The final months of sixth grade arrived. The school was buzzing with last-minute revisions, whispered study discussions, and the anxious energy of students preparing for their annual examinations.
But for the protagonist, the exams barely mattered.
His mind was at peace, until she shattered it.
One afternoon, between the usual classroom chatter and the rustling of notebooks, she said to her friends
" I'm leaving the school after annual exams due to travel issues"
A simple statement with a few words. But it hit him like a crashing wave, pulling him under before he could catch his breath.
Her friends, knowing their time with her was slipping away, began spending every moment by her side. Laughter and bittersweet goodbyes echoed through the hallways, but he couldn't bring himself to join in, because he didn't understand why this bothered him so much, and why did his chest feel so heavy, as if something inside him was unraveling.
He tried to ignore it and tried to focus on his studies, but no matter how hard he tried, his mind was flooded with her.
The way she spoke, the way she smiled, the way she had become a part of his world without him even realizing it.
His parents soon noticed the change. His once-carefree attitude was gone and his focus had shattered. They assumed it was the new school and the unfamiliar syllabus.
So they decided to transfer him to another school with a easier syllabus he could handle.
A part of him felt relieved as his grades had fallen, his life had spun out of control so he thought that maybe, this was a chance to fix everything. But another part of him still ached.
With a heavy heart, he told his friends about his departure and they didn't take it easier. They praised the days they had spent together and called it the Golden Era.
The days of skipping classes, sitting in circles at lunch, wandering beyond the school gates, all of it was came to an end.
For the first time, the protagonist felt what true friendship meant, and now, he had to walk away from it.
The final exams arrived. He wrote them with zero expectations, just waiting for it all to be over.
And then, it was the last day of sixth grade.
The atmosphere was heavy with emotion. Students finished their final exam and returned to their classroom one last time.
His friends gathered around him, their voices filled with unspoken goodbyes. He never expected to feel this way about leaving. For years, his world had been about winning, excelling, being the best. Now, all he wanted was to hold onto the people who had made him feel something real.
But there was nothing he could do as his parents had decided and his path was set.
He promised his friends that one day, he'll come back and relive the golden days one more time.
But when it came to the girl, he made no such promise. He told himself he would forget her. With his transfer certificate in hand, he walked away from the school that had changed him.
On the other side, the girl got hers, and after that day, even her closest friends never saw her again.
He buried his memories of her deep inside, determined to move forward and to focus on his studies.
But what he didn't know and what he could never predict was that some memories never fade.
And that one of them was about to follow him for the rest of his life.