He’ll drag the class down

It was Tuesday, 3:25. The teacher, Ms. Keitis, stood at the front of the classroom, her eyes scanning the room as she made an announcement.

"There will be an assessment test tomorrow, so make sure you're all prepared. That's all, class dismissed."

Ms. Keitis looked young, perhaps 26, but she exuded professionalism. Her poise and confidence commanded respect.

One student spoke up, "But isn't it too soon for a test? We just had an entrance exam, and school's only been in session for a week."

"Yeah, what's that about Ms Keitis?" Chimed in another. This being my second day I hadn't gotten the names of all my classmates but there were a few familiar faces from primary school, though – people who'd made my life miserable back then. Even now, the memory of those days made me almost nauseous. 

Ms. Keitis's expression remained neutral. "Apparently, the prefects submitted this proposal to the school, citing the need to 'create a wide enough gap between houses.' For you form ones, the deputy head accepted their proposal. If you have any further questions, they'll have to wait for assembly tomorrow as I'm sure they'll be answered before you even ask them." With that, Ms. Keitis grabbed her things and walked purposefully toward the door, indicating that the discussion was closed. 

"…"

The classroom fell silent. Then, a voice broke the stillness. "What a babe, huh, Vills ?"

"Hehe." Vills chuckled. Their brief back and forth just now drew my attention to them.

As the class prepared to leave… "Hey, just before everyone goes, I think we should have regular meetings every once in a while to stay organized, you know what I mean? What do you say?"

A boy named Houston spoke up. He was one of the people's names I had caught on my first day here, quite the memorable student too; he made a lasting impression.

Connor, another student, chimed in, his voice laced with sarcasm. "What, are we in some kind of business setting or something?" His comment earning him snickers from the class.

"Yes, actually!" Houston said proudly.

"Yeah, ok… Carry on then, boss." He said laughter being the class's response.

"First we need a representative!" Houston said.

"Yeah, who then, boss?" Connor joked again, causing the class to chuckle.

"Could you please…"

"Alright."

"Honestly, I can't with you." Houston retorted with a faint smile.

"…"

"Alright, I elect…" His eyes scanned the classroom before landing on me. "Newcomer, what was your name again?" 'What was your name again?' Huh, I felt as if he could've done without that last sentence.

"Uh yes, Ubeko." He finally said looking at me, and my surroundings followed his line of sight, silence followed and I stared blankly at him. 

"So… you want our house to be led by him." Questioned another student.

"Houston did you not hear a word I said, he's basically useless, I just want everyone to know I went to school with that boy over there and he never did well in school, dragging our class down, it seems you've come to do just that here, I have to wonder how did you even get into this very school, let alone this class.. " From her first sentence It sounded as if they'd spoken about me before.

"Damn, the guy is here with us you know."This time Trashur who had been quiet spoke up.

While the scene in front of me unfolded I noticed some of my classmates casting pitiful glances my way, but I ignored them, you could say I kinda got used to it.

As Shari continued to berate me, memories I'd long tried to forget resurfaced. I recalled being treated like an outcast in primary school, Shari's and her friends behavior back then. I really didn't mind that she still felt the need to torment me. But at the same time I felt it unnecessary to do so, I had to wonder why go through the trouble to draw attention to me and drag my reputation through the dirt? I hadn't asked to be representative in the first place, and I certainly didn't need this kind of trouble.

"Well, no matter what he's done or hasn't done, it's not important," Houston protested. "I still want him to be the representative. Come on, why don't we give him a chance? He might surprise us, might even surprise you, Shari. Besides, we're going off your words alone. Maybe he's changed. We can't be so quick to treat him like he has no use." I appreciated the way Houston had phrased his argument. It sounded like, if I really did turn out to be useless, I'd be neglected.

"He's only just started school yesterday, I doubt he's grasped the rules of the school," another student chimed in. "All of us were given grace period last week to get the rules down. With that in mind, would you still like to make him rep?" The speaker tossed a glance my way.

"I don't agree with him being representative," Shari reiterated, her opinion firm.

Vills' friend chuckled, "Hehehe, yup, Houston, I don't think she's yielding on that one."

