"If I were to be crowned, I’d surely be the king of loneliness."

  ×===========×

  Asier stares at his phone with disinterest as the car moves along. He lets out a yawn.

  "Did you stay up late or what?" Kelvin jokes, giving him a nudge that lightly shakes his brother.

  The dark-haired boy sighs in irritation, shoving Kelvin back with slightly more force, making him bump into Yanil.

  "Are you guys starting already?!" yells the girl with long, orange hair, pushing Kelvin in return, who quickly plays the victim.

  "Enough back there!" orders David, a somewhat burly boy, from the front seat, glaring at his siblings through the rearview mirror.

  Meanwhile, Ruben, their father, starts the car, leaving behind a momentary silence.

  "Can you sit still in the car, at least?" Yanil snaps, confronting Kelvin with her gaze.

  "Not my fault you get annoyed over everything," replies the silver-haired boy, raising his voice.

  Asier avoids the argument, gazing out the window until David interrupts, suggesting he should calm their siblings down. But should he really? Asier doesn’t want to get involved, questioning the suggestion with bitterness.

  David sighs and changes the subject.

  "Will you be in the same group?" David asks, seeking clarification.

  "I think so," Asier replies, returning to his phone. An awkward silence follows until Asier resumes the conversation.

  "By the way, is the physical test really that hard?" he asks after rereading an email he received.

  "You have it on the first day?" David asks in surprise, reaching for the phone.

  "Apparently, yes," Asier answers, handing it over. "Why do we have a physical test on the first day of school?" he complains.

  "Groups A and B take it on the first day, I forgot about that," David explains, reading the email.

  "If I fail, will I get expelled?"

  "Not necessarily, but sports are this school’s specialty," David replies, handing the phone back and looking straight ahead.

  "Got it," Asier responds flatly, ending the conversation.

  Asier glances sideways at Kelvin and Yanil. He’s unsure whether they’ve reached an agreement or just got tired of arguing, but now there’s enough silence for him to think about other things.

  "This time, I won’t be the 'weird kid’."

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Time flies. In the blink of an eye, they arrive at the school, welcomed by most of the staff and directed to the auditorium, saying goodbye to David on the way.

  The ceiling lights provide warmth that contrasts with the cold air from the AC. Asier and his siblings find seats among the crowd. A few minutes later, a loud, resonant sound echoes through the hall, silencing the murmurs. All eyes turn to the man in a suit standing behind the microphone accompanied by a group in formal attire. The sound fades, giving way to the speaker’s words.

  "Good morning, students, parents, and staff. It’s a pleasure to welcome you to a new school year here at Blue Corals Middle School. My name is Michael Thompson, and I’m the principal of this wonderful institution. I’m excited to see so many new and familiar faces this morning. To our new students, I extend a warm welcome..."

  The principal’s words feel distant to Asier, who, after scanning the room, spots a girl who reminds him of Laura. His thoughts are interrupted by Yanil and Kelvin’s argument.

  "Shut up! For God’s sake," Asier suddenly snaps, turning toward his siblings.

  "Don’t tell me, tell him," Yanil immediately replies, pointing at Kelvin.

  "Me? You started it!"

  Asier sighs, trying to find the girl again.

  "This isn’t the place to talk," interrupts their father with his raspy voice.

  Both siblings fall silent, slightly intimidated. Kelvin and Yanil apologize to their father and are forced to pay attention.

  The speech ends with applause echoing through the hall. Kelvin gets excited, almost jumping out of his seat to leave, but the principal calls another student for a second speech. Kelvin groans loudly, slouching in his chair. A sharp look from their grandfather quickly straightens him up, making him endure another agonizing five minutes.

  Finally, the principal thanks everyone and gives instructions for the students to head to the cafeteria to organize groups. Parents and guardians are dismissed, and the auditorium slowly empties.

  Asier is the last of his siblings to stand and, like them, bids farewell to his father, who wishes them good luck. In the hallways, chaos quickly erupts as order breaks down. Kelvin lets Yanil walk ahead and tries to talk to Asier, but he’s ignored. Kelvin insists, frustrating him.

  "Can you be quiet?" Asier sighs, pressing a hand to his forehead. "I have a headache."

  "At least we’re in the same group," Kelvin comments, but Asier doesn’t respond.

  The trio finally reaches the cafeteria. The space is just as decorated and filled with tables marked by signs. Yanil quickly gets disoriented by the size of the room.

  "Where are we supposed to go?" she asks, turning to her brothers.

  "We’re in group 6-B. I think it’s that table," Asier says, taking the lead.

  Kelvin and Yanil follow along, unsure themselves.

  "I guess it’s here," —Kelvin mentions, pointing at a table labeled 6-B.

  Several students are already seated, chatting. Asier glances quickly at everyone, not seeing who he’s looking for, and takes a seat, waiting. The cafeteria’s noise, though less overwhelming than the hallway, still irritates him.

  "Are you okay?" Yanil asks, worried, seeing Asier holding his head.

  "Just a headache," he replies, downplaying it.

  Yanil leaves him alone. Meanwhile, the table fills up with exactly twenty-five students.

  "Good morning!" a uniformed woman greets, approaching the table with a tablet.

  Most respond. She smiles and checks something on her device.

  "I see everyone’s here," she says, glancing at the group. "My name is Paula Winslow, your language teacher and group leader. Nice to meet you."

  Right on cue, the bell rings at 10:30 AM, startling the room.

  "Is everyone settled?" she asks, receiving scattered replies.

  The group’s tension is palpable; most don’t know each other’s names.

  "Since we’re a bit more relaxed here, how about introductions?" suggests Ms. Winslow kindly, though the atmosphere doesn’t shift much. "Who wants to start?"

  No one answers.

  "How about you?" the teacher says, pointing at Asier, who looks the least motivated.

  "I... Okay," he responds nervously.

  All eyes are on him. His legs tremble, but he manages a decent introduction and sits down immediately.

  "Let’s give Asier Rogers a round of applause," Ms. Winslow says, clapping. The rest follow.

  Asier grips his arm, trying to stay calm and breathe, tuning out some introductions until he hears a voice.

  "Good morning, I’m Nicole Kingsley, and I like going to the beach."

  It’s her. She looks just like Laura, piquing his interest.

  The introductions end, and a second activity begins casual conversations. Ms. Winslow explains and sits down. An awkward silence follows before whispers spread. Kelvin takes the chance to talk.

  "Still hurting?" he asks, sitting across from Asier.

  "A little. Why?"

  "Just checking."

  Another boy interrupts, and Asier walks off, nervously approaching Nicole.

  "Are you Nicole?"

  The girls stare, silencing him.

  "Yes. You’re Asier, right?"

  He stammers, overwhelmed by their stares, and leaves, embarrassed. Tears flow as memories of Laura overwhelm him.

  "Why are you so useless?"

  And everyone laughs.