Summer Love

It was a mundane period in the classroom. Fortunately, it was also the last period. Despite being the last day of school, the teacher was present to keep an eye on the class. There were no tasks, no activities nor homework. There was only silence except for the ticking of the classroom’s clock, which felt unusually slow. One of the many students, Max, tapped an index finger on his desk in sync with the ticking. His dark blue eyes were glued to the clock, watching as the time passed by, second by second. His other hand was resting upon his messy brown hair. Some of Max’s classmates were discussing their plans for the summer while some of them were idling just like him. It seemed that students were allowed to move around, but not allowed to make much noise or racket. Max hummed a tune, but it was quiet enough that nobody else could hear it, and nobody was paying attention to him anyway. Unlike Max, his classmates were all on the edge of their seats, ready to race out of the classroom. Eventually, the clock’s minute hand reached 12 and the school bell rang. All the students rushed outside except for Max. He observed them struggling against each other to fit through the medium-sized classroom door. The teacher took notice of Max, who was still seated at his desk, “Max, aren’t you going to leave?” “I will, I just want to wait until the chaos subsides,” Max answered. The teacher chuckled. “Alright Max, have a nice summer,” he said, waving goodbye and leaving the classroom. Whilst leaving, the teacher exchanged some pleasantries with a female student who was at the door. Max took notice of the interaction as he was about to get up. The female student suddenly began approaching him, so he figured that he should remain seated. She stopped to grab an empty chair and placed it in front of his desk. Upon taking a seat, she tidied herself up, fixing her hair and her skirt. After getting comfortable in her seat, she rested her hands on her lap and glared at Max. Naturally, Max observed the student’s antics. A single glance at her appearance also told him all he needed to know. Her puffy bright orange hair that reached her shoulders, and her fair skin that complimented her appearance allowed him to recognize the student as Sophie. She was the belle of the ball, or the belle of the school in this case. His eyes darted down to meet hers. They were a lighter shade of blue, and they sparkled like night stars. He had often overheard stories of Sophie from other students. He recounted the many comments about her kindness and enthusiasm, hence her popularity. Although Max was impressed with her commendable behavior, he also felt somewhat sorry for her. It seemed like her kindness could be taken for granted. The girl cleared her throat. "Hey there Max! You may not know me, but I’m Sophie from the next class," she said, waving her hands. Looking at the popular girl in front of him, he had to wonder, “What does she want with me? And how does she know who I am?” Curious about the predicament, he decided to focus on the latter question. He awkwardly raised a hand in response to her wave. “Hello there… Sophie. Um, how do you know who I am?” A soft giggle erupted from the girl’s mouth, followed by a loud clapping of her hands. "Oh Max, I know everyone!" she exclaimed as she gestured to the empty desks in Max’s classroom. “I make it an effort to know all the students in the school, especially students like you!” she explained with both of her index fingers pointed at him. Max’s eyes narrowed from her explanation. He placed a hand on his chest and raised an eyebrow, questioning her with an uneasy tone, "Excuse me? What do you mean by 'students like me'?" She snapped her fingers. "Well, you know, students who are always quiet and don't socialize with others. Out of everyone in this school, you stand out the most in that category," she explained whilst reaching forward to poke him in the chest a few times. Max slowly pushed her finger away. "Oh, um, thanks…?" he said questioningly with a nervous chuckle. Sophie frowned, not amused by his response. She slammed her hands on the desk and pointed a finger at him. “Listen Max, I think it'd be better if you socialized and participated more in social activities. All I ever see you do is sit down in class and go home. You don't even go out during recess!” She crossed her arms and pouted. Max was taken aback by the sudden change in her demeanor. He held his hands up as a surrendering gesture. "Look, Sophie. I appreciate that you’re concerned about my social well-being and whatnot, but it’s quite alright," he lowered his hands before resuming, "I enjoy what I usually do, and I'm not too fond of social activities." She let out a defeated sigh. "Fine, but would you at least hear out my request?" He promptly nodded. "Oh yeah, I was just going to ask you the same thing. What is your request?" She beckoned, clasping her hands together. "Will you join me for some charity work during the summer holiday?" Max did not know whether he should laugh or facepalm, so he chose to be cool about it. He held out a hand to turn down her offer. "Apologies Sophie, but I'm not interested. Like I said, I’m not fond of social activities." He gestured to the empty school corridor that was once filled with running students. "I’m pretty sure there are plenty of other students who would be interested. Why don't you ask them instead?" Sophie looked down, tapping her index fingers together. "I did ask them, but they said they were all busy with their plans for the summer." Her eyes lit up, and she glanced towards him with a sly grin, "Max, I'm sure you don't have anything planned for the summer." Max grunted in silence. He hung his head and palmed his forehead. He grimaced at the realization that she had proposed a valid point. He had no actual plans for the summer, and it dawned on him the possibility of getting bored at home. He took a deep breath and turned his gaze back towards Sophie. "I am not necessarily agreeing to this, but I will give it some thought," he stated while holding up an index finger. She squealed, jumping up and down in excitement. The chair she was sitting on was forcefully pushed back and knocked down. Before Max could react, Sophie leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, embracing him in a surprise hug. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you so much! I knew I could count on you, Max!" The sudden hug made his heart skip a beat. With their bodies pressed together, Max felt an odd sense of warmth. He had never felt anything like it before. He tried to mutter out a reply, but no sound was made. He remained frozen in place for the duration of the hug. After what felt like forever, Sophie finally released him. She took a few steps back to give him some room to recover. She almost tripped over the chair, but Max grabbed her hands to keep her from falling. “Whoa there, are you okay?” he asked, letting go of her hands. She nodded her head. "Y—Yes. Thank you, I’m fine," she timidly looked down, nervously touching the back of her neck once she realized what had happened. “You are welcome,” he smiled, giving her a polite nod. She shook her head, remembering something. "Oh, Max, before I forget, what's your number? I’ll need it to contact you later for confirmation." “Oh yeah, my number,” he frantically patted around his body to search for his notebook. He pulled it out of his shirt’s pocket, tore out a piece of paper and wrote down his number. He placed the notebook back in his pocket and handed her the paper. Sophie put it inside her bag. She returned the fallen chair to its original place before walking to the classroom door. "Thank you again, Max. I'll see you soon!" She waved goodbye and ran off, leaving him all alone. Max returned the wave with a goofy smile plastered across his face. After she had left his field of vision, he realized that he was the only student left, so he hurried home.