Houston sighed and spoke calmly, "Alright, why don't we decide with a majority vote by a show of hands? All those in favor of having Ubeko be rep, raise your hands…" Everyone except for Houston had their hands down. "Hehe, yikes," Vills chuckled.

"Okay, all those not in favor…" Just like last time, everyone had their hand down except for one person: Shari.

"Seriously?" Shari seemed taken aback. "What are you all… Chase, Kendal, we were in the same class as him." She tried to get others on her side. The names of the people she had just called out where one of the people I went to school with back in primary.

Chase spoke up, "Voting's optional, is it not? I'm gonna sit this one out, but I'm fine with what everyone else decides." What Chase said seemed to reflect what everyone else was thinking.

"Yeah me too." Kendal agreed 

"So, you're fine with our class being led by a lousy rep," Shari said, her voice dripping with disdain. "You know what? It's fine. If our house hits bottom of the ranks..." She was about to finish her sentence when the door to the classroom swung open.

Everyone fell silent as our visitor walked in, the only sound being the echo of his shoes hitting the floor as he strode confidently into the room. "What's this about our house hitting the bottom?" he asked, his voice firm but curious. "Mmm... did I mishear, maybe?" He probed, his eyes scanning the room.

It was at this moment that I desperately hoped no one would bring me up as the subject of discussion. Anything that followed would only lead to more humiliation. I noticed that our visitor wore a distinctive purple tie, which I inferred meant he was one of the prestigious students. Every other student wore black ties, except for those from the house, Hammeck. I had learned they weren't allowed to wear ties.

There were four houses in each form, from Form 1 to Form 4: Eclept, Welbok, Ruse, and Hammeck. Eclept held the top spot on the leaderboard for our form, but I wondered how it was for the other forms.

The visitor, who I now realized was a senior student, began to speak. "At any rate, young ones, please take care of our house. It would be disheartening to know that the juniors in my house are losing to all the other houses." So we're in the same house, huh.

He paused, surveying the room before launching into a passionate speech. "You see, I like to think of it like a shoe. When you hit the bottom, you become the sole of the shoe. Of course, you have a purpose, but you're rarely regarded as important. Hopefully, you can agree with me when I say no one ever looks at the bottom of the shoe, only the top. And when you clean a shoe, you only clean the top part, never the bottom."

I was impressed by his analogy, and it made sense. I wouldn't have thought of it that way if he hadn't shared his perspective on the school's workings. Like a shoe… I see. From what I had read in the rules yesterday, it seemed like a form of slavery. For instance, one of the rules stated that the houses ranked at the bottom were required to clean up the classrooms of all the houses in their form after school or during their free time.

Another rule that caught my attention was under the section "About Students' Dorms." It stated that the dorms of the top-ranked houses were located within the school grounds, while the dorms of the bottom-ranked houses were located outside the school grounds, along Perfex Road. Students could either walk there or take the bus, which left at 5:30.

The senior student continued, "I'm sure you understand what I'm saying. Since you occupy the top spot on the ranks, you'll take care to keep your position, I'm sure." I assumed that everyone in this class had taken the entrance exam and achieved top results, which explained why we were the house that held the top position on the ranks. However, I wondered how the school determined which students were assigned to which house and which house received the top-performing students.

The senior student continued speaking "Mmm... do you have a class president?" Everyone's gaze turned towards me once again. Since his arrival, no one had spoken a single word, and he hadn't introduced himself either. I was left with many unanswered questions.

His gaze then landed on me. 

"Uh..." I stuttered, unsure of how to respond.

Houston intervened, "We were just in the process of selecting a rep. I took... well, we took inspiration from our seniors. Although we settled on calling him 'representative' instead of 'class president.' Anyway, yeah, he's our rep." He pointed at me, drawing the senior student's attention back to me.

The senior student raised an eyebrow. "I see... well, rep, are you just going to sit there and stare at me?"

I hesitated, unsure of how to respond. "Uh, I don't exactly know what to say..." I trailed off, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

The senior student muttered under his breath, "Goodness, he isn't quite class president material, now is he?" He thought he was whispering to the student next to him, but his voice carried clearly across the room. I heard him from the back, and I was sure everyone else did too. His comment was well within the boundaries of rude, and I couldn't blame him for not even listening to what I had left to say.

