Tales of a Shapeshifter/C14 14. Graduation
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Tales of a Shapeshifter/C14 14. Graduation
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C14 14. Graduation

I started and finished my preparations on Saturday. Because of how draining it was, I slept through Sunday. It was now Monday.

When I got to school, Santana was flirting with Clara, of course and I was left in the company of myself. Not that I’m complaining.

Because everyone took their exams last week, there was nothing really for us to do. The grades had been finalized on Friday, so it

was pretty much 3 weeks of free time. Or so I thought.

When I got to math class, I went to my seat and sat down. While waiting for class to start, I put my head down and tried to get

more precious seconds of peace.

The bell rang and everyone was seated.

Mr. Murphy walked into the classroom with a big smile on his face.

“Alright guys. Even though you took your exams last week, doesn’t mean you’re off the hook.”

Everyone groaned.

“What’s that reaction? Math is fun! Math helps your brain develop.”

“If Math is fun, then I’m married to Tom Holland.”

The class snickered and some other people chimed in.

“Yeah. If math is fun, pigs can fly.”

There were some more people who laughed at this.

“Okay, Okay. I get what you’re saying. But if you don’t like it, then you don’t need to. Getting the work done is what’s most

important.” He said with a sigh.

“Now, let’s get the work done. You have 3 assignments. It’s based on what you learned, so it won’t be hard.”

The class groaned again.

“Teacher, you really are a sadist.” someone said.

The other classmates nodded in agreement.

“Sadist, masochist, doesn’t matter. You’ll have to do the worksheets anyways.” He smiled and went to his desk.

The class got to work soon after and suffered until the end.

Once the bell rang, I went to my history class. Inside, Clara was at her desk and Santana was in my seat.

Seeing that they were chatting, I went to Santana’s seat and sat there. The class was whispering about how each other did on the

exams. Again, I put my head down and started resting.

During gym class, Melody was hanging around me as per usual and we had to do another mile.

“Helix!” Melody ran up to me excitedly.

“Hm?”

“Are you happy that you’ll graduate in four days?” She threw some playful punches to my left shoulder and then clinged onto my

arm.

“Mmh.” I didn’t really have an answer to that. I wanted to leave because I spent too much time here. I wanted to stay because I

met really good people in these past 13 years.

“What do you mean, ‘mmh’?”

“Ahem. Sorry. I am excited to graduate!” I tried to sound really excited because I couldn’t let her worry.

“Me too! I can’t wait to see you get your award! I’ll be sad because you won’t be in school anymore.”

“That’s true.”

The rest of the day was anticlimactic and not worth mentioning. The days passed by one by one until the day of graduation.

Since the graduation ceremony was at the school, there was no school for the other students other than the graduating class.

The ceremony started at 12 AM, but we had to be there two hours before. Why? Because we had to set up and rehearse.

I had my cap and gown ready. It was about 10 AM at the moment, and I was making breakfast for Santana and Sarah for when I

woke them up later.

After I finished my morning stuff, I walked over to the school. By the time I got there, it was 9:50. Right on time.

I made my way to the auditorium and walked into a room filled with people and decorations.

The number of people graduating was about 200 something? It was a big school. The auditorium was big enough to hold about

800 people. It had two floors, after all.

I was tasked to put the reservations on the seats for who sat where. After the decorating was completed, we rehearsed the thing for

a half hour. The doors opened and the guests walked in to take a seat. In the crowd, I saw Santana, Sarah, Melody, Celia, and

Mark.

They all sat near each other. Since Santana was a year below me, he’d get to see how these things were done.

At 12 AM, the graduation ceremony started. Everyone who was graduating was dressed in their cap and gown. The colors were

emerald green because the school colors were green, white, and black.

To open the ceremony, the salutatorian gave a speech. It was basically about how long of a journey we have been on these past 4

years. I couldn’t relate because I had arrived less than 6 months ago at this school.

After the speech, the principal and other important people were on stage. The graduating class was sitting in their seats according

to alphabetical order. They called each person by their name. Each row of people would line up after the rest. For those who were

more popular, cheers came from both the students and parents. After everyone walked on stage, shook hands, and received their

certificate, including me, the speeches came after. The valedictorian went to the stage and started giving his speech. The top two of

the class looked different than everyone else at the ceremony.

Their green gown had a golden academic stole that they wore. This way, you could single them out in the massive crowd.

