A middle-aged male teacher stood sternly behind the podium, his eyes filled with disappointment as he looked at the papers he was holding.
His gaze shifted from the papers to the students before him, who sat in attentive silence, awaiting his next words.
With a heavy sigh, he began to call out students.
"Brent, only 65? I expected more than that, you could have done better."
"Next, Sonia, 74 marks."
"...Jasmine! 54 marks."
As the teacher began calling out students to hand them their report cards.
I was seated at the last corner of the class, sweat poured down my head as I nervously awaited my turn.
Thinking about my strict parents, I gulped hard.
"Frank!"
It was now my turn, as I stood up from my seat and walked to the front.
Tap-Tap
The sound of the teacher's hand on my shoulder interrupted the silence.
"You never fail to amaze me, Frank. Once again, you got the highest marks in class."
I received my report card, and with trembling hands, I scanned the numbers.
'...only...92.'
My heart sank, all my hard work, the late nights studying and sacrifices made and it still wasn't enough?
It was not as if I wasn't satisfied, but the...
Thoughts of my parents consumed my mind. Their expectations were always sky-high, demanding perfection in everything I did.
They had instilled in me the belief that anything less than perfection is a failure.
I could already feel their disapproving glances and sharp words.
The disappointment etched on their faces as they questioned why I can't reach the pinnacle they had set for me.
"You should be proud of yourself, Frank."
The teacher's voice interrupted my downward spiral of thoughts.
His words, filled with genuine admiration, pierced through the cloud of disappointment that had settled within me.
I mustered a weak smile and nodded, trying to push aside the weight of my parents' expectations that threatened to consume me.
Deep down, I knew that a score of 92 was commendable.
It was a reflection of my hard work and dedication throughout the year.
But the fear of disappointing my parents overshadowed any sense of accomplishment I should have felt.
As I returned to my seat, I couldn't shake off the lingering disappointment that lingered in the pit of my stomach.
It seemed as though my efforts were never enough, that no matter how high I reached, it would never satisfy their unrelenting standards.
The pressure they placed on me to achieve perfection had become suffocating, leaving little room for self-acceptance and appreciation of my own accomplishments.
Ring!
The school bell rang, everyone around me started packing their things but I remained seated, feeling gloomy.
"Frank, you're amazing."
A sweet child-like voice came, bringing me out of my daze.
As I turned around, following the voice, a cute girl was standing a few steps away.
She had a smile that could melt even the coldest of hearts.
The girl was around Frank's age. She had an oval face, thick lips, and a round figure, comparable to that of a celebrity.
She was my childhood friend Amelia. And also my crush.
"...How do you always get good marks?"
To her question, I could only awkwardly smile.
Slam!
She slammed her hand on the table, overly excited and sat facing Frank.
She looked at me with shining eyes.
"Could you tutor me, Frank?"
How could a man reject the innocent smile of a cute girl?
As I was about to respond, another sweet and seductive voice interrupted me.
"Frank~ could you tutor me too?"
Another beautiful girl approached Frank and asked? She had a cute smile that made her look even more adorable.
The girl had long orange hair, green eyes, a beautiful face, and a seductive body, although lacking in the boobs department.
The girl in front of me was Seena, my childhood friend's friend and my second crush.
Once again, before I could say anything, another voice came. This time it was a chilly voice.
"You two, stop asking him to tutor you, if he tutors you, when will he get the chance to study himself?"
She stopped the two other girls. She was also a beauty; if they were cheerful and friendly, then she was an ice beauty.
And she's my childhood friend's friend's friend Aria and my third crush.
"Why are you all looking at me like this...? As if I'm some kind of weirdo."
"Ok...ok, we won't ask him further, but let's celebrate at the karaoke today."
I was a little hesitant, thinking about my parents. They surely would never agree to this.
"Yes, Frank, you have to come this time."
But I just could not refuse this cute face, can I?
"...Yes, Frank, you should come."
"...Huh?"
I was a little confused by this sudden change in her attitude towards me, but I agreed to it anyway.
[Third Person POV]
They reached their destination, a popular karaoke joint, around seven thirty in the evening.
After arriving there, they started singing. Frank was enjoying it but then...
His worst nightmare: "Frank, we've been singing for half an hour now, it's your turn." Amelia said with a playful smile.
Frank's face turned beet-red, and he shook his head in disagreement.
"No way! I'm not singing!" He protested.
Amelia chuckled. "Come on, Frank, you can't be serious, right?"
"I do not want to sing," he repeated.
"Come on, Frank, just sit down and start singing," the girls encouraged him.
He finally gave in and sat down. But when he looked at their faces, all he saw were smiles; they knew what song would come next.
He closed his eyes as he felt everyone starting to get excited. He couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
When the first note of 'Wake Me Up' by Avicii started playing.
Frank didn't even try to hide his embarrassment. This was definitely worse than anything he could imagine.
He looked up as the verse began and saw the girls were all looking back at him expectantly.
"Amelia?" He asked nervously, "Do you think I could just...?" He trailed off.
*Dang*
Suddenly the door of the room they were in pushed open.
A drunk man was standing there, holding a bottle of beer, and he stared at them with his bloodshot eyes.
"Hey! You two! I'm going to kill you if you don't come out right now!" He shouted like an animal.
The girls looked at each other and then at the drunk man.
Just as they did that, the man who had been looking for trouble suddenly jumped into action.
He broke the beer bottle he was holding and threw it at the ceiling.
The glass shattered against the tiles, then fell to the floor with a dull clang.
He stared up at the ceiling for several seconds before sighing heavily.
He then picked up the broken glass and looked at the girls.
"Wh-what are you-" Amelia could not finish her word; the drunken man charged at them with the broken glass, holding it as if it were a knife. Frank, who was watching this from the side, saw that his mind went blank,
adrenaline rushed through his body.
At superhuman speed, he got in front of them and blocked the drunken man's path. Obviously, he got stabbed.
Due to the commotion, many people came and stopped the drunken man.
But why did he want to protect them? Because he had a huge crush on all three of them.
'What the hell did I just do? I could have pushed him.' His mind went from protecting to panicking mode.
"Are you okay?" the first girl said; tears were forming in her eyes. She was also trembling and looked scared out of her mind.
The second girl hugged him tightly as she whispered, "I'm...so...sorry. I was...so...scared."
"I'm fine... I just got a little dizzy," he replied, smiling at them.
"Why did you do it?" Nana, the third girl, said with tears covering her eyes.
Frank was surprised by her reaction; he did not think the ice beauty would have such an expression. Nonetheless, Frank found her cute with this expression.
"Because... I love... all... three of... you." Frank said to the three of them.
The girls were shocked by his sudden confession. Then they looked at each other and nodded.
"We also... love... you. We were... going... to confess... to you after... this... but..." the three of them replied. From their expressions, what they said was not a lie.
Frank was shocked but happy at the same time. He didn't regret his decision.
Now he was feeling cold yet hot at the same time. He didn't want to die as a virgin, but...
Suddenly, he asked, "I am... dying anyway... Can I touch your... mel-" he was interrupted by his death. Yes, death. He could not finish his shameless word.
_ _ _
[A/N: Comment if you liked the chapter and let me know, uh, and add it to your library.]