There was no confidence in the way I spoke, and I'm sure he'd inferred as much the second I opened my mouth. The few words I managed to get out only seemed to solidify his opinion. I sighed internally, thinking about how easily I became the object of ridicule.

The awkwardness in the classroom became palpable, and as if to put an end to it, the senior student glanced at his watch. "Oh, I think it's about time I head out. It's been nice hanging with you ones. Let's do this sometime... umm, rep." He nodded at me before making his exit.

"Well, that's our cue, boss, rep. We'll see you on the flip," Vills said, motioning to leave while packing his things. The others followed suit, and the room filled with the sounds of chairs scraping, papers shuffling, and bags being zipped.

"But we aren't quite through," Houston protested, trying to stop everyone from leaving.

Vills stopped in his tracks, turning back to face Houston. "What's the group for?" he asked.

Houston's response was met with silence. "Exactly!" Vills exclaimed, as if Houston's silence was all the answer he needed. Apparently, they had a group where they held discussions, and Vills' question confirmed my suspicion.

"Well, see ya," Vills said, and Houston followed him outside the classroom. "Wait, can I talk to you for a sec?" Houston asked, before the door closed behind him.

With that, everyone left, and I decided to sit in the classroom for a bit. However, after a while, I'd had enough of hearing my thoughts and the clock ticking in the background. I started preparing to leave, pushing my chair back and driving it back into place. Just as I was about to walk towards the door, Houston suddenly opened it, and I figured he had come back for his bag.

"Ah... Ubeko, y-you're still here," he said, seeming a bit out of breath. "Let me... j-just catch my breath." He leaned against the doorframe, taking a moment to compose himself.

"Sure," I replied, waiting for him to continue.

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Haaah." Then, he looked at me with a serious expression. "Listen, don't let any of that get to you, you know what I mean."

"Get to me, yeah, I'll keep that in mind." I replied. 

Houston's expression turned sincere. "I don't know what happened when you were in primary, and I can't take what Shari said about you at face value. Even if it's true, I have faith in you. So, please, give this role a chance. You might not be a good leader now, but I believe with time you'll make a great one. If you need anything, you can even ask me for help. Yeah, what do you say—"

I cut him off before he could finish. "Why do you keep pushing that ? You don't even know me well enough. I arrived just this week." I couldn't fully trust his goodwill; my guard was up.

Houston seemed taken aback by my response. "I— well, I, I guess I just—" I interrupted him again, sensing that he was struggling to find the right words.

"It's better not to get involved with me," I said firmly. "I think it's best to drop the matter. Listen, I gotta head to my dorm." I indicated that I was done with the conversation.

But he insisted. "Just give it a try, alright?" He paused, then added, "Why don't we exchange numbers?" I thought I had won my out, but he had one last card to play.

I hesitated, and Houston sensed that I might come up with a reason to refuse. He continued, "We are classmates, after all. I'd like to keep you updated on what you'll probably miss out on, and you can do the same when I miss out on something , if you're fine with that. But no pressure though." He managed to persuade me, and I reluctantly agreed.

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense."

"Here, put your number in my phone," he said, walking to his desk to retrieve his phone from his bag. After I put in my number, I passed his phone back to him.

"Great, well, let me not hold you any longer," he said with a faint smile. I walked toward the door, finally glad I was heading back to my dorm.

{{grr grr}} My phone vibrated in my pocket. I was startled but finally realized who'd just called.

"Haha... I thought you had given me the wrong number. Sorry about that. I'll be seeing you tomorrow, then," he said.

"Yeah, tomorrow," I said in return. I left the classroom and started walking to my dorm room within the school. I was glad I didn't have to walk all the way to Prefex Road. I had already been drained from the day's events.

Walking through the hallways, I could finally let my hair down. I passed by the school's architecture and admired the well-kept grass and the color of the paint on the walls. "Neat." I muttered to myself. While deep in thought, I walked to my dorm, pondering how the rest of my school life at Camberton High would unfold and how high school compared to primary school was different, both good and bad. I was also still a little concerned about my former classmates attending school here with me. They would ruin it for me I thought.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of students laughing and talking loudly near a fountain. They seemed to hold no regard for their surroundings, and in some way, I thought this had to be considered some type noise pollution. Among the students was the senior student who had entered our class earlier. He noticed me and called out, "Ahh... Rep, heading back to the dorms already? Why don't you come on over here for a second?"

