JENNIE’S POV:

Ever since I was young, I had often been lost in my own thoughts. I appreciated quiet time where I could think about anything and everything, sometimes spending hours on end contemplating the thoughts flowing through my convoluted mind. It was probably no coincidence that a certain Thai girl was appearing in those thoughts more and more frequently with each day that passed.

I realised my initial dislike of Lisa was completely unfounded, and that I was really too quick to judge people. Lisa, unexpectedly, had embraced me with the warmth of the sun's rays on a chilly day. She was understanding, allowed me to be myself and seemed as though she actually enjoyed my company. Astonishingly, even I was beginning to warm up to the concept of boarding, mostly thanks to Lisa. We did homework together, jammed to rap music together, chatted ourselves to sleep every night and I could tell I was growing fonder of the girl.

Spending so much time with anyone outside what I considered my inner circle was unprecedented for me, but then again, it was also a first for me meeting anyone in the ilk of Lisa. Unfortunately, as expected, most people in my class practically treated me as an invisible being, but I really couldn’t fault them, I treated them pretty much the same way. It came as no surprise that Lisa got along with everyone well, her outgoing personality and humorous tendencies allowing her to establish herself as a prominent, likeable figure in class.

During recess, instead of joining up with my class to sit, I would always bring my plate of food to the opposite corner of the canteen so I could eat alone in peace. Today was no different. Even Lisa, pretty much the only person I could communicate with, had never bothered to keep me company. And to be fair, why should she? Yes, I was and had always been antisocial. Honestly, though, I understood my personality and my preferences well, and from what I had seen from the majority of my classmates, I knew we wouldn’t get along. There were the arrogant jocks, the cool kid wannabes and there were always those that left me in a quandary, those I felt I would click with, yet hung out with the very people I disliked. Just like Lisa.

“Mind if I join you?” Lisa’s voice snapped me out of my thoughts, causing me to jump a little. Speak of the devil...

“Don’t you usually sit with the class?”

“Am I unwanted here? Can’t I keep my roommate company if I want to?” Lisa began settling down opposite me.

“But it’s almost as if you’re a princess, and instead of hanging out with the royals, you’re hanging out with a beggar.”

“Are you really comparing yourself to a beggar?” Lisa frowned disapprovingly at me.

“Well, in a social sense, probably. I’m really unapproachable, I make others uncomfortable, no one talks to me.” I was in one of my more self-deprecating moods.

“Jennie, let me tell you this. I know you’re extremely introverted and you’ll never stand out or even try to amongst a group of people. However, you’re genuine. You’re never going to put on a front or act pretentious, unlike half of them there,” Lisa jerked her head towards our class. “You’re also someone I feel I can trust wholeheartedly, more than can be said for anyone there. You need to build up your confidence, there’s absolutely no reason for you to have such low self-esteem.”

“Doesn't that just reinforce my point though...for every 100 people, there's gonna be that one person like you who finds me decent.”

“You're so pessimistic.” Lisa sighed in resignation before brightening up once again. “It's alright, I still have a few months to work my magic on you.”

“Just saying, it'll be quite the challenge.”

“I live for challenges. They make life interesting. You're making my life interesting right now.” Lisa replied through mouthfuls of pasta.

It was the first time for a long while, where I actually felt appreciated.

If there was anything good about math class, it was that Professor Im was practically singing a lullaby to us everyday, his teaching voice surprisingly soothing and it was no surprise that I was, as per norm, out cold till the conclusion of the lesson. (In my defence, surely soothing voice+math formulas=sleep) 

I tried to stifle my yawn when I spotted Professor Im walking towards me and Lisa.

“Lisa, Jennie, how's the progress of the project going?” Professor Im asked with a sly smile on his face.

Oh, right. That project existed.

“It's going well, sir.” Lisa replied innocently with as sweet a smile I had ever seen on her face. Maybe her acting skills can bail us out…

“That's great! How about you present it to the class tomorrow?”

Or not.

“Alright sir, no problem.” Lisa was trying her best to hide her pained look, to minimal effect.

“We're ed.” I cursed rather loudly once Professor Im was out of earshot, drawing a few stares from the vicinity. Cue hysterical laughter from Lisa which was annoyingly contagious. “It's not funny…” I shoved her in embarrassment before eventually succumbing to laughter myself.

“Honestly, let's just wing it, it doesn't even matter, we can even hone our improvisation skills.” Lisa replied nonchalantly.

That sounded ideal, yet I had my reservations. “I...can't really speak in front of an audience though. I get terrible stage fright.”

“Perfect, my magic will finally come into play then.”