Faint Echoes

CHAPTER 3

Chapter 3: Zeerah's POV

The prefect meeting was in full swing, and tension crackled in the air. Faith, the social prefect, the same one that never allows Thomas to breathe,his crush abi crushee

My enemy!!!

As Faith's high pitched annoying voice filled the room, lecturing about the importance of following the school guidelines, I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

She wasn't even the head prefect.......Bitch !!!

All I wanted to do was to tell her to shut the fuck up

"Okay ?"

"Yeah"the prefects agreed to whatever she had been saying but I just left a loud long hiss

"Zee stop it"

" What??" I asked Thomas who was supporting her as usual

"You like causing fights"

I ignored him and interrupted Faith's speech on purpose

"Head girl won't you say something,I'm tired of hearing her talk " It caused everyone in the meeting room to be very shocked and Faith was embarrassed and obviously very angry too

"Nazeera Faruq on your knees "

"who?me? It can't be...what did I even do?...head girl please continue"

"Nazeera don't"this time it was Fauzan

"You're fucking stupid"she yelled

"I'm stupid?then you're mad Faith Alade...yeah,you're a fucking mad woman"

At these point, she lost her patience. In a fit of rage, she slapped me, her palm connecting with my cheek. It stung, and my initial reaction was to retaliate.

I balled my fist, ready to strike back, but before I could, Peter, always the peacemaker, intervened.

He held me back, his strong grip preventing me from doing something I'd regret. I struggled against his hold, my frustration boiling over"Alaye free me!" I hissed through gritted teeth, his cologne was literally chocking me .

His eyes, a deep shade of brown that usually radiated kindness, now held a hint of anger. "Calm down, Nazeera. This isn't the way to handle things."

His words only served to fan the flames of my temper. In that moment, I didn't want Peter's advice or his interference. "We're not friends, Peter," I snapped, my voice drippinng with anger

"I know you're angry but please"

"Leave me alone" he didn't listen

"Just calm down"

"Calm what??... you saw her slap me didn't you?"

I lashed out, my hand pushing Peter very hard against the wall as well. He let go of me, his expression a mixture of hurt and anger.

"Peter" a girl from my class ran towards him but he pushed her slightly and she fell dramatically on Thomas .....oshey Bollywood actress, with that  he stormed out of the meeting room.

I felt bad because this was the second time he had saved me from getting into trouble , losing my prefectship and even worse I could have been expelled

Everybody's attention was now towards me making embarrassed as fuck.....with my head lowered I packed my things and left the room

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As I left, I couldn't help but feel a wave of shame wash over me. I had acted recklessly, and the embarrassment weighed heavily on my shoulders. I found a quiet spot in the school garden and sank down onto a bench, my head hanging low.

Regret gnawed at me, but I couldn't bring myself to apologize. Instead, I sat there in solitude, grappling with the mess I had created, both in the prefect meeting and within myself.

---

"Hey "

"Hi"

Mart, my classmate, found me sulking on that bench in the school garden. He had once asked me out, and although I declined, we had remained friends of sorts. We started catching up on old times, reminiscing about our shared experiences...we literally talked about everything and nothing

Mart is cute , dark shinning skin , full curly hair and his voice....it's no doubt the cutest thing to listen to ....

"You're done checking me out" I chuckled and playfully smacked his biceps

"What have you been up to lately"

"Nothing really, just school ,you?"

"My mum wants me to join her in the states ...so I'm preparing"

"Ohh cool.... you no go carry us go " he smiled but it looked sad

"After ss2"

"Ohh see me thinking you're going tomorrow...you still have time "

"Zeee"he called out softly with his tiny voice

"Yes?"

"I'm going to miss you sincerely"

"Keep the speech for later ,we have almost a year to spend together"

"True Sha "

The atmosphere shifted, and I could sense a growing tension between us.

"Zee"

"Ahan ...what?"

"Nothing"

As our conversation deepened, there was a moment, an almost imperceptible shift, when it felt like our lips might meet in a kiss. My heart raced, and for an instant, I considered letting it happen. But before our lips could touch, we were rudely interrupted.

"Zeeee"

Thomas appeared out of nowhere, his presence a dark cloud over our moment. I couldn't understand why he had an unknown beef with Mart, but their rivalry was undeniable..

"Zeerah,where have you been" I jerked in fear and quickly recollected myself...Mart on the other hand didn't even move

"Ohh sorry I just came to check on my best friend"

"Took you long enough"

They exchanged heated words, bickering like children on a playground, and I had had enough.

"What's all this na"I finally shouted, my patience wearing thin. "Both of you, just stop."

Martins, ever the gentleman, took a step back, offering an apologetic smile. "I'll call you later, Zeera."

Thomas, however, couldn't contain his jealousy. He muttered stupid, hurtful things under his breath, things that struck a nerve. My anger flared, and I turned on him. "Thomas, This is ridiculous."

"Ridiculous?... Zeerah what the hell was that "

"Was what ?" I replied feigning ignorance

"I saw you guys"

"So...? , Please let me be "

"I'm just concerned about you"

"Go to Faith abeg and leave me alone"

"Wait....." I didn't wait for him to finish before I walked away from him , my footsteps heavy with frustration and disappointment.

I couldn't make sense of the turmoil in my heart, torn between my "friendship" with Mart and the complicated, unspoken feelings I had for Thomas.