The clock ticked louder than usual as I stared at my question paper.
What the hell is this?
I thought we had English today—not Maths.
Panic twisted in my stomach. I can't fail Maths again.
If I do, Dad will kill me.
Should I ask one of my classmates?
As the thought crossed my mind, my eyes landed on the girl sitting in front of me.
I didn't even know her name—not that I ever bothered to remember.
Nope. Not asking her.
And mind you, I'm not one of those guys who's scared of girls or can't make eye contact or whatever.
It's not that. I just... don't talk to them. Never really had a reason to. Never needed to.
Besides, now didn't feel like the right time to start forming new social bonds.
Especially not while I was busy having a mental breakdown in Helvetica font.
I looked around to see only one guy on my right.
I could ask him...
But I didn't have high hopes.
Max was the kind of guy who'd bring a banana to a pen fight.
Nice dude, but not exactly the academic type.
He had brown eyes and a mop of messy hair—like he'd just rolled out of bed and let his pillow do the styling.
Honestly, I think his pillow is secretly trying to sabotage him.
It's doing a damn good job.
He wore the standard school uniform: white shirt, black pants, black shoes, black tie with two white stripes, and a black blazer.
Somehow, he still managed to make it look like he got dressed during an earthquake.
Buttons misaligned, tie loose, shoes untied.
If chaos had a human form, it would be Max on exam day.
Still better than doing nothing.
I leaned over slightly and whispered, "Yo, do u know any of this questions?"
He blinked at me like I'd just asked him to explain quantum physics.
"Answer?" he said. "Bro, I didn't even know we have exams today, i thought exam was 3 days later."
"What??" I stared at him. "How do you not know that? Were you living under a rock or something?"
"Leave it. I was hoping too much from you."
"Hey!!" he whisper-shouted, like I'd just insulted his entire bloodline.
"I'll have you know I studied last night!"
"Oh yeah?" I raised an eyebrow. "Studied what? The ceiling?"
He gave me a look. "I was gonna revise, but my Wi-Fi died. That's basically fate telling me to rest."
Yeah. Fate. Sure.
Before I could roast him further, a shadow loomed over our desk.
Crap.
Mr. David
Our Maths teacher. Part-time sadist, full-time destroyer of GPAs.
The man had perfected the art of showing up exactly when you didn't want him to.
He must've unlocked some secret passive skill called "Silent Footsteps" or something.
Mr. David was tall, bald, and always looked like he regretted becoming a teacher.
He wore the same gray suit every day, like it was part of his soul, and his glasses sat low on his nose, as if judging you for even existing.
His aura radiated disappointment, and every step he took echoed the death of teenage dreams.
"Is there a group discussion I should be aware of?" he said, voice calm but laced with the kind of menace that could make grown men cry.
I immediately straightened up.
Max tried to slide his question paper over the answer sheet like that would save him.
Honestly, I respected the effort.
"No, sir," we said in creepy unison.
I hated how in sync we were.
Mr. David stared at us for a second longer than necessary.
That kind of stare that makes you reevaluate your life choices, your past sins, and even the way you breathe.
I felt like I needed to apologize for existing.
Then, without a word, he turned and walked away.
His footsteps were soft. Too soft.
Ninja level soft.
Max let out a breath like he'd just survived a war.
"Why's he built like a final boss?" he muttered.
To be fair, the man was built like one—broad shoulders, thick arms, and a chest that probably bench-pressed disappointment for fun.
If he wasn't a teacher, he could've easily passed for a retired wrestler or a bouncer at a haunted library.
Probably the kind that tells ghosts to quiet down.
I didn't answer.
I was too busy dying inside, one question at a time.
My brain felt like it was melting.
Each number on the paper turned into an ancient curse I couldn't read.
I even started hallucinating that one of the algebra problems was giving me side-eye.
15 minutes late.
My soul was 95% despair and 5% leftover breakfast.
I give up! I can't do it. What was I thinking trying to remember something I didn't even memorize?
Sigh.
I wish a truck-kun would fall from the sky and isekai me to a fantasy world so I can get myself an elf girlfriend—or girlfriends.
Don't judge me. If I'm gonna fantasize, I'm going all in.
Sigh. I sighed again and said,
"I hate this world. And especially school."
The seconds dragged like they were being paid by the hour.
Time wasn't just passing—it was mocking me.
Every tick of the clock sounded like a slow, sarcastic laugh.
My daydream about elf girlfriends was rudely interrupted by a low rumble.
It wasn't thunder. It was... deeper.
Like the earth itself had indigestion.
I looked up.
No one else seemed to notice.
Max was doodling something cursed on his desk, the girl in front was chewing her pen like it owed her money, and Mr. D'Souza was still pacing like a final boss waiting for phase two.
Then the lights flickered.
Just once.
And then my phone buzzed.
Emergency Alert: Please evacuate the school premises calmly. This is not a drill.
Yeah. That never means anything good.
*Important note*
U might feel like this is an AI story, u feel like that because the editer is ChatGPT lol, i make lots of mistakes ok and i did get some extra help chatgpt, it's 80% me and 20% Ai