March 21 – St. Ivy High School, Class 1-A
The Class Comes Alive
When Jay walked into Class 1-A, it felt like the building itself exhaled.
The chairs were the same, the walls still had that old bulletin board filled with club posters and reminders to clean up after lunch, and yet something had clearly shifted. It wasn't the room—it was the people in it.
Or maybe it was Jay himself.
He stepped inside right before the first bell. Heads turned slowly at first, then all at once, like a wind had blown through the room.
The chatter stopped.
For one glorious second, complete silence.
And then—
"No. Freaking. Way."
Noah, perched halfway onto his desk like some kind of theatre goblin, jumped up and pointed dramatically. "You're actually real! He's not a ghost!"
Jay grinned. "Good to see you too, Noah."
The Morning Ripple
The first period began in name only.
Jay was surrounded—Tyler on one side, Sofia propped on the edge of his desk, and Noah whispering gossip in his ear like they were sharing state secrets.
Mr. Brooks attempted a lesson on comparative literature, but not even he had the energy to stop the storm brewing inside Room 1-A.
Every so often, Jay's eyes drifted to the front of the class.
Emma was there, as always.
Composed.
Focused.
Or pretending to be.
She didn't look at him. Not once.
But Jay saw the way her hand paused when she wrote. The way her lips pressed together when Sofia giggled too loudly. The way she shifted slightly in her seat like her chair didn't fit the way it used to.
Amaya sat by the window. She didn't speak up. But she smiled every time their eyes met, then looked away as if afraid to hold the moment too long.
And Yuki... Yuki just watched.
Quiet. Calm. And too observant for Jay's comfort.
He could feel her thoughts. Not hear them—but feel them, like invisible threads tightening whenever he said something carefully vague.
He knew she knew he wasn't telling the full story.
But she said nothing.
Not yet.
III. The Heart of the Class
When the second period break arrived, Mr. Brooks didn't even try to rein them in.
He sipped his coffee, leaned against the desk, and watched the room like a tired zookeeper.
"You know," he muttered, "for a group of hormonals, sleep-deprived teenagers, you people have more drama than a reality show."
Tyler raised a hand. "Technically, Jay was the season finale last semester."
Sofia chimed in, "And now he's the season two opener. Welcome back, main character."
Jay groaned. "You people have not changed."
"That's rich," Noah laughed. "Coming from the guy who vanishes for months and walks back in like some kind of K-drama nobleman."
Mr. Brooks gave Jay a look.
Jay gave him one right back.
"I'm not explaining anything," Jay said, casually flipping open a notebook.
Mr. Brooks grunted. "Good. I'm too old for secrets."
But under the sarcasm, something softened in his expression.
"Class 1-A's soul is back," he said, almost too quietly for anyone to hear.
Lunch Beneath the Blossoms
They all spilled out onto the rooftop at lunch—Jay's idea, though he didn't say it aloud. It just felt right.
The cherry blossoms were just beginning to bloom.
The sky was wide and blue, the breeze sharp but clean.
It felt like the kind of day you remembered without knowing why.
Tyler plopped down next to Jay, unwrapping his bento like a man on a mission. "You missed a lot. I mean, I became soccer MVP. Sofia almost got detention for flirting with a substitute teacher. And Noah... well, he got cast as a tree in the school play."
Jay laughed. "A tree?"
Noah waved his sandwich in the air. "A very expressive tree!"
Sofia dropped down across from them. "Don't let him fool you. He had one line and forgot it. He just stood there vibrating with shame."
"I was method acting!"
Jay couldn't stop smiling.
It wasn't just the stories. It was the rhythm.
The way they fell back into place like pieces of a puzzle no one had realized was missing a corner.
Amaya arrived late, holding two drinks. She handed one to Jay.
"Milk tea," she said quietly. "I remembered you liked it."
"Thanks," he said. Their fingers brushed.
She looked away.
Emma sat down soon after. Not too close. Not too far.
Jay's heart kicked against his chest when she settled beside the blossom tree. She didn't speak. Just watched the petals drift like pink confetti.
He wanted to say something.
He didn't.
Not yet.
Fragments and Echoes
After lunch, the day kept moving.
Jay joined group activities like nothing had changed.
He teased Sofia. Laughed with Tyler. Played a silent game of eye contact with Yuki that felt dangerously close to an interrogation.
He bumped into Amaya by the art room—she had a smudge of paint on her cheek and a soft smile that almost undid him.
And every time he passed Emma, she seemed just about to say something… then didn't.
It was like they were orbiting each other again.
Familiar.
Unspoken.
Almost too safe.
Jay wondered what would happen if he broke the pattern.
After the Bell
By the time the last bell rang, Jay felt both exhausted and alive.
The class slowly emptied. Tyler left with Iris. Sofia blew him a kiss and shouted, "Don't disappear again, you hear me?"
Noah waved dramatically like Jay was boarding a ship to war.
Amaya hovered near the door. Then stepped out with one last smile over her shoulder.
Emma packed her things in silence.
Jay stood, but didn't leave.
She looked at him.
This time, she didn't look away.
Then, without a word, she left too.
Jay stayed behind.
Alone.
For a few seconds, the classroom was quiet. Golden light spilled across the desks.
He walked to the window. The Sakura tree below caught the wind again.
Jay closed his eyes.
For now, this life was still his.
But he knew something was coming.
Something he hadn't faced yet.