After Precious sat down, class continued, but for me, things felt slightly different. Not in a dramatic way — just one of those moments where your mind keeps drifting no matter how hard you try to pull it back.
The teacher kept writing on the board, explaining something I honestly can't remember now. I wrote a few things in my notebook just so it wouldn't look empty, but my attention wasn't fully there. Every now and then, my eyes moved in her direction without me meaning to.
She was quietly trying to catch up, looking back and forth between the board and her book. She didn't make noise, didn't disturb anyone. Just focused. That alone made me notice her more. Some people enter a room loudly. Others don't need to.
I told myself to focus.
Elvis, you didn't come here to admire people, I thought.
You came here to fix your future.
Still, my mind refused to cooperate.
When break time finally came, the whole hall loosened up. Chairs scraped, people stood, some rushed outside, others stayed inside talking and laughing. I remained in my seat, stretching a little, acting like I had nothing on my mind.
That was when I turned to the guy beside me.
"Bro," I said casually, trying not to make it obvious, "that girl… what's her name?"
He smiled, like he already understood the situation.
"Her name is Precious," he said.
I nodded slowly.
"Nice name."
"I'm Ebenezer," he added, extending his hand. "You can call me Eben."
"Elvis," I replied, shaking his hand.
"She's Nigerian," Eben continued.
"Okay," I said, nodding again, like that information mattered more than it actually did.
He looked at me properly this time and laughed.
"Don't tell me you're interested."
Before I could even deny it, he added,
"She doesn't have boyfriend."
"Hmm," I said.
"She acts like a tomboy sometimes," Eben went on, "but she's not really like that."
That only made me more confused, but before I could ask what he meant, students started returning to their seats. Break was almost over.
I looked at Precious again.
She was seated already, calm, going through her notes.
Something in me said, If you're going to talk to her, do it now.
So I stood up.
I walked over, stopped in front of her desk, and instantly realized I had made a mistake.
I had no words.
None.
She looked up at me, slightly confused but polite.
"Did you want to ask for something?" she asked
My brain froze.
"No," I said.
She nodded, stood up, and walked away.
That was it.
I went back to my seat, feeling a bit stupid, a bit amused, and a bit annoyed at myself. Of all the things I could have said, I said nothing. It was almost impressive how badly I handled it.
For the rest of the day, I didn't try again.
I just watched from my seat and laughed quietly at myself.