2- HARPER

The morning air was still thick with exhaust fumes and the distant honking of taxis when I finally reached the school gate, my backpack heavy against my shoulders and my hair still damp from the rushed shower. I had barely set foot on the cracked concrete pathway when a familiar hand shot out and clamped around my arm with startling force.

"Hurry up! Harper!" Jane hissed, her voice low and urgent, her fingers digging into my bicep with a desperation that immediately set my nerves on edge. She yanked me sideways, away from the main walkway, pressing us both against the cool metal of the gate.

Her eyes were wide, darting frantically toward the assembly hall at the far end of the quadrangle where students were already lining up in neat, silent rows. "The principal is punishing latecomers today," she whispered, her breath warm and minty against my ear.

"Like, real punishments."

A cold knot of dread dropped into the pit of my stomach. I could already picture it—the principal's thick leather belt, his face twisted into that cruel, satisfied smirk he wore whenever he had an excuse to humiliate students in front of the entire school. My pulse kicked up a frantic rhythm against my throat.

"Oh my God!" I breathed, my own voice barely audible, trembling with panic. "That man has started again with his problems. What should I do now? I don't want to fall into the trap of that wicked man," I whispered back, my eyes scanning the courtyard for any sign of danger.

That was when I spotted him.

"Is that not Asher kneeling down?" I asked, my stomach twisting at the sight of my childhood friend positioned at the front of the assembly ground, his head bowed in shame while the principal paced back and forth in front of him like a predator circling wounded prey.

The morning sun glinted cruelly off the principal's bald head, and even from this distance, I could see the rigid tension in Asher's shoulders.

"Enough of all these questions." Jane's grip on my sleeve tightened, her nails biting through the thin fabric of my uniform blouse. She gave me a sharp push toward the block of classrooms, her eyes never leaving the assembly hall.

"Just sneak behind me and go hide in any toilet until assembly is over. Be quick before the principal suspects something is going on here," she whispered urgently, her body angled to shield me from view.

She pushed me again, more insistently this time, and I stumbled backward, my heart hammering as I realized just how close of a call this was. “If I had arrived thirty seconds later, if Jane hadn't been watching the gate”—

I didn't let myself finish the thought. I ducked low, hugging the wall, my sneakers squeaking faintly against the polished floor as I slipped into the nearest restroom and locked myself in the last stall.

The air inside was thick with the chemical sting of industrial disinfectant and the lingering humidity of morning mops. I pressed my back against the cold metal door, squeezed my eyes shut, and tried to slow my breathing.

Time crawled by in that cramped, suffocating space. The toilet seat was down, and I perched on the edge of it, knees drawn to my chest, listening to the muffled drone of the principal's voice booming through the PA system.

"Finally, the assembly is over," I murmured to myself, nearly weak with relief the moment the students' voices rose in the familiar, droning cadence of the marching-in song. "I'll soon get out of this choking toilet."

I waited another few agonizing minutes until the hallway filled with the thunder of footsteps and chatter, then emerged, blinking in the fluorescent light, and made my way to class.

…

(MINUTES LATER)

The classroom was buzzing with the low murmur of pre-lesson conversations when I walked in, the morning sunlight slanting through the dusty windows in pale golden bars.

Asher was already at his desk, his uniform slightly rumpled, his dark hair disheveled from whatever punishment he had endured.

He looked up as I approached, and despite everything, a mischievous grin tugged at my lips.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Asher my guy." I dropped into the seat beside him, leaning back with deliberate casualness. "How did you fall into the trap of the principal?" I asked teasingly, my voice laced with playful sympathy as we all settled down in the class waiting for the subject teacher to come.

"Where were you, Harper?" He turned to me, his brow furrowed in genuine confusion. "I didn't see you in the assembly hall," he asked.

"Oh! Asher! Such a brilliant question." I crossed my arms over my chest, fighting the urge to laugh at the absurdity of it all. "Anyway, I made myself invisible to everyone," I replied, my tone dripping with mock mystery.

"Hold it there! Harper!" Jane's voice cut through the conversation like a knife the moment she entered the class, her bag swinging from one shoulder, her cheeks still flushed from the morning's adrenaline.

She strode up to us, planting her hands on her hips with theatrical indignation. "Was I not the one that saved you? Don't allow her deceive you. I was her savior today," Jane added boastfully, her chin lifted with pride.

