Maybe This Time

Chapter Three — The New Girl

The noise in the hallway seemed to grow louder. Students moved in every direction, some rushing toward their classrooms while others stood in small groups, catching up after the long break. A few teachers were already stationed outside their rooms, greeting students and reminding them not to block the hallways. With the new school year beginning, the entire place felt almost too small for the number of students filling it.

“Come on, Tessa! We’re going to be late.” Katie grabbed Tessa by the arm and dragged her toward the busy hallway.

“Do you know where our classroom is?” Tessa asked.

Katie slowed down and looked at her with an innocent smile. “No.”

Tessa sighed. “Diamond, that’s our section.”

“Good, now let's look for our room.” Katie said as she continued walking down the hallway, looking at every classroom door.

Tessa slowly shook her head and followed her.

“Here it is!” Katie’s face lit up immediately.

Tessa looked through the open doorway.

GRADE 10-DIAMOND

The classroom was still quiet. Only a few students were already inside, scattered across the rows of desks. Some were talking to their friends, while others were introducing themselves to people they didn’t know. Others were busy checking their schedules.

The familiar scent of freshly cleaned floors and whiteboard markers brought back memories of the previous school year.

Tessa stepped inside, taking a moment to look around.

There wasn’t really much difference from their classroom last year, but somehow, the atmosphere felt different. Maybe because there were new faces, or maybe because they were in their last year of junior high.

“Where do you want to sit?” Katie asked as she looked around the room.

“At the back,” Tessa answered, pointing at the two empty desks at the back of the room.

They walked over to the empty desks and settled down.

“Nice choice,” Katie commented as she pointed toward the window, which was beside Tessa.

Tessa turned her head toward what Katie was pointing at.

From their seats, they had a clear view of part of the school garden through the tall windows. Greenery stretched along the back of the building, with narrow stone paths winding between neatly trimmed bushes and beds of small flowers. Several old trees stood along the edges, their branches swaying gently whenever the breeze passed through. Farther back, almost hidden behind the leaves, stood a small wooden gazebo. It was quiet there, away from the noise of the classrooms and the crowded courtyard.

“Hope no one will occupy that besides us.”

“First of all, no one wants to go that far from the canteen,” Katie said.

“Right.” Tessa smiled at her.

More students arrived through the door, greeting their old classmates and introducing themselves to those they didn’t know.

“Hey, Tessa!”

Both Katie and Tessa looked toward the voice.

A familiar face approached their desks.

“Bella?”

The girl smiled.

“Where were you during the break?”

“At home most of the time. Sometimes, Miss On-The-Go drags me outside,” Tessa answered, pointing at Katie.

“Hey!” Katie slapped her arm.

“Still dragging Tessa around, Katie. You never change.”

“Well, someone has to drag her outside before she completely rots away in their house. And Auntie told me to get you out of the house once in a while, remember?” Katie pouted at her.

Tessa just laughed at her reaction.

“How’s Auntie?” Bella asked, her voice softening with concern.

The question immediately changed the mood around them. Unlike most people, Bella and the others didn’t need to ask what she meant. They already knew about Tessa’s mother and the long battle she had been fighting.

It wasn’t something Tessa often talked about, but neither did she have to. The people closest to her had seen enough—the countless hospital visits, the worried conversations between her parents, and the days when Tessa would show up at school pretending everything was fine even when it clearly wasn’t.

They had been there for her family through the difficult days, not necessarily with grand gestures, but in the little ways that mattered. They listened when Tessa needed someone to talk to, stayed beside her when she didn’t feel like talking at all, and tried their best to keep her spirits up whenever things became too heavy.

That was why Bella’s question carried more than simple curiosity. There was genuine concern behind it.

Tessa gave a small smile, though the sadness in her eyes remained.

“Still stubborn.”

Katie let out a small laugh. “Like you, though.”

“Agreed.” Bella said and Tessa laughs.

They continued talking for a few minutes, mostly about their vacation and the teachers they hoped they wouldn't get this year.

A few moments later, another familiar classmate approached.