“I’m honored to have been with you these past four years. It’s been a wild ride from…”

And she listed the achievements of the school. Lots of people were in tears because of the bonds they made during their high

school career.

“With every end, comes a new beginning. This is the end to our high school life, but the beginning towards the future that lies

ahead. Let’s enjoy this day to the fullest and celebrate the start of a new chapter of our lives!”

Cheers erupted throughout the rows of seats. Everyone was both happy and sad. With that, we all left the auditorium and reunited

with our families.

I had taken off my cap and gown, put it in a bag, and changed into a t-shirt and black jeans before meeting with Santana and the

rest.

We met outside the school and walked to Santana’s apartment so I could drop off the gown and my belongings.

Soon after, Mark took everyone to an expensive restaurant. There were 6 seats for everyone to sit. The restaurant was Italian. We

sat down and opened the menu.

The cheapest thing on the menu was $20.

“So, Helix. How does it feel to finally be an adult?” Mark asked.

I laughed internally.

‘You’d be surprised if I told you that I’m older than you.’

“It feels okay. I don’t really want to be an adult yet.”

They all laughed lightly and agreed.

“Helix, congratulations! You’re no longer a high school student! Today we celebrate your graduation.” Celia said.

The wine came to the table and everyone got a glass. Melody’s glass was significantly more empty than everyone else’s because

we were older.

Mark stood up, “A toast to an outstanding young man. He’s not only helped me, but also my family. A toast to Helix.”

“““““To Helix””””” everyone replied simultaneously and clinked glasses with one another.

The waiter came back around and took everyone’s orders. I got a simple chicken parmesan.

While we were waiting for the food, we engaged in conversation.

I was the first to speak up. “Santana, Sarah, Melody. Will you be able to survive without me in school?”

Santana replied immediately, “Of course! I went the first half without you.” He wore a devilish smile on his face.

“Yeah, plus, I have friends other than you at school.” Sarah replied after her brother.

These kids were hurting my feelings. I was basically told that they wouldn’t need me around anymore. What a low blow.

I struggled to grasp a stable sense of mentality, but Melody spoke and made me lose it.

“Helix, we’re not kids.”

I almost spat out the wine I was sipping because of her comment.

‘Melody, you’re 16. Tell me that’s not a child.’

“Ouch, you guys.” I exaggeratedly clutched my chest like I was in pain. “Will you guys at least miss me?”

““Yes.”” Santana and Sarah replied almost instantly.

“Wait, what do you mean by leaving?” Melody was starting to get worried.

“Leaving? He didn’t say anything about leaving. Where’d you get that idea from?” Mark joined the conversation.

“Oh. I’ll miss him.” Melody said again, shyly.

“In any case, even though you’ve emotionally hurt me, the wound on my heart has been healed with your kind words. Are you

guys going to college?”

“Of course!” Santana was excited about this. He wanted to go to the police academy.

Sarah was undecided because who knows, and Melody wasn’t even thinking about college yet.

Mark and Celia were having their own conversation.

About 30 minutes later, 3 servers came to the table and served our dinners.

Since we all had food, no one was talking and we were all eating peacefully.

It was quiet. Though, not long after everyone dug in, Mark and Celia started telling the story of how they first met.

It was pretty interesting, but cliche. I was surprised that people actually met the way they did.

I say cliche because it’s literally something you’d read in a novel. Celia was on the subway and there were no seats. She was in

New York and on her way to school.

The subways in New York are overly crowded. Since there were no seats, she was left standing. The subway stopped and she took

out her phone.

She was texting one of her friends that she’d meet them on a part of the campus when the subway moved forward with a burst.

Because she was texting, she used two hands and wasn’t holding on to the rail.

The sudden start made her lose her balance and fall. She closed her eyes to brace for impact, but didn’t feel the hard, metallic

flooring of the car. Instead, she felt something soft.

She opened her eyes and saw a boy looking down at her. It was Mark. She got off his lap in a hurry, thanked him, and went about

her day.

Not long later, she was in the same class as him.

After that, they encountered each other more frequently.

One of her other classmates, though, fell in love with Celia and asked her out. She said yes because there was no reason not to.

Time passed, and Celia and the boy who fell in love with her, Nathan, got married and had Melody.

About 4 years after Melody’s birth, Nathan developed a respiratory infection and died during the surgery when it was being

removed.

A year later, Celia got on a dating site and met with Mark coincidently as the first date.

Love blossomed and blah blah blah. That’s pretty much it.