"Fine, that shouldn't make you feel like a god," I replied immediately, rolling my eyes even as a warm flicker of gratitude moved through my chest. She had, after all, saved me from a very public humiliation.

A heavy silence fell over our little trio. Asher's expression shifted, his jaw tightening as he looked from Jane to me and back again.

"Now, I understand what is going on," Asher said slowly, his voice dropping to a lower, more serious register. The both of us kept quiet, instinctively leaning in to hear what he had to say.

"So, Jane, you saved Harper and didn't even tell me that the principal was punishing latecomers when I passed you at the gate." He fixed her with a look that was part hurt, part genuine anger. "So what are we friends for?" he asked, the words sharp enough to make Jane flinch.

"Asher, I am very sorry." Jane's boastful demeanor crumbled instantly, her shoulders sagging. "I didn't know that the principal was punishing latecomers," she pleaded, her eyes wide and earnest as she tried to defend herself. "I swear, I only found out right before Harper got here—"

"Sigh!" The sound escaped me before I could stop it. I reached out, placing a hand on Asher's forearm, feeling the tension coiled there. "I trust Jane. She can't allow you to walk into a problem on purpose." I looked between them, my voice softening with the weight of memories.

"Have you forgotten what the three of us did together since childhood, when we were still in primary school and always covered for each other in times of trouble? Fate brought us together again”.

“So, it is not now that we would let each other down," I said, trying to resolve the issue, the words carrying the full weight of our shared history—the scraped knees, the secret hideouts, the promises made under playground equipment that we would always have each other's backs.

The tension in Asher's shoulders eased, just slightly.

"Anyway, there's something I want to discuss with both of you," I added, my curiosity about the dream still burning in the back of my mind, demanding to be shared.

But just then, the classroom door swung open with a sharp creak, and the subject teacher walked in, her heels clicking against the linoleum, a stack of textbooks balanced in her arms.

"Don't worry, guys! When we are on break, I'll gist you," I said quickly, the words tumbling out in a rushed whisper as we all scrambled to our feet to greet the teacher.

….

(MOMENTS LATER)

The bell for break rang loudly through the hallway, a harsh, metallic clang that shattered the monotony of the morning.

Chairs scraped against the floor as everyone jumped up, the room erupting into a chaotic symphony of zipping bags and shouted conversations. Sunlight poured through the windows now, turning the dust motes into floating specks of gold.

"Alright guys, let's go to the cafeteria," I said, already gathering my things, my stomach fluttering with a strange mix of excitement and nervousness.

"This is our chance to finally talk," I added as the three of us fell into step together, navigating the crowded hallway. The air smelled of floor wax and teenage perfume, lockers slamming shut on either side of us as we made our way toward the cafeteria. We held ourselves close, our shoulders bumping, a tight little unit moving through the sea of students.

The cafeteria was a cavernous, high-ceilinged room filled with the clatter of trays and the overlapping roar of a hundred simultaneous conversations.

The smell of fried plantains and yesterday's stew hung heavy in the air. We weaved through the tables, past clusters of laughing students, until we reached our favorite spot—a corner table near the tall windows that looked out over the overgrown football field, slightly apart from the chaos.

I set my tray down and stirred my drink, the ice clinking against the plastic cup, watching them both as we all settled down at the cafeteria, at our favorite spot.

"Sigh! Would you guys believe I now have a dream boyfriend?" I asked teasingly, my voice light and playful even as heat crept up the back of my neck.

"Hmmmm, are you for real?" Jane leaned forward immediately, her eyes lighting up with curiosity, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. "Where did you meet this fortunate guy from?" she asked with a curious smile.

"Yes, we all ought to know who this guy is," Asher added, his earlier irritation completely forgotten, replaced by keen interest.

I took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the secret I had been carrying alone for days.

"Hope you guys understand what I meant by dream boyfriend?" I paused, letting the words hang in the air between us, my voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.

"Like, the guy normally fucks me every night in my dream and I would wake up very wet and dripping. This normally happens anytime I read this novel I downloaded before I sleep," I said, the confession tumbling out in a rush as I watched their faces carefully, bracing for judgment, laughter or disbelief.

"Ah! What novel is that?" The both of them exclaimed and asked almost at the same time, their eyes wide with their mouths slightly open as the cafeteria noise fading into a distant hum around us.

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