15: A Group Project Disaster

The air in Classroom 2B crackled with barely concealed dread as the teacher finished announcing the group assignments for their upcoming history project. Kamon, seated at the back, felt her stomach drop when she heard her name. 

"Kamon, Prem, Thanwa, and… Patcha." 

She barely had time to process before Patcha scoffed, flipping her sleek ponytail over her shoulder. 

"Great," she muttered. "This should be fun." 

Kamon exhaled sharply, forcing herself to stay calm. 

"At least Prem's in our group," May whispered beside her. "He's like the human buffer zone." 

Kamon wasn't convinced. 

At the front of the classroom, Prem was already grinning, giving Kamon and Patcha a thumbs-up. Thanwa, the quietest in their year, adjusted his glasses and nodded in acknowledgment. 

"Alright, team," Prem said once they had all gathered around a table. "Let's do this. Teamwork makes the dream work, right?" 

No one answered. 

Patcha crossed her arms. Kamon sat stiffly, hands folded. Thanwa remained unreadable. 

Prem chuckled nervously. "So… about our topic—" 

Patcha leaned forward. "I think we should focus on the economic shifts in Thailand over the past century." 

Kamon frowned. "That sounds pretty dry. What if we looked at how those changes affected rural communities?" 

Patcha's lips curled into a smirk. "So we should dumb it down?" 

Kamon bristled. "That's not what I said." 

Prem raised his hands. "Whoa, whoa! Let's not start a war five minutes in." 

Thanwa cleared his throat. "Actually, combining both ideas might make the project more balanced." 

Patcha didn't look thrilled. "Fine." 

The group settled into brainstorming, but tension simmered beneath the surface. Patcha, with her polished academic tone, dominated the conversation. Kamon, unwilling to be sidelined, kept pushing back. 

At one point, Patcha narrowed her eyes at Kamon's notes. "I am not happy with your answers." 

Kamon didn't even hesitate. "Well, I am not happy with your questions." 

Prem choked on his water. "Okay! How about we take a quick break before we accidentally start a civil war?" 

Thanwa, ever the observer, simply raised an eyebrow and continued writing. 

The so-called break did little to help. 

When they reconvened, Kamon attempted to share her ideas, but Patcha either dismissed them outright or redirected the discussion. 

Finally, Kamon couldn't hold it in anymore. "Why are you lying?" 

Patcha's expression was infuriatingly calm. "Well, I am only lying in just covering the truth with a lid." 

Kamon's jaw tightened. "That doesn't even make sense." 

Prem exhaled. "Okay, let's not—" 

But it was too late. 

"I get it," Kamon said, voice steady but sharp. "You think I don't belong here. That I don't think like you or talk like you, so my ideas must be useless." 

Patcha's eyes flashed. "If you actually contributed something worthwhile instead of making this about *you*, maybe we'd be further along." 

Kamon's fists clenched, but before she could shoot back, Thanwa spoke. 

"Enough." 

The single word sliced through the argument like a blade. 

All three of them turned to look at him. 

Thanwa set his notebook down. "This project is not about either of you proving a point. It's about getting it done. And right now, all we've accomplished is watching Prem suffer." 

Prem placed a hand over his heart. "Thank you for acknowledging my struggles." 

Thanwa ignored him. "Here's the deal: Patcha, you lead the economic analysis. Kamon, you focus on real-life case studies from rural areas. Prem, you handle the visuals. I'll compile everything." 

Silence. 

Then, Patcha sighed, rolling her eyes. "Fine." 

Kamon nodded stiffly. 

Prem beamed. "Look at that! Progress!" 

Thanwa simply sighed. 

By the time they finished, the atmosphere had shifted. The project, surprisingly, was shaping up well. 

As they packed up, Prem leaned over to Kamon. "See? You survived working with Patcha. I'm proud of you." 

Kamon smirked. "Barely." 

Patcha, overhearing, snorted. "As if it was easy for me." 

Kamon glanced at her, realizing, with some reluctance, that for all of Patcha's arrogance, she had worked hard. 

Thanwa stood, stretching. "Well, that was an experience." 

Prem grinned. "Hey, at least we didn't end up physically fighting." 

Kamon and Patcha exchanged glances. 

It had been close. 

The afternoon had stretched on into an endless cycle of group work, where students could feel the time slipping away under the weight of projects, discussions, and the usual classroom chatter. Kamon, hunched over a stack of notebooks, was scribbling down the final notes for their group assignment when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Supaporn, her best friend, grinning as she held out a small plastic bag filled with snacks.

"Here," Supaporn said cheerfully, "I got some for you."

Kamon's face lit up. "You're a lifesaver! I was starving."

Supaporn, ever the thoughtful friend, handed Kamon the bag of snacks and sat down next to her. "You've been so focused on this group work. I figured you'd need some fuel." She leaned back in her chair, taking a breath and stretching her arms above her head. 

Kamon smiled warmly at Supaporn, taking a bag of chips from the snack package. "You're always thinking of me. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without you."

