Alice patted her forehead lightly. The girl did not expect that the two lovebirds in front of her could still smile and grin in such a critical situation. Ah, it seems that love can indeed make a person stupid and unable to think clearly! Meanwhile, Arthur showed an expression of wanting to throw up that he always showed whenever he was sick of something.
"Oh, by the way, my name is Alice Stacey," Alice said as she stretched out her hand towards Arthur who was standing not too far from her. "The student council president at the girls' school."
Arthur smiled, showing dimples which made his smile even sweeter. "Arthur Alvarez, student council president at the boys' school," he said, returning Alice's outstretched hand. The two shook hands for a few moments before finally focusing their eyes on Romeo and Juliet again.
This was the first time Arthur and Alice had met and become acquainted after being elected as student council president a few days ago. Just as they took the lead, a big problem had arisen, namely the problem caused by Romeo and Juliet.
"I think we should leave the teachers or the disciplinary committee to punish them," Arthur chimed in.
"Do not!!!!" shouted Romeo and Juliet at the same time. Their history ends when the teachers intervene to punish them. They know the worst is bound to happen.
"You know that your mistakes are fatal, don't you?" Arthur pouted. "If you dare to do it, you should also be willing to take the risk."
"Don't ..." Juliet got to her feet, then took Alice's hand and held it tightly. "Aliceee, please help me."
Alice opened her mouth, was about to say something, then closed it again.
"You promised," whispered Juliet, trying to remind Alice of her promise.
"I said I'd try, I can't guarantee I can do it, Juliet," Alice replied.
"Oh, come on!" Arthur folded his arms across his chest. "You're all grown up. You should be responsible for what you've done. Don't want it to be fun!"
Alice nodded her head, agreeing with what Arthur said. However, on the other hand he couldn't bear it when his eyes met Juliet's sad eyes. The girl was surrounded by indecision that swayed her feelings.
Alice bit her lower lip. "What if we looked for an alternative solution that might... might help lighten their sentence?"
Arthur narrowed his eyes. In his opinion, Alice was not a strong enough leader. The girl was too kind and too protective of her friend like a mother hen. Totally the opposite of him, of course!
Meanwhile, Alice thought that Arthur might just be a two-faced leader who thirsted for respect from others. In addition, the man also looks cruel and heartless.
People say, don't just look at things from the outside. But, according to Alice and Arthur, the very first thing that would be their judgment of another was what that person showed them in front of them for the first time.
"How? Do you agree?" Alice asked.
Arthur was silent for a while, thinking about Alice's suggestion. After all Romeo is his friend. Besides, maybe after this Romeo and Juliet will feel acne, right? Apparently, he must agree to Alice's proposal to find an alternative punishment for the two lovebirds who are in love.
The scorching sun was streaming in through the glass windows. The weather today is very hot. In fact, the room has been facilitated with air conditioner, but it feels useless. The scorching sun remains inevitable, the heat still burns the bare skin of anyone in the room.
The four students were still in the meeting room, thinking about the most appropriate alternative punishment for Romeo and Juliet, two lovebirds who still shamelessly showed their affection in front of Arthur and Alice when their fates were at stake.
Arthur paid no heed to Romeo's persuasion to give him a light sentence. The man narrowed his eyes as he snorted. Their punishment had to be a punishment that would not allow other students to break the rules like this couple.
"What if you two just broke up?" squeaked Alice suddenly after carefully considering the suggestion. The girl was well aware that if she made the slightest misstep, this would surely lead to another disaster in the future. He didn't want more students to break the rules when he was the student council president.
"Don't want to!" reject Juliet outright. What the hell? It's good that Alice is trying to separate two people who love each other. Juliet would never want to do that. Even if the heavens and the earth fell, Juliet would not want to break up with Romeo.
"What kind of punishment do you want?" Alice pouted. "Expelled from school?" he added, causing Juliet to throw him a disapproving look.
"Alice!" shrieked Juliet. "No kidding!"
Arthur put his hands in his trouser pockets. He was still thinking about the most appropriate punishment for Romeo and Juliet. Until one idea finally came to his head. He took his hand out of his pocket and snapped his fingers.
