Heading up the steps to the entrance of his school, John was grateful to have kept an old surgical mask handy. Had he still had a sense of smell, it would have certainly smelled like the inside of his backpack. The greyish hue from months of accumulated graphite and dirt wasn't particularly flattering either. Still, John knew not to let perfect be the enemy of good. He would see about finding a more permanent mask later.
Making his way to his first class, he stopped at his locker to drop off his bag, making sure to grab the TTS device his mom had packed. It was a small portable keyboard with an LCD display and a speaker. On the side was a volume knob as well as some other adjustable settings.
John hoped he could make his way to his seat discretely. Surgical masks were not a particularly unusual sight at his school. He didn't see any reason why his would draw particular attention. Stepping into class, he made his way to the back of the room where he might be furthest out of view.
For a moment, he thought he might have gotten away with it, but he quickly began to doubt the effectiveness of his ruse. Within minutes, he began to spot classmates catching glimpses of him at the back of the room. Was his surgical mask really so unusual? He didn't want to get worked up about nothing. He had been away from school for a while after all.
When the teacher arrived, he made his way to the front of the class. After greeting the students and writing his name on the back of the board, he called out to the back of the room.
John! So glad you could finally rejoin us. We were all worried when we heard about the accident. You aren't still sick are you? He added. Might I remind you that wearing a mask is forbidden on campus without a written doctor's note?
A bead of sweat formed on John's forehead.
So, what do you have to say for yourself?
John began typing frantically on his TTS. He was fortunate to have already been an experienced typer.
I do not have a doctor's note. a robotic voice emanated from the TTS
Is it your time of the month? the teacher responded.
John turned red with embarassment. So much so that he almost missed the implication of the homeroom teacher's retort.
Wait... he knows?!
What are you talking about? John prodded with the help of the TTS.
Do you think we would be so heartless as to not keep up to date with your recovery? The teacher responded. We were all so relieved to hear your trauma surgery was a success.
Oh god, they know. Thought Jeff, that was why they had been staring.
Worry not, everyone's been told about your accomodation needs.
Jeff could only speculate to what extent.
Now I'll have to ask that you take off that mask. We can't have students hiding their identities on school grounds. Its a security risk.
Tension hung heavy in the air as John weighed his options. If everyone already knew it would be no big deal right? He couldn't risk getting in trouble during his final year either. Perhaps it wasn't such a big deal?
He tentatively reached for one of the elastics on his mask. Tugging it to the side, he pulled it carefully around his face. A string of slime clung to the filthy mask as he pulled it aside, leaving a streak on his chin as it broke.
The room was silent. The entire class stared back at him, more out of morbid curiosity than ridicule. The silence punctuated only by a solitary cough.
After what felt like hours, the homeroom teacher spoke up.
Alright then, let's get started. Today we're going over...
John could hardly focus. He couldn't recall having ever experienced a more embarassing moment in his life. He wiped the vaginal fluid from his chin, and stuck his nose, or rather, clitoris, into his textbook.
