~flashback to the start of sophomore year~

"Just try it, (y/n), it might be fun!"

That's what (f/n) also says when she wants me to do something with her.

It was the beginning of our second year, as sophomores. The first year was okay, a little boring but okay.

And (f/n), my best friend, who somehow convinced me to go to high school with her wanted me to join some clubs.

I knew (f/n) since kindergarten. I always thought of her as being a little too emotional, to be honest. I mean she actually started tearing up at the sight of a dead mouse.

But in 7th grade, for the first time, we got separated into different homerooms. She met some new friends, while I met mine. I remembered how on weekends she would go to the mall with her companions, and I admit, I felt a little left out.

Then in 8th grade, we were put in the same classes together. She told me about this high school her friends were planning to go to, called Gracefield Academy. I just nodded.

She asked, no pleaded, to join her. It took her a week to convince me. I was fine with just going to the same school as her, but meeting her new friends, no I was not fine with that.

A little toxic trait about me, I don't like meeting other people. I could come off as coldhearted at first impression, and I would just leave it like that. It's not like I care about what other people think.

Then as she was giving me a slide presentation on why I should go with her to high school, she started saying the word "please" so many times, I got a headache on the spot.

"Fine!" I said loudly. "I'll go to Gracefield Academy with you or whatever! Just please, stop asking me."

"Wait really?" she wondered. I nodded slowly. I couldn't believe I was doing this. To think I care about her that much, seriously when did I become so soft?!

"I love, love, love you, (y/n)!"(f/n) replied as she started hugging me so tight I almost suffocated. "Thanks so much!"

"Yeah, you're welcome," I said peeling her off me.

After we applied together, we got our acceptance letters and we graduated from junior high.

Freshman year, as I said before, was boring. I did meet one of (f/n)'s friends though. I believe her name was Gilda, and I remember she had these round and really shiny glasses that glinted every time she spoke.

She was pretty friendly, sitting with me at lunch sometimes. But that was it.

Nothing really major happened. Not until the second year.

This was where we are now. After I joined some clubs such as photography and chess, she stopped pestering me about extracurricular activities.

Student council elections were also around the corner, and (f/n), was begging me once more. This time to vote for her friend.

"(f/n), who even is your friend?" I asked her skeptically. I only knew Gilda, and she doesn't seem the type to run for school elections.

"You don't know him, but if you did, trust me, you'd probably fall for him," (f/n) explained.

"What?" I inquired. "Okay, first of all, I don't even know what the hell he looks like, second, he's probably not even my type, and third, I don't think I want to meet him."

"Alright forget I said that. But what I'm trying to say, is that maybe you should vote for him. He does have a good mindset and can lead a school."

Her words convinced by a little bit. I sighed. When did (f/n) learn to become so persuasive?

"Okay, I'll vote for your friend. Just, show me a picture of him first," I stated. (f/n) smiled and opened her phone. It was a picture of a boy with white hair and blue eyes.

"Who's he? Jack Frost?" I said sarcastically. But as I looked at the photo, I remember this time last year where he helped a child walk down the street one morning.

"Hm. He seems capable, and I think I've seen him at school assemblies before," I said softly.

"Yes! Thank you (y/n), I knew I could count on you!" (f/n) exclaimed before heading to class.

Fast forward to school elections, his speech was actually convincing, I voted for him for (f/n)'s sake, and he won by a landslide.

But the week after that, that was when the crazy stuff happened.

"Alright so, we got our treasurer, vice president, and publicity commissioner," Norman said. He appointed Emma, Ray, and I to work with him.

"But we still need our secretary," Emma stated from behind him. "Ray, do you know anybody?"

The raven-haired boy shook his head. "No."

"Wait, actually, I know someone who's fit for this job. You don't know her, but you're gonna love her," I said excitedly. "Just give me a day and I'll convince her to join."

I ran out of the council room and raced to (y/n)'s house. Just as I suspected, she was right about to open her door.

"(y/n)!" I screamed. She immediately turned around and started walking towards me.

"(f/n)! Stop jump-scaring me like that. I swear, next time you try doing that, I'm gonna get a heart attack."

"Sorry, but one more thing," I said, getting her attention.

"What now?" she replied.

"Join student council with me, please," I answered. She opened her mouth to protest, but I continued.

