The day is August 26th, 2052. Five years since the worst day of my life. I have changed a ridiculous amount since then. After all, I am in college now. I fiddle with the strap on my bookbag. It's much smaller than what I’m used to; in high school, you need a bunch of shit you don’t even use. Now all I have is a pencil, a tiny notebook, and my laptop.

  I lean against the wall of my class’ building, eyes darting around to find a familiar mess of red hair. That mess finds me as well, and her eyes soften almost imperceptibly. She makes her way over, adjusting her rounded glasses.

  ‘You look stupid,’ I state bluntly, and her pretty face scrunches up in offense.

  ‘Really? When you look straight out of middle school? With the “emo and edgy” look?’ She retorts. I smack her upside the head, but gentle enough as to not let her fall over.

  Oh yeah. This is Remi Bannerman. Unfortunately, she’s my best friend.

  Remi huffs, fixing her already perfect hair.

  ‘What’s with the ruffles? Like, girl, come on.’ I cross my arms, blowing a strand of thin black hair from my face.

  ‘I just… wanted to make a good first impression on my teachers, you know?’ Remi’s mouth presses into a thin line, hazel eyes dimming.

  ‘Hey hey- jeez. Relax. No harm meant,’ I quickly sense the discomfort I put on her, and raise my hands a bit.

  Remi takes a moment to pause. She’d been working really hard on trying to get her mother’s influence out of her head. That bitch was all about perfection, and nothing less. Otherwise she would be beat. Even just thinking about that woman made my blood boil.

  Her eyes light up for a moment.

  ‘Ooh- oh oh oh! Tomi–guess what I finally did?’

  I snap out of my less-than-happy thoughts immediately. There were so many things she could’ve done, now that Remi is finally out of her house, now that she’s free.

  ‘What? What happened?’ I check the time really quickly. Ten minutes until my next class. Perfect.

  ‘I finally got that vistite treatment!’ Remi excitedly pulls up her ruffled sleeve, showing a blue mark right on the back of her wrist.

  I blink the surprise from my eyes. Doesn’t that stuff usually cost a fortune if you’re eighteen or over? Must’ve used some of her parents’ money.

  ‘Nice. What’s been enhanced so far?’ I glance between her arm and her face.

  ‘Eh. I don’t really feel anything so far, but the vistologist said that it would take a few days for it to take effect,’ Remi responds in a rather blank tone, flexing her hand.

  ‘Anyway, wanna go get coffee?’ She tenses up in excitement as she says this.

  Huh. I didn’t know that Remi drank coffee.

  ‘Since when do you of all people drink coffee?’ I snort. I can’t help but imagine her chugging down an iced caramel latte like it's her last drink ever.

  Remi’s mouth forms a small ‘o’, and she shakes her hands.

  ‘Oh, it’s so good. I tried some with one of my new friends, and he got me this drink. I don’t remember what it was called-’ She pauses for a moment, before looking over at something. Her eyes widen and she smiles suddenly.

  ‘There he is, actually!’

  Remi points to where her eyes landed. I follow her finger and…

  Damn.

  My pale face heats up at the sight of him. He’s hot. His skin reminds me of a nice cup of mocha, and his figure is just perfect. He has to be at least six foot, and muscular as well. His blonde hair is in thick braids that are up into a high man-bun at the top of his head, and my god, his eyes. Bluer than the sky’s clearest day.

  Remi waves as this Ikemen approaches. He smiles sweetly, and puts one hand up in a wave.

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  ‘Hey, Remi. Didn’t expect to see you all dressed up,’ he glances at her outfit for a moment, before going back up to her face.

  She sways lightly, a little smile ghosting her face.

  ‘Aw, thanks. Anyway, this is Tomi. My best friend since first grade,’ she gestures at me.

  I freeze.

  ‘Tomi, this is Finn. I met him at the campus tour.’ The hot guy, now named Finn, waves at me with a friendly grin.

  I swear to god, I almost passed out right then and there.

  I force a smile and a wave that looks almost too shaky to be real.

  ‘Hi- I’m Tomi,’ I managed to spit out after several long, awkward moments.

