Today had solidified how behind I was, and my anxiety about doing well was creeping in faster than the vines that had shot up Professor East’s arms on my first day here.
“You’re quiet over there,” Coral said when we were all almost finished eating.
“Just thinking about the mountain of studying I’m going to have to do to even begin to catch up.”
“Good thing you made friends with a bunch of nerds, then. We spend most of our evenings in the library, anyway,” Aurielle offered, and I smiled. At least I’d had the good fortune to meet these three.
We took a tray with a pot of steaming hot tea and four mugs up to the third-floor library and settled in to work. I’d received textbooks for my class that day, and I decided the best approach was to start at the beginning.
My friends sank onto some cushions in the corner, chatting quietly as they sipped their fragrant teas, but I peered inside the tiny room nestled in the tree hollow and found it empty. I stepped inside and took a seat at the small round table that was lit by the tea lights that were nestled inside the tree’s bark. After a moment of marveling at the magic of the space, I opened my backpack and focused on the task at hand.
The textbooks at Evergreen Academy were similar to those for my classes at SCC, but there were a few distinct differences. Latin was scattered throughout, and many of the illustrations were two-dimensional. Instead of just a picture of a plant or a molecule on the page, there was texture and sometimes even smell. I leaned in to sniff a pine needle and was delighted by the sensation of being transported out into the forest.
I read the first chapter of each and found myself enjoying it immensely. While the chemical formulas and mathematical equations jumbled together, I allowed myself to relax about that for now and simply concentrate on the wonder of the story the words were telling. Magical botanists had a connection with plants, and that connection was somehow both supernatural and scientific.
The fact that this power existed and I had never known about it was stunning. Each page was like discovering a hidden secret, a forgotten language.
And somehow, even though I didn’t feel it physically, this magic ran through me.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Alex was waiting in the seat next to mine when I got to Psychology the next day. “Hey, hey,” he said casually. “What are you doing at lunch? Want to grab food in the food court?”
My stomach flipped in a not-unpleasant way.
“I like to crank out my psychology homework right after class, since it’s usually pretty quick. We could work together,” he added.
“Sure. That sounds good.”
Our instructor began to speak then, and I turned my attention to her. Could Alex hear how fast my heart was beating? But then my stomach sank when I realized that I would only have about fifteen minutes available before I needed to head to Evergreen Academy.
When class ended, I quickly gathered my things. “I do have to be somewhere off campus by one, but I can grab food for, like, fifteen minutes?”
Alex smiled. “I can eat fast.”
“What about our homework?”
“That was just an excuse to ask you to lunch.”
Ohhhkaythen. I bit my lower lip, smothering a smile. “Well, in that case,” I said, trying to make my voice sound light, “I’m in.”
The cafeteria was busy, but we managed to get through the line within a few minutes. I’d never eaten here before, since my classes let out at noon and I would head home and eat there or at Vera’s Café. Alex swiped a meal card while I paid with cash.
“So, how do you like it here?” I asked as we took a seat.
“At SCC? Or in Weed?”
“Both.”
“I like it. The forest feels like it’s holding a secret, you know?”
I glanced at him in surprise but clamped my lips shut. There was no way he knew about Evergreen Academy. “Is that so?”
“Yeah, like the lemurians under the mountain.”
I laughed. “You’ve heard about that already? I didn’t realize the local lore was getting around.”
“I had to do alittleresearch before coming here. Just making sure I wasn’t walking into anything crazy.”
