Chapter 3

Fujio couldn’t even remember what happened the rest of the day, his mind was still on what had happened at lunch. It was now nighttime, and he was staring at the ceiling and lying in his bed, while also tossing around a ball between his two hands.

“I need to see her again.” this thought had entered his mind multiple times, and he decided that it was now his greatest wish.

“She’s the one person who’s ever thought like me, and I screwed it up by being a creep” He missed a catch from the ball because he was busy slapping himself.

“Tomorrow, no matter what, I’m going to find her and talk to her!” This declaration sat in his mind as he dozed off.

For the first time in years, he was excited to get out of bed. He sprang up from his mattress, quickly made his bed, and rushed off to the bathroom to brush his teeth. After scarfing down a piece of toast and a banana, he grabbed his bike and rushed off to school.

As he arrived the sun had just begun to rise, and there was no one at the school. He thought it was interesting to see the school in a new way, without the crowds of students. The reason he got there so early was that he figured he could meet her as she was entering the school.

Almost an hour went by before any students entered the building. The teachers entered through a different entrance on the back side of school, so Fujio didn’t know if any had arrived.

After a few more minutes had passed He started eagerly scanning the groups of students who began showing up. The weird looks and murmurs, that he could understand were about him, didn’t matter. This was too important to let go.

The time was now 7:30, just ten minutes before he was supposed to be in class.

“Did I somehow miss her? No, there’s no way... besides she seems like the type to say hi if she saw me, but I might’ve scared her off---she might want to avoid me. Maybe she snuck past me or used the back door? Not possible, I've had my radar on, and they don’t let students in at the back... Will she be absent today?”

Like this, his panicked mind franticly conjured more scenarios for him to consider and worry about. As the time ticked, he got increasingly stressed, and eventually, with five more minutes left, he gave up his search and slumped into class.

Now not only was his time wasted on this fruitless endeavor, but his classmates seemed to be talking about him, and not in a good way.

“I wish I could be abducted by aliens, dropped mid abduction, and fall into a cave where I live in solitude for the rest of my life” he thought as he lay his head down on his desk.

“yo, what’s wrong bro?”