The bell rang. Immediately, bags are slung over shoulders, chairs scraped back and people wave goodbye to each other heading to their first lesson. I gathered my things quickly, following the flow of bodies, leaving the classroom as Mr Shane waves goodbye to everyone. My timetable says Maths, Room 303.
I followed the signs throughout the corridor, until I heard a familiar voice behind me. I turned around to find it was Tanisha's voice.
"Hamza, you're in 303 for maths, right?" Tanisha asked.
He nodded.
"Can you take Nusaybah?" She asked.
Another nod.
He glanced at me.
"Follow me."
It's the first thing he said directly to me all day. His voice was low and deep.
I blinked, surprised, then smiled a little. "Okay," I responded softly.
We walked side by side down the corridor, the chatter of other students around us. He didn't speak again, and that was fine. I was too busy memorising where I was going - well, trying. The corridors all looked the same.
We arrived at Room 303.
The maths teacher stood at the door with a sheet of paper, pointing each student toward a seat. When it was my turn, he gestured to the second row. My stomach flips a little when I realise it's next to Hamza again. Twice in one day—odd, but not enough to think much about.
The lesson begins. Mr. Dawn introduced himself and gave us exercise questions to work through. I managed to answer question 1.
Okay, not bad I thought to myself. If I could do question 1, I could do the rest.
I was wrong. Question 2 was difficult. I spend ten minutes trying to work it out, crossing our numbers again and again. I glared at the piece of paper in front of me.
I looked around the room to see if anyone else was struggling. It didn't seem like it, everyone had their head down and was working through the problems, like it was a breeze.
I glanced sideways. Hamza's pencil was already moving quickly, his page filled with neat workings. He reached question seven while I was still stuck on two.
"Do you need help?" he asks suddenly, his voice low.
I looked up, startled. "Um… yeah. Please."
He shifted his page slightly toward me, explaining step by step. His explanations were simple and easy. I nodded along, grateful.
Fifteen minutes later, I was stuck again. This time I tapped his arm gently. "Can you please help with this one?" He leaned in, explaining question nine with ease.
The rest of the lesson passes in a blur of numbers and scribbles. By the end, I've managed more than I expected, thanks to him.