Jay's POV:
Sir Alvin entered the classroom.
And like magic—
Section E went silent.
Not only because we respected him.but also
Because we were scared of sudden consequences.
Still, silence was only partial.
Mayo was leaning back on his chair, staring at the ceiling like he was counting cracks.
Kit was tapping his pen on Mayo's shoe, clearly trying to irritate him.
Drew had his head down, eyes open but brain completely offline.
Felix was flipping notebook pages randomly, pretending he was revising something important.
Edrix whispered something to Josh, who nodded even though he clearly didn't hear a word.
Sir Alvin placed his bag on the desk.
He didn't say anything.
He just stood there.
Waiting.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
"Ahem."
Every head snapped up.
"Good," Sir Alvin said calmly. "At least you still recognize that sound."
A few boys quickly straightened up.
Others adjusted their sitting position like they had always been serious students.
"I'm announcing a group project," he continued.
The class reacted instantly.
A long collective sigh.
A dramatic groan from the back.
Mayo whispered loudly, "Sir, today was going fine."
Kit smacked his head. "Shut up."
Sir Alvin ignored them completely.
"This project," he said, walking slowly in front of the class, "is meant to test how well you work in a team. You will research a topic, understand it properly, divide the work equally, and present it clearly in front of the class."
I leaned back in my chair.
And noticed the king. Firstly he was not paying attention towards me but then I realised, he was watching me and smiling.
Without realising, I start blushing, I just decided to ignore him otherwise I won't be able to listen even a single word from Sir Alvin.
Sir continued,
"Each group must prepare written notes, clear points, and a short oral explanation," he added. "This will affect your internal assessment. So yes—this is important."
No one looked happy.
Section E wasn't known for academic passion, except few smart ones.
Most of them treat studies like background noise—something that existed, unfortunately.
"There will be four members per group," Sir Alvin announced.
That's when chaos tried to wake up.
Chairs scraped lightly.
People leaned toward friends.
Mayo tried to drag Kit's chair closer to his.
Then I realised king pulling my chair towards him and ci en pulling it back. Before I could react, sir said,
"Before you start forming gangs," Sir Alvin said firmly,
"One rule."
Instant silence.
"Jay," he said, looking straight at me,
"Keifer, and Yuri—"
Keifer straightened.
Yuri lifted his head slightly, polite smile ready.
"You three will not be in the same group."
The room froze.
Keifer frowned. "Sir?"
Yuri smiled calmly. "Is there a specific reason?"
I raised my hand. "Sir, I promise I'll behave."
Sir Alvin sighed like a tired guardian.
"That's exactly why you won't be together."
The class burst into laughter.
"You two" he continued, "are strong leaders. If I put Jay with either of you, it will be a chaos and we all know why . I need balance."
Keifer leaned toward me and muttered, "He's afraid of our power."
"Of your ego," I whispered back.
Yuri glanced at Keifer. "whatever."
Sir Alvin clapped once. "Enough. I'll assign the groups."
Groans followed immediately.
David sat straight, calm and composed like this was a normal responsibility.
Calix leaned back, bored already, spinning his pen slowly.
Ci-in was drawing numbers and symbols in his notebook—definitely not studying.
"David," Sir Alvin called.
David nodded respectfully.
"Ci-in."
Ci-in jumped. "Sir, I swear I study."
"No one accused you," Sir Alvin replied dryly.
"Jay."
I groaned. "Sir, why me?"
I said: "Sir, I object on emotional grounds."
Sir Alvin: "Rejected."
"Because," he said calmly, "you avoid work unless supervised."
The class laughed again.
"And Ellara."
Everything went quiet.
"You all are in one group"
Ci-in leaned toward me immediately. "Wait. Hold on. Sir, are you sure? Like… really sure?"
Sir Alvin nodded. "Yes."
Ci-in pressed a hand to his chest. "Sir, I was joking earlier. About life. About studies. About everything."
I whispered back, "Congratulations. You played yourself."
David just sighed like the mature human he was.
Sir decided all the groups.