"That boy you voted for, the white-haired one, chose me for publicity commissioner," I started. "And we need someone for the secretary position. You're the perfect person. You have a sense of responsibility, and you take down notes fast. Your handwriting is a little messy, but as long as you can read it, it's fine. Also, (y/n), you need to start meeting new people. I know you don't like it, but it's for the better."

She smiled, which was the last reaction I expected from her. "I don't know whether I should be flattered or offended, but if it's for the good of my wellbeing, then I'll do it."

I was surprised. "Really? Wow, that was way easier than I thought it would be." I murmured.

"Tell your friend that I accept the proposition before I change my mind," (y/n) said. I quickly texted Norman.

"Alright, our first meeting is tomorrow at lunch. Also, all of our free periods will be in the council room, and we will also have other stuff to do there after school," I said before running off.

Remember what I said last week, about how if (y/n) ever met Norman she would've fallen for him? That's kind of a lie just to intrigue her into joining. He wasn't her type to begin with.

It's the treasurer she would've had feelings for, but it's not like I would say that to her. She would have killed me if I did.

12:15 pm. Lunchtime. Well here goes. (f/n) waited for me outside my history class and we walked together to the council room.

"Are you ready?" she whispered. I shook my head frantically.

"No, I am not," I whispered back. Leading up to what is about to happen, I wasn't as nervous. But actually walking there, that was terrifying.

(f/n opened the door and walked in. I stood outside as I heard her speak with some people. I heard a boy's deadpanning voice and a cheery girl's voice.

"(y/n)! They wanna meet you!" (f/n) said from inside. I took a deep breath, opened the door, and walked inside.

The president, or the white-haired boy, was sitting on a wooden desk outside a window, while (f/n) and two other people were sitting on two couches with a glass table in the middle.

'You must be (y/n). (f/n) told us all about you," he said. "I'm Norman."

"I see," I replied. Why did I think this was scary at first? I looked at (f/n), and she was currently chatting with the orange-haired girl. The girl then looked at me and waved.

"Hi (y/n), I'm Emma!" she said happily. She had a contagious grin, and I tried my best to smile back, even if it was a bit forced. I still feel weird in a new environment. "And this is Ray!"

She used her thumb to point at the boy next to her. He had unkempt, messy black hair that stood up. He raised his hand as a greeting.

I completely regret joining. We have Jack Frost, Alfalfa, and Hot Topic all in one room. No wonder (f/n) is friends with them.

I was getting ready to leave and never look back when (f/n) stood up and dragged me back.

"(y/n), you already agreed so just give them a chance," she whispered. I rolled my eyes.

I muttered. "Fine, but you owe me."

"Alright, so the student council is now all assembled. And (y/n), we welcome you with open arms," Norman said.

Our first meetings were just an icebreaker honestly. We played Uno, and I won two games. The next meeting next week was when we actually worked.

I learned about the other student council members, minus (f/n). For example, Norman has an internship at a local hospital during the weekends. He's extremely polite to everyone and is also the president of the Chess Club.

Emma does babysitting. She's also part of track-and-field, and she's really supportive.

Ray's a different story. I don't see him in any clubs, and he mostly just hangs around in the local library, shelving books, and scanning barcodes. He takes a part-time job there and spends his free time tutoring other students as well.

Ray doesn't seem to be the nice-to-everyone type like Emma is. He's mostly reserved and keeps to himself. He doesn't show a lot of personality and comes off as rude sometimes. But there were mere moments where it was proven that he has a heart when he volunteered to read to children fairytales.

"As your publicity commissioner, I will be in charge of assignment 1, what exactly we will be doing the school newspaper," (f/n) stated. It was our first actual meeting, and she was in charge of it. We all looked at her. "The student council will be doing our first article, and after that, the journalism club will do the rest."

"So, I was thinking, our secretary can help write," she added. I instantly looked at her. Why is she putting me on the spot? But I realized the answer just as quickly as I turned to her. She wants me to socialize.

The girl named Emma rose her hand. "Ooh, Ray can help in taking pictures," she said. "You're in photography, right?"

The boy put down his book. I glanced at the title, and he was reading A Midsummer Night's Dream, by William Shakespeare.

"Yeah, but it's only a hobby," he replied. "I only do it for fun."

What did I get into? Here was a group of people who seemed to be friends for quite a while, with one outlier in the midst of it. The universe just adores me.

I realized I zoned out until (f/n) tapped my shoulder. "Hey, (y/n), you still here?" she said.

I snapped out and answered, "Yeah, sorry, what are we doing?"