After the story, dinner ended and we were handed the bill. Mark got the bill for everyone and we left the restaurant. We all went

back to Mark’s house for a small after party. Santana and Sarah went back to their apartment for an unknown reason. As far as I

knew, neither had anything to do the next day, so it was pointless, but I let it go.

It was now 10 PM and the crickets were out.

When we got inside Mark’s house, Melody took my hand and dragged me upstairs.

“Come here, Helix.”

I looked back to Mark, who was watching with a satisfied smile, with an expression that said “Help me.”

‘You little bastard. You fucking sly fox. I’ll repay my debt to you.’

I was cursing him in my head as I was being dragged up the stairs. When I reached the top, I heard the sound of a clap from

downstairs.

‘They are really high-fiving right now? They really are courting death.’

Not long after I reached the top floor, Melody pushed me into her room and closed the door.

“I could have walked in by myself. There was no need to push me here, Melody.”

“Yes there was.” She said. I soon heard a click from the door and realized what she did. She locked the door to trap me.

“Why?”

“So you won’t run away.”

“From what?”

She didn’t answer. She was wearing jeans and a cut sleeve top. She also had a small black jacket on as well, but she started taking

it off.

I was growing nervous by the second.

She took a step towards me, and I took a step back.

She took another step, and I retreated once in return.

5 steps later, I couldn’t go any further because the bed was in my way.

The bed was low, and the mattress was right in line with my knee joint. I couldn’t retreat any further, so I kind of was stuck where

I was.

She drew closer and closer. When she reached me, she put her small hands on my shoulders.

“Helix.”

“Wha- ahh!”

She didn’t give me a chance to properly reply before she pushed me down on the bed and climbed on top of me.

???

“Helix.” she said again.

“PG. Keep it PG.”

“Helix”

“What?”

She blushed like mad and looked me dead in the eyes. “I like you. No, I love you.”

“Melody? Are you okay? Did something happen to you? Did I do something to make you act like this?”

I was deeply uncomfortable because I’ve known this little girl for 13 years now. I basically watched her grow up, and now she was

sitting on me.

Of course I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, I just needed her to calm down.

I looked up at her as she was violating my personal space. She looked like a predator.

“I’m fine.” she answered back.

“Melody. Why are you doing this? Please stop.”

“Because I love you.”

“If you really loved me, then you wouldn’t be forcing yourself on m--”

She shut me up by kissing me. I didn’t kiss her back because it was one-sided.

The seconds ticked by and heat was practically radiating off her as her face was a deep crimson.

“Melody. Stop.”

“No.”

“Melody. I’m serious. I want to talk to you about something.”

“We can talk later.”

While we were having this short conversation, her hands were roaming my upper body and tracing my muscles.

“Melody! Last chance. Let go of me.”

“Mmmm no.” She said seductively and giggled.

‘This child. This is sexual assault. I’ve had enough. I thought she was playing at first, but now it’s too far.’

As her hands were about to reach my lower body, I tightened my core and flipped her over. Now I was on top of her.

I quickly got up and checked my appearance. My shirt was a little lifted up and my jeans were sagging just a little. You could see

the red line of my boxers, so I pulled my jeans up and fixed my shirt.

I turned to look at Melody, who was laying down on her bed. She wasn’t moving. Was she expecting something?

When she realized I wasn’t coming back on top of her, she sat up and looked at me strangely.

I crossed my arms and looked at her with a serious face. “Melody, why did you do that?”

“I-” When she saw my expression, she couldn’t explain herself.

“Melody, I need to talk to you about something?”

“Well what is it?”

I’m kind of hesitant about it because I know she’ll hate me for it.

“Spit it out, it’s not like I’ll hate you for it.”

‘But you will.’

“Okay. I wanted to tell you this for a while.”

She was listening intently to every word. My expression turned cold as I started to explain what happened the night of the party.

Her expression changed multiple times. Getting dark and darker. It was quite unsightly, but I didn’t stop my story.

“Okay, that’s said. You now know what happened at the party from my perspective. I want you to know that I told you this

because I think you can handle it. I already taught Jack a lesson, so don’t do anything rash.”

Melody was silent as tears rolled down her cheeks. She could never imagine she was almost defiled.

“Two more things.”

Melody continued to stare at me.

“You can’t like me. You’ll get hurt in the end.”

“How do you know? You’re not me.”

“That’s true, I’m not you, but I also know why you would get hurt.”