Soon, Tessa and Katie found themselves catching up with several people they had known from previous school years.

Katie happily participated in every conversation, jumping from one topic to another without running out of things to say.

Tessa mostly listened.

Every now and then, she added something to the conversation, but she was content to let Katie do most of the talking.

Then—

The bell echoed through the hallway and across the whole campus.

The students quickly returned to their seats and got ready for the start of class.

The classroom door opened, and a woman carrying a folder entered the room.

“Good morning, everyone.”

“Good morning, Teacher.”

The teacher smiled at them.

“I hope everyone had a wonderful summer.”

She placed her things on the teacher’s desk.

“Before we begin, I have someone I'd like all of you to meet.”

The room gradually quieted.

Tessa looked up from the notebook in front of her. Around the classroom, conversations faded into whispers before disappearing altogether. Even Katie, who had been quietly drawing something in the corner of her notebook, stopped and looked toward the door.

Their teacher turned toward the hallway.

“You may come in.”

A moment later, the classroom door opened.

A girl stepped inside.

She paused just beyond the doorway.

For a brief second, she seemed unsure of where to look. Her eyes moved across the unfamiliar classroom, taking in the rows of desks, the students watching her, and the teacher waiting at the front.

Tessa found herself watching her too.

The girl was petite and slender, with long brown hair that fell in soft layers down to the middle of her back. Her face was heart-shaped, framed gently by the strands of hair around her cheeks. She had large, dark-brown eyes that seemed even more noticeable against her fair complexion.

Her features were delicate, and there was something almost careful about the way she carried herself.

She wasn't trying to attract attention.

If anything, she looked as though she wished she could disappear into the background until she figured out where she belonged.

“This is Mia,” their teacher said. “She recently transferred here. I hope everyone will make her feel welcome.”

Mia gave a small, polite bow.

“Good morning.”

Her voice was soft enough that the students nearest the front heard it more clearly than those at the back.

“Good morning,” the class answered.

Their teacher smiled.

“You can take the empty seat in the back row.”

Mia nodded.

“Yes, Ma'am.”

She adjusted the strap of her bag before walking down the aisle.

Her footsteps were quiet against the classroom floor.

Tessa watched her approach.

The empty desk was directly in front of hers.

Mia stopped beside it, carefully placed her bag down, and pulled out the chair.

She sat.

For a moment, she simply faced the board.

Tessa returned her attention to her notebook.

She didn't know why she had been watching the girl for so long.

Maybe because being new in a place where everyone already knew each other couldn't have been easy.

A few seconds passed.

Then Mia turned around.

Their eyes met.

Mia hesitated.

“Hi.”

Tessa gave her a small smile.

“Hi.”

“I'm Mia.”

Before Tessa could introduce herself, Katie leaned forward.

“I'm Katie.”

Mia looked at her and smiled politely.

“Nice to meet you.”

“And that's Tessa.”

Katie pointed toward her friend.

Tessa gave a small wave.

“Hi.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

Mia turned back toward the front.

Katie waited approximately three seconds. Then she leaned forward again.

“So, where did you transfer from?”

Tessa gave her a warning look.

Katie ignored it.

Mia answered.

“Monteverde Academy.”

“Oh. That's pretty far.”

“A little.”

“Do you know anyone here?”

Mia thought for a while before answering. “Only one.”

Katie nodded thoughtfully.

“Well, now you know three.”

Mia blinked.

Then a small smile appeared on her face.

“Yeah.”

Tessa watched the exchange quietly.

Katie had always been like this.

She could talk to almost anyone as though they had known each other for years.

Mia, on the other hand, seemed to need a little more time.

She answered every question politely, but her responses were short. Whenever Katie made a joke, Mia smiled first, almost as though she was deciding whether it was safe to laugh before actually doing so.

Tessa didn't find it strange.

She remembered how intimidating a new place could feel.

So she didn't try to force a conversation.

Instead, she offered Mia another small smile before turning back toward the board.

It was nothing important.

Just a simple gesture.

But for now, that was enough.