Chapter 52: Emergency Situation

I sat on a park bench while closing my eyes, feeling the gentle breeze brushing against my face.

“The wind is calming. If only time could stop for a moment, so I could enjoy this breeze without thinking about anything.”

This place was truly comfortable. Before the incident of Dara changing seats happened, this park had been our favorite spot.

“If only Dara were here with me, it would surely be more enjoyable.”

This park had a small artificial lake that was beautiful and lush. Although not large, the lake was very lovely and peaceful, with colorful fish swimming slowly. The fresh air from the green trees surrounding it brought a sense of calm, making anyone want to linger here.

The atmosphere of the park was quite quiet, perhaps because it was located right behind the teachers’ building. Of course, if they wanted to, the teachers could monitor this park from the windows of their rooms. Maybe for that reason as well, this park was quieter than the one located at the corner near the school canteen.

There were two parks in this school, one beside the lower canteen area, and the other was this park, my favorite. For information, SMA Bakti Airlangga had three large buildings. The main building was used for teaching and learning activities. The second building functioned as the teachers’ room and offices for all school staff. The third building contained various student facilities, ranging from a music room, library, art room, laboratories, indoor sports rooms, and many more.

The school even had a swimming pool and four large fields, namely indoor and outdoor basketball courts, a volleyball court, and a soccer field. Facilities that were truly impressive for a senior high school.

I lifted my head and stretched both arms along the backrest of the park bench. It felt very comfortable. However, suddenly the voice of an uninvited guy came and disturbed my peace. Truly annoying.

“I saw someone pretending to be a hero today.”

I immediately opened my eyes when I heard Kenn’s irritating voice.

“What happened earlier?” he continued.

I snorted cynically, then closed my eyes again and folded my arms across my chest. “Do you just want to know, or do you really want to know, Kenn?”

He cursed softly. I smiled faintly, feeling pleased because I had managed to make him curious and annoyed at the same time.

“I just want to know. That’s all.”

I immediately opened my eyes, then stood up and walked closer to him. “Really? I was actually thinking you were so curious that you were willing to come and see me in person.”

I looked at him with a mocking, crooked smile, while he merely clenched his jaw, as if struggling to hold back the emotions that were starting to rise.

“Whatever. I can get information easily even without your explanation,” he replied curtly, then turned to leave.

“Did you forget to say thank you to me?” I asked, which instantly made him stop in his tracks.

Kenn turned around with a furrowed brow, staring at me with uncertainty.

“Isn’t she the one you’ve been following around all this time?”

He looked shocked. However, the expression only lasted for a moment before he put on a flat face again.

I knew he was waiting for me to continue, but I still wanted to toy with him a little longer. In the end, I only gave him a victorious smile, then sat back down on the park bench to enjoy the gentle breeze brushing against my face.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, then let it out with relief. I heard footsteps moving away. Perhaps Kenn had decided to leave the place. I smiled broadly. It turned out to be very satisfying to pay back the sharp words that so often came out of his mouth.

“Not bad. At least this time I managed to annoy him,” I muttered with a pleased smile.

There was one more thing that made me like this school, namely the length of its break time. This school provided a one-hour break. Even though it was only given once, one hour was not a short duration. Compared to other schools that on average only gave twenty to thirty minutes, this policy was far better.

In reality, thirty minutes was often not enough because it was eaten up by the time spent walking to the canteen, lining up to order, and the time to actually enjoy the food itself. For students who wanted to spend time playing basketball, visiting the library, or doing other activities, this one-hour break had a positive impact on all of us. It did not only provide room to relax, but also improved concentration when returning to class.

Not long after, I heard the sound of running footsteps approaching me.

“Finally I found you, Frel. Oh my God, I’ve been looking for you everywhere!” she said while trying to catch her breath.

I recognized that voice. When I opened my eyes, I felt both surprised and happy. I almost jumped up and hugged her, but immediately stopped when I remembered that she had been avoiding me for the past few days.

I shifted to a hands-on-hips stance. “You still remember me?”

“Forgive me, Frel. I promise I’ll tell you everything you want to know later. But please, come with me now.” Dara began to look panicked. “This is truly an emergency. It’s very urgent. We have to go to the court right now!”

“I won’t go before you explain everything,” I replied firmly. I even turned my face back toward the lake.

“Frel, come on. This is bad, really bad. Look at that!”

I followed the direction of Dara’s pointing finger toward the park beside the canteen. I frowned when I saw that the place was suddenly deserted.

“Do you know why that place is empty? Because everyone is gathering at the outdoor basketball court.”

“Is that true? What happened there?”

“Enough, don’t ask so many questions. Just come with me now. Hurry!”

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