The students of Harapan Muda Middle School were right in the thick of their rebellious phase. It was a scorching afternoon. Inside the classroom, the atmosphere was just as hot.
A tall, handsome boy was busy throwing wads of paper at his friend.
Ms. Sofi, the Singing teacher who was conducting the class, started to lose her patience.
"Harold, stop! Concentrate, please!" she called out, trying to keep her voice level.
But Harold just offered a slight smile, as if he hadn't heard a thing. He threw another paper wad at Handy, his best friend.
"Harold! Stop it!" Ms. Sofi's voice rose sharply.
Harold simply leaned back in his chair, his face defiant.
He was handsome—fair-skinned, tall, and his smile somehow always made the other girls whisper.
Unfortunately, all those good looks were just a veneer for his true nature: naughty and stubborn.
Ms. Sofi's patience finally snapped.
"Fine! Get out now. Quickly, out!" she said firmly.
Harold stared at her with a mocking smirk.
He remained seated.
The class went silent for a few seconds—before erupting in a burst of laughter.
"Are you going to leave, or should I?" Ms. Sofi stared him down.
And that's when the atmosphere completely descended into chaos.
"You should leave, Ma'am!" one of the students shouted, which was met with a chorus of noise from the class.
"Yeah, you leave! Harold stays here!"
The sounds of laughter, banging on desks, and scraping chairs broke out like a wild, irregular rhythm.
Ratna stayed silent.
So did Helen, her best friend sitting next to her.
Behind them, Hengki and Dani also chose to remain quiet.
The four of them were different from most of their classmates.
To them, teachers were to be respected.
They knew when to hold back.
The class grew louder. Ms. Sofi couldn't contain her anger any longer and finally walked out of the room.
But instead of calming down, the atmosphere only grew more boisterous.
A few minutes later, the door flung open.
Mr. Subrata, the Math teacher, appeared in the doorway, his face tense.
"Silence! All of you, be quiet!" his voice boomed.
Behind him, Ms. Sofi stood with a pale face—looking like she was holding back tears.
Still, some students continued to laugh.
Eventually, Mr. Subrata left again with Ms. Sofi, followed by Mr. Bram, the Vice Principal, and Mr. Wadi, the Chemistry teacher.
Without saying much, Mr. Bram glared pointedly at Harold.
"Harold. Out. Now."
For some reason, Harold obeyed this time. He stood up, put his hands in his pockets, and walked out.
As the door closed, the class immediately fell silent.
A few students chuckled softly, looking down, pretending to be busy with their books.
Ms. Sofi did not return to continue the lesson.
Instead, Mr. Subrata came back in and took over the class.
The atmosphere slowly returned to normal.
"You were all very naughty today," he said while writing on the board.
"Look at Ratna, Helen, Hengki, and Dani. They weren't affected at all. Good and smart children."
Ratna lowered her gaze, feeling both embarrassed and relieved.
But for some reason, since that day, Harold and his gang started acting coldly toward the four of them.
Perhaps it was because of Mr. Subrata's words—a small compliment that sounded like a huge slap in the face to Harold's gang.
And that's where everything began to change.