  Finn remains silent for a few minutes. Oh god. He’s probably sizing me up.

  I check my phone again.

  Shit.

  I have to get to class, and it’s on the other side of the building. I quickly stammer out an excuse before swinging the door to the building open and scurrying inside.

  ?

  I enter the classroom just in time, and glance around. It’s massive. Much larger than the standard high school classrooms. There are at least fifty seats around the classroom, and a ginormous projector in the front of the room. Thirteen students are in chairs, all seeming to be as far away from each other as humanly possible. I relate to that; people suck most of the time. I take a seat somewhere in the back of the classroom, and take out my reading glasses. I assume there is going to be stuff on the projector once class starts, so I have to be prepared. I gently place my bookbag on the floor next to me, careful not to disturb the silence that has clearly accumulated in the classroom. I look down for one second. Just one.

  He’s next to me.

  What?

  Finn. He practically appeared in the seat next to me, and he’s just, calmly getting his things out. I froze again. The foot that’s unfortunately attached to my body taps on the ground, and my hand instinctively goes to my mouth. My fingernails will probably be gone in the next twenty minutes.

  ‘Hi, Tomi. That’s your name, right?’ Finn turns to me, icy eyes staring into my very being. It’s creepy in a way.

  ‘Uh- um- yeah. That's it. That’s me.’ I nod, speaking way too quickly. My gaze darts away from him in an instant. Damnit, what is this guy doing to me?

  ‘So, what’s your major? I’m majoring in Forensic Psychology.’ He speaks so effortlessly. My shoulders tense a bit.

  ‘You’re tensing up. No need to be anxious around me,’ Finn’s tone softens in an instant. I reluctantly face him again, before a warm, yet firm voice snaps me out of my flustered trance.

  ‘Good morning class. I’ll be your forensics professor for this semester. I’m Liam Carter, but I’d prefer Mr. Carter. I’m going to take attendance now. You guys know the drill, I assume,’ Mr. Carter announces. He squints at his computer, and begins reading off the names. Most I don’t recognize. I know Finn’s immediately, but one catches my attention in particular.

  ‘Amy McSanders?’ Mr. Carter calls out.

  I glance around the room, trying to be discreet. I know that name. She used to try to pick on me as freshmen. The only reason she stopped was because she got expelled. I don’t exactly remember for what, though…

  Oh.

  Oh.

  I’m pretty sure she was the one that got with half of the male, senior population.

  Oh well. She probably forgot by now.

  Never mind.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see her waving at me rather enthusiastically. Oh god.

  ‘Tomi Nemoto?’ My name is called, and I don’t even have to think before my hand is up. After doing it since we were five, it’s bound to become instinct after a while.

  I counted seventy names. This is an unbearable thing to sit through; I can only imagine what’s going on in Mr. Carter’s head right now. Must be the type of boredom that sucks you in like a damn black hole.

  ‘For today’s class, we’re getting straight into the material. I’m going to be assigning you a partner, and with this partner, you’re going to analyze various pieces of old cases that I’ve collected over the years…’ Mr. Carter drones on. Basically what I got is that we’re going to be analyzing crime scenes from the past. Got it.

  I can’t help but steal a glance at the hot boy next to me. He’s fidgeting with a pen in his left hand, while keeping attentive focus on the professor below us. That is at least what I thought until his eyes flicked towards me. My gaze shoots down to my closed notebook, face heating up again. My lips press into a thin line. Why am I so obvious? I curse myself. I’ve had crushes before. Why is this one so different? Ugh.

  The class remains silent, with the occasional cough or some noise before Mr. Carter finally finishes his endless spiel.

  ‘Alright, now to assign partners. Keep in mind, this is completely random.’ He sits back down at his desk, typing something out on his computer, before a randomizer appears on the screen.

  ‘Now, all of your names are in here. Whatever the randomizer decides, that’s final,’ he states before pressing a button.

  I scan the screen for my name, praying to god I don’t get Finn. Damn, we would get absolutely nothing done. I’d probably just die on the spot.

  Oh.

  Goddamnit.

  My partner is worse than Finn. Much worse.

  Amy McSanders is my partner.