Chapter 75: Memory [Part-2]

The next day arrived with the same familiar silence. With his headphones snug over his ears and loud music playing, Azrael walked down the busy street. He arrived at the college campus in no time, calmly climbed the stairs without meeting any familiar faces, and made his way toward his classroom.

As he stopped in front of the classroom door, a single thought raced through his mind.

’Where am I going to sit now?’

He already knew other students might have taken the seat beside the new girl. She was incredibly popular from day one. But he wouldn’t know for sure until he looked. He pushed the door open and stepped inside, looking at the loud classroom filled with chatter.

He scanned the room to find an empty seat, but he didn’t need to look far. The desk where he sat yesterday at the very back was still empty, waiting for him to sit down. But that was not what surprised him.

It was the seat right beside it. The beautiful transfer girl sat there silently, reading through her notes and casually spinning a pen on her finger.

Every other seat around them was already filled, making him the very last one to arrive.

Azrael felt genuinely surprised. She was still sitting there, and nobody else had taken the empty seat next to her.

’Did no one ask to sit beside her? Or did she reject everyone? Or does she just want to sit alone today?’

He didn’t know the answer, and there was no way to read what was going on in her mind. She suddenly noticed his lingering gaze, looking up with a mild expression of surprise.

"Oh, good morning! You can take the seat beside me. Are you wondering why no one has sat here yet? Well, I just told them it was already booked!"

She stood up slightly to make way for him to enter the row. Azrael felt shocked. She practically read his mind and answered all of his unasked questions. He immediately stepped past her and took his seat without even looking at her face.

She was a weird type of girl, one he couldn’t quite classify. She behaved totally differently from what he expected, so he decided to stop judging her actions altogether.

Lia immediately sat back down beside him, wearing that same sweet smile on her face. He just couldn’t understand her true nature.

"Hey, you didn’t reply."

She poked his hand deliberately, seeking an answer from him even though he clearly wasn’t interested in speaking to her.

"Sigh... Good morning."

"Hmph... So why did you come in so late? Were you not afraid of missing the class?"

Azrael pulled his notebooks from his bag and placed them in front of his desk. He answered smoothly without looking at her.

"I arrive at this exact time every day, so I am never late."

She folded her arms and nodded slowly, as if she were in deep thought about what he just said.

"So, you are saying you deliberately arrive at this specific time. Why? Do you feel bored waiting around here? Can’t you just walk in with some of your friends?"

’Tch! Hit the mark.’

Azrael pursed his lips and looked away, ignoring her words as if they didn’t concern him. In truth, he used to have friends too. But as time went on, they all found new friend groups. They got bored staying beside him, and eventually, they left. Their relationships grew thinner and thinner until they only remained as familiar faces he used to know.

He didn’t know what part of him they hated. What did they expect from him that he lacked? Or were they just measuring his shortcomings all that time?

Lia tilted her head in confusion at his sudden silence. Seeing that he didn’t look comfortable with the question she asked, she immediately switched topics.

"Well, forget it! Can you teach me yesterday’s lecture? I don’t really get it. Even though I wrote all the notes, it was my first day, and it all just flew right out of my mind!"

Azrael gave her a sidelong glance, trying to figure out if she was just playing with him again or if she genuinely wanted to learn. After getting no clues about what was going on inside her head, he finally spoke.

"Sorry, I do not know how to teach."

Lia pouted at his blunt refusal. She poked his hand again.

"Tchh! Oh come on, just teach me! It is alright even if you teach badly. At least I will get something out of it rather than nothing!"

As her voice echoed slightly through the classroom, the other students started to notice her talking to him. Azrael started to feel embarrassed by the sudden attention. He grabbed her hand to stop her from poking him and quickly replied.

"Okay, okay! I will teach you."

She smiled, showing off a victorious, cheeky grin as she muttered quietly under her breath.

"Hehe, you should have just agreed when I asked nicely..."

Azrael looked up, unable to catch her muttered words over the classroom noise.

"Did you say something?"

Startled that the words slipped from her lips, she immediately hid her panic with a sweet smile and pushed her open notebook right in front of him.

"Forget it! Just teach me. I am hungry to absorb this knowledge!"

Azrael narrowed his eyes in suspicion but sighed and looked down at her notes. He immediately noticed her beautiful handwriting. Her notes were complete, well-written, and detailed—even more than his own. He looked at her in confusion.

"Wait, do you seriously not understand this? How did you write everything so perfectly without understanding it?"

Lia looked surprised by his question and answered casually.

"Oh, I just focused entirely on writing instead of actually listening to what the teacher was saying. Maybe that is why my notes look so good. So, are you going to start teaching me or what?"

Azrael nodded in defeat. He started explaining the concepts to her clumsily, trying his best to make her understand the tricky material. She leaned closer while listening intently.

Five minutes passed by in a blur as the lecture time started. The students sat quietly, waiting for the professor to walk in.

As Azrael focused entirely on explaining a formula, he suddenly heard a soft giggle. He looked sideways.

"Hehehe, you were right! You are genuinely bad at teaching. I feel like I came here to learn from some boring old man!"

Azrael stared at her, feeling a bit offended by her teasing words. He forced a stiff smile.

"So, are you done laughing? I am not going to teach you again."

Surprised by his sudden words, she immediately stopped laughing. She started comforting him, playfully poking his arm again.

"Hey, hey! Sorry, sorry! I will not laugh again, I promise! Do not ignore me!"

He sighed heavily under her constant poking.

’Damn, she is really annoying...’

"By the way, let’s exchange contacts! How does that sound?" she beamed.

"Sorry, I do not have a phone."

"Ughh... Don’t lie to me! You were listening to music earlier, so you definitely have a phone. Are you going to give it to me, or should I take it myself?"

Azrael ignored her completely. He did not want to share his contact info with her, already knowing she would definitely annoy him even more outside of class.

Lia finally paused after trying a few more times. She sighed in playful defeat, tore a small piece of paper from her notebook, and quickly wrote down her contact number. She picked up his notebook and slipped the paper right inside.

"Here. If you ever feel alone or need me, you can message me anytime. Or I suggest calling me directly. Hehe... It will be fun."

Azrael stared at his closed notebook. He looked at her bright, smiling face, pursed his lips, and couldn’t even find the words to protest.

Suddenly, a faculty member stepped into the room.

"Hello everyone. Today’s classes are suspended because the college staff is busy checking papers from the University. You can go home early if you want."

The students immediately started cheering and standing up, thrilled that the lectures were canceled for the day. Azrael looked up at the front of the room, sighing to himself. He shouldn’t have come today. But somehow, he didn’t quite feel disappointed.

A group of girls walked over to their desk, targeting Lia.

"Lia! We are heading out to the cafe. Are you joining us? We can discuss the incoming festival! It will be so fun!"

Lia smiled brightly and nodded immediately.

"Yep, I am in! Let’s go!"

She happily packed her notes into her bag and stood up. She cast one last, lingering glance at him.

"See you later."

She walked away with her new friends, laughing and chatting.

Left alone in the bustling classroom, Azrael sat quietly, staring at the empty seat beside him. He somehow felt a strange sense of emptiness. Not because everyone was leaving, but because... he felt alone again.

He shook his head, stood up from his seat, and shoved his notes into his bag. As he started walking out of the classroom, his steps felt a little lighter than before. It seemed like, for the first time in several months, he actually enjoyed coming to class today.