"What!!!!! Me?" Alex shouted.
Alex was shocked and speechless, she had never gone to an intern school competition before, and hearing this made her speechless. She has always been a shy person and her facing people so many new students and teachers would make it harder for her to compete with other schools and she wasn't confident enough in herself. This was something new she was stepping into.
"Yes, you, Alex," Mr. Max said firmly.
"But I've never participated in an intern school competition before! I don't even know if I'm good enough for something like that. Besides, I'm way too shy to face people," Alex exclaimed, her voice tinged with doubt.
"You'll be fine, Alex," Mr. Max reassured her. "I'll tutor you and make sure you're ready for the competition. And it's not like you'll be standing up in front of everyone or giving a big speech. All you need to do is answer the questions they ask while sitting comfortably."
" I don't know if I'm cut out for this, this is new to me, what if I don't win? I'd feel so uneasy as the whole school would expect me to bring the win." Alex said.
" Alex just be calm. If you don't start now when will you?" Mr Max said " you need to learn life is about doing new things. Winning and losing are all part of life. You can't keep running because you are afraid to fail. Alright?.
"Okay, I will give this a try," Alex said
"Good, that's more like it, we will begin to prepare to start today. Mr max said" Alex would come to my deck during break and your free time today and Linda I want you to search words and study their spelling.
"Okay, Mr Max" Alex and Linda replied in unison.
"Good!" we have a few days left, we have to take things very seriously. Alex, I will see you on your lunch break." Mr Max said as he turned his head to his deck to relax.
"Okay, I will be there' Alex responded
Mr. Max returned to his desk, and within seconds, the class erupted into chatter about the upcoming competition. The room buzzed with excitement and speculation.
Meanwhile, Linda turned to Alex, trying to comfort her. "You've got this, Alex," she said warmly. "You're the best at mathematics in the whole class! This competition is going to be a breeze for you. I'm positive you'll come in first."
Alex managed a small smile, though the nervousness still lingered in her eyes.
Linda began to read books and study different words. Alex also started studying as she was afraid to lose this competition, she wouldn't be able to face the shame of losing.
The bell rang, signaling lunchtime. Alex stood up immediately, having already packed her books, and headed straight to Mr. Max's deck to begin her study session. Meanwhile, Linda made her way to the cafeteria to grab some lunch.
Before leaving, Linda stopped to comfort Alex, offering her encouragement. "I know you can do it. You're my best friend, and there's nothing you can't achieve when you set your mind to it," Linda said with a warm smile.
Alex nodded, a small smile creeping onto her face as she watched Linda walk away. With a deep breath, she turned and continued on her way to Mr max's deck, feeling a little more confident about the competition ahead.
"I'm here and ready to start studying," Alex said as she walked into Mr max's classroom.
"Okay, hold on, give me a few minutes. You can take ur seat in front of my deck" Mr Max responded.
It appears Mrs max was taking his class before lunchtime began, He was finishing up some notes on the board for his students.
"Okay," Alex said as she walked over to sit at his desk.
He took about 15 minutes to finish the note on the board, during this period Alex continued studying waiting for him to finish up and they could start a new topic from the textbook together. Mr Max was done, he went back to his deck where Alex was sitting waiting for him.
"Sorry for wasting a bit of your time," Mr Max said.
"It's fine. I got to study a bit more on my own," Alex replied with a smile.
"That's nice! So, how's it going? Are you done? If so, we can begin a new topic, which I'm sure will be part of the questions you'll face in the competition," Mr. Max said.
"Sure, I'm done, and I'd love to start right away," Alex responded eagerly.
"Wow, I like that. It's impressive. Just a few hours ago, you were scared, and now look at you—so eager to prepare for the competition," Mr. Max said, his voice filled with admiration.
"Thanks, as you said it's part of life to try new things, if I don't I won't know how good I can be" Alex replied feeling confident in herself.
" I like that, I'm proud of you," he said
Alex smiled with no response.
Okay!!!! Let's begin right away we don't have much time on our hands. Mr Max said.
He sat down on his chair and bought out all the necessary things they would need to begin studying.
Lunch break was over, all students were heading back to their various classes. Alex was already deep in studying and wasn't heading back to her class until it was time to go home, this was with the permission of Mrs charlotte, as Alex needed a lot of tutoring as she could get, if she went to make school come to us victorious.
On their way back to the classroom, Linda bumped into Bruno on the stairs. Their class was on the upper floor.
"Oh, sorry! You can go first," Bruno said quickly.
"Lol, come on, it's fine. You can go first," Linda replied with a smile.
"Ladies first, you know. I'm being a gentleman," Bruno said, laughing.
"Okay, okay, I'll go first," Linda said, rolling her eyes playfully.
"Thank you," Bruno responded with a grin.
Linda passed him, laughing, and Bruno followed closely behind. As they walked up the stairs together, they chatted and laughed, their voices echoing in the stairwell.
It seemed Bruno had just made a new friend, and so had Linda. For the longest time, Linda's only friend had been Alex, but that was about to change.
They entered the classroom, chatting away as if they'd known each other forever. Bruno asked questions, and Linda eagerly told him about the school and its teachers. Their laughter filled the air, creating an instant bond.
Meanwhile, Alex continued her study session with Mr. Max. The hours passed quickly as they chatted and worked through the topics. Despite the fun time she was having, Alex felt her energy draining as the bell for closing rang.
Hearing the sound, Alex stood up immediately, eager to go home. She was exhausted from studying all day and couldn't wait to rest. As she was about to leave, Mr. Max called her back.
"Alex!" he called.
"Yes?" she replied, turning to face him.
"You know your studying doesn't end here, right? You still need to study at home and make sure to rest as well. Remember, we only have three days left before the competition. You need to be ready by then," Mr. Max said firmly.
"Okay, I understand. I'll study harder," Alex replied.
"Good. We'll continue your tutoring tomorrow," Mr. Max said with a smile.
Alex turned to leave, but before she could take another step, Mr. Max grabbed her arm and pulled her into a tight hug.
Alex froze, shocked and unsure of how to react.