Obscured Affection (Slow Updates)

Mahnoor was getting better, but due to her parents' insistence, she had been confined to her home for a week, growing increasingly bored. Sara and Safoora also found school dull without her presence, which left them feeling gloomy as well.

Safoora stood in the school ground, searching for Azlaan, but he was nowhere to be seen. She had unknowingly developed a habit of seeing him every day. Azlaan never made an effort to talk to her much, nor did he ever try to look at her directly. However, he always appeared to help her whenever she needed it, which had led her to find excuses to be near him.

The lunch break was about to end, yet Azlaan was still nowhere in sight. Feeling disappointed, she turned toward her classroom when suddenly, a boy stepped in front of her. Safoora stepped back slightly, looking at him with questioning eyes.

"I... really like you," he blurted out, thrusting a letter