November 19th, 2013

Making that printer was a huge mistake. Sure, my workload has been a ton lighter, but I’m afraid Natasha suspects something. Just yesterday she caught me putting a blank worksheet into the scanner and printing out a completed document. She asked me if I’d lifted the answers off the internet and I lied and said yes. Then she went on to give me a whole lecture on cheating and plagiarism… well… I guess I deserved it. I guess that’s really what I’m doing…

I paused, overcome by an overwhelming sensation of guilt. I’d been a fool to trick myself into believing I hadn’t been using the printer to cheat. I knew exactly what my dad would say to me if he knew what I was going through. He’d scowl at me and ask me how I expected to learn anything if I kept on taking the easy way out of doing homework. With a deep sigh, I flipped back the pages of the legend to where I had written the printer to life. Just as I pressed the tip of my pen to the paper, Natasha walked out of the bedroom where she had been working on her computer. “Writing in your diary again?” She asked playfully. I turned to her and nodded sheepishly. The familiar whirring sound of the printer suddenly turned on and I jumped. I hadn’t printed anything; I thought. Natasha began to open her mouth to speak, and I hoped desperately that she wasn’t about to say what I was thinking she was going to say. “I’m using your printer, if you don’t mind. Gotta print a worksheet for class.” My heart dropped to my stomach. “Sure.” I said. There was no way I could stop what was to come now.  I could feel the color leave my face as I spoke. I’d been stupid to have made the printer able to connect to any computer, I thought. I buried my face into the legend and tried my best to make myself look busy. Moments passed and the sounds from the printer ceased. “Hey… Lydia…” Natasha put her hand on my shoulder. Reluctantly, I turned around to face her. “Yeah?” I asked with a nervous giggle. She held her worksheet in front of me. To my horror, the printer had done its job. The worksheet was fully completed and even had my name in the upper right corner. “What kind of Japanese printer does your homework for you?” She exclaimed. “You know…” I muttered, attempting to think up an excuse, “They got all this weird technology…” Weird technology, I thought. That was the best I could come up with? “Where’d you say you got this again?” I gulped, and in a split moment rose from my chair and headed to the door. “I have to get some fresh air.” I muttered as I left the room.