It was the last day of school, and we were taking our final exams. I thought it would be my last chance to see him in our school uniform, which I always loved. Unfortunately, he was assigned to a different classroom for the exams, so I missed him that day. A quiet sadness grew within me, but I also felt the excitement of soon moving on to college.
As I walked home with mixed emotions, every step reminded me of his face, the one I looked forward to seeing every day at school. I loved his hairstyle and the way he smiled at everyone. He often got in trouble with the teachers and would receive countless punishment sticks, but he never lost his smile.
I paused and looked back, hoping to see him behind me. Although his house was in the opposite direction, I imagined he might have come just to see me one last time in my school dress. But when I looked back, there wasn’t a single familiar face—just students from other schools laughing with one another. Once again, a wave of sadness washed over me.
I remembered how he had called me two days ago to wish me luck on our last exam. He was never that outgoing in person, but he used to call me on my landline from his mobile phone. Just last night, he’d said on the phone, “I’m excited to see you on our last day. Let’s talk for an hour after the exams are over. Good luck!” His words made me smile, but I kept silent, worried that my father might see me smiling on the phone.
Lost in these memories, I looked behind again and saw two classmates walking toward me. One of them waved, and I stopped. They came up to me and said, “Someone was looking for you after the exam. Why did you leave so early? Did you two have a fight or something?” I shook my head slowly, wondering who might have been searching for me. Suddenly, one of them mentioned his name, saying he looked anxious when he couldn’t find me. My heart skipped a beat, and a swarm of butterflies filled my stomach. I wanted to smile, but I felt shy. No one had ever told me before that he actually looked out for me.
I stood there, confused and torn. “Should I go back to school, or should I keep walking home? I wanted so badly to see him, to make this last day memorable. But what if I went back, only to find he’d already left because he didn’t see me?”
Thinking about how he’d told me his family would be moving to another city after graduation, I decided I couldn’t let this chance slip away. I wanted to see him, to share a memory on our final day of school. So, I turned back toward the school. As I left, one of the girls said, “You’re lucky to be cared for by such a handsome guy.” I couldn’t even look back at them, too shy to respond.
When I reached the school, I peeked through the gate, but no one was there. The watchman asked, “Who are you looking for? Everyone’s already gone.” I didn’t want to believe him. I wished he would say that one person was still there waiting for me. But he wasn’t. With a heavy heart, I turned back and walked home.
A month later, I heard that he had left the city with his family. My wish to see him, to be with him on that last day, remained unfulfilled. Now, I hope that one day, somehow, I’ll see him again—even just once. I want to tell him how I felt, how much I had wanted to see him on our final day of school.