The classroom was very chaotic during every break. Some people liked to chase each other, cheer loudly, heckle, and yell. The noise definitely affected Ketto. He was annoyed—you could see him using his hands to cover his ears, trying not to be influenced by the chaos around him. He wished those people would vanish immediately. At the very least, if they could disappear for just ten minutes, that would be fine. It was too annoying. Too noisy.
Sometimes Lisa and Lily would stand up and yell at the people making noise. "Get out! I can't tolerate you anymore!" they would shout. For a moment, some people would quiet down, but after a second, the chaos would return. In their minds, this was their time. If they kept quiet, then what kind of break would it be? Break time was for shouting and playing—it was a temporary paradise, full of happiness and fun.
Addy didn't care about the noise. He wasn't interested in learning itself, so having people playing around him didn't bother him. In fact, it brought him some joy and happiness. His otherwise boring study life suddenly felt meaningful and full of energy. When he got tired, he would go out and talk with others in the hallway. Obviously, when he left his studies, he was full of great energy. But when Addy returned to studying—which was, yes, his duty and main task—he would behave like a dull turtle. He would complain to himself and moan. Sometimes Ketto could hear what he was complaining about and wanted to say something soothing or encouraging, but then he would shut his mouth. He just shrugged, not knowing what he could say.
Speaking of the midterm exam, Hanky showed no interest in it whatsoever. If there was a long break, he would go outside to play basketball. Because of his handsome appearance and great basketball skills, he had gained a lot of attention from girls. He was charming and masculine. So every time he went to play basketball, some girls who were crazy about him would arrive at the basketball court just to watch him play. As people often say, girls can have simple brains when they fall in love, which makes them easy to be deceived.
One day, Ketto was reviewing his notes when suddenly Hanky passed by his seat. No one knows exactly why—maybe there was a breeze, and Hanky was wearing a long-sleeved shirt without buttoning it. He walked a bit fast, so the lower corner of his shirt flapped up. Ketto looked up, and at that exact moment, by coincidence, Hanky also turned his head. Their eyes met, drawing an invisible line between them. Something sparkled in that brief connection.
Ketto was suddenly flushed, his face turning red. He immediately lowered his head, looked at his book, and continued his review. But inside, he was nervous, and his heart was pounding fast. He couldn't name the feeling he was experiencing, but he did his best to suppress it and told himself not to think too much. Hanky, for his part, remained calm. Maybe he felt something too, but he didn't dwell on it. The moment their eyes met—especially that moment of eye contact—he felt something, but then he left and didn't care too much.
Even though the exam was approaching, Hanky didn't care. Whenever he found the right time, he would go to the basketball court. Addy sometimes envied their courage—the way they didn't worry about scores. He would whisper to himself, "If I also didn't care about my tests, I would be very happy." But he only thought that. He never acted on it. If Ketto heard Addy say something like that, he would poke Addy's shoulder with the tip of a pen and say, "Don't think like that. You have a future. Keep going!"
The homeroom teacher had been coming to the classroom more often recently. Someone must have reported the noise to her, because she wanted to check on things and manage the discipline. She would walk around in a circle and then leave the classroom. Sometimes, if she saw someone not studying, she would scold that person. But every time she came, Hanky, Billy, and Lucas were always absent. She would first ask the class representative, Sharon, where they were. When she learned that they were playing outside, she would just shake her head and say coldly, "Don't give me a zero at the end. I dare them to hand in a blank answer sheet."
But she didn't really care. She knew these guys were irresponsible and wouldn't listen. So she had no choice but to accept the truth and face it naturally.
The days grew louder and more chaotic as the midterm exams approached. The contrast between the students who studied and those who didn't became starker. Ketto buried himself in his notes, while Hanky buried himself in basketball. Addy floated somewhere in between, complaining but still showing up.
One afternoon, during a particularly noisy break, Ketto found himself staring out the window. The basketball court was visible in the distance, and he could see a small crowd gathered around. He knew without looking that Hanky was there, probably scoring another three-pointer, probably making some girl's heart flutter.
Ketto sighed and turned back to his textbook. He didn't have time for distractions. He didn't have time for feelings he couldn't name. He had exams to prepare for.
But even as he read the same sentence three times without understanding it, he knew that something had shifted. That brief moment of eye contact with Hanky had planted a small seed somewhere inside him. He didn't know what kind of seed it was, or whether it would grow. He only knew that he couldn't stop thinking about it.
Addy noticed Ketto's distraction and nudged him. "Hey, you okay? You've been staring at the same page for five minutes."
Ketto blinked and shook his head. "Yeah. I'm fine. Just tired."
"Tired of studying?" Addy asked with a grin. "Welcome to my world."
Ketto forced a small smile and returned to his notes. But his mind kept drifting back to that moment—the flap of Hanky's shirt, the turn of his head, the spark in his eyes.
Stop it, Ketto told himself. Focus.
The bell rang, signaling the end of break. Students rushed back to their seats, laughing and shoving each other. The teacher walked in, and the room slowly settled into an uneasy quiet.
Ketto took a deep breath and picked up his pen. He had a future. He had to keep going.
But somewhere in the back of his mind, a small voice whispered: What if the future isn't just about exams?
He pushed the thought away and started writing.