After handing out gifts to the women on the team, Elion turned away from Clara without hearing her quiet words.
He thought of one more thing and addressed the class again.
"Of course, I can't speak for the women in the class, but I'd like to believe they agree with me. On my own behalf, and with the silent support of the women, I express my heartfelt gratitude to the men in this class. You are not as beautiful as our girls, of course, but your laughter and smiles always dispelled the boredom of studying. After this, we will all go our separate ways in life and may never see each other again. I just hope you'll keep these happy moments and sparkling smiles of childhood in your memory forever and remember them from time to time." The boy said joyfully and continued:
"So, for your smiles, your laughter, and your joy, I express my gratitude." Elion bowed gracefully.
"And now... For the last day of school, three cheers! Hurray!"
"Hurray!"
"Hurray!"
"Hurray!"
Once again, joyful shouts and applause rang out. Even the girls who had been looking enviously at Clara joined in. After all, they were a close-knit class.
"Thank you, too, kid!"
"Yes, thank you, Elion!"
"Thank you, Elion!"
Elion smiled quietly as he listened to the applause and shouts of support, thinking that he would miss these times.
"Oh, and by the way, even though there are no more gifts, something interesting remains. I officially invite all of you after class to the final match of the Weimar School Dodgeball League. Of course, girls can participate too if they want.
Having finished the formal part, Elion began looking for his hat, which had flown off somewhere.
He had seen a top hat in one of his mother's magazines that was now popular among the upper class. However, it was impossible to find one in Weimar, so he settled for an old cap. His attitude toward the cap had clearly changed after he saw his coveted new toy, but he still didn't want it crushed by dozens of feet.
After finally finding his nearly lifeless cap, he dusted it off tiredly and went to his desk, where his neighbor had been waiting for him for a long time.
Elion sat at the last desk in the middle row, immediately to the right of Clara's desk. She sat alone. Of course, he often moved his desk closer to hers or jumped over to her during boring lessons to have fun. She always hissed irritably at this but did not chase the boy away.
Elion's desk neighbor was...
"Bean pod!" Elion exclaimed happily.
"Yeah..." The lanky guy with dull, almost gray hair said lazily.
Yes, exactly—a bean pod. That's what Elion had called him when he first saw him, to which he had replied wearily, "Yeah..."
And so their strange friendship began. Although Elion talked a lot, and Beany—as Elion called him—usually answered with just one word, they were surprisingly friendly.
In fact, even now, no one in the class knows Bean pod's real name, but he doesn't seem to mind.
"Today is a wonderful day, Beany, isn't it? You're full of energy, which is a joy to see." Said Elion as he sat down at the table, not noticing the annoyed glance from his left.
"Yeah..."
"What's the matter? Didn't you enjoy the performance?"
"Well... It was fun at first. Then I got tired and... You know..." He replied in the same tone.
"Ah, you had fun... That's good to hear. But Beany, you're losing energy every day. Judging by your appearance, you're just skin and bones under your clothes. You definitely need to eat more!"
"Why is this coming from the shortest person here...?"
Yes, Elion was the shortest person in his class. The thing was, though, that he was a year younger than all his classmates. His sister left for training and school in the morning, and his parents were at work, so he asked to go to school because he was bored.
Because of that, the shortest and tallest students now sit at the same desk.
"Don't worry about me. I'll catch up. But you, my friend, should think about the lack of nutrients in your diet," Elion said in a moralizing tone.
"I cook every day... And you think I'm lacking in nutrients?"
Bean Pod helped his parents, who owned the only bakery in town, every day, so he certainly wasn't starving.
"Oh, poor, poor Bean Pod... I'm not talking about a lack of food, but a lack of nutrients. All you eat are buns, but your body needs variety. Oh, poor thing..." Elion said sympathetically.
"..."
"Do you understand?"
"Yeah..."
"Well done!" Elion gave him a thumbs-up.
"..."
"By the way, are you coming to my birthday party?"
"Yes."
I'm sorry to say this, but it looks like tomorrow's plans are canceled."
*Thudd*
Something fell loudly onto the desk on the left.
Elion looked in the direction of the sound and saw that the miniature Clara he had worked so hard on had fallen out of the other Clara's hands and onto the table, leaving a scratch.
