Random and I waited in line for quite a while before heading back to her classroom. Everyone apparently decided to eat at the same time, because there was a massive line up in the cafeteria. But I didn’t take it for granted, it was for good reasons; they were serving pizza, pierogies, cheeseburgers, salads of various choices such as Greek and Caesar and Jell-O as a desert. It was quite a widespread, but Random only took a few pierogies while I took a mixture of burgers and pierogies. I could tell she wasn’t that hungry.

 

When we got to Random’s classroom it was a meal of silence, both of us unsure of what to say or do. Her best friend just zeroed her out like she was an enemy. I could understand the appetite loss, although I still ate despite it. She sat there with her head drooped lower than a sad dog while various robots and students chattered around us. If not for them, it’d be completely silent. I decided to try and break the silence.

 

“So, uh, Random, you hungry?” I asked, although I knew it was a stupid question.

 

“Huh?” she looked up. “Sorry, I’m not in the mood. Cocoa…” the last word hung in the air. “I’ve never seen her like this.”

 

“Yeah, she looked kind of, upset?” Upset? I’m an idiot.

 

I was never very good talking to other females, especially Random. She was the only one who could silence me when we were together, or jumble my words when we did speak. That’s why I listened intently to her; I could never form coherent sentences half the time. But she was upset and I wanted to try and cheer her up, anyway I could.

 

“So did you hear they’re doing that wheel thing tomorrow? I heard it’s supposed to be pretty cool, and they’ll be giving away certain things. Today’s only the slow start, so there’s not much outside of general set up.”

 

I tried to sound to convincing but I could tell it wasn’t working. Her expression didn’t change and her food was getting cold. Even mine started to look less appetizing, but that was because they cooked it wrong. After taking one bite I could tell I wasn’t going to finish it; even I couldn’t fix this monstrosity.

 

“So what about this food?” I ask, trying to change the subject to something lighter. “They undercooked the pierogies, and the burger looks like it was made upside down, right?” I held up the burger and turned it upside-down in-front of my mouth. She chuckled a little, so I knew I wasn’t making a complete fool of myself.

 

“Anyway, I think meal time is over.” I take the plates and chuck them into the trash. Thank you paper plates; easy clean up.

 

Random just returned to sighing and starring down at the floor, like it was about to reflect her perfect world. We needed to go somewhere else to get her mind off of what happened today, but to where?

 

“I wonder…” I say with a sly smile, trying to catch her attention. “If metalworks is still open, I could show you something pretty cool, although most would find it lame. I made them during free time after school. But it’s most likely closed, but that’s not a problem.”

 

She looked up once more at me with a quizzical look on her face, almost like she was wondering if she should go or not. I thought she’d say no when a smile appeared out the corner out of her mouth and she stood.

 

“Okay, let’s go,” she tells me, holding her hand out toward me. “I need to get my mind off of things.”

 

I led her the long way toward the metalwork’s classroom, as most of the main hallways were crowded. As I thought, it was closed off when we got there. I guess having metalwork’s as a job isn’t something shined upon in our technological world. But there’s just so much you can do with metals these days of any kind it’s astonishing. Most machines even use our materials.

 

We passed by other various stalls along the way; English, art (which they really took to the extra mile) and math, which had various signs and symbols hanging from above them. When we finally got there I used a spare key I had made by borrowing the teachers. I was one of his favorite students so he didn’t mind me using the room when he wasn’t here. I think even Random seemed impressed I had a key. After the tumblers in the lock finally fell into place, I walked her inside and flipped the light switch.

 

The room was set up just how it was before a class. It was twice the size of a normal classroom to give us ample room to move around in. Fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling in rows of six from the door to the back. Along a wooden wall on the back right of the room hung saws, hammer, screwdrivers, tongs and other tools in varying sizes. Three horizontalwindows were on either side of the room, to allow sunlight in. In the left most back corner, about a quarter of the area, was the actual classroom; chairs, desk, whiteboard and anything else the teacher needed to explain things to us. The rest of it was home to all the tools needed to work on various projects, along with space needed to bend the metal into different shapes.

 

Along the back wall toward the right of the entrance were the soldering stations where we fused metals together or heated them enough to bend them different ways. It was a row of six work areas, reaching toward the corner of the room. Safety glasses were set above the area, along with other tools used in heating the metals.

The cutting station was in the center, indicated by two rows of four work areas. Drawers lined the front and back of them, housing metals and tools needed during the process. Each work area had one metal cutting band saw sitting atop them with enough space left to place the metal once it was cut in case we were doing multiple cuts. The top most drawers held the safety equipment needed for this while the lower ones were replacement parts and tools.

