Third Time

Selin felt that lately, Karin seemed to be hiding something from her. Karin had been spending a lot of time with Arzan, a guy from 12th-grade science class 1 known for his many achievements. When Selin asked how they became friends, Karin simply said it was by chance. It wasn't really a big deal—Selin didn't mind.

However, what piqued her curiosity now was Karin's panicked reaction when Mr. Ali wrote her name on the blacklist. There had been rumors that Mr. Ali had a soft spot for Karin, but even so, the young teacher didn't hesitate to jot down her name in his book.

Selin had tried asking about it, but Karin always managed to change the subject. In the end, all Selin could do was observe how her friend's behavior slowly shifted into that of a coward. It was a stark contrast to how Karin used to be in grades 10 and 11, always leading the charge during interclass brawls.

For now, Selin decided she would just wait for her friend to open up. Sooner or later, things would return to normal—at least, that's what she believed.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Karin squinted suspiciously as Selin kept gazing at her. "I know I'm pretty."

"Eat properly without making a mess," Selin replied, glancing at Karin from head to toe. "Come on, do it right, girl."

It had been a while since they mourned Heri's passing. Karin could now see that Selin was gradually returning to her usual self. Though Selin was naturally quiet, when Heri died, she became even more silent than a statue. Karin felt slightly relieved that Selin was beginning to accept the situation. She hoped her friend would continue to get better in the days ahead.

Their conversation flowed easily, with Karin doing most of the talking. Occasionally, small laughs escaped between their words, making the atmosphere light and enjoyable.

But the moment was abruptly interrupted when something cold touched Karin's back. She winced at the sensation, instinctively grabbing the back of her uniform, which was now wet.

"Oh? Sorry, I didn't mean to," said a girl with a name tag reading "Chika." Her tone was flat, and the slight smile on her face felt more like mockery than an apology. Her eyes barely lingered on Karin before looking away.

"It's fine. Just be more careful next time," Karin replied, keeping her voice calm. Even so, her heart burned with anger. She could tell this wasn't just an accident. But she chose not to escalate the situation.

Karin's indifferent reaction only seemed to irritate Chika further. Without another word, Chika turned and strolled back to her table of friends. Out of the corner of her eye, Karin noticed Chika exchanging a small smirk with one of them, as if sharing a private joke at her expense.

"Cold, huh?" Selin gently patted Karin's wet back. "You need to change your uniform."

Karin nodded slightly, thinking quickly. Her eyes scanned the cafeteria, searching for someone who could help. That's when she spotted Arzan, who had just walked in wearing a black hoodie. Without hesitation, Karin called out to him.

"Arzan!" she shouted. Several heads in the cafeteria turned toward them, including Chika, whose face now looked ready to explode.

Arzan walked over, his expression puzzled. "What's up?" he asked, glancing at Karin's wet back.

"Can I borrow your hoodie? My uniform's soaked," Karin said bluntly.

"Oh, sure. Here," Arzan replied, pulling off his hoodie and handing it to her without hesitation. A warm smile lit his face. "Take it. I don't need it right now."

"Thanks," Karin said briefly, putting it on and feeling more comfortable with the warm hoodie covering her cold, wet back.

Not far away, Chika watched with a clenched jaw, biting her nails in frustration. Seeing Arzan so casually offer his hoodie made her blood boil. "Why does everyone suddenly care about her?" she thought bitterly.

"Hey, Chika, what's with the grumpy face?" one of her friends asked.

"Nothing," Chika snapped, her tone sharp. But it was obvious something was bothering her.

Meanwhile, Karin felt a bit more at ease. Yet, out of the corner of her eye, she knew this wasn't over. Chika's icy glare seemed like a silent promise of more to come.

Unbeknownst to them, Mr. Ali had been observing Chika's actions toward Karin from the cafeteria entrance. His index finger tapped rhythmically on the black book he held. "Chika, huh," he murmured before leaving the cafeteria with a mysterious smile on his face.

***

Rafi sat frozen in his seat, staring at the red number in the top corner of his test paper—70. That number seemed to mock him, striking at his already fragile pride. From the start, Rafi had no hope of getting a perfect score on this test.

Mr. Ali had caught him red-handed trying to steal the test paper. It was obvious the questions had been changed, and now Rafi knew that this difficult test was his punishment. There was no way he could show this score to his parents.

He sighed. He should have just studied harder instead of trying to cheat in the first place.

His eyes darted to Arzan, who had scored a perfect 100 and was now surrounded by friends at the back of the classroom. Praise for Arzan didn't stop as everyone admired his ability to solve every question correctly. Arzan responded to the compliments with polite thank-yous.

