No Reason in Particular

11:26 am.

Passing through the corridor on the lower floor of the school, Gary could be seen walking in an average pace, with Henry sluggishly tagging behind, half-running in between to catch-up with Gary. Enthusiasm was written on Gary's face as he passed by students who were obviously heading the same direction as him. His destination, and that of Henry's, was to the music room.

"I don't know what reasons you have for wanting to join the music class, but is it all that necessary?" Henry's grumpy voice came out, few steps away from the music room.

"There's no reason in particular, I just want to try out something new..." Gary came up with a twisted reply.

"Something new? You've been a student of this school since Grade 9, yet you just remembered you need to try out something new... in final year?" Henry was curious as he spoke.

"How many times do you want us to go over this?" Gary sighed.

"Urrgh! I can't believe I'm quitting drama class just to stick up with your 'something new'." Henry sounded exasperated.

Gary revealed a smile. "Remember you're gon gain from it," And that was the statement he needed to shut the bothersome Henry up.

They eventually got into the music room, with Gary stepping in first. The room was already filled up with various students from the Grade 9 class down to the Grade 12 handling different musical instruments like the violin, the cello, the flute, etc. A drum set in a corner and the keyboard in another corner, greeted their sight.

Immediately, eyes were fixated on them. They were all surprised to see two famous members of the basketball team joining the music class... in the last months of their final year?

Not minding the intense attention he was receiving, Gary's eyes lingered around until his gaze landed on Ashley, who was sitting alongside Stephanie in the strings section. Seeing they were the only people he was familiar with, even if it's a bit, he decided to go over to them.

"Let's go sit over there," he told Henry who was standing behind him.

"Where?" Henry asked.

Using his chin, he directed Henry to where he was talking about. On landing his gaze to where was directed, Henry froze. What the hell? He sure wasn't going to sit with Ashley... and Stephanie. Immediately, he decided to decline.

"I'm not—" He couldn't even complete his statement as Gary immediately dragged him to the place.

Standing in front of the two girls, Gary spoke, "Hey," ...and immediately sat on empty space next to them. Henry, still in a bit of shock, didn't realize he was left standing.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ashley asked, jolting Henry from the shock. He stared deeply and realized Gary was seated already. His gaze landed on Stephanie who seemed unmoved, or maybe stunned. He took his face off, trying to decipher what Ashley asked.

"Uhm..."

"We're joining the music class," Gary immediately spoke, relieving Henry from the stress of explaining. It wasn't his idea to join after all. He quickly went to squat near Gary.

Ashley was a bit stunned from Gary's reply. She got a grip of herself and spoke, "I never knew you had a thing for music,"

Gary shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe I do,"

"Including Henry?" Ashley bent to look at the slightly nervous Henry. Without uttering a response, he nodded his head and looked away.

Ashley shrugged her lower lips and relaxed back to her previous position. "Why didn't you guys join earlier then?"

"We just decided today," Gary quickly replied with a half-lie. He was getting tired of the seeming lengthy conversation because he wasn't much of a great talker. Wanting to end the conversation, he quickly asked a question which he already knows the answer to.

"Where's the teacher? Isn't he coming?"

Ashley arched her eyebrows. "Have you forgotten? There's a staff meeting remember?"

"Oh... My bad." He turned his gaze to the front. That was an abrupt end to the conversation. But there was one thing, one person he was waiting for... the intern Ashley talked about. He needed to confirm if she was the person he had seen that day.

Soon after, a lady dressed in a cream blouse and a grey pencil skirt walked into the room. Her dark hair shone elegantly through the rays of the light bulbs and her nervous-like majestic walk summoned a magnificent step — much to the infatuated students — with the aid of the pumps she wore. The students greeted her and she replied with a smile.

Gary stared at her intensely... it was really that lady... the lady with the blue eyes. God! His instincts proved him right. He tried to take his eyes off her immediately but it didn't budge, instead intensifying the gaze. He could have sworn he caught her staring at him for some seconds... or maybe he was just hallucinating. Right, he was.

The lady began addressing the whole class. "So, today I'll be taking charge of the class. There's a staff meeting going on, and I hope you guys don't mind this arrangement,"

The students agreed with her and she continued, "Before we start, can you all simply call me Blue? I'm not used to the 'Miss' formality and I think it's better that way, right? At least we could initiate a better sense of familiarity..."

The statement she made made the students immediately feel comfortable around her. She wanted to be addressed informally... like she was equal to being their teacher yet she wanted to maintain an informal relationship with them. That was great.

Amongst those seated, a slim girl with a pair of recommended spectacles rose up in a fidgety posture. All eyes were fixed on her as they noticed her. The girl felt a bit nervous as she realized she was now the centre of attention. But, she composed herself and spoke. "Miss Blue... sorry, Blue. What if the teachers scold us because of it?"

The question the girl asked was one that everyone else had in their respective minds... asides one person who was intensely immersed in staring at the lady. Yes, they wanted to respect her choice of being informal, but they were still in a formal setting.

A moment of silence went by before the lady replied. "Then don't do it around the teachers." She gave a firm but precise answer, leaving the students relaxed.

"Let's get down to business." Her voice echoed through the room. "But it seems we have some new faces here. Can the new students please tell us each of your names and what instrument you play..."

Starting with a blonde girl, the new faces began introduce themselves. After they mentioned the instruments they loved to play or would love to play, they would be grouped with the others in the different available sections.

Eventually, it got to Gary's turn but his mind wasn't with them. A pinch on his hand snapped him out of the daze he was in. "Argh!" he yelped silently before casting his gaze on who launched a sudden attack to his hand... Henry.

"They're waiting for you," Henry quickly whispered to him before he got to say anything.

"What?"

Instead of replying, Henry lingered his eyes to the front and he immediately followed the direction. His eyes hit the lady standing in front of the class, staring at him weirdly. Did he do anything wrong? Or did he say anything to... what was her name again?, he wondered. He furrowed his eyebrows, not understanding the situation on ground.

"Aren't you going to say something?" the lady directed a question at him.

He looked stunned for some seconds. Was she talking to him? Putting his hand on his chest, he asked, "Who? Me?"

The lady sighed. "Yes, you."

Wait, she was indeed talking to him. That's so sweet... But, what was he going to say? He couldn't even remember a single detail of what she said.

He turned to look at Henry, maybe he could help out. But the reaction he received from Henry proved he was in a bit of mess, not literally... He turned his gaze back to the lady and scratched his head awkwardly. "Sorry, I wasn't listening in,"

The lady let an "oh!" sound before stating, "I need your name and the instrument you play,"

'Name? Instrument I play? Oh crap!'

"Gary...  Uhm, I think the guitar..." He chose the guitar since he had a little idea about it.

"But you don't have it with you..."

'I forgot we need instruments in here,'

"I'll get it next class,"

"Okay, please move to the strings section. There's a spare guitar for you to use," the lady directed him and shifted her attention to the others.