The clicking of Betty’s heels echoed and filled the halls she walked as the sun rose and shone through the windows around her. Another day was starting and soon the building would be full of students. Rich students, poor students, students who were smarter than she, and students who could barely read. They all came in and created an environment that thrummed and hummed with emotion. There were days when the air was so thick with feelings, that Betty had to focus on breathing in order to get by.

One of the janitors walked by the older woman and gave a nod as he made his way to a closet to grab a broom. There always seemed to be dust on the floor but Betty didn’t see the janitor, she was more focused on the air that followed him. In the empty space that trailed behind the man, Betty could smell and feel a kind of pressure. She quickly sucked in through her nose, alleviating the atmospheric change that she felt and turned her head as the trail behind the janitor turned from thick to thin until a smile formed on his face and a whistle came from his lips. Betty gave a small grin and continued on her way to her office.

Being the school counselor gave the woman a purpose as she had never had before. There was a sense of good doing whenever she was able to help a student. It was much different from her previous job as a sales clerk. Betty had gotten a job directly out of highschool, planning on attending college. Unfortunately life happened and she got pregnant with her then boyfriend’s child. After he left her to fend for herself and her unborn baby, Betty had decided to do what it took in order to ensure a good and safe life for her child. She had stayed on as a sales clerk for fifteen years before deciding it was time she followed her dream and went back to school. It took her another eight years to finish her degree but she had finally accomplished her goal and now walked the halls of the school that had given her the best job in the world.

Betty turned the knob on her office door and walked in, turning on the light and pushing the power button on her computer. Most days started the same and she only glimpsed the people walking past her door as she grabbed folders with various students names on them whom she needed to meet with that day. The older woman had been surprised when she had first started with the amount of pain and hardship the kids had to deal with, but now nothing surprised her. A student could come in saying that they’d been abducted by aliens and Betty would barely blink an eye. The world had turned crazy, it seemed, overnight.

The counselor finished finalizing her files as the vice principal came over the intercom giving announcements to the teachers in the building. A bell rang out and soon students were milling about the halls, going to their lockers or to their home rooms as they did everyday. Betty stood outside of her door and smiled as students passed, calling most of them out by name to ask how they were doing or just to say hello. The air began to grow thick as all the teenagers filled the school. Betty breathed in deeply, sucking in the air and expelling it, leaving a lighter and more passive space. She watched as with each breath in, the students around her grew calmer and their demeanor changed.

The final bell rang and the last of the kids went into their rooms as teachers closed the doors and started their lessons for the day. Betty grabbed the folder from the top of the pile and quickly checked the student’s classroom number. This particular student was having trouble with getting their homework done and lighting things on fire in the bathroom. The counselor took off down the hall and turned the corner where she nearly ran into a girl clutching her middle, looking as if she had been crying.

“Theresa.” Betty said slightly bewildered as she caught her breath. The air around the girl was so thick the woman was having a hard time breathing. She sucked in through her nose, and exhaled, thinning the atmosphere around them both. Theresa’s eyes brighten a smidge and her frown relaxed a fraction, but the girls emotions still held her and the space around her.

“Sorry.” The girl mumbled. “I’m late for first period.”

“Are you okay?” The counselor asked knowing a little about Theresa’s story. Mrs. Sanchez had told Betty about her fears for Theresa and had gotten advice from the counselor on ways to help. “Do you need to talk about something?”

“No. I’m fine. Thanks though.” Theresa said, turning to head the direction she had been going.

“If you ever need anything, my office door is always open.” Betty called after the girl who was already down the hall. No matter how much Betty had sucked the emotional cloud in, the air had stayed thick during their entire exchange. Theresa was going through something much greater than Betty was used to but she was sure she would be able to help if they spent some good quality time together.

The counselor walked the hall and up a flight of steps before she came to a classroom and knocked. A student answered the door and Betty instantly recognized him as Billy, the student she was there to collect.

“Are you ready?” she asked as he nodded and pushed past her, shutting the door behind him. The boy carried his books with him in silence, letting Betty lead him to her office. They walked past windows and the sun illuminated the the woman’s face as they walked. The air around Billy wasn’t so much thick as it was stale. She calmly sucked it and exhaled, helping to refresh the atmosphere around the boy, who quickly perked up and seemed almost happy.

Betty looked out the windows as they walked and saw a slight breeze pick up. A tree swayed haphazardly and seemed almost ready to snap in half when the wind died suddenly. Looking behind her, the counselor realized that Billy hadn’t seen anything with his eyes on the ground in front of him. There was something unsettling about the way the weather had seemed to change in an instant. There were barely any clouds in the sky and the sun shone brightly. The duo reached the office, and Betty ushered the boy inside, looking out one of the many giant windows once more. She would need to talk to her brother about what she had seen.

Billy sat down in front of Betty’s desk as she circled him and opened his file.

“How are we today Billy?” She asked nicely, sucking in the air as she walked around the boy, calming him and helping his mind to focus.

“I’m doing pretty well actually. Now anyways.”

“What do you mean by now?” Betty asked, grabbing a pen, knowing the answer.

With that small amount of prodding the boy opened up about trouble he was experiencing at home and how his dad was barely ever around but when he was he had a notion for putting his cigarettes out on Billy’s arm. At this point the boy lifted his long sleeve, showing many scars, some old and a couple very new. The counselling session went on for thirty minutes as Betty sucked in the air around the boy, relieving him of the emotional stress he had been experiencing. She dismissed him and quickly took note of the things he had told her, planning on calling the correct people to help Billy and his siblings.

The counselor grabbed the next folder on the stack and opened it, looking for the classroom number. Finding the digits, Betty walked out of her office and noticed that the wind had picked up again as trees swayed and trash blew everywhere. She took a step closer to the paned glass and looked outside. There were a couple of people on the street, fighting against the wind, but nothing out of the ordinary as to suggest any of them were responsible. Betty never had her phone out during work, but she knew this warranted a response. As she walked to her next student, the woman found her brothers name and sent a quick text of only two words. He sent a response almost immediately. Hers read “An Other.” his read “We know.”