Ryan's face was strikingly handsome—his sharp nose, slightly bent, gave him the haughty air of an old-world aristocrat. His thick brows furrowed, even in sleep, hinting at a perpetual bad mood. The diamond stud in his nose added a rebellious edge, a mystery that kept people guessing.
He slept deeply, his lashes occasionally fluttering. Emily couldn't help but wonder, Is he always this tired? She noticed his books were dusty—maybe he wasn't interested in school at all.
Ryan's sudden entrance had left a strange tension in the room. Professor Louis, despite his frustration, carried on with his lecture. But it wasn't long before his patience ran thin. He set his notes aside and picked up a pile of papers.
"The essays I assigned," he began, "were mostly well done. But there's one that stands out… for a different reason." The students paused, curious.
"Ryan," Louis said firmly, his voice cutting through the room.
Ryan snored softly, oblivious.
A few students chuckled.
"Ryan!" Louis's voice rose sharply.
Emily gently nudged Ryan's arm. "Hey, wake up…"
Ryan's eyes snapped open, filled with annoyance. "What's your problem?" he growled, glaring at her for disturbing his sleep.
"Ryan!" Professor Louis shouted, his face red with anger. "Stand up!"
With a deep frown, Ryan stood slowly. "What is it?"
Louis, his face tight with frustration, recited a passage from Ryan's essay. "You mentioned here that education is essential for future national wealth… Who proposed this idea?"
Ryan blinked, clearly unprepared. "Uh… Adam Smith?"
"Wrong."
"David Ricardo?"
"No."
"Uh… Malthus?"
Louis's face twitched. "Are you going to guess the entire history of economic theory?!"
Laughter erupted in the classroom. Ryan leaned back lazily. "If it's none of them, maybe it's my own brilliant idea."
Louis couldn't hold back anymore. He hurled Ryan's essay across the room—it landed on Emily's desk. "John Stuart Mill! You plagiarized the whole thing, didn't even bother to change the font or remove the original author's name!"
The class burst into laughter.
Louis pointed a finger at Ryan. "You've got two days to rewrite it, or don't bother showing up for the final!"
The bell rang, and Professor Louis stormed out, leaving the room buzzing with gossip.
Ryan didn't seem to care. He slumped back onto the desk and went right back to sleep as if nothing had happened.
Outside the classroom, Emily's friend Daisy pulled her aside. "You should stop sitting next to him," she whispered urgently.
"Why?"
"Ryan's trouble. The worst. He skips classes all the time. Three of his courses are in danger of failing. Teachers are practically waiting to fail him."
Emily's eyes widened in shock. "Really?"
"Yeah. You don't want to get dragged down with him."
As Daisy's words sank in, Emily glanced back at the classroom, where Ryan remained fast asleep. What kind of person was he, really? The more she thought about it, the more she realized there was much more to Ryan than met the eye.