The First Lecture
1333 Words
As Mark and the other students walked toward their classroom, Angela passed by him. Neither of them noticed the other. Angela quietly walked past and continued on her way.
When Mark entered the classroom, he called one of the students.
"You, get my seat ready."
The student immediately dusted Mark's chair and arranged it before quietly returning to his own seat.
A few moments later, Bella entered the classroom with Maria, Stella, and Michelle. They were laughing and chatting among themselves.
As soon as Bella saw Mark, she smiled.
To her surprise, Mark looked at her and said, "Hi, baby."
Bella was shocked. Outside, he had ignored her and given her a cold look. Now he was acting differently.
She smiled happily.
"Hi, babe. How are you doing?"
"I'm fine," Mark replied. "You look beautiful this morning."
Bella blushed, while Maria, Stella, and Michelle smiled at each other.
Mark looked toward the back of the classroom.
"Derek."
"Yes, Mark."
"Bring a chair. Bella will sit beside me today."
Derek immediately obeyed.
Bella smiled proudly as she sat beside Mark.
"Mark is all mine," she thought happily.
Mark then looked at another student.
"Arrange my books on the desk."
The student quickly placed Mark's books neatly on the desk before returning to his seat.
Meanwhile, outside the classroom, Angela took out her phone and called her father.
"Dad, everything went well. I'll be resuming school in two weeks."
Her father smiled.
"My daughter, I'm so happy for you. I'll come and pick you up."
Angela smiled gently.
"No, Dad. There's no need. I can get home by myself. I don't want to stress you. I'll just take a taxi."
"Alright," her father replied. "Take care of yourself."
"I will. I love you, Dad."
"I love you too, my daughter."
Angela ended the call with a smile. She took a deep breath, stopped a taxi, got inside, and said to the driver,
"We can go now."
Back in the classroom, the lecturer walked in.
"Good morning, students."
"Good morning, sir," the class replied as everyone stood up.
The lecturer asked everyone to sit down before beginning the lesson.
He started asking questions.
However, everyone in the class already knew the routine. Any student who knew the answer quietly wrote it on a piece of paper and passed it to Mark. No one dared answer before him because they were afraid of what he might do after class.
Mark collected the answers and confidently answered every question.
The lecturer looked impressed.
"Excellent, Mark! You're very intelligent."
The other students remained silent.
They knew the truth, but no one dared to speak.
The lecturer smiled proudly.
"I'm impressed. You always have the correct answers."
Mark leaned back in his chair and smiled.
"I study every day and every night, sir. That's why I know so much. As you can see, I'm better than my classmates."
Some students looked at one another unhappily.
When Mark noticed them, they quickly forced smiles and looked away.
The lecturer turned to the class.
"You should all learn from Mark. Work harder if you want to become outstanding students."
Just then, someone knocked on the classroom door and walked inside.
The lecturer looked toward the door.
"You're just in time," he said. "I have one last question."
The newcomer confidently answered the question correctly.
Mark slowly turned his head and stared at the person with a cold expression.
The young man walked into the classroom confidently.
"Good day, sir," he greeted.
The lecturer smiled.
"How are you?"
"I'm fine, sir."
"I believe you're the new student who was admitted into this university."
"Yes, sir."
"What's your name?"
"My name is Jaden Smith."
"You're welcome, Jaden. You may take a seat."
Jaden nodded politely and walked to an empty seat behind Mark.
He didn't smile or try to impress anyone.
The entire class fell silent.
The students exchanged nervous glances, wondering what Mark would do next.
The lecturer continued with the lesson.
"I have another question for the class."
Before Mark could react, Jaden confidently answered the question.
The lecturer smiled with satisfaction.
"Excellent answer."
Bella looked at Jaden in surprise.
"Wow... he's brave," she thought.
She gently touched Mark's arm, trying to calm him down.
Mark's face became darker.
After a few more minutes, the lecturer closed his notebook.
"That's all for today's class. I'll see you at our next lecture."
The students stood as the lecturer left the classroom.
The moment the door closed, Mark slowly stood up.
His body burned with anger.
He turned around and glared at Jaden.
"So you're the new student."
Jaden calmly looked at him.
"Yes."
Mark took a step closer.
"Who gave you the right to answer questions before I did?"
Jaden frowned.
"I don't understand. Can you explain what you mean?"
Bella tried to stop Mark.
"Mark, calm down."
He ignored her.
A frightened female student named Mary stood up.
Her voice trembled.
"Jaden... no one answers the lecturer's questions before Mark."
Jaden looked at her.
"Why?"
"Anyone who knows the answer writes it on a piece of paper and passes it to Mark. If anyone disobeys him, they'll face the consequences."
She lowered her head.
"His father is a senior police officer. Everyone is afraid of him."
Jaden laughed quietly.
"So that's the threat you've all been living under?"
He looked directly into Mark's eyes.
"I don't care who you are or who your father is."
Mark clenched his fists.
"I'll make you regret those words."
Jaden didn't move.
"You'll make me regret them?"
He smiled confidently.
"Keep those threats for the people who are afraid of you. I, Jaden Smith, won't follow your orders. You can't control me."
The classroom became silent.
No one had ever spoken to Mark like that.
Mark pointed a finger at him.
"We'll see."
Jaden folded his arms.
"I guess we will."
Bella quickly stood between them.
"Mark, please. He's new. Let it go."
Mark took a deep breath before turning away.
"Derek!"
"Yes, Mark."
Before Derek could respond, Bella turned to Maria, Stella, and Michelle.
"Go and get Mark a bottle of water."
The three girls nodded.
As they were about to leave, Mark added,
"And bring me a burger."
"Okay."
The three girls hurried toward the cafeteria.
On their way, they couldn't stop talking about Jaden.
Michelle smiled.
"He's really handsome."
Stella laughed.
"Who?"
"Jaden, of course."
Maria nodded.
"I like the way he spoke to Mark. He wasn't scared at all."
Stella sighed.
"Maybe. But we don't have a choice. We have to obey Mark."
She looked at her friends.
"My father is a carpenter."
"Michelle, your mother is a barber."
"Maria, your parents own a small fish business."
"We can't afford to get into trouble with Mark."
Michelle smiled to herself.
"I think I'm starting to like Jaden."
Maria laughed.
"Maybe you should tell him."
The girls bought a bottle of water and a burger before returning to the classroom.
Mark looked at them angrily.
"What took you so long?"
"I'm sorry," Maria replied as she handed him the water.
Mark snatched the bottle from her hand.
He opened it and drank a few mouthfuls.
Then, without warning, he splashed the remaining water across the three girls' faces.
The classroom froze.
Mark grabbed the burger, crushed it in his hand, and smeared pieces of it across their uniforms.
The girls stood there in shock.
No one dared to say a word.
Jaden watched everything from his seat.
A faint smile crossed his face.
Bella tried once more to calm Mark.
"Please, that's enough."
"Stay out of this," Mark replied coldly.
He turned toward Jaden again.
"Look around you."
He spread out his arms.
"Everyone here is under my control."
Jaden met his eyes without fear.
"That's your business."
He picked up his notebook.
"My business is to study."
The classroom fell silent as the two young men stared at each other.
For the first time, someone had challenged the campus king without fear.
- Writer
