Peaceful sleep

Neo woke up once during his time unconscious, hearing the voice of a girl singing a song, and went back to sleep.

When he woke up for real, was lost and had no idea where he was. Looking around, saw a bed with white sheets and was surrounded by white curtains. He got up slowly, one leg at a time as he tried to find his shoes but couldn't find them anywhere. Felt dizzy and needed to sit down again. Neo started to gather his thoughts, and a realization came to his mind: this time, he hadn't had any nightmares; had slept peacefully.

Left the bed once again, deciding to venture outside through the curtains, even though he was barefoot, to see if could find his shoes.

Found a woman sitting in a chair, dealing with various papers, writing on some and checking others. She looked very much like Karine, to the point where Neo confused her for a moment. But upon closer inspection, he noticed that she had a slightly more robust body and wasn't wearing glasses.

She heard the boy approaching, and her attention turned to him. "Finally awake," she said.

Neo nodded in response.

"I need to ask you some questions. Could you please sit over there? I left your shoes by the side," she said, pointing to a small stool in the corner of the room.

The nurse picked up a clipboard filled with papers. "Your name is Neo, isn't it? Mine is Katherine."

Neo answer yes as he searched for his shoes.

"How are you feeling now?"

"I'm better," he replied as he put on one pair of shoes.

"Have you ever fainted before?"

"No!" he said, with a little more strength in his voice, cause was struggling to put on the other shoe.

Katherine thought for a moment about what she would ask next.

"Do you have a history of medical problems, such as previous fainting episodes, seizures, or heart conditions?"

"Not that I know of."

"I see. The people who brought you here told me about what happened, but I wanted to hear it from you. Can you remember what you were doing before you fainted?"

Neo pondered for a moment before answering that question. His head was confused, his thoughts scrambled. He couldn't remember exactly where was before blacking out, whether was in the big tree, some random room, or talking to Karine. But gradually, his memory fell into place, and he could speak clearly.

"I remember talking to a man, trying to remember who he could be. Felt my body getting weaker as I saw a series of images in my head, when I finally remembered who he was, I passed out."

Katherine made several notes on her papers, took a deep breath, and said, "Fainting is a serious matter. You were lucky that you didn't hit your head because they caught you. I need to ask to you not do what you did again. If you don't remember someone or something, just let it go. You'll remember over time. You were lucky, but next time might not be."

While Katherine spoke, the boy looked around, searching for something. His thoughts were elsewhere.

"I heard someone singing earlier. Who was it?" He asked.

"Did you hear what I said? It’s important!" she replied, sighing with disappointment. The boy, on the other hand, didn't change his expression; he had been serious since asked the question, which made the nurse feel a bit embarrassed. "The girl who was singing is the one who brought you here with my sister. Speaking of my sister, she's worried about you, asking me to tell you that once you woke up, you go to her room."

"Now?" Neo asked, feeling disappointed.

"Yes, now."

He got up and headed towards the door.

"And Neo, for now, you can go, but I'll ask you to come back at other times for some tests, just to make sure everything is alright with your body. Then we could talk more."

The boy agreed and walked out the door.

The infirmary was close to the entrance and the sports courts, on the ground floor, so he had to go up to the first floor and follow the same path as the last time was interrupted.

Neo knocked lightly on the principal’s office door, and heard Karine say, "Come in."

Opened the door slowly in response to her call.

Karine's room had a deep, dark brown color that gave off a serious vibe. It smelled like old things, and there were many wooden pieces of furniture. A large shelf held giant books, and in front of her desk were two black office chairs. On the desk, there was a calendar, a computer, and a vase with dark blue flowers.

"How are you feeling?" she asked as soon as he closed the door and turned to look at the principal, who was seated in the chair behind the large wooden desk.

"I'm better," he said, standing near the door.

Karine smiled with relief. "Kathy told me that you didn't suffer any injuries. You really scared me."

The question made the Neo remember when he fainted, which led to his main curiosity about that moment.

"What's the name of the girl who caught me?"

"Saya," she answered instinctively, but soon found the question strange and asked, "Why?"

Neo didn't know what to answer, looked to the side and touched his arm, feeling the watch she borrowed to him. His eyes widened when remember about it.

"I almost forgot to return your watch."

He took the object off his arm and approached Karine, noticing some cute little things on her desk that completely broke the serious vibe of the room that he felt before.

"That's right." She smiled as she saw the condition of the watch, opened a large drawer of her wooden desk, and said, "Because you took good care of it, I'll give you a new one. After all, you can't be late for classes."

Karine handed him a watch that was mostly blue, and Neo found it even more beautiful than the one she had loaned him.

"Speaking of classes," she continued, "in 10 minutes, you'll have your last class. It's a shame you didn't get to enjoy your first day, but I can help you at least with the last class if you want."

Karine looked at the boy, waiting for a response. He couldn't refuse now that he had received a gift; Felt as he need to pay back some way.

"Okay."

The principal smiled like never before, bent down to pick up an object that Neo couldn't see until she lifted it up and brought it closer. Was a blue backpack.

"You'll need this. Turn around and extend your arms."

Neo did as instruct and felt her putting straps on his arms. When she let go, felt the weight pulling him back.

"Is it heavy?"

"A little," he decided to be honest.

"Each teacher will require a different notebook, so you don't need to bring them all, just the ones for each subject. Since I know your favorite color is blue, I got everything in the same color.”

He adjusted the backpack on his back and began to get used to the weight.

She walked towards the doors while continuing to explain, "I thought you would only be able to get your supplies next week, but being the principal has its benefits. Well, we can't waste time. I'll take you there. Since you're a 'new student,' you have to introduce yourself to the class."

Before leaving, she said,

"And about Saya, she's in your class. Sooner or later, you'll meet her."

Listening to her talk about the girl he was curious about, Neo felt a stronger desire to reach the class soon.

They climbed two more flights of stairs and reached classroom 3 - G. The path was easier than he had imagined. Karine stopped before reaching the door and looked at her watch. There was little time left before the bell rang.

"Let's wait for the class to finish."

Neo's heart started racing as he waited for the school bell to ring. His hands were sweating. He couldn't understand why.

The bell rang, startling the boy.

Karine knocked on the door and asked for permission to enter. The teacher was writing mathematical formulas on the blackboard.

"Sorry, professor, but could I ask for a moment of your time?"

He said yes, she approached him, and they whispered a few words. He signaled that he understood. Karine then returned to the door where Neo was waiting.

"Neo, he will introduce you to the class now. I have to go. It will be alright, if you need anything, just let me know."

He nodded, and Karine smiled, walking back the way they came.

"You may enter, Neo," the teacher said in a rough voice.