Biology. God, how I hated biology with a passion. If biology was a person, I would've already found where said person lived and singlehandedly tortured them. Biology was my first class of the day; I expected nothing unusually interesting to happen, seeing how it was the same routine, over and over. Calling the roll, getting out books out, and studying for the test that was scheduled to Friday, two weeks from now.

Sharing a planet with a few million pink monkeys wasn't easy. In fact, I routinely attempted to rip my hair out from frustration and anger. But mostly anger. Sitting next to me was my good friend. Although I hated to admit it, the boy with the messy hair and cocaine addiction was always there for me, and helped me calm myself when I flipped. Sometimes. The other times, he would completely space out, ignoring whatever antics I shoved his way. Not even threatening to hurt his matespri –boyfriend – would do any good, and he usually stayed on guard around him, seeing how the little guy was so fragile.

I was a good student when I wanted to be; my grades were high B, but I occasionally let myself drift to unconsciousness in class, getting the rest I thought I well and truly deserved, seeing as though I could never get enough sleep at home. Since the Scratch, our doomed race was taken under the wing of the humans, who gladly opted to share their planet with the survivors of the trollrace, and using newly adapted technology, courtesy of one sweaty idiot who I'd never think about introducing myself to, they were able to precisely recreate the lusii, down to their last strand of DNA. Reason one why I could never sleep.

I barely even knew anyone here besides Druggo to the side of me and his friend-with-benefits. Back on my home planet, I know I knew more people. The problem was, I couldn't remember them. And whenever I did try, my mind became fogged to the point I became disorientated. But sometimes, if I was lucky, I had visions. Flashbacks, even, although I couldn't put a face to the people in them, which scared me.

His face was deadly close to mine; his breath tingled in my ear and I held back tears of utter hopelessness. There was nothing else we could do. I failed everyone. I failed him. He had murmured something in my ear, and I had no chance of understanding what he had intended to say since sobs were racking my body, making it nearly impossible to hear the loud screams around me, let alone the soft whispering of my best friend.

"I love you," he repeated, a little louder this time, but still shaky with fear.

Before I could register what my body was doing, a loud smack! sounded through the screams, and everyone fell silent. The boy in front of me stayed completely still; not quite shocked, but not pleased either.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I managed to ask softly through the hiccups that now plagued me. "We could've been together! We could've died togethe-"

He cut me off mid-sentence with a firm, yet tender, kiss to my lips.

"I'm sorry," was all he had time to whisper because my view clouded and my vision turned white.

I was jolted awake from my disturbing daydream by a ruler smacking against my desk, inches away from my face. Understandably, I sat up quickly then I thought possible and took a few awkward glances around the room before focusing my attention on my teacher. Mr. Langdale wasn't exactly the nicest teacher; he was strict, but he had his reasons to be. For one, most of the assholes in my class thought it would be an excellent idea to place tacks on his chair. We all got two weeks detention.

There was around 10 minutes until the dismissal bell was to ring, sending us to lunch. I had an appointment scheduled with the school psychiatrist; I'd been seeing her for a few weeks after the trolls were introduced here, mostly because of my unusual sleeping habits and my snappy behaviour towards other students. I wasn't the brightest in the bunch, and I didn't have to be. I was here to learn, not to make friends.

Gamzee and I had instantly become friends when we met on our first day here. I don't know why, but something just clicked with us. I wasn't normally the type to hang around with those with drug problems, but I felt like he wasn't like the others. He didn't depend on drugs, but he couldn't just let them go either. As long as I've known him for, I knew he did cocaine, and I didn't know how his boyfriend Tavros dealt with him 24/7; he got a bit of a handful sometimes, and sometimes he snapped, yelling and screaming until we had to take him outside to get some fresh air.

The bell sounded, the last ring echoing through the school halls, and as if on cue, the halls became flooded with the student body, pushing their ways to their favourite gathering spots. I wouldn't dare walk through them, knowing full well that I'd get pushed to the ground and trampled on. I took the other option circling in my head and decided to stay sitting for a while, at least until the halls cleared slightly.

"Motherfuckin' best friend, what's all up and the matt-"

"Mr. Makara, what have I already told you about swearing?"

"Sorry, bro."

Gamzee's English was under a national standard, and I could understand why. Cocaine does weird shit to your head; it messes you up big time. And I knew he wasn't going to leave me alone unless I told him to leave. After I asked him politely to leave, he left, leaving only me and Mr. Langdale in the room together. Deciding to break the ice between us, I spoke up, faking an interested tone.

"So. How was your day?"

He stared at me, grunting in simple reply. This wasn't the way I anticipated the conversation going at all. I stood, my chair scraping against the linoleum floor as I tucked it underneath my desk, waving a small farewell before grabbing my bag and jogging out the door.

The halls were clear apart from a few people lagging behind in escaping their classes. I walked the halls, shoes squeaking against the floor when I didn't lift my feet up high enough. Halfway down the hall to the left was a door labelled 'Miss. McPherson, school psychiatrist'. Removing my appointment slip from my pocket, I knocked on the door, entering upon hearing a soothing voice welcoming me inside.

"Welcome, Mr Vantas. Please, do take a seat."

I obliged in her offer, taking the seat opposite to her desk without so much as a word. I could easily tell she was a clean freak by how she kept her office. Papers stacked neatly on her desk; books with golden labelling of her clients shelved in alphabetical order on four separate shelves, and the overwhelming scent of a whole fucking lavender bush hung in the air.

She stared at me expectantly and I smiled at her, not really wanting to talk, but not wanting to sit in the same spot forever.

"Is there anything you would like to talk about," she skimmed through her stack of papers, which I no doubt knew were about me. "Karkat?"

"No, not really. Is my appointment over yet?" I honestly didn't bother to conceal my rudeness; I was tired and moody and I was getting a migraine from the lavender. "I kind of have somewhere to be." I lied.

She smiled, nodding her head politely. "I wouldn't want to hold you up." She tapped a pen against my file, leaning forward as if she was going to reveal a huge secret that my life depended on. I raised an eyebrow at her, curious as to what she was implying. "You have another appointment for Thursday."

I rolled my eyes and her and stood up, my chair scraping backwards loudly. "Yeah, yeah, 'don't be late', I get it. Anything else?" I rushed my words; I wanted to get the hell out of there within the next twenty seconds or I was going to throw up over her desk and my files.

"That's all. Have a nice day, Karkat."

I gave a half-hearted wave before I turned on my heels, speed walking out of her room and closing the door behind me. Breathing a sigh of relief, I headed down the hall just as the bell sounded. I kept on my track, walking towards my next class. History. And I had no idea what was in store for me. My life was about to change.