CHAPTER FORTY-NINE: MIDTERM
Okay, while being in school for the whole week, I realized how fun it had been—until I actually spent more than just a week in the school. At first, everything seemed exciting: new friends, new routines, new foods, and even waking up to the hostel prefect's loud shouting. But then… exams happened.
Exams?! They were the most terrifying of all. I don't think anything else could come close to the sheer panic they brought.
When I wrote my midterm test, which fell on the second week of my stay—seventh week for the students who came before me—I realized immediately that I was totally unprepared. Well, at least I thought I was.
Sitting down with my test paper in front of me, I glanced at the questions and… I smiled. To my surprise, the questions weren't terrifying at all. In fact, they were as easy as ABC! The questions were practically the same ones I had been given during my entrance examination back in Primary Five.
Although my Primary Five teacher had told us we would get questions similar to what we were taught in class, I didn't expect the test to be that simple. I wasn't a brilliant student back in primary school. Honestly, I wasn't even part of the average students. I always wondered how I even managed to score so high on my entrance examination. And now, looking at this midterm test, I couldn't help but laugh at the irony. It was… very amusing!
I answered my midterm test with all smiles, confident and relieved. I guess all the extra lessons I took in Primary Four and Five really paid off.
Of course, last week, I had made some friends—especially Samuel. We became really close. I knew a lot about him, probably more than I did about my female friends, Morayo and Victoria. And as for Vanessa… let's just skip that part.
After the midterm tests, we were given three days' break to either go home or stay on campus. I decided to go home with my brother, since neither of my parents were available to pick us up from school.
At first, I had declined his offer. I wasn't sure I wanted to go home during the break. Some students preferred staying in school for various reasons: friends, activities, or even just avoiding boredom at home. And for me, the idea of being home alone was… well, slightly intimidating. I knew my brother would either go out with friends or bring girls home, and I'd be stuck with nothing to do and no one to talk to.
But eventually, I gave in. And on Friday afternoon, my brother asked me to get dressed to go out with him.
"Where are we going?" I asked, raising an eyebrow as I tried to figure out what he had in mind.
"To my friend's place," he replied, letting out a sigh that seemed to say, How do I even explain this to her?
"What does that even have to do with me? Is there a party?" I pressed further, standing to look at him more closely.
"No!"
"Then why am I coming with you?"
He hesitated, looking at me in silence. Then, suddenly, I caught on. "Oh! Your girlfriend's place!" I exclaimed, covering my smiling mouth, half teasing and half serious.
Instead of confirming, he just nodded.
"Well, that doesn't give me a reason to come along," I said thoughtfully, realizing I hadn't really wanted to accompany him.
"Gosh, can't you catch on? I'm taking you along so you can… occupy her sibling while I'm there," he explained, sitting casually on the couch. He looked at me, his tone calm but expectant.
"Sibling? How?" I asked, more confused now than before.
"I don't have to explain everything. Just trust me and come along," he said, turning his attention to his phone as if the conversation had ended.
"Whatever. I'll go," I said finally, deciding it was better than staying on social media all day.
After changing into something comfortable, we drove off in my brother's old Toyota, a hand-me-down from our dad. My brother, already eighteen, had received the car after passing his driving lessons and obtaining his license. I had always admired how confident he was behind the wheel.
As he drove, I tried to guess who his girlfriend might be. He was selective when it came to girls, so whoever she was, she must be special—probably his love at first sight.
"Are you sure she's your girlfriend?" I asked, trying to read his expression.
"Oh goodness!" he groaned, focusing on the road ahead.
"What? I'm just curious! I want to know who this girl is, the one who supposedly melts your stone heart," I said, half smiling, half serious.
"Enough with the joke! She is my girlfriend, okay? And I don't even know why I love her—I just do. For everything about her," he said dreamily, his eyes glazing over as he got lost in thought.
"Hey! Drive carefully and stop daydreaming!" I shouted, making him jolt back to reality.
"W-what?!" he exclaimed, adjusting his posture and focusing fully on the road.
"Gosh! This girl almost caused an accident," I said, laughing loudly at the situation.
"You are so annoying!" he muttered, not even looking at me.
"Sorry, can't help it!" I said, giggling as we continued driving.
Soon, we entered a large estate and pulled into a compound. My brother honked briefly before parking. A young girl, about his age, came outside to greet him.
I couldn't help but glance at her. Her body was… average—not slim, not particularly curvy, just in the middle. But there was something striking about her appearance that my brother clearly liked. She had a presence, a certain confidence in the way she stood, which immediately made me curious.
What did my brother see in her? I wondered silently, observing the girl carefully. My curiosity was buzzing.