Supaporn grinned, clearly pleased with the praise. But as Kamon dug into the snacks, she suddenly remembered something—or rather, someone—that Supaporn had left out. "Hey, didn't you bring something for Thanwa and the others?"

Supaporn blinked, her face turning a shade of pale pink. "Oops. I... totally forgot about them."

Kamon chuckled, shaking her head. "Well, you're not perfect. But honestly, you're such a good friend. Who needs Thanwa and the others when I have snacks and you?"

The compliment made Supaporn beam, but she raised an eyebrow. "You really know how to flatter me, don't you? But I'll admit, I do get distracted easily sometimes."

Kamon continued munching on the chips, enjoying the moment of camaraderie. "It's alright, I'll take the credit for your kindness this time. Let the others fend for themselves. They should know how important I am."

Supaporn laughed, her eyes twinkling. "You're impossible, Kamon. But fine, I'll leave them to it."

Just then, Patcha, who had been working quietly with Thanwa and Prem on another part of the project, glanced over and caught wind of the conversation. Her eyes narrowed, and her lips pressed into a thin line. Without saying a word, she quickly began packing up her things, the sound of her books thumping into her bag loud and deliberate.

Kamon noticed the movement and, still smiling, raised her hand to wave at Patcha. "Don't be mad, Patcha! Supaporn just has a lot of love to give!"

Patcha paused, her face contorting into a mix of irritation and disbelief. "Oh, really?" she muttered under her breath, mimicking Kamon's voice with exaggerated flair. "'You're such a good friend, Supaporn.' 'You're perfect, Supaporn.' 'Who needs Thanwa and the others when I have snacks and you?' Hilarious."

Kamon blinked, startled by Patcha's sudden mockery. "Wait, you're mad?" she asked, half-laughing. "Come on, Patcha, I was just having a little fun. You know I'm always grateful for you guys."

But Patcha wasn't having any of it. "Grateful? Please. You just sit there eating snacks and acting like the world revolves around you. And we're all supposed to be your backup team, right?" Her voice dripped with sarcasm as she zipped her bag and stood up, her frustration palpable.

Kamon was about to respond when Patcha tossed her a final scornful glance. "I'm out of here." Without another word, she turned and walked off, leaving Thanwa and Prem sitting awkwardly at the table, unsure of what had just happened.

Thanwa looked up from his notebook, frowning. "What's up with Patcha? Why is she acting like that?"

Prem, always the calm one, shrugged. "She's just in one of her moods. It's not a big deal."

Thanwa let out a sigh, shaking his head. "Well, that's one less person to work with." He looked at the clock, then back at Prem. "I guess we're on our own now."

At that moment, Chanon, Thanwa's close friend, strolled into the room, carrying a basketball under his arm. He saw the two of them sitting at the table, looking a little defeated. "Hey, what's going on? Where's everyone else?"

Thanwa leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples. "Patcha left in a huff, and now Prem and I are stuck finishing this thing. It's getting so boring."

Chanon raised an eyebrow. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm not about to waste my afternoon with homework." He glanced over at Prem. "You coming with me? We can hit the courts for a bit."

Prem frowned but smiled slightly. "You know, I'm good. But you guys go ahead. I'll just finish up here."

"Suit yourself," Chanon said with a grin, giving Thanwa a quick pat on the shoulder. "Let me know if you want to join later."

With that, Thanwa and Chanon exchanged a look, both silently acknowledging that they were ready to ditch schoolwork for something more fun. Thanwa pushed his papers aside, already thinking about their plans for the afternoon. 

But before they could leave, they noticed that Prem had pulled out a book and was fully immersed in it. "You're really going to sit here and read while the rest of us are having fun?" Thanwa teased.

Prem glanced up, rolling her eyes. "I've got priorities. You two can go be irresponsible, I'll be over here being productive."

Thanwa chuckled and grabbed his jacket. "Alright, alright. I get it. We'll see you later then." He motioned to Chanon, and the two of them left, heading out to the courtyard to meet up with their other friends.

-------------------------------------------------------------

As Thanwa and Chanon walked off, the classroom slowly emptied, and the soft hum of voices drifted off into the distance. The day was coming to a close, and the usual mix of social dynamics and schoolwork was starting to give way to the evening rush. 

Kamon, still sitting with her snack bag, pondered the whole situation. She was annoyed at Patcha for taking things too seriously, but she also understood that maybe she had been a little too harsh in her teasing. In the end, Supaporn was the one who had brought the snacks, and Kamon was grateful for it—patchy drama or not.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Supaporn's cheerful voice reached her ears from the hallway. "Kamon, where are you? I've got more snacks!"

Kamon smirked, thinking about how everything always seemed to come full circle in their little world of laughter, snacks, and awkward moments. "I'm right here, Supaporn. And guess what? No one's stealing these from me today."

The two friends locked eyes and laughed, the noise filling the empty classroom, echoing a bit of lightness into the chaos that had just unfolded. 

Kamon left the classroom that day with a new realization—she and Patcha would probably never be friends. 

But they had, at least, proven they could work together. 

And in the unpredictable chaos of their prestigious highschool, that was progress enough.