Little Dragon Keeper

“They weren’t always dragons in the valley. It wasn’t always this desolate and dry, covered in ashes and bodies burnt to a crisp-“, the bell rings, and I notice Mr. Carter pout like a child that just got denied candy at the supermarket. He mumbles something under his breath. “We were just about to get to my favorite part”, he says with a sigh. He’s an oddball . Always have been from what I heard. I heard Miss Jenny talking about how he used to be super edgy, how he used to talk none-sense about hunting dragons and seeing what she called “little folk” in his backyard. It’s hard to imagine him having a goth stage with his current preppy hamster looking persona.

Everyone is already packing up and leaving before he even gets to give us our break. I can’t blame them - this is our last class for the day AND we are about to go on Winter break! I give Mr. Carter a sympathetic smile. I feel bad for him because he has such a hard time disciplining the class. He smiles back. “Miss Rabinowitz”, he says as he takes an eager step towards me, “how do you like this book?”. I step back. I’m all packed up and ready to leave. I should have left as fast as the other kids. I swear he’s about to give me homework. He does this every time. I shrug, “it’s a good book, exciting though slow. It’s as if I’m reading someone’s diary, so it’s a fun read”. He tilts his body awkwardly, gathering the to say something. He’s making me uncomfortable. “I should go now my mother is waiting”, I say reluctantly. “Wait wait”, he’s stammers as he hands me the book. “The homework. It will be extra credit. Read the book, and email me a five page essay”, he says with an awkward smile, “and feel free to let me know your thoughts further. Email me if you have any questions. I’m sure you will”. I take the book with a strained smile. “Have a good break, Mr. Carter”, I nod at him, and he nods back.

I make a very visible face of annoyance and roll my eyes. Why couldn’t he just leave it since I’m the only kid that waited? Is that why he made it extra credit. I really don’t care about extra credit, but I feel obligated now. But, it’s not like I had much of anything planned for Winter break anyway….I bend down to tie my shoe, lost in thought. I wonder if the man in the book could be real.

“You’re going to get permanent frown marks”, says a soft voice, almost like a whisper. I look up from tying my shoe to see a small black haired girl with an unusual short haircut that looks like a sharp tilted bowl cut, as if someone cut her hair in the dark. She makes a small awkward smile and makes this small sound. She seems nervous. What do I say? Im no good at small talk. She panics a little, acting like she’s said something wrong. Newsflash, she didn’t. “I-uh…umm….it’s just”, I sigh as I stand up. “Well, he isn’t trying to pick on you”, she says under her breath. She reminds me a little like a caterpillar trying to escape a cocoon with how much she squirms. “You look like someone he knows”, she says, much louder than before. “How-“, I’m interrupted by someone calling my name. “Tiffany!”, I turn to see my mother. She’s scowling at me from the car. I turn to the girl, but she’s gone. Huh.

That was strange.