"Hey, you know it's good to say hi right?"
**
I saw a message from him and smiled. "Hey, I didn't want to bother you. You seemed pretty busy," I replied, trying to hide my shyness.
"No worries," he said. "Next time, don't be shy. Just come up and say hi."
"Sure thing," I replied. "So, how have you been?"
"I'm good," he said. "But what about the song you promised me?"
"I haven't forgotten," I said. "Just tell me when and where, and I'll be there."
"Great," he said. "I'm still new here, so I don't know the best spot to meet. Can you suggest a good place?"
"Of course," I said. "I'll find a perfect spot for us."
I realized he was different from other boys in our school, and I was excited to see where this could lead.
**
"Hey, have you noticed that Trez never talks? He's always so serious," Ness commented, trying to convey her observation about him to me.
I shook my head, disagreeing with her statement. "No, he talks," I said. "Actually, we talk a lot."
Ness looked unconvinced. "Really?" she said. "I've never seen him smile, not even once. What did you do to make him talk to you?"
I grinned, knowing she wouldn't believe me if I told her the truth. "Nothing," I said, shrugging. "We just connected, I suppose."
Ness sighed, still unsure. "Well, he's a mystery to me. I can't figure him out."
I couldn't help but smile to myself, knowing that Ness wasn't the only one who thought that about Trez. Despite his quiet demeanor, there was something intriguing about him that drew me in.
"Hey Ness, come and show us your new laptop," Len called out excitedly, catching my attention. Their laptops were newer and better than ours, which made me a little envious. I was eager to see what they had.
"Yeah, let's take a look!" I added eagerly, unable to hide my excitement. Besides, going to Ness's class meant I might get to see him.
As we entered the classroom, everyone had that familiar gleam of excitement in their eyes. I took one look at Ness's new laptop and exclaimed, "I like it! Are you planning to install Windows 11?"
"I don't know," Ness replied. "I heard it causes computers to crash."
"It depends on the version you install," I reassured her, knowing a thing or two about the new operating system.
As I glanced around the classroom, my eyes landed on him. "Okay, Tess, you have to go say hi now," I told myself, feeling a little shy but determined to make a move. I wanted to see if he was as reserved in person as he appeared to be.
"I'll be right back," I told Ness and Len, and with that, I made my way over to Trez, walking straight towards him without looking anywhere else.
As I approached him, I took a deep breath and extended my hand to greet him. "Hi," I said, feeling his soft hands in mine. "Tess, focus," I reminded myself.
He looked up from his earphones and greeted me back. "Hey," he said, with a smile on his face.
"I kept my promise and came to see you," I said, smiling nervously and searching for something else to say.
"Ah, I can see that," he responded, with a smile still on his face. "So, how are you?"
"I'm good!" I replied, feeling a bit too excited as I held his hand in mine. I couldn't help but focus on the feeling of his hand in mine.
"I like the new laptops," I said, trying to keep the conversation going.
"Oh, it's nothing big," he replied modestly.
"It is a big deal, do you know how mine is?" I chuckled, enjoying our playful banter. But then, Len called out my name, signaling that we needed to go. Reluctantly, I said my goodbyes to Trez, promising to talk to him again soon. I made my way back to Ness and Len, feeling a sense of disappointment as we walked out of the classroom together.
As soon as we stepped out of the classroom, Len couldn't resist commenting on the interaction with Trez. "All eyes were on you, girl," she said with a playful grin. "And those boys behind you were definitely checking both of you out, especially your hands."
I let out a nervous chuckle, relieved that I hadn't noticed. "Really?" I asked, feeling a bit nervous but also a little pleased. It was a strange feeling to have someone's attention focused solely on me, but it was also a little thrilling.
Len nudged me with her elbow, a sly grin on her face. "Don't play innocent with me, Tess. I saw the way you were looking at him," she teased.
"Len, come on," I protested, rolling my eyes. "We're just friends."
Len chuckled. "I'm just teasing you, Tess."
As we made our way to class, we were greeted by the usual debate about about girls being housewives and not pursuing their own passions. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. It seemed like this conversation came up every other day. As we took our seats, I thought that as women, we should have the freedom to pursue our own passions and not just be confined to traditional gender roles. Sure, we could love and support our partners, but it shouldn't be a requirement for us to give up our own dreams and aspirations. But I didn't say any of this out loud, It wasn't worth starting an argument over.
As I settled into my seat, Kayla turned to me, excitement evident in her voice. "Have you seen the latest video of Riss & Quan?" she asked.
I shook my head, not really keeping up with the latest social media sensations. "No, what's it about?"
"They did a house tour, and it's insane. Those people are mega rich," Kayla said, her eyes widening in amazement.
I couldn't help but grin. "I wonder if I could just become a YouTuber instead," I joked, imagining myself living in a luxurious mansion like the ones I had seen in Riss & Quan's videos.
Kayla giggled, clearly entertained by the thought. "I know, right? And I can't believe she's pregnant. Their baby is going to be super spoiled."
My smile faded as I remembered the work I still needed to finish. "I actually have an English assignment I haven't finished yet. I need to submit it tomorrow," I said, sighing.
Kayla patted my back. "You've got this. You always pull through".
I fought to finish it right before supper time, which was somehow hard considering how much I didn't enjoy writing essays.
**
As we walked back from getting supper that night, I bid farewell to Ness since our block was farther than hers. But then, I unexpectedly ran into Trez.
"Hi," I greeted him, smiling. "I don't think I can come back to your class again."
"Why not?" he asked as he started walking me to my block.
"Your classmates keep staring at me and it makes me uncomfortable," I said, looking away.
"Well, firstly, you're not the shy type," he responded. "And secondly, that's just how they are."
Feeling slightly more at ease, I mustered up the courage to do the dare of singing to him.
"So, can I sing it now?" I asked, feeling nervous.
"Sure thing," he replied, excitedly smiling. I wished he would take off his mask, which he seemed to be wearing almost every day.
"Okay, but please don't laugh," I warned him, worried that I might embarrass myself.
"I won't," he promised, looking down at me.
I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down, but my heart was pounding so hard that it felt like it might burst out of my chest. I was so nervous that I was probably sweating, but I started to sing anyway.
"J'veux des problèmes..."