Cataclysm

Rag doll

Cassandra groaned into her arms, face down on the library desk next to the window. There's open books laid out all over the desk and papers scattered about.

"Cheer up, Cassie. Midterms are almost over! Winter break is almost here!" Lindsay cried out, unable to contain her excitement. She rested her head on both of her palms, sighing contently into her hands with her elbows prompted on the desk. A student nearby snaps their head at her voice, eyeing Lindsay before turning back to their book.

"Shh, hun. Just go to the tutoring center if you're really struggling. Lindsay and I here have to get to class," Kai replied, placing a comforting hand on Cassandra's shoulder before snapping her books shut and placing them in her bag.

"It's less that I don't understand the material, it is more so that I didn't know what to write this last essay about so it feels very wrong and on top of that, there is more work to be finished. There are too many exams to worry about. And the universe has the audacity to make me sick during midterm week. It's so inconvenient." Cas lifted her head up and stuck her bottom lip out, pouting at her friends.

"You're going to get through it. Take some medicine and go to the tutoring center if you need any help. Love you Cassie," Kai advised, blowing her a kiss and throwing her bag over her shoulder before walking away.

"She's right, you should head there before they close. There is nothing wrong with asking for help." Lindsay maintains eye contact and emphasizes every word of her last point by nudging her pointer finger at each syllable and stating it ever so slowly.

-

Cassandra wanders about in search of this renown tutoring center. She'll walk a couple of steps and pause at every sign with arrows and room numbers. She finds an unrecognizable part of campus as if she traveled over a magical bridge into the college's deepest, darkest lair. Her strong sense of direction has never done her wrong. Having spotted a sign at the window, "Tutoring Center," Cassandra proceeds inside to the front desk with the Ginger seated behind it.

"Hi, welcome to the tutoring center. We close in twenty minutes today, but you can come by tomorrow with an appointment. You can fill out this form if you want to come by tomorrow. What did you need help with?" the redhead asks as if reading off a script. Her orange curls hang over her glasses and she quickly moves them to behind her ear.

"Uh, an English essay? Is there any way someone can help me today? The draft is due tomorrow," Cassandra shy fully admitted, with a small smile on her face.

"Sorry, we can't-"

"Nonsense, Sarah. I can take it from here. See you tomorrow!"

Cassandra's eyes immediately moved over to the handsome blonde standing behind her. He popped the cap back on the white board marker before swinging his belongings over his shoulder. Before Cas could even realize it, he's leading her out the door and into the computer lab.

"My name's Elias but you could call me your savior for today. I work at the tutoring lab and I so happen to be free to help you with your essay," Elias introduces himself, flashing a grin at his damsel in distress. He towers over her with blonde hair and chestnut, brown eyes. His smile stands wide and lifts higher on his right cheek and his bottom lip is noticeably bigger than his top lip.

"And who said I needed your help?" Cassandra raised her eyebrows at him. She was amused at his cocky nature, but she knew she didn't mind a cute boy talking to her.

"You did. Just now. You do need help, don't you?" Elias asked her, with a newly formed smirk on his face. More so, he crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows as well, giving Cassandra a pointed look.