Chapter Twenty-Seven: Last Days of Adolescence

 Narrated by Apollo Masterson

The bonus of having two older sisters who'd gone through university was that they were able to give advice on how to do well. One thing they'd recommended was to work on my research skills. It made sense, given that I was intending on a science degree and would need to know about the latest medical research. Less obvious was the need to work on my debating skills, as I wasn't going to spend my time arguing as a lawyer; but it was supposed to help with my public speaking skill nonetheless, as I'd be doing presentations as part of my degree.

Although my favourite fitness activities were using the treadmill and the weights machine, I did also enjoy an occasional bit of yoga. It was a good opportunity to slow down and relax.

After school one day, I came home feeling pretty angry. Even after football practice, I could still feel myself clenching my fists and teeth. 

What's going on? Where did this come from? I asked myself in the bathroom mirror. This must just be a mood swing. Chill out.

I felt better after a while. I could have gone to punch the boxing bag, but then I would have risked it hitting me in the face which would've just left me feeling angrier, as well as bruised. 

Mood swing averted, I decided to head over to the Spice District with Artemis to grab some food; both of us opted for a curry.

"Wow, this is hot," Artemis commented, digging in.

"Yeah, I could've sworn I breathed actual fire a minute ago," I replied. "Spicy food is something you have to get used to."

"Yep. It gives us an excuse to come here more often," Artemis said. "At least we've both decided to stay at home whilst doing our degrees."

Pounding the treadmill was all well and good, but sometimes I preferred going outside and pounding the pavements. It was weird to think that I'd soon be completing my final school exams and going to high school graduation. It felt like only yesterday I'd been running around in the playground at primary school.

Harvestfest rolled around and with it came the usual tradition of pleasing gnomes. I was well versed in what each type enjoyed by now, and it was always nice to see the gnomes happy with the little haloes above their heads. 

After appeasing one of the gnomes, I went inside to discover the whole family gathered in the living area, where Artemis was playing Genie's Curse on the UnorthoBox. I wasn't entirely sure how she could see, though, given that Dad was dancing right in her line of vision.

Friday rolled around, and time to do my final two exams. With our teacher standing right in front of me, it was a good incentive to keep focused, even if a small part of me was tempted to turn round and watch Artemis flying through the questions. If she wasn't elected as valedictorian, I would be very surprised.

After blowing out the candles on our birthday cake, Artemis and I decided to go to the Festival of Snow in Mt Komorebi's Yukimatsu district, along with Erytheia and Xanthe. Artemis and I got going on making a snowman.

"I got chosen as valedictorian, by the way," Artemis said casually. 

"What a surprise," I grinned. "I'd've eaten my hat if you hadn't been chosen."

"What hat? You don't own one," Artemis replied.

"I could've bought one," I explained.

"Bit weird," Artemis grinned. 

Once we'd finished with the snowman, I decided to head over to the bunny slope for a bit of sledding. The slopes were beautifully lit for the festival, although I barely had time to appreciate them as I whizzed past on the sled. 

For some weird reason, school sent me an email saying that there hadn't been enough room to fit me into the same graduation session as Artemis, and that I'd have to go the following week instead. So, with everyone dressed in their cold weather gear, we headed over to the school auditorium to watch Artemis deliver her speech and collect her diploma. 

The following week, the whole family decided to head over to Sulani to enjoy one of the local festivals. Dad entertained the crowd with his guitar skills and Mum chatted to some of the other festival-goers. 

"Isn't it beautiful here?" I asked.
"It is," Erytheia nodded. "I don't think I'd want to live here full time, though. It'd lose some of its special-ness then."

"Good point," I conceded. "It's nice to just come here on Summer Festival day and for the occasional local festival."

Winterfest was here, but I had to send off my university application first. After doing so, I spent a while decorating the tree with Artemis, who'd also sent off her application. She was slightly tanned after her sunbathing session on Ohan'ali Beach whilst we'd visited the festival, in stark contrast to my paleness.

"Hopefully we hear back from Foxbury soon," she said. 

"I'm sure we'll both get in," I replied. 

"Yeah, but it'll be nice to have it in black and white," she said. "Hmm, let's hope the cats don't destroy the tree once we're finished."