Monday, April 29 – Morning / St. Ivy High
Quiet Corridors
For the first time since the final exams ended, Jay stepped through the front gates of St. Ivy with nothing to carry but a half-empty water bottle and a vague sense of boredom.
The campus looked different.
Not quite in a dramatic way—just… incomplete.
Classroom windows stood open, chairs stacked. A few scattered students moved through the courtyard, all with a purpose. Carrying boxes. Holding clipboards. Yelling about budgets.
It didn't feel like a school anymore.
It felt like the leftovers of one.
Jay paused at the front steps, hands in his pockets, watching two second-years race across the field with a table balanced between them.
Then he walked inside.
The Half-Classroom
Class 1-A was mostly empty.
Eight students total—including himself.
Sofia was at her desk with two notebooks, three highlighters, and an iced coffee.
Emma sat further back, flipping through a thick binder while underlining something with a mechanical pencil that clicked with surgical precision.
Miles looked like he'd rather be anywhere else, but was currently being dragged into an argument about storage space by a girl from the Art Club.
Noah had his head on the desk and was muttering about "dreaming of escape."
Luna arrived a few minutes later with a giant art tube slung across her back.
And that was it.
No Amaya.
No Tyler.
No Yuki.
No chatter.
Jay took his usual seat by the window, leaned back, and said nothing.
No one noticed.
Or maybe they were just too busy to care.
III. The Busiest People Alive
"Hey, you," Sofia said without looking up. "If you're here to distract me, you're legally required to bring snacks."
Jay blinked at her. "...Good morning to you too."
"Not until this budget is balanced. And where's my bribe?"
"I've got half a water bottle and an expired cough drop."
"Disgusting," she muttered. "Get out."
Emma glanced up from her folder. "Why are you even here?"
"Thought I'd supervise your downfall."
"Touché."
Jay stood and wandered out of the room. He had no plan. No purpose.
Which meant, of course, someone would give him one.
The Useless Wanderer
By 9:30 AM, Jay had:
Held open the supply closet for a group of second-years in the Drama Club
Critiqued a rehearsal line ("You're crying too politely")
Been kicked out of the Debate Club room by a third-year who told him, "Your face looks too smug to argue with"
Found a cracked chair in the courtyard and fixed it with duct tape
Stared at the vending machine for four full minutes before deciding he didn't want anything
It wasn't that he was lost.
He was just… unused.
Everyone had something to do.
Jay had a perfectly good reason not to be here at all.
And yet—here he was.
Tyler, Amaya, and Absences
He finally ran into Tyler near the south wing, holding a sports bag over one shoulder and an energy drink in his hand.
"Jay!" Tyler grinned. "Why are you haunting school property?"
"I was going to ask you the same."
"Soccer practice," Tyler replied. "Coach is making us prep for some summer tournament."
"And Iris?"
"She said she's skipping today. Had something with her mom. But she'll show up tomorrow with three energy bars and a sparkle sticker for my face."
Jay blinked. "That's… very on brand."
"Where's Amaya?"
"HE Club. End-of-term cleanup. They're doing inventory. She said something about sugar being miscounted."
"She always says that," Tyler said, nodding solemnly. "It's her bakery instincts."
Then he waved and jogged off, calling behind him, "See you at lunch—unless I collapse!"
Jay turned back toward the empty hall.
So much for company.
Rooftop
He ended up on the roof.
It wasn't planned.
He just walked there out of habit, pushing open the familiar door with a quiet creak.
The sun was gentle. The sky was clean. The city hummed beneath it all.
Jay leaned on the railing, arms folded, watching the wind shift through the trees by the parking lot.
There was no one around. No footsteps. No voices. Just distant sounds of life.
And in the stillness, something in him relaxed—but didn't settle.
"Everyone's got something," he murmured.
"Except me."
VII. Back in Class
He returned to Class 1-A an hour later, just before lunch.
Sofia was still at her desk, now with two more sticky notes and twice the caffeine.
Emma had moved to the front row and was arguing with someone from the Student Council.
Noah was now asleep on the floor with his jacket as a pillow.
Miles had vanished.
Jay sat down and leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms behind his head.
Sofia squinted at him. "Did you go on a vision quest or something?"
"I found enlightenment. It looks like duct tape and regret."
"Charming."
"By the way," he added, "you've been using the wrong highlighter for that section."
She stared at her notes. "Wait—what?"
Jay smirked and tilted his head toward the ceiling.
End of Day
By the time the clock hit 4 PM, the room had emptied out again.
Sofia left with a backpack full of folders.
Emma packed up quietly and didn't say goodbye.
Noah yawned and wandered off in the direction of the nurse's office for "mental healing."
Luna stayed a few minutes longer to check her paints, then left without a word.
Jay sat in the silence.
No texts.
No meetings.
No errands.
He could've left too.
But he didn't.
He sat there until the sky outside turned pale gold.
"Not much of a Monday," he muttered to no one.
Then stood up, slipped his hands into his pockets, and headed out the door.
"Tomorrow would be the same.
Unless… I changed it."