The right most walls had work areas with pipe + bar fabrications, roll benders, and measurement tools to get accurate sizes on all the metals we use.The drawers again held the safety tools for this and other miscellaneous stuff.

 

“I haven’t been in here since Saturday,” I say with excitement. “I bet you’re wondering why I brought you here, right, Random?”

 

“A little,” she says a bit uncaringly. “I’ve never been in here without it being time for class,” she ends with a curious air.

 

“Well I’ve been in here quite a lot when class isn’t going,” I say with a grin. “Now, the things I wanted to show you are right over.”

 

I hurry off and Random calls out after me.

 

“’Things’? I thought you were just showing me a thing,” she says but follows me anyway.

 

It’s wasn’t completely a lie; I didn’t want to show her something, but “something’s”. I had been working on these any chance I got outside of class because I’d probably be laughed at in class. It took me a while to find and combine some of the right materials, but I’m glad I took the time to do so. It also helped that I had a granddad that was obsessed with strange metals and had me start a collection of them and save them over the years, which I don’t regret now. I think I’ve put them to good use.

 

“What are you doing?” Random asks me while I fiddle with a pipe + bar fabrication.

 

“You’ll see,” I tell her as I move it to the side.

 

Underneath it was nothing, until I slid the lose 12” by 12” wood out of the way, revealing a small panel underneath that, housing a lock that needed a key.

 

“Was that always there?” Random asks me, her curiosity growing. But I just pull out a key from my pocket, different from the room’s door, and insert it. Once unlocked, I stick my hand in and pull out a few of the tools I created.

 

“Is that a spatula?” she asks, a curious smile played across her face.

 

“Yes, made from some of the rarest metals on earth that my granddad had me keep. Its design lets you flip anything in any direction with ease. It’s the perfect length whether you have short or long arms and works with any type of frying surface, deep or not. To top it off, it’s easy to grip and quick to deliver efficiency.”

 

I nearly bit my tongue near the end, catching myself on one of my usual rants. I always end up geeking out on kitchen utensils and often forget what I was doing or who I was talking to. I felt a flush of red tingle my cheeks and quickly turned away, embarrassed by the fact that I could have just lost my girlfriend. But she just smiled and gently plucked the spatula from my hand, trying it out herself.

 

“You’re right; it’s also light weight and feels pretty durable. I don’t make food myself-I have an automated kitchen at home which I use-but I can tell this would be pretty easy to use, even for someone with no cooking experience, like me.“

 

Her compliment probably caused me to blush again, but I couldn’t resist showing off the other things I made. I showed her a ladle, potato masher, draining spoon, skimmer and other tools used in the kitchen. I took pride in these as a cook aiming to be a chef, as these were made from aluminum and rare materials that were thought lost. That gave them extra longevity and durability while making them light weight. They were going to be what I used once I got a degree in cooking.

 

“These are amazing,” Random says in astonishment. “I knew you were good, Cody, but these are incredible.”

 

“Thanks,” I tell her with a smile. “I’ve always been obsessed with cooking, even since I was young. When my mom finally let me cook the meals when I was old enough… Let’s just say I never failed to impress my family.”

 

She handed me back the spatula after I finished. I noticed she didn’t comment on the metals, but I guess she could tell it was obvious.

 

“If you want to cook so much then why are you in this class so often?”

 

“Because I cook at home and at my class,” I tell her, my smile fading. “You know, the only reason I took this class was to make these, that and because of my granddad.”

 

I thought she’d say something after that, but she just kept looking at the utensils. When she was done I took back the utensils and closed off the area, making sure to lock it. Afterwards, Random and I left and decided to head home for the day.

 

“Thanks for cheering me up,” Random says with a small smile.

 

“Don’t mention it. You know, I’ve only been inside your house once, and I’d like to see how this machine of yours-“

 

“No!” she shrieks. “I-I mean not today. There are things I want to take care of before I invite you in again. I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s okay,” I tell her, running my fingers through my hair. “I had fun today, Random. I can’t wait to see that wheel at school tomorrow myself.”

 

“Y-Yeah, me too,” she says before reaching for the door.

 

That’s when I grabbed her by the other hand, spun her around, and kissed her before letting her go. She blushed then quickly darted inside. I didn’t know why she didn’t want me entering right now, but I figured I wouldn’t push. I just smiled and left to head home myself; and good time to, it looked like it was about to rain.