As Ivan steps through the school gates, his mind seems distracted.
At the end of the hallway, a few students who arrived early wander near the main entrance.
A bell rings above them much louder than he expected, causing several heads to turn toward the administration office. Ivan blinks slowly at the sound, his gaze shifting toward the classroom doors.
With a sigh, he starts walking toward his first class.
Inside the classroom, Mrs. Davis's voice echoes through the room as she calls attendance.
"Johnson... Keller... Martinez..."
Each name receives a single response.
"Here."
Ivan quietly slips into an empty seat near the back wall beside Sarah, who also arrived late.
He places his bag beneath his chair, with his notebook open in front of him.
Sarah offers him a small smile.
"Good morning."
Ivan looks at her hesitantly, then nods in return.
His fingers are already reaching for the worn sketchbook hidden inside his bag. He pulls it out and places it on his desk.
The bell rings loudly, officially announcing the start of class.
"Alright, settle down! We have some important announcements this morning."
Most of the students groan inwardly, but they obey and slide into their seats. Ivan's gaze drifts toward the window where the sunlight filters through. His fingers tap absentmindedly against the cover of his sketchbook.
Sarah leans closer to him.
"Hey, what's distracting you like this? You're usually drawing something by now."
She gently nudges his arm.
He looks at her for a moment, then turns back to the window.
"It's nothing, really."
Mrs. Davis begins reading from the board about the upcoming parent-teacher conferences.
But his gaze drifts outside again, watching a bird land on the windowsill and peck at a few remaining crumbs.
"Ivan, are you even listening?"
Sarah's voice cuts through his thoughts as she nudges his arm again, harder this time.
"You're staring out the window like you're waiting for something to happen."
He blinks slowly, as though waking from a dream.
"No... it's really nothing."
He mutters, his fingers running along the edge of his sketchbook.
"Birds have it easy. No homework, no parents calling, and no worrying about grades."
"You're really weird today."
Mrs. Davis continues her announcements, unaware of the private conversation taking place in the back.
"And remember, anyone caught sleeping or slacking off in class will receive detention!"
Ivan's attention sharpens slightly.
"Maybe I should sleep during class. They'll send me to detention, and I can skip the rest of the day."
Sarah shakes her head at him.
"Don't even think about it. You know how strict Mrs. Davis is with detention. Besides, you'll probably end up getting suspended for a week."
Ivan shrugs indifferently.
"It'd be worth it."
He leans back in his chair and folds his arms across his chest.
"Honestly, it doesn't sound so bad. A whole week to draw without doing anything else."
Sarah lowers her voice.
"Did you hear about Mark getting detention yesterday? They say he threw a pencil at Mrs. Chen during literature class."
Ivan raises an eyebrow with interest.
"He said she criticized his interpretation of Moby-Dick way too harshly. Something about calling Captain Ahab a 'spoiled child'..."
Ivan's eyebrows rise in genuine surprise as Sarah recounts what Mark did in class.
"Mark? Seriously? I can't imagine him doing something like that..."
Sarah nods eagerly.
"I know, right? It was completely out of character. Mrs. Chen said his face was bright red and he was yelling that she was ruining literature for everyone."
Ivan shakes his head slightly, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
"Maybe he was just having a bad day or something. Sometimes people snap when they're under pressure. It's amazing how easy it is to lose control when emotions build up."
His thoughts drift toward Mark, wondering what had pushed him to that point.
"Did they actually suspend him? Or was it just detention?"
"Just detention for now."
She whispers again as she turns the page.
"But Mrs. Chen said that if it happens again, they'll consider a harsher punishment, maybe even expulsion."
The bell rings loudly throughout the school, signaling the end of the first period. Students begin packing their belongings and heading out.
"I kind of understand it."
Sarah pauses halfway through zipping up her bag and looks at him in surprise.
"You understand what? The whole throwing-pencils thing?"
"Yeah. It's like... when you feel like everyone expects you to be perfect or act a certain way, and you just want to scream because you're tired of pretending."
She slings her bag over her shoulder.
"So are you saying you want to throw pencils at people?"
"Not exactly throw pencils... It's more like... making everyone shut up, even if it's only for five minutes."
"Hey, idiot, you've gone way too deep into this."
"Alright, alright. Never mind."
They leave the classroom together, heading toward their next class.