“Then tell me.”

“Well, do you want me to be blunt with you, or a little nicer than the former option?”

“Blunt.”

“Okay. I don’t like you. I have no physical, emotional, or sexual attraction to you as a female. I’m not gay, I just don’t think of you

anything other than my sister.”

“...”

She stared at me blankly as if she was still processing what I had just said. More tears rolled down her cheeks.

She was now sobbing. I could only stare at her with an expressionless face.

“Melody, you deserve someone better than me. You don’t like me for me. You like me because I was your emotional support from

your break up with Jack. I was your emotional rebound.” And that was the 100% truth and she knew it deep down.

“One more thing though. The reason I’m telling you this is because I won’t get another chance.”

She looked back up at me through her teary eyes.

“You’re probably wondering what I’m talking about. I’ll explain it to you, so listen carefully.” I decided to close with this. “I’m

leaving here. I’ve stayed longer than I should have. It’s time for me to go to another place. It’s also time for you to forget about

me.”

“I-I don’t want to.”

“You need to. It’s the best for both of us.”

“But I can’t lose you. It’ll hurt too much!”

“You’ll have to suffer through it. By suffering through these dark days can you grow to be stronger.”

I turned around to leave.

“Wait!” she called out to me.

“Hm?”

“What do you mean staying here for too long?”

“Exactly as I said. I stayed here for too long.”

“What do you mean though?”

“Were you not listening to what I said previously? I stayed here for too long.”

“For low long?”

“Longer than you.”

“...” She paused and looked down to think about what I meant.

She then looked back up again. By that time, I was in her blind spot.

“Helix?” she called out for me.

I got behind her and whispered in her ear.

“Forget about me and live your life.”

She froze immediately.

“Why? What if I don’t want to?”

“Because I don’t exist in the first place.”

‘Huh? What does he mean by that?’ Melody thought just before the world turned pitch black.

After I answered her, I knocked her out swiftly and tucked her in. Soon after, I left her room and went downstairs again.

Mark and Celia were enjoying a glass of red wine when I came downstairs.

“Hey, Helix. What’d you guys do?” Mark had a smirk on his face as he asked.

“I told her everything.” Mark and Celia’s expressions turned serious.

“Everything?”

“Everything.”

“How’d she take it?”

“You’ll see the aftereffects in a few days.”

“Not well, then.”

“Mmh.”

“We heard some noises from upstairs though. Sounded like you were playing around.” Celia changed the subject.

“You could say that. Mark and Celia. I need to tell you two something important.”

“We’re listening.” Mark replied.

“I need you to fulfill two requests. Can you do that for me?”

“Depends. Will we go to jail?”

“No.”

“Alright, we can help you.”

“Good. My first request is to take care of Melody during her mental recovery. She must be going through a lot and a lot is

weighing on her mind right now. She needs comfort and some alone time. Please don’t ignore her, even if she looks fine.”

“Of course. What do we look like to you? We’ll always take care of her.” Mark agreed.

Celia asked, “What about the second request?”

“Forget about me.”

“...”

“...”

They both looked at me blankly.

“What?” Mark’s voice sounded concerned.

“Do you want me to repeat it to you?”

“No, we heard you. Why would you want us to forget you?”

“Because it’ll be easier for both of us. I’m leaving.”

“Leaving where?”

“Not here.”

“Can’t you tell us? For old time’s sake?”

“I can, but won’t. I want you to forget all about me. Don’t talk about me, don’t think about me, and don’t mention anything about

me to anyone. Especially Melody. This will be hard on her as it might be for you.”

“We can do that, but it’ll take some time.”

“Good. Then this is my final farewell. It was an honor and pleasure to know you all.”

“The pleasure was truly ours.”

“Then, goodbye.”

I left their house and started making my way to Santana’s apartment.

When I got there, I opened the door and looked around for my things. The first thing I picked up was my clothes. I can’t leave

behind any traces of my existence.

The blanket and pillow I was using were put away where Santana picked them out from. I spotted the cat collar that Melody gave

me under the pillow that I picked up. It’s a good keepsake.

The clothes and the collar, I’ll bring with me. The rest of belongings will be burned, such as the cap and gown, and my certificate.

I have a passport, but it’s somewhere else. I’ll need to pick it up before I depart.

After I was done cleaning, I laid down on the floor and drifted off to sleep.

5 hours later, I woke up and left the apartment for good.

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