"W-what?" Clara said in shock.
"What are you asking about?" Elion replied, puzzled.
Coming to her senses, Clara was a little embarrassed and asked,
"W-what did you mean when you said the plans were canceled? W-why...?"
"Oh, you mean that... The thing is, my sister and I are going to the circus tomorrow, so the celebration with our friends is canceled."
Already deeply shocked, Clara fell into an even deeper state of shock. She began to mutter quietly under her breath, almost ready to cry.
"H-how can it be canceled? I... I... She did it aga..." But before she could finish, Elion said,
"Oh, well... I'll celebrate with my friends a couple of days later, of course!
It was only after these events that Clara calmed down a little, having almost suffered a second trauma.
"By the way, Clara, I didn't invite you, did I? Right?"
Clara was thrown into despair again, and the bouquet of flowers, which she held close to her face and inhaled deeply, seemed to wilt from her emotional ups and downs.
She could only mutter dejectedly,
"You didn't invite me..."
"Well... Then I officially invite you to my birthday party! Any dress code is welcome for you because you'll look gorgeous in anything. And yes, I won't let you in without a gift!" Elion finished in a joking tone and winked at her.
After calming down and smiling a little, the girl finally replied,
"Okay..."
After giving Clara a verbal invitation, Elion turned around when he heard Bean Pod's question.
"The circus...?"
"Yes, what's bothering you?"
"Where did it come from...?"
"Oh, I saw its bright advertisement in the central square on the way to school."
"I didn't see it..."
"Hmm... Did you see it, Clara?" He asked without turning around, knowing full well she was listening.
"I live in the school dormitory and don't walk that way."
"Right... Now I understand," Elion said, looking pityingly at the bean pod.
"Beany, you really need to start eating normal food."
"..."
"Do you understand?"
"Yeah..."
"Well done," Elion praised his student, giving him a thumbs-up.
The classroom buzzed with conversation as the students enjoyed their last moments together.
Elion realized the unnatural situation and said,
"Damn! I completely forgot that we're supposed to be studying here. Teacher, please forgive us for the delay. Please continue with the lesson." Elion bowed in apology.
"..."
"Teacher?"
But the teacher was long gone.
Faced with an unfamiliar situation, the students began to wonder what to do. By a show of hands, they decided that, since they were at school, they would continue playing the role of students and listen to the teacher's lessons.
The role of teacher was wisely given to...
"T-teacher Elion, I don't understand this point. Please explain it to me again..." Clara said, a little embarrassed.
"Of course, Clara. You are my most diligent student, and I am happy to explain the material to you as many times as you need." Said the renowned teacher, adjusting his glasses.
What happened in these lessons is a separate story.
...
After finishing their impromptu lessons, the students went to the dining hall to fortify themselves before the most ambitious game in the school's history.
Unlike the teachers, the cooks had always been warm toward the students. Now, on the occasion of their graduation, the cooks had prepared a real feast for them as if to see them off on a long journey.
After a hearty meal, more than a hundred students gathered in the spacious, usually unused backyard of the school.
"So, friends! In today's final match, there will be no more teams. We will fight until only one remains alive, and then we will finish him off together! First, the first half will attack the second. Then, they will replace the eliminated ones and fight to the last breath. As a reward, the sole survivor will receive the title of 'Untouchable' for life, and then we will all beat him up together! Are you ready?!
"Yeeaah!" came the cry from the huge group of people.
"I can't hear you! Are you ready?! Elion shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Yeeeaaah!!!" they shouted even louder.
"Then the final round of the Weimar School Dodgeball League begins..."
"Now!!!" Elion shouted, and the battle began.
...
Meanwhile, Clara sat alone on a bench, holding a bouquet of flowers and a cobblestone, watching the battle unfold.
Sometimes she smiled foolishly, sometimes she quietly chuckled, and sometimes she jumped up and down with excitement. Even though she was sitting all alone, she was not bored at all.
The light was undoubtedly reflected in her dark eyes.
Watching Elion dodge dozens of balls with the agility of a gymnast while never forgetting to adjust his hat, she did not notice a certain person approaching the bench.
It was Annabelle, the 10-year-old girl's number one enemy, who had come to pick up her brother from school.