Scene opens in the quiet school corridor after closing hours.
The classrooms are empty, desks arranged neatly, and the sound of distant pupils fades as the compound empties. The golden glow of the evening sun streams through the windows, painting long shadows across the tiled floor.
Maya walks down the corridor, balancing a stack of lesson notes. She looks exhausted but focused. Suddenly, she hears footsteps behind her.]
[ Clinton enters, jacket slung casually over his shoulder. He walks with an air of confidence, the kind that comes naturally when your mother owns the school.]
Clinton : [ teasing] Still here? The last teacher left thirty minutes ago. You're making the rest of us look lazy.
Maya: [glancing at him, smiling faintly] Someone has to prepare for tomorrow. Not everyone has the luxury of strolling out whenever they want.
Clinton : [grinning] Ouch. That's a shot at the proprietor's son, isn't it?
Maya : [laughing softly] If the shoe fits...
[Clinton walks closer, gently takes the pile of books from her arms, and sets them on a nearby desk. His expression softens.]
Clinton : [quietly] You work too hard, Maya.
Maya : [raising an eyebrow, trying to stay composed] And you flirt too much.
[Clinton chuckles, stepping closer, his voice lowering.]
Clinton : [serious now] What if I'm not flirting? What if... I mean it?
[Maya freezes, her breath catching. She looks at him, unsure whether to laugh it off or believe him.]
Maya : [carefully] Clinton... don't play games with me.
Clinton : [softly, almost a whisper] I'm not. You're different. And every day, I find it harder to see you as just my bestie.
[ Silence fills the corridor. The tension is thick, almost unbearable. Maya's heart races; she steps back slightly, clutching her hands together nervously.]
Maya : [whispering] You can't say things like that. Not to me.
[ Clinton leans closer, his eyes fixed on hers.]
Clinton : [low, intense] But you feel it too... don't you?
[ Just as Maya is about to respond, a distant voice calls from outside his mother calls for him. Maya quickly grabs her books, her cheeks flushed.]
Maya : [hurriedly] I... I need to go. Goodnight, Clinton.
[She rushes down the corridor. Clinton watches her go, a knowing smile playing on his lips.]
Clinton : [muttering to himself] You can run, Maya... but you can't hide from this.
Curtains falls out.