The next day, poor Alice trudged into school with the energy of a soggy noodle because she'd caught a cold. She'd been the queen of nagging others about their health, and now karma had bitten her right in the backside.

With a tissue stuffed so far up her nose that it could almost touch her brain, and a face the color of a sad Smurf, she soldiered on until the lunchtime bell chimed.

"Are you sure you shouldn't just make up an excuse and head home?" her friend asked, her worry evident.

"I'll survive," Alice croaked, her voice sounding like a disgruntled frog. Besides, dealing with the homeroom teacher, Alphonso, for an excuse wasn't on her to-do list, especially after that emoji incident. She decided suffering in silence was the way to go.

"Leave her be. You know she's as stubborn as a mule," the class captain chimed in as he buried his nose in his notes.

Kyler let out a resigned sigh and said, "I'm off to the cafeteria. Anything you want?"

"I'm good, thanks," Alice replied, though she doubted she could swallow anything more substantial than air.

"Hey, Kyler, are you heading to the cafeteria?" a classmate shouted, hastily zipping up his bag and tossing it at his seatmate. "Wait up!"

Tolu, who had been rudely awakened by a flying bag in the middle of his nap, blinked in confusion before deciding to resume his snooze.

Alice considered taking a nap herself when suddenly, a voice rang out, "Something's happened on the second floor!!" Alice recognized the owner's voice instantly.

Vanessa – the school's top informant. Rumor had it that nothing in the school escaped her watchful eyes.

Chairs scraped loudly on the tiled floor as the class quickly assembled in the center of the room.

"A peeping Tom was caught on the second floor, in the girls' restroom, just before lunch," Vanessa announced dramatically, enough to rile up her audience.

"They seriously have nothing better to do than gossip," Alice sighed inwardly. "I won't be getting any sleep at this rate."

With a groan, she pushed her chair back, grabbed her bag, and headed for the exit, with the half-asleep Tolu trailing behind.

The two parted ways at an intersection, Tolu opting for the library to continue his interrupted nap, while Alice decided on the rooftop.

After climbing a seemingly endless flight of stairs, she was breathless by the time she reached the door.

Pushing it open, she shivered as the biting cold hit her face, causing her hair to frizz before settling on her shoulder.

Gritting her teeth, Alice muttered, "This place is great on normal days, but not when you've got a cold." Nevertheless, she'd come this far, so she decided to tough it out.

She approached the railing and leaned over to gaze at the world below. It was always awe-inspiring, no matter how many times she saw it – the tiny students in their uniforms, going about their business.

The school was enormous, and Alice couldn't deny it – Aurelian Academy was a beautiful school, one of those expensive institutions you wouldn't even dream of attending unless your parents were insanely wealthy or obsessed with high education.

She still remembered the day she got a scholarship to this dream-like school – one of the brightest days of her life.

"The stadium is always the best view," Alice thought. "No matter how many times you see it, you can't get tired of it."

"What are you doing?"

"Ahh!" Alice yelped, nearly leaping over the railing in fright, which would have been a tragic end to a cold day.

"Oh my!" A pair of arms wrapped around her from behind, preventing her from toppling over.

Heart racing, she took a deep breath. "You nearly scared me half to death!"

Alphonso, looking somewhat dumbfounded, watched as steam practically poured out of her ears. "I-I apologize. It was unintentional."

"Unintentional?!" Alice seethed. "I could've died!"

'maybe I could have made it into history as one of the unlucky people who intentionally committed suicide. Not that I'd love to

Alphonso winced, realizing the gravity of the situation after seeing her clutching the railing for dear life. "You were leaning so close, and I thought—"

"I could've jumped?" Alice interrupted, her eyes narrowing in disbelief. "Why on earth would I do that?"

Alphonso bit his lip, hesitating before speaking. "I apologize if this sounds intrusive, but it looked like you had some trouble at home."

"What do you mean?" Alice was genuinely surprised.

"About yesterday," Alphonso said, his tone more serious. "Your father called me when you refused to go home."

Alice was about to protest but then paused, thinking to herself. 'I mean, it probably looked that way since Dad had to search all over for me, but it's not like I didn't want to go home. I just lost track of time.'

"If you ever have anything bothering you, you can talk to me," Alphonso said, looking earnest. "I'm a good listener."

"Bothering me?" Alice raised an eyebrow, her gaze fixed on her blue face and runny nose. "Do I look that troubled?"

Alphonso glanced at her disheveled appearance and couldn't help but nod, his concern evident.

Alice resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Seriously?"