Everything about Arzan made Rafi sick. He was convinced Arzan secretly mocked those who weren't as smart as him.

What should have been a peaceful break time felt like torture. Rafi wanted to explode with anger, cursing everyone in the room. To hold back his frustration, he decided to leave the class. But before stepping out, he shot a scornful glare at Arzan, leaving him confused as he hadn't done anything to bother Rafi.

Rafi stormed down the hallway, passing students who were busy chatting with their friends. Meanwhile, he seethed at all the misfortunes that had piled up on him today.

His hurried steps led to a collision with a girl, nearly knocking them both over. His anger flared even more. He glared at her and snapped, "Watch where you're going!"

Karin, taken aback by his tone, bit back her irritation and chose not to escalate things. "Yeah, sorry. I wasn't paying attention," she said, trying to keep her cool.

Rafi quickly realized who she was. He had seen this girl before—she'd been hanging out with Arzan a lot recently. Once again, anything related to Arzan seemed to bring trouble.

"Oh, you're Arzan's girlfriend, huh? Coming to see him, I bet?" Rafi's voice dripped with sarcasm as he looked her up and down.

Karin let out an awkward laugh. "No, I'm not his girlfriend. But yeah, I was heading to see him," she replied, feeling uneasy under Rafi's condescending gaze.

"What's so great about Arzan?"

"Huh?" Karin was puzzled. The question caught her off guard, and she had no idea how to respond. "What do you mean?"

"Because he's smart, kind, good at everything…" Rafi started rambling, leaving Karin to figure out what he was trying to say.

"Look, I really need to go," Karin said, taking a step back. "And sorry again for bumping into you."

"Wait a minute." Rafi grabbed her arm, annoyed that she was walking away while he was still talking. "I wasn't done—"

Instinctively, Karin yanked her arm free. She didn't like physical contact, especially with someone she didn't know well. Her patience was nearing its limit.

"What now?" Karin snapped. "I already said sorry. What else do you want?"

Feeling his pride bruised, Rafi pointed at her angrily. "You're so rude! I was still talking, and you just walked away!"

Their heated exchange started to draw the attention of nearby students, who whispered amongst themselves. The growing audience made Karin even more uncomfortable, and she began regretting her decision to come to the science building.

Amid Rafi's loud scolding, someone stepped in to stop the one-sided argument. "What's going on here?"

Arzan appeared beside Karin, his face full of confusion.

"Look at your girlfriend," Rafi sneered, pointing accusingly at Karin. "She bumped into me and was totally rude!"

"Calm down, Rafi. Don't point at her like that," Arzan said, brushing Rafi's hand aside. "You're the one being rude right now."

Karin slowly stepped back until she felt the wall behind her. The stares of the other students only heightened her embarrassment. She wanted to disappear from this awkward situation.

"Why are you acting like this, Raf? You're blowing a small issue way out of proportion," Arzan said, trying to understand his classmate's behavior. "And what was that glare you gave me earlier?"

Overcome with frustration, Rafi couldn't hold back the insults spilling from his mouth. "Idiots like you will never understand."

Arzan frowned. "What do you mean? I don't get it."

"Don't get it? Oh, come on. You're just pretending not to understand. I know you're happy to see me get a bad score, aren't you?" Rafi's voice rose, drawing more students out of their classrooms to watch the argument between the two top-performing students.

Arzan took a deep breath to stay calm. "Rafi, seriously, I've never thought that way. If you want, we can study together—"

"Study together?" Rafi cut him off, his voice laced with sarcasm. "You think I need you to study? You think you're better than me, huh?"

The tension escalated. Arzan's patience wore thin. "I never said I'm better than you. But if you keep blaming others for your problems, that's on you, Raf."

That statement was the final straw. Rafi shoved Arzan roughly. "Don't lecture me, Arzan! You don't know anything about me!"

Arzan, trying to avoid a fight, stepped back. But Rafi pushed him harder. Arzan finally retaliated, shoving Rafi back. "If you want to fight, let's go! I'm not scared of you!"

Seeing Arzan lose his composure, Karin tried to think of a way to stop them. But before she could say anything, Rafi threw a punch, and the fight intensified.

Karin wanted to intervene but was afraid of getting hit. She resorted to calling Arzan's name, hoping he would listen. Other classmates rushed in to break up the fight.

"What are you two doing?!"

Rafi and Arzan froze, panting heavily. Mr. Ali glared at them, his gaze sharp and unforgiving. "Both of you, follow me to the teacher's office. Now."

"We're dead," Karin murmured anxiously.

The hallway fell silent. The other students exchanged bewildered looks, while Karin stood rooted in place, her heart pounding. She knew Mr. Ali would put them back on the blacklist.