I had thought that from my class to my dorm, I wouldn't encounter anyone else I'd need to talk to. "I can't seem to take a break," I sighed and muttered to myself.

Lately, I had found myself sighing a lot more; almost like a daily practice. I trudged on over there, wondering what business he had with me, calling me over like that.

"You know him, Bruet?" asked a student who stood next to him, so his name was Bruet I thought. It was a group made up of five: the three girls sitting by the fountain and the two standing. That made six as I joined them.

"Yes, I went into their class, like I told you... long story short, I asked who their class president was, and here he is," Bruet explained.

"I see... you must be an exceptional student, then, to have been given the position of classroom president," Bruets friend said.

Delegated, rather, you should say I thought to myself.

"Well, I wouldn't say that... I-" I started to respond.

"Oh, you're quite the modest one, too," the student interrupted, smiling.

"No, I-" was all I could manage to say before being interrupted again, as I tried to clarify what really happened.

"I don't think he's anything special; the atmosphere in their classroom was a little off. I had to leave because of that, but I might be wrong." 

"Hey now." His friend said as he chuckled, the three girls joined him. "Saying he isn't anything special is crazy hahaha." 

Laughter was the girl's only contribution. Then one chimed in. 

"Yeah, to be chosen as a rep is actually a sign of your classmate's trust in you to lead the class."

"Yeah, the opposite is quite true too; you wouldn't just choose anyone you don't know. They'd mess up the class if they weren't that great. I see what you're saying, Tandi." 

Bruet's friend said and continued, "I mean, just look at this school, knowing you could be at the bottom and have to face the consequences of that… and still be sloppy about how you do things is absurd to even imagine people would do."

"I agree." Another girl replied. In the midst of this conversation, I started zoning out. "Hit the bottom," "ranks," "leaderboard," and "top spot"—all this was the language used here at this school. It was all new to me, but it wasn't as if it would be hard for me to catch on to this language of theirs. I couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness as I was being described; I kind of felt bad as well, the fact that I wasn't that much into studies, and on top of that, I was rep for the top house in my grade. If I "messed up," that'd be the end of me.

"Are you with us, rep?" Bruet asked, his tone casual. His friend chimed in, "We keep calling him rep; that might get old. What's your name?"

"Ubeko," I replied.

The friend's eyes narrowed slightly. "Just Ubeko? No surname?"

I shook my head. "No, I don't have one."

An awkward silence fell over the group, and I wondered if I'd inadvertently killed the conversation. But then, the girl who'd been quietly observing spoke up. "You're the quiet type, huh?"

 "Yeah, pretty much."

Bruet's friend took over again. "So, how's the school been treating you?"

I shrugged. "It's alright, I guess."

Bruet snapped his fingers. "Right, I forgot why I called you over. But I'd like to ask you where did you go in primary?" 

"I was homeschooled."

"I see.." 

"Hey, I got a question, if you don't mind answering one of my own, it's about the houses. Since the four houses are all just level when we start out. That is… until tests are taken to differentiate which house goes on top and which to the bottom." Most questions would burn at the back of the mind, but this one in particular burned at the side.

"Were you not listening when that was explained?" Bruet asked, "I wasn't here when that was." I said, "I see…" he said and paused for thought, then continued, "Well, why don't you figure it out? I mean, if you can't even figure that out, then— maybe you aren't really fit to be the class president. We must've kept you long enough; you can go back now."

Putting aside the matter of whether I could or couldn't, I wasn't a good fit for the role to begin with.

A cool breeze blew past us, the earth colored in an orange hue. It was one of the weather settings I most liked, so to speak, the clouds in the sky, usually white, were induced with an orange color as well.

"Right." I said as I turned to finally head to my dorm. I thought I'd never leave.

Now I was tasked with finding the answers to the questions I had myself. How convenient.

As I walked back to my dorm, I started thinking about which students were picked for which house and how it worked, and the only thing I could think of was they took some type of test when I wasn't here the first week, but then there's the entrance exam; people must've taken an entrance exam, I thought…