Hello
It's been a while since summer vacation has ended. The semester has officially started and Frederick has successfully kept a low profile until the second week. At the very least he thought acting like he's invisible would actually make him invisible. Well, sitting at the farthest corner of the room, never raising her hand and heading straight home after every class did work for most people—all people—except for Iris.
Yeah, Iris. You could say she's the popular girl but not the Regina kind. She's some sort of a virus. Everywhere she goes, she smiles brightly at people and it's contagious. She's 'everybody's friend' kind of popular. The kind who could run for the Student Council President and win because she's so approachable and she knows a lot of people. She doesn't attract a crowd but everybody knows her. It's like sunshine follows her every path and rainbow mists gushes and flowers bloom. Frederick would be lying if he says she never caught his attention. But he's not one for making friends. He prefers his own company and the last thing he'd want to do is to attach people into his life.
Too bad for Frederick though. If the rest of the university missed out on his existence, Iris greets him hello every morning on their first class with a bright smile, accenting that dimple on her right cheek that is deeper than the one on her left. For several days Frederick would stubbornly ignore her; partly because he doesn't really know how to respond back. Iris sits on the chair just directly in front of him. And every morning his conscience would antagonize him for stubbornly not saying hello back. You know, how hard can it be? Oh, you thought Frederick's the salty kind of person? Perhaps, but not really.
Then one day, Iris came in through the door. And like usual she walked in with that smile of hers brightening up the morning.
"Hey, Iris!" Classmates would greet one by one, "Good morning!" To which she would reply any witty morning cheers she could come up with. "Top of the morning to you too! Did the bed bugs bite last night?"
Frederick, with his cap low, took off his earphones as his gaze followed Iris making her way across the room to her seat. He didn't realize he was already expecting the daily 'hello' from Iris until she just passed him by without saying anything and sat on her seat.
Sad? Disappointed? Yeah he's all that but mostly, Frederick felt conflicted. All of a sudden, she's not saying hello anymore. Why? He thought. He even took her earphones off so he could hear her.
It went on like that for almost another week. Frederick's obviously bothered by it.
Friday came and the professor had just dismissed the class. Iris started to pack her things but Frederick, unable to shake it off, bravely tapped her by the shoulder. The girl turned her head around right away. Time slowed down. Her long brown hair flew in the air with her motion as she turns like feathers. And all of a sudden it became deafeningly quiet.
'God she's beautiful.' Is all Frederick could think of amidst being self-aware. Pushing the fact that his heart is beating so hard he can feel his pulse throbbing in her temples at the back of his mind.
But the expression on Iris's face, though smiling, was startled. "Yes?" She said.
Frederick was flabbergasted. Suddenly he forgot why she called for her attention. Though it's not like he had any idea what he was going to say from the very first place. He was just confused as to why she was ignoring him. Did he do something wrong? Well, it might be time for Iris to stop. Talking to him was like talking to a wall. And who likes talking to a wall?
But somehow as Frederick stared into Iris's solemn eyes, there was only one word that came to his mind. And the urge to say this one word felt like fighting a war before it finally came out of his mouth, staggering but victorious.
"H-hello...?" Frederick finally said, stuttering in a half whispering tone. He didn't know what he was expecting. He wasn't even sure if she heard him well. But then Iris's smile grew wider and there was a sparkle in her eyes that may have been there the whole time that Frederick hasn't noticed until now.
"Hello!" Iris replied. And that's when Frederick decided maybe making friends with this girl isn't a bad idea.
