The rest of the day goes out in a blur: take a shower, toss my purple-stained uniform into a washing machine at the laundry (took me 'bout half an hour just to find the laundry), hang out with Rahne, Amara and Jubes - and then came the moment I have dreaded since I realized my hair was irreversibly purple. Dinner.

~

I'm stuffing myself with french fries and look straight at my plate. I'm not wearing shades any more, but at the moment, I wish I was. Every time I raise my eyes from the plate, I can see someone staring at me. Once, when I look around to find some salt, I notice Logan isn't at the table. That's a relief. I don't know why, but I have a feeling he would find this whole new-purple-hair-look stuff very amusing.

"Hey everyone! Sorry I'm late, I had to take care of some business."

So much for Logan not seing me. God, Please, don't let him see me like this...

"Hey, Blue-eyes!"

Oh, no.

I do my best to look back at him innocently, "Yeah?"

"Whatcha' do, stick your head inside a violet or somethin'?"

The other students start to giggle softly. Ray, who sits next to me, glares daggers around, then hisses, "Shut up!" Nobody seems to mind.

"Err, no, I-"

"Actually, I'm afraid that's my doing, Logan. At least, in part. You see-"

"I accidentally took one of Hank's test tubes to be full of shampoo", I say quickly. Then I resist the urge to bang my head against the table. That was very, very lame.

Now everyone stares at me, jaws hanging. Everyone except for Chuckles. I guess he knows the whole ordeal by now.

"Oh, I... see." For once, Logan looks flabbergasted. I don't blame him.

The rest of the meal, I keep my eyes down on my plate. Half way through desert, I get up. "Um... can I be excused? I'm really tired."

"Of course."

"Thanks, Professor!" I practically bolt out of the dining room, then I run up the stairs.

Wait a minute.

This time, I slap my forehead. What's the point in running out of breath, when I can simply fly upstairs?

There. Easy as pie. I drop on my bed with a sigh.

This had been a very long day.