Waiting

Ding, ding, and ding as the schools alarm rang. Soon the clear voice of a female teacher broke through.

"Good afternoon, would Mo Guanshan please report to the principal office now. Thank you".

I lifted my head up from the maths equation I was trying to solve. My eyebrows rose as I thought to myself ' I am damn fucking sure I didn't get into any fights or trouble the past months. Hell it's only the second day of this month!!?? '

"Guanshan, you heard the announcement, start making your way there."I spared a glance at my buddies sitting beside me as I slowly rose from my seat.

"Yeah yeah I'm going now." I mumbled. Damn it, as I leave the classroom I kept thinking of what might have gone wrong. Was I at the wrong place at the wrong time again?!

As I made my turn into the hallway I have gotten so used to in the past years. Just one more year and one and a half more semester and I'll be free from this damn place. I rose my hand to knock on the semi translucent door leading into the principal's office. As the door cracked open, I saw a young female teacher ushering me in. I knew that teacher, she's been awfully nice to me ever since she saw my mom and me leaving the ICU few months back. Ever since then, she have grilled me to do better in my subjects, to stop being one of the school's bad boy. She reminded me so much about my mom before she fell ill I couldn't bring myself to go against her. Honestly, it felt great to have someone not giving up on you, to look at you and look past everything you've done. That's when I decided I'll work hard and graduate this damn place. The door clicked shut. The principal's voice rang out.

"I am pleased to see that your grades and attitude have improved. Miss Tan have told me, you made her lunch as a token of thanks for providing a lift for your mother and you back at the hospital." The principal said as he leaned forward and interlocked his hand before placing them on the table.

“Ah, I'm sorry was that out of regulations? I didn't mean anything, it was really just a thanks for the lift." I replied as I absentmindedly rose my hand to the back of my head.

"Don't be so tense, I know most of the time you are in here for disciplinary actions but not today. I have great opportunity for you. There is an application being place out in school systems. A world renowned gourmet school has an opening for a small group of students. It's located in the main city. You'll have to move if you are accepted. Grades are the least of their worries, they want to know the range of your cooking abilities. Miss Tan and your homeroom teacher Mr Lee have discussed and they are more than willing to be your guarantor for your application process. And I am willing to give you this new chance, I'll write a testimonial for you to justify your application. So the question is, would you like to try?”

I stared at him, trying my best to process everything he just said. A gourmet school? A new chance? My guarantors? Main city? Opportunities like these were not in the vision of how I saw my future.

"My, for the first time ever since you've been in here, have the cat got your tongue?" The principal joked

"I . . . I . . . I couldn't possibly ask Mr Lee and Miss Tan to do something like that for me. They have done enough to help me in the past years." I stuttered, I tried to calm my breathing, this is insane but yet I wanted it. I have wanted things before but nothing like this.

"Nonsense, Mr Lee and I are your teachers. We will never have done enough, not till you are working. Guanshan this is an opportunity that probably won't come knocking twice. You have to seize this moment." Miss Tan said as she places her hand on my shoulder. I turned to stare at her, in her eyes was confidence. Confidence in me, something I never really had. The same confidence I see he has as he walks around the school and orders me around.