A Bright Morning
The morning was bright, the sun shining intensely but without heat, and the air was cool. Droplets of water dripped from the rooftops, and puddles were scattered everywhere.
The atmosphere made everyone feel happy and at peace. However, there was one person who didn't seem to enjoy it.
"Ugh, this sun is too bright!" Aswa shielded his face with his hand, trying to block the sunlight.
Aswa walked to school, surrounded by other students. Unlike the others, he looked unmotivated.
"Hoaaahh..." Aswa yawned loudly, his eyes sleepy.
He noticed a minibus (angkot) where many students from his school were getting on.
"Come on! It's a first-day promo! That means it's free! Just for today! Hurry up!" A man who looked like the minibus assistant (kernet) shouted.
The sign on the minibus read: "MERAYU SELATAN"
Hearing the word free, Aswa grinned. "Free? Hehe... Sounds good!" He made his way toward the minibus.
"You want to ride too, young man? Then hop on! Come on, who else wants to join?" The kernet called out.
Inside the minibus, there were already ten students. "Alright, looks like we're full. Let's go!" the driver announced.
As soon as the minibus started moving, Aswa fell asleep within minutes, leaning his head against the seat.
Unlike Aswa, the other students were excited, chatting with each other.
"Are you a new student too?" a female student asked.
"Yes... I'm a first-year student," another girl replied.
"Eh, you're a first-year too? That means we're in the same grade!" someone else joined in.
"It looks like everyone here is a first-year student."
A male student raised his hand. "I'm a second-year student."
The minibus went silent. Everyone turned to look at the boy—except for Aswa, who was still sleeping.
"Whoa!! That means you're our senior?!" a girl exclaimed.
"Yeah, pretty much. But don't worry, I'm not one of those delinquent troublemakers," the senior reassured them.
Everyone sighed in relief.
"Speaking of delinquent students, ever since that fight, after they were defeated, hasn't this school become much more peaceful?" the first girl asked.
"Yeah, let them experience getting beaten up for a change," another student added.
"They must be embarrassed, getting taken down by just one person."
"HAHA!" Everyone laughed.
"Wait... Do you guys even know who took them down? That guy was insane. His strength was unbelievable!"
They fell silent and shook their heads.
"I know who he is," the second-year student spoke up.
All eyes turned to him.
"Eh, really? Who is he?"
"He's… my friend," the senior said.
Their jaws dropped. "Ehh!!"
"So that means he's your friend, Senior? Whoa, that's so cool! Doesn't that mean we should respect you more at school?"
"Senior, please give me your number!" Suddenly, the students scrambled to take out their phones.
"Haha, relax, one at a time," the senior chuckled, his nose appearing to stretch in pride.
The girls fought over his contact—except for one.
She remained indifferent to the excitement, instead staring out the window.
"Eh!!" she thought to herself.
Meanwhile… [Meruya Selatan High School – A Different First-Year Class from Aswa's]
Everything proceeded like a normal school day—no fights, no bullying, just students chatting and laughing.
"Good morning!" A girl greeted cheerfully.
"Morning," replied another student sitting down while holding her phone.
"Hmm... I don't see your friend. Where is he?" the first girl asked.
"Oh, he's on his way. He said he took a minibus that's free today because of a promotion... Oh, and he also said he got the number of the guy who took down the seniors yesterday." - Rika.
"Whoa, that'll be super useful, won't it?"
"Yeah!... "
- TO BE CONTINUED -