Not This Time, Love Pt 9

As soon as the boy whispered those words in my ear, I panicked. I never knew the assistant headmaster had a daughter at the school. That was when it hit me—the deep mess I had dragged myself into. Fear gripped me so tightly I couldn’t even look in the direction of the three girls.

Then I noticed something. The boy who had whispered was giggling. A bad sign. My mind raced. Was he just playing games to scare me off my dream girl? I decided to test him.

“Which of those three is the assistant headmaster’s daughter?” I asked, forcing courage into my voice.

“Oh, come on, I was just kidding,” he smirked.

Just kidding? I swear, if I had the chance, I would’ve planted a blow right in his face and told him I was just kidding too. He had no idea what he’d just put me through. I stayed calm and looked away until assembly ended.

On my way to class, the same boy walked up to me again.

“I can help you get one of the girls… if you’re ready to pay.”

“Ah, who told you I’m interested in any of them?” I shot back.

He chuckled. “Oh, please. I wasn’t born yesterday. From the way you were staring, it’s either you’re interested in one, or you’re just nosy. Anyway, that’s what I do for fun. If you want one, just say it. I’ll hook you up, effortlessly. My name’s Mike. Business class.”

He walked away, leaving me staring after him. From that moment, I began to wonder: was I that transparent? Could people really look at my face and know exactly what was on my mind?

Later, during the first break—after finishing breakfast at the dining hall—I headed to the assistant headmaster’s office in high spirits. I was sure the news he’d give me would be good. If my transfer from General Arts to Science succeeded, I wouldn’t need Mike’s shady help. I’d find my own way to win the nameless post office girl.

The assistant headmaster was calmly reading the Daily Graphic when I entered. He gestured for me to sit. From a file on his desk, he pulled out the paper containing my answer to his Science question and handed it to me. I realised he hadn’t even marked it.

Before I could say anything, he spoke.

“I admire your courage, your passion, and your determination. Looking at your answer, although you got it correct, I’m still not convinced you can handle Science. It’s up to you to prove me wrong. This is what I’ll do: I’ll move you to the Science class, but not this term. You’ll go next term. Your transfer will depend on how well you perform in the first-term exam, especially in core Science. Do you understand?”

“Yes, please,” I replied quickly.

“Good. Now go back to your class and study hard as if there’s no tomorrow.”

I stood, thanked him, and left.

I had thought moving to the Science class would be easy, but reality slapped me. Our wise folks say, he who wants to move mountains tomorrow must first learn to carry stones today. If I wanted this, I had to study hard and take Science seriously.

During the second break, Mike found me again. His eyes were shining. “I’ve got very good news for you,” he said. “Meet me in front of the assembly hall.”

I wasn’t sure how “good” this news would be. But curiosity got the better of me, and I agreed to meet him.