walked out of the school together, hand in hand, behind the other kids who'd just been released as well. The advanced summer class was small, maybe a dozen students in total, and only open for accelerated minds, that is 'gifted kids'. The chattered together in hushed voices, and Eridan had befriended a few somewhat begrudgingly. Some of his best friends were years younger than him, and could actually hold a somewhat decent conversation…

The second trip down the halls wasn't as bad as the first, as the students took away the memories of that empty void that was a school. His sisters hand gave him the warmth and comfort of a good friend, a best friend… Eridan bit his lip for a moment as he tugged at his scarf, unwrapping it from his neck so that it now just hung around him. He turned and smiled to his sister as he pushed open the front door of the school with one hand, and unlocked his purple Mustang convertible with the other.

"Don't worry, Eri! Today will be a fabulous day!" Elli said in a high pitched voice, a smile spread all the way across her lips, as she jumped into the passenger side of the car and buckled up. Eridan grinned back half-heartedly as he made his way into the car as well.

"I certainly so hope so, El…"