At first, I thought nothing had changed.
I was sitting in a new place.
Nancy was still in the same seat.
Everything looked normal.
But it wasn't.
After some days, I started noticing the difference.
My books were always scattered.
I forgot things more often.
Even small things I didn't used to think about started becoming problems.
Nobody arranged anything for me.
Nobody reminded me.
Nobody cared the way she did.
I began to feel it.
That empty space beside her seat… it wasn't just a seat I left.
It was something more.
I started looking at her from where I sat.
She was still the same.
Quiet.
Neat.
Arranged.
But she didn't look at me again.
She didn't talk to me.
She didn't come over like before.
It was like… I didn't exist anymore.
That was when I realized I made a mistake.
A big one.
One day, I finally stood up and walked to her desk.
"Nancy…" I called.
She looked up at me.
"Yes?"
"Can I… come back?" I asked.
She didn't answer immediately.
She just looked at me.
Then she shook her head.
"No."
I was surprised.
"Please," I said. "I just want to sit there again."
She didn't change her expression.
"I said no."
I felt bad, but I didn't stop.
"Please, Nancy… I'm sorry."
"No," she repeated.
I kept begging.
But her answer didn't change.
"No."
That was it.
I stood there for a few seconds, not knowing what else to say.
Then I slowly turned and walked back to my seat.
From that day…
Things never went back to the way they were.
But one thing didn't change.
Nancy was still good to me.
Sometimes, when I didn't have my spoon or fork, I would still go to her.
She would give it to me.
But this time, it wasn't the same.
"Light, you have misplaced my things before," she would say.
"I'm sorry 😔," I would reply.
She would still give me.
But there was a difference now.
We were no longer the same as before.
And deep down…
I knew it was my fault.