Chapter 3 — Lessons Between the Lines
After class (starts)
The final bell echoed through the school, a clear signal that class was over. Students stirred, stretching and chatting as they packed their bags.
Save quietly placed his notebook into his backpack, his fingers quick and neat. Beside him, Por silently gathered his things, movements methodical and precise. On the other side, Patji slowly rolled his pen between his fingers, staring at it blankly before finally tucking it into his pencil case.
Por adjusted the strap of his bag and spoke softly to Save, "Heading home straight away today?"
Before Save could answer, Patji yawned dramatically.
"Home? Don't be boring, Por. Maybe Save is off to fight dragons or something more exciting."
Save laughed under his breath. "No dragons today. Just… um…" His gaze flicked slightly towards the doorway, where Auau was lingering nearby, waiting.
"I'm going to help Auau with English."
Patji's eyes widened and he leaned forward, resting his chin in his hand.
"Oho… a tutor? Our Save is rising up. Should we call you Teacher Save now?"
Por gave a tiny, knowing smile but didn't tease as much. "That's good. You're the best at English here anyway."
Patji grinned mischievously.
"Maybe Save's starting his own English academy. Por, quick, let's enroll too before it gets expensive!"
Save shook his head, laughing softly as he slung his bag over his shoulder. "Enough. I'll see you guys later, okay?"
"Sure, sure," Patji sang teasingly as they waved him off.
Por simply gave a small nod, his calm smile lingering as Save walked out of the classroom towards Auau.
---
The library air was cool and still, sunlight filtering gently through the tall windows. Rows of books stood quietly, and the faint tapping of keyboards echoed softly in the distance.
Auau was already sitting at one of the tables, his bag resting on the chair next to him, flipping through his English notebook with a slightly furrowed brow. When Save approached, Auau looked up and smiled, a relaxed, easy grin.
"You came. Thanks again for doing this."
"No problem." Save sat down, placing his notebook and pencil case neatly on the table.
"So… where should we start? You said everything confuses you?"
Auau scratched his cheek, sheepish.
"Well… yeah. Grammar's my enemy, essays are worse, and don't even ask me about tenses."
Save blinked and let out a small chuckle.
"Okay. So we start from grammar. I promise I won't make it painful."
Auau smirked, relaxing a bit.
"I'll hold you to that."
They began with basic grammar exercises. Save's handwriting was clear and tidy as he wrote examples, explaining them with patience.
Auau listened closely but every so often tilted his head with confusion.
"So wait… why is it 'I have a book' but not 'I has a book'? Doesn't 'has' sound cooler?"
Save raised an eyebrow and tried to hold back his smile.
"Cooler? Maybe. But grammatically illegal."
Auau dropped his head on the table dramatically.
"I knew it. Grammar police will arrest me."
Save laughed, a clear, warm sound, and nudged Auau's notebook back toward him.
"Okay, grammar criminal. Let's fix that sentence."
As the minutes passed, Auau gradually started getting it right — though whenever he made a small mistake, Save would point it out with a light chuckle, not harsh but gently teasing.
At one point, Auau grinned and asked,
"Hey, Save… have you always been this good at teaching? Or is it just because I'm such a difficult student?"
Save smiled shyly and tucked a loose strand of hair behind his ear.
"I've just… always liked English. That's all."
Auau nodded, watching Save for a moment longer than necessary before quickly dropping his gaze to his notebook again.
About halfway through, Auau rubbed his temples exaggeratedly.
"Save, I think I deserve a reward after this. Maybe a snack? Or you can just praise me dramatically. That works too."
Save blinked, amused. "Okay. You get… one compliment."
He leaned slightly forward, voice soft but sincere.
"You're learning faster than you think, Auau."
For a brief moment, Auau's expression shifted — a quiet surprise flickering across his features. Then he smiled, relaxed and genuine.
"Well… with a teacher like you, how could I not?"
They went back to their books — but the mood between them had grown a little warmer, a little closer, something comfortable settling in the quiet library air.
---
Save's Room (Night)
The quiet hum of the ceiling fan circled lazily in Save's room. His desk lamp cast a soft pool of light over scattered notebooks, but none of them were being seriously studied anymore. Save sat with his chin resting on his hand, tapping a pencil absentmindedly against the open page in front of him.
Instead of neat English notes, the center of the page held a quick, messy doodle — Auau's face, eyebrows scrunched in confusion like earlier that day in the library.
Save blinked at it. He hadn't even realized he'd drawn it.
He sighed, lips tugging into a crooked smile.
> "I'm not an art student. Why am I sketching this guy's confused face?"
He tossed the pencil down and leaned back in his chair, gazing up at the ceiling. His mind wandered, playing back Auau's awkward grin when he had mixed up "advice" and "advise" at least twice.
Save's shoulders shook with a quiet laugh, as if the memory was both ridiculous and weirdly endearing.
> "I hope he doesn't ask me what a verb is again tomorrow…" he murmured to himself, smirking slightly.
Just then, his phone vibrated on the desk. Por had texted him:
> "Don't forget about the quiz tomorrow. And no more doodling your 'student'."
Save froze. His eyes widened for half a second — how did Por know? — but then he rolled his eyes, shaking his head with a soft chuckle. Typical Por.
> "I'm not doodling. I'm preparing emotionally to tutor him," Save typed back quickly, ending with a flat-faced emoji.
He shut the notebook, flicked off the desk lamp, and climbed into bed. As he lay back, arms folded under his head, that same faint smile still lingered at the corners of his lips — relaxed, amused, and strangely content.
---
— End of Chapter 3 —