"I have an idea!" Arthur thought. "What if you guys are punished by cleaning the toilet for a whole month?"
"Ew!" Juliet replied while showing her disgusted face. Just the thought of cleaning the toilet made him want to throw up. How could he possibly serve that sentence for a month? He shuddered, unable to imagine it.
"I agree," said Alice. "Expelled from school, cut off your relationship, or clean the toilet for a whole month. That's your only choice."
"Okay, okay! I agree to clean the toilet," Romeo said confidently. What can we do about it? That was the only choice he had. He did not want to be expelled from school and disappoint his parents. He also does not want to part with the girl who currently always fills his heart and mind.
"How about you, Juliet?" Arthur asked.
Juliet shivered her lower lip. He looked at Arthur and Alice in turn, then at Romeo. Seeing Romeo who gave her confidence through his gaze made Juliet melt too. The girl forgot for a moment her disgust at having to clean the toilet because she also realized that she didn't have much choice.
The girl took a deep breath. From now on, it seemed that he should try to be able to do menial jobs. "Okay, I agree too."
After that one sentence left her tiny lips, Romeo immediately hugged her very tightly. The man didn't even hesitate to kiss Juliet's cheek in front of Arthur and Alice, making Juliet's cheeks turn red with embarrassment and joy at the same time as receiving such sweet treatment from Romeo.
"We want to clean the toilets for a whole year, too!" Romeo and Juliet joked which Arthur and Alice actually took seriously.
"Okay then. You will be punished by cleaning the toilet for a whole year!" said Arthur firmly. The corners of his lips formed a lopsided smile when he saw the expressions of Romeo and Juliet. Hah, it was wrong to propose a heavier punishment when they got a lighter sentence!
Alice could only nod in agreement and resign herself to Arthur's decision which she thought wasn't too bad. At least, this punishment will deter Romeo and Juliet, and won't make other students follow in their footsteps to break the rules at school, right? Well, I hope so.
"So we won't be expelled from school, will we?" asked Romeo, wanting to confirm his fate.
Arthur and Alice nodded simultaneously. Seeing Romeo and Juliet hugging again made Arthur even more disgusted while Alice averted her eyes, pretending not to know the two of them.
"Enough, enough. Stop with your drama. Now let's go back to our respective classes!" Arthur's orders. "And don't forget your punishment starts this afternoon," he added.
Romeo scratched the back of his neck that didn't itch, then he moved to hug Arthur's leg as a thank you for wanting to lighten his sentence. "Thanks for helping me, Arthur," he said sincerely.
Arthur rolled his eyes, lazily, as he sneered at Romeo's actions. The man got rid of Romeo's arms by kicking him. He did not forget to show an expression of disgust and dislike to Romeo before leaving the meeting room.
Juliet did the same. The girl knelt down while hugging Alice's legs. He didn't forget to say, "Thank you for keeping your promise to help me, Alice."
"Don't kneel like this, Juliet." Alice helped Juliet to her feet and hugged her. "We're friends, it's only natural that I help you as much as I can," he said with a gentle smile.
"I am truly indebted to you."
Alice chuckled, "Don't overdo it! That's what friends are for."
The two girls let go of their embrace. Juliet then tucked her hair behind her ear. After getting rid of the threat of being expelled from school, now there is another problem. How could he see the faces of his other friends after this incident? Wouldn't there be a student who mocked him?
"If you're worried about the other students' responses, don't worry, I'll explain this to them," Alice said, as if she knew what was in her friend's head.
Juliet and Romeo said their goodbyes. Remember, the girls' and boys' schools are separated, so it's possible that they won't be able to meet after this. Romeo also left Alice and Juliet to go back to the boys' school, following Arthur who had already left.
After that, Alice and Juliet came out of the room. Who would have thought that there were still some students who gathered around and waited for the two to get out of there. Calmly, Alice explained that the matter had been resolved and now Juliet and Romeo would be serving a full year's sentence of cleaning the toilet. He also asked other students not to break the rules if they didn't want to suffer the same fate as Romeo and Juliet.
The crowd then dispersed after hearing Alice's explanation. Some feel happy because Romeo and Juliet get punished. However, there are also those who think that the punishment is too light. Well, the decision has been made and nothing can change it, right?