Ignoring the World Around Me

It was a Friday afternoon and classes had only just ended. Mio quickly left the classroom before anyone could try and interact with her. After all, if she couldn't talk with anyone, then what was the point in sticking around? The only thing that would accomplish would be her getting frustrated and storming out anyway. No, it would be far better to just relocate to a place where silence was not just a preferred, but required.

Carefully placing her lapotop, now safely within its case, over her shoulder, Mio made her way to the library. As expected, it was quiet, with very few students around. Not many teenagers would want to spent their Friday at the library after all. After finding a secluded corner, she sat herself down on one of the beanbags that were present, and then proceeded to unpack her laptop.

Instantly she was absorbed into the screen. The world around her was now nothing. All that there was in this world was Mio and a blank open office document. With a bit of thought, she began to type.

Kaori was in the library, absorbed in a very good tale. She didn't know who it was by, but it was about a girl who goes on a journey with a magic polar bear, but he was actually a prince. A troll queen put a curse on him so she could marry him after one hundred years, unless he got a girl to live in his castle for one year without realizing he is actually a man.

A girl with very pretty long hair walked into the library, and Kaori waved. The pretty girl didn't notice her. That wasn't fair! Nobody had even talked to her once all day! It was very upsetting.

She stomped her feet hard to see if she would respond.

Mio had just been getting getting into her 'zone', when suddenly a very loud stomp resonated in the room. Being that the library was so quiet otherwise, it was very noticeable, and equally distracting. Out of sheer surprise, she looked up, instantly finding the source of the sound. It was a short-haired girl that she hadn't seen before; probably a freshman. That would also explain why this girl was trying to get Mio's attention: she obviously didn't know any better. Furrowing her brow, Mio gave the girl as stern a look she could muster. It was one that would ordinarily be enough to make most people forget that ever wanted to get to know her.

After she felt that her stare had gone on long enough to scare the stranger away, she looked back down to her computer screen, stretching out her fingers, ready to type.

She had gotten her attention for a moment, but this girl didn't seem to want to play with her. She made a loud grunting noise instead, continuing to stomp her feet.

Why did she want to be on a computer when she had other people to talk to? It seemed so counter intuitive. People were good, especially grown ups. They would give you candy and treats and hold you on their lap... Adults were great! But older girls like her were ok too. The only people she didn't like were boys. The only boy she liked was Jiro. He was kind to her, not like the doctors, or the boys that used to throw rocks at her.

She wondered briefly what this girl was doing on her computer. Maybe she liked to write stories. Maybe even, she would write fairy tales, like the ones she used to read at home. Or maybe she liked to play games; like find-its with lots of challenging puzzles.

When she got her attention, she would have to ask.

When Mio had thought that she had successfully gotten rid of the nuisance, she had started stomping even louder, and making all sorts of unpleasant sounds. Her eye began twitching in irritation. Can't you take a hint? she thought, wishing that she could just tel this pest to buzz off. With a roll of her eyes, she began typing on her computer. When she finished typing, she highlighted the words with her mouse and made a few clicks. When her work was finished, she turned the computer around for the girl opposite to see.

BUZZ OFF!

The big bold arial font glared at the girl, its message plain as day. As she held up the screen, Mio maintained an irritated stare, fixed on the stranger.

Kaori shook her head vigorously, and stomped again. Then she signed, 'What are you doing?' She walked over to the girl and looked over her shoulder at the laptop's bright screen. She had a word processor open.

She did write! Maybe she could get her to write a story for her! She smiled when she saw it and she was filled with curiosity. No matter what she wrote, Kaori had a feeling she would like it. Somebody with enough creativity had to be someone fun to hang out with. Did she write mysteries? No, she seemed more like a romance writer. She couldn't wait to ask!

Happily she signed, 'You write? That is really amazing! Can I read something you wrote?'

Mio stared, puzzled by fluid motioning of the girl's hands. It was clearly sign language, but she didn't understand any of it. Honestly, she didn't see any real need for it, since she carried her computer with her everywhere anyway. And even if she did learn to sign, her 'speech' would still be limited to only those who understood it. With a roll of the eyes, she began to type again.

I don't want to talk to you. Please go away.

The message was still in the same bold arial font, but the cap lock was now off, and the font was now a respectable size twelve. Still, the words had a biting edge to them, given the fact that Mio would now not even look up to meet the girl's gaze.

Kaori guessed that this girl couldn't speak sign language, so she grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. She eagerly wrote back to her new friend (read: victim) 'You write? That's really cool!'

She pushed it on top of her keyboard and then after a moment, gave her the pen too. She tapped her on the shoulder a few times, then smiled at her eagerly. She finally found someone to play with! It was like a gift from heaven; she had been so lonely here. Even in a place like this, not many people seemed to like her.

Nope. This moron just did not get it. Did she even read the message? Frustrated, Mio glanced over the words written on the paper. Can't take a hint, can you? she thought, brushing the paper away as if it were nothing but dust on her keyboard. With a disapproving shake of the head, she typed out another message on her computer.

Muse@coolmail.com

It was her instant messenger username. She could only tolerate people if she didn't have to look at their face. 'Normal' people communicate this way too, so is would be as if Mio was 'ordinary' as well. Assuming that the girl had enough time to memorize the username, but also not really caring if she did, she slammed the laptop shut, and got up to leave.

The girl got up to leave, so Kaori made another noise. She couldn't just leave! Who else was she supposed to talk to?

God, maybe she really wasn't likeable. Not even this girl didn't like her, and they liked the same things, as far as she could tell. Maybe that's why she was sent here. Even Mai left, the only thing she had left was her stuffed puppy dog and her favorite fairy tales.

It wasn't supposed to be this way! She was supposed to grow up and make friends, but nobody even gave her a second glance!

She did the only thing she knew how to do, she screamed and hurled her pen at her head.

Mio quickly turned around, shocked by both the pen hitting her head and the ear-shattering screech coming from the girl she had just abandoned. By now, the few people in the library, as well as the librarian, were staring at the girl. Mio could feel the stares of the students following the gaze of the obnoxious girl to her. Now all of the attention was on both of them, and Mio was pissed. Her aggravation was clearly painted on her face. She thrust her arms in an angry motion, before storming off. Never had she met such an insufferable person, and she hoped that she never would have to put up with her again.

Kaori ran after her, leaving her pen and paper in the library. She chased her down the hall, still screaming as she went.

She wished she could speak, so she could yell at her to wait, but all she could do was scream. Kaori had never run like this before, and she was sure clogs weren't meant for running. Now she really understood why she wasn't allowed to run and play back at home, it was making her very dizzy.

She kept sprinting forward, almost catching up with her friend, ignoring the growing darkness around her. Why didn't she want to be her friend?

Suddenly, the world spun and tumbled around her. She let out a yell for help- her head really hurt, and so did her rump. But everything was very muffled and quickly went dark.

Mio was now storming down the hallway at a fast pace, desperately trying to escape the embarrassment she had just felt. But it wasn't long before she heard the 'energizer bunny' stomping after her. Just give it a rest, will you? She kept her eyes locked straight ahead, not wanting to acknowledge the presence behind her.

Suddenly, the cries for attention turned to cries of help, as she heard a loud 'thud' as the girl fell the ground. Mio's eyes widened as she saw the girl slumped on the hallway floor, convulsing slightly. She looked around, but the halls were empty. Quickly, she ran up to the girl; her eyes were open and staring at nothing. Not knowing what else to do, she lifted the girl as best as she could, struggling to lean the girl against her shoulder, and began making her way to the nurse's building.

[exit]