Chapter Three
1083 Words
Maya Pov
Immediately the lecturer stepped out, I was gone.
Not walking. Not packing calmly. Gone.
I bolted.
Four back-to-back classes.
Four.
My brain felt like it had been wrung out like a wet towel and left to dry in the sun.
The hallway felt like freedom. Loud, chaotic, alive.
A complete contrast to the suffocating boredom I had just survived. I didn’t even stop to check my bag or made sure I had everything. I just needed air. Space. Life.
“Maya!”
I ignored it.
“Maya!”
I slowed down just enough to glance over my shoulder—and there was Nathan, jogging toward me, slightly out of breath, holding up my notebook like a trophy.
I groaned and turned fully, pressing a hand dramatically to my chest. “You see? This is how it starts. First, it’s four classes. Then memory loss. Next thing you know, I’m forgetting my own name.”
Nathan finally caught up, handing me the notebook with a small shake of his head. “Why did you run out like someone was chasing you?"
“They were,” I said seriously, snatching my notebook. “Boredom. Academic oppression. Psychological torture.”
He snorted. “You’re ridiculous.”
“And yet, still alive. Barely.” I clutched the notebook to my chest like it was the only thing tethering me to this world. “Thank you for saving my academic career.”
“Anytime. See you tomorrow” he said giving me a hug.
I groaned. "Urgh... Don't remind me."
He laughed, walking away.
I didn’t waste another second. I spun on my heel and practically skipped down the hallway, the exhaustion already morphing into a dramatic storytelling fuel.
By the time I spotted my friends, leaning casually by the lockers, I was ready.
I staggered toward them like I had just returned from war.
“Guys…” I gasped, placing the back of my hand against my forehead. “I have suffered.”
Kathy straightened immediately. “What happened?”
“Four classes,” I croaked. “Back to back. No mercy. No breaks. Just suffering.”
“Oh please,” Annie rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. “You’re being dramatic.”
“I am not!” I snapped, straightening up with sudden energy. “At one point, I started questioning my existence. I saw my ancestors. They told me to be strong.”
Kathy burst out laughing. “Stop it!”
“I’m serious!” I insisted, pacing dramatically. “The lecturer just kept talking and talking, and I swear, at some point, I left my body. I was floating. Watching myself suffer from above.”
“You’re so unserious,” Kathy said, but she was laughing now too.
“I missed you guys,” I added suddenly, throwing my arms around both of them.
“So much. In those dark, dark times… it was your faces that kept me going, and the promise I made to you guys. I kept my promise even though some of you didn't believe in me." I said knowingly giving Kathy the stink eye.
"Yes, that's true. I'm so proud of you my girl." She grinned giving me a big fat hug.
"Me too." Annie added joining in on the hug.
And then it happened.
"Maya." Annie whispered, her voice suddenly different. “Don’t look now.”
Naturally, I looked.
And just like that, everything else faded into the background.
There he was, walking down the hallway like he owned it—calm, effortless, completely unaware of the chaos he caused just by existing. Tall, broad-shouldered, moving with that easy confidence that made people shift without even realizing it.
A basketball was tucked under his arm, spinning lazily on his fingertips before he caught it again. His jersey clung just enough to show the lines of muscle underneath, and his hair—slightly messy, like he’d just run his hands through it after a game—somehow it made him look even hotter.
He laughed at something one of his teammates said, head tilting back slightly, and...
Wow.
Just… wow.
“That,” I breathed, completely forgetting my earlier dramatics, “is exactly what heaven must look like.”
Kathy choked on her laugh. “You were just talking about dying in class.”
“I have recovered,” I said immediately, smoothing down my hair like that would somehow make a difference. “Miraculously.”
Annie leaned closer, smirking. “Your crush.”
“He's not just my crush. He is my inspiration. My motivation. The reason I might actually survive this semester.”
As if sensing something, he glanced up.
For a split second—just a split second—our eyes met.
My heart did a little summersault.
I quickly looked away, pretending to be very interested in absolutely nothing.
“Did he see me?” I whispered.
“Oh, he saw you,” Kathy said, looking at me in amusement.
I ran my hand through my hair. "How do I look right now?"
"You look stresed. Like someone that just survived 8 hours of classes." Annie mocked.
I groaned. "I don't want him to see me looking like this."
I peeked again, just in time to see him dribble the ball once and walk past, completely unfazed.
Then he walked away. And just like that he was gone.
Meanwhile, I was standing there like my entire life had just been rearranged.
"I can't believe he saw me looking like this." I complained, looking down at my rumpled white collared shirt, with the end sticking out.
I ditched my sweater long ago during the 2nd or 3rd period. I can't remember.
My hair is a mess. I kept pulling at it in frustration during class hours.
"Why didn't he see me this morning when I looked good? All the efforts I made to look good, gone. Just like that." I whined.
"Girl, you just held each other gaze for what? A second? Don't fret. I'm pretty sure he has forgotten how you looked already" Kathy encouraged jokingly.
I glared at her. "Is that suppose to make me feel better?"
Annie consoled me. "Don't worry Maya, another opportunity will present itself and when that time comes you will not be caught unaware."
"Yeah, Annie is absolutely right." Kathy said patting my back.
"Come let's go. I'll buy you ice cream on our way home." She added lacing her fingers with mine and leading me away.
- Writer