"We're discussing what we're doing for our first assignment. Ray decided to be our photographer, so you'll be working with him," Emma summarized.

Great. I'm gonna be stuck with Hot Topic for this week. This can't get any worse.

But it did. There was a sudden pouring of showers as we spoke, and it looked like it wasn't going to let out anytime soon. (f/n) has flute classes so I can't ask her for a ride.

I silently cursed when I realized that I didn't pack my umbrella. You couldn't blame me, for I didn't expect it to start spontaneously raining.

Norman and Emma left at the same time before going their separate ways.

"Hope you get home safely, (y/n)!" (f/n) said, waving at me. "Sorry I wasn't able to take you home, but who knows? Maybe another opportunity will open up for you," she said vaguely. What does she mean by that?

(f/n) waved goodbye once more before leaving.

That just leaves me and Ray together in the now-quiet council room. Well, this is awkward. I proceeded to sit opposite of him on one of the couches. I took out my book and started reading. He began to write on a blue post-it note.

I picked Romeo and Juliet for our assignment. We have to pick one of Shakespeare's plays and write a literary analysis of it. I guess that's why Ray was reading A Midsummer Night's Dream earlier.

I enjoyed the silence until he broke it.

"Romeo and Juliet?" he said monotonously, gazing at the cover. "Hm, how classic."

"Was that an insult or a compliment?" I answered. He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at me.

"Take it however you want," he replied. "But two star-crossed lovers in fair Verona? Depressing."

I rolled my eyes at him. "It's a tragedy for a reason, cyclops," I said.

He ignored my last bit. "Well if you ask me, they're just plain idiots. Like, come on, killing yourself over your loved one supposedly dying?"

I agreed. "It's silly, really. But that's all they could do. I do wish someone described me as Romeo describes Juliet."

"You saying that makes you sound like you're a hopeless romantic," Ray teased. Seriously, what is his problem?!

"I am not! I just, I want someone who could be as eloquent as him, that's all," I explained truthfully. I watched as his eyebrows knit, while he looked at the floor thoughtfully.

"You like someone good with their words, huh?" he said softly. "That's cute."

Is he making fun of me now?! It's been just one week and I despise him already.

I chose to ignore him.

"You know, I should get going now. So goodbye, have a wonderful day." I said sarcastically. By wonderful day, I hope he gets hit by a car.

I picked up my bags, standing up. However, his words stopped me from leaving.

"With this weather?" he replied doubtfully. "You'll come down with a cold, or worse, have to stay in from school."

I turned back to him. He was now standing up as well. "It's fine. I don't care about the consequences anyway."

He ran his fingers through his hair before speaking. He completely disregarded my entire sentence.

"I noticed you forgot your umbrella, so I have a proposition. I'll share mine and we can walk home together, or just to your house. Does that sound good?" Ray said.

That doesn't seem that bad. I won't become sick, and after, I can just never look back on this event again.

"Fine, I accept," I said. I can't believe I'm actually walking home with this jerk.

He smiled and we went out of the student council doors. I looked at my phone. It was currently 4:10, so we had some time.

The cloudy skies overcast a gloomy mood as we strolled out of the school campus. He brought out his umbrella and we quietly walked on the street under it.

"So, you're (y/n) right?" he stated, looking at the passing cars. His hands tightly gripped the handle while we passed the shops on my right. "(f/n) told us about you back in 7th grade. I'm surprised we never met you before.

"We were in different classes, and (f/n) asked me to come with her here to this high school," I answered. I looked the other way, unable to make eye contact with him. An air of quietness fell upon us.

He broke the silence once more, speaking out of the blue.

"Romeo and Juliet is one of my favorites, actually," he murmured. "I'm sorry if you took it the wrong way."

I smiled but I didn't let him see it. The rain magically stopped and a single ray of sunshine pierced the clouds. "It's alright. I know you mean well."

We finally reached my house. We were under my porch and I opened my door, ready to go inside.

I was about to leave and say goodbye until I heard him say, "Wait!"

"You forgot this," Ray muttered. While on the porch steps, he took my hand gently before slipping a piece of paper into my palm. He left while waving. "See you tomorrow, (y/n)."

I waved as well before dropping my bookbag, confused about what just happened. As I walked up the stairs to my room, I opened my hand. Inside was a slightly crumpled folded piece of paper.

So that was what he was doing, I thought, remembering his sky blue post-it notes. I raised my eyebrows in curiosity.

I carefully opened it and in black gel ink was Ray's phone number.