The Final Classroom

Geoffrey was sitting in his chair, waving back at Ella who sat at her own seat.

She got her messaging system out, it was too small and laid on her desk, making it impossible for him to read through it.

Geoffrey had noticed a lot more had started using the messaging system inside their given black card.

Nobody could afford a phone yet, so their black card would be quite useful for sharing information. 

I'll have to start asking people for their contact information...

As always, his gaze quickly set on the horizon, a bit more at ease now that the striking blue sky was hidden behind a grey wall of clouds.

Things are falling in order. Staking points is perfect too... Just need to figure out who will be making the call.

Geoffrey looked at the empty chair next to him. 

Rei had grown in popularity yesterday, especially after intervening with the situation caused by Emilia and Jet.

Both him and Peter were now the center of attention, and strong contenders for class presidents.

Peter had his own group, which strengthened its bonds over the past days. They met several times, and they tightly stuck together.

Geoffrey's lack of luck was also Peter's.

The class was chaotic, would it not have been, more people would've been in Peter's group. 

The amount of freethinkers like Emilia or Ella, or chaotic people like Jet was too great. Peter had less than half the class on his side, and with nobody else to vote for, most were thinking of Rei.

Rei had been friendly with everyone, and his personality was the one of a best friend's you've known your whole life. 

Everyone liked him, Peter included. 

It wasn't much of a competition, as it felt they didn't care too much who of them both would get the class president role.

Only Geoffrey and Ella were in, it was nicely quiet and serene. 

There had to be another forty-five minutes before the class would even start, most students probably heading out of the dorms right this moment.

The class's door slid open, turning both Geoffrey and Ella's head.

"Oh! Hi Emilia! Good to see you, hope you slept well," said Ella.

She entered, closing the door behind her.

"Ah, good morning Ella. It was fine."

Her eyes went toward Geoffrey, who simply looked at her with his usual neutral gaze.

She smiled at Ella, then walked toward Geoffrey, sitting at Rei's desk.

"So?" she asked.

"So?"

"What do we do? About my balance."

She seemed concerned, Geoffrey guessing she had been anxiously thinking about it.

He tried to be reassuring, gently grabbing her shoulder.

"Don't worry, it's really simple. Just wait for me at lunch."

She shrugged his hand off, her facial expression tightening.

"This is serious! We have to—"

She stopped a moment, her expression slightly softening, and her tone more friendly. It sounded like she was giving up.

"Thanks for your help," she sighed, slowly getting up.

He grabbed her sleeve, pulling her back. Confusion struck her as she sat again.

Ella, who glanced back, slightly chuckled with a hand covering her mouth.

Emilia slightly blushed, her eyes looking around, unsure of what had taken over Geoffrey.

His tone was softer and lower.

"I'll help you. Trust me. First, we have to get through the morning."

Her tone became softer, her harsh expression melting as the layer of stress was slowly removed.

"Thanks," she said.

She looked at him for a short moment, studying his expression in a manner that would've made anyone else self-conscious. 

"Why are you so... inexpressive?" she asked. "I think you would look a lot better if you smiled."

Geoffrey did his best attempt at a smile, but she quickly start chuckling uncontrollably.

"Hahaha, that's not... Oh, my! Well, you certainly tried!"

"Is it bad?" he asked, confused.

"Well, it's better than nothing, at least."

"What's wrong with it?" 

"It's your eyes, while it looks like you're smiling, the only thing your eyes display is pain."

Geoffrey frowned. Was that how everyone saw him?

"Pain?" he asked.

"It looks like you're hiding tremendous pain behind that smile. Like someone who just lost someone dear, but tries its best to hide it."

Geoffrey's mind wandered away for a split second, but quickly came back to the person before him.

Emilia was truly a nice person.

"I guess we're somewhat similar," he said.

She tried to hide her surprise, but barely could. They simply stood there, sharing something deeper than love. Pain.

"So, who are you voting for?" he asked, changing the subject.

"I haven't thought about it," she replied. "I think Peter could do a good job, but it doesn't feel right."

Her face brightened up, as she raised her finger.

"Oh! I could vote for you!"

She seemed happy with her revelation, but Geoffrey's expression leaned on disappointment.

"Ehh, don't vote for me, I'm not running."

"What? Really? I could convince a few people to vote too, you're kind of the safe choice in this classroom."

Safe? Really?

"Don't look so surprised. You're simple, and simple works very well."

"I'm not cut-out to be a class president."

"Hmm, then, most likely Rei. He seems fine and looks like one of the safer choices too."

"What are the others thinking?"

"Well it's mostly them two. We still have a few days to go, but if you feel like running yourself, let me know! I'll do some campaigning for you!"

"I'll keep that in mind. Oh, and before I forget, want to exchange contact information?"

"Oh!" 

She got her black card out, concentrating her thoughts on it.

The messaging system appeared floating, she quickly headed over to her contact information.

Geoffrey did the same, starting by adding her to his list. She had a 5 digits number that worked like a phone number, after copying it, he simply added her name.

"There, I'm sending a message," he said.

"Oh! I've received it! It was instant, pretty cool, I'll add you to my contacts right now..."

"This will work until we get cellphones."

She smiled, standing up. 

"Yes! The others will arrive soon, so I'll head back to my seat, see you later!"

"See you."