King, drew, Edrix and Felix.
And yuri, mayo, josh and kit.
And all others in one.
I was thinking about my life when suddenly sir said " I am giving you this period for discussion, group can decide the topics and tell me"
David and ci en came close to my seat . I sighed ci en towards elara to call her to join us, it's not like that I was afraid, I just don't want to 😁.
Ci-in leaned forward, eyes wide, and called out in the most dramatic whisper possible,
"Ateee— Ellara, over here! This side! We promise minimum chaos!"
A few students burst out laughing.
I turned to him. "Minimum? That's a lie."
David sighed. "Please don't scare her."
Ellara didn't respond. No smile. No words. Nothing. She simply walked toward us.
Ellara stood up smoothly. No hesitation. No reaction to the attention. Hoodie still covering part of her face, notebook in hand.
She walked toward us calmly.
And that tiny look made Ci-in whisper, "Okay. That was cool. I feel intimidated."
Behind me, I could feel it.
Keifer clicked his tongue in irritation.
Yuri leaned back, clearly annoyed.
"Sir," Keifer said, "this doesn't feel fair."
"You'll survive," Sir Alvin replied without looking at him.
We sat together.
Ci-in looked around the group. "So… David is the mature one."
David sighed. "Unfortunately."
"I hate projects," I said honestly.
Ci-in nodded. "Same."
Ellara didn't say anything.
David placed his notebook on the desk and looked at all of us.
"Okay. We need ideas. Something realistic. Something we can actually finish."
I leaned back on my chair. "What about a project on how students survive without studying?"
Ci-in's eyes lit up. "Yes! Case study on me. I am the victim and the evidence."
David pinched the bridge of his nose. "No."
I grinned. "Fine. Then how about 'Group Projects: A Psychological Torture'?"
Ci-in nodded seriously. "With live demonstrations."
David looked at us like he was regretting every life decision that led him here.
"Please. One normal idea."
I tilted my head toward Ellara. "Your turn, Ate. Save us."
Ci-in added dramatically, "Yes, Ate Ellara. Before sir fails us collectively."
Ellara had been quiet till now, fingers resting on her notebook. She didn't rush. She didn't react to the noise.
She looked up and said calmly,
"We can do the project on how peer pressure affects decision-making in students. Simple surveys. Real data. Less drama."
Silence.
Actual silence.
I blinked. "Wow."
Ci-in stared at her. "Ate… that was… smart."
David's eyes lit up. "That's actually good. Practical and clean."
Ellara just nodded once and looked back at her notebook, like she hadn't just saved our academic future.
I leaned toward Ci-in and whispered, "We were making jokes. She was making sense."
Ci-in whispered back, "I feel exposed."
David smiled slightly. "Alright. Let's do that."
And just like that,
Ellara spoke one line—
and took control without even trying.
She opened her notebook.
Immediately.
No complaining.
No drama.
No sighing like the rest of us.
She started writing.
Ci-in leaned toward me and whispered, "Is she… actually working?"
David leaned closer. "She looks efficient."
"Wait," I said. "We're supposed to complain first."
Ellara didn't even look up.
Her pen moved fast, confident, steady.
After a few minutes, she slid the notebook toward the center of the table.
David picked it up and read carefully.
"This is well structured," he said.
Ci-in leaned over. "Wait… this is the entire plan."
Ellara nodded. "Outline. We can divide it."
Ci-in stared. "We just sat down."
"Yes," she replied calmly.
That somehow felt insulting.
"I'll handle analysis," David said.
"I'll present," I added.
Ci-in sighed. "I'll… exist."
Ellara nodded once and went back to writing.
Across the room, I noticed things.
Keifer was pretending not to watch us—but failing.
Yuri glanced once, then looked away, clearly irritated.
Calix raised an eyebrow from his seat, impressed despite himself.
Ellara didn't notice any of it.
She looked up once.
At me.
And gave a small, calm smile.
Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Just enough.
I smiled back.
Something told me—
This project wasn't just about marks.
It was about realization.
And Section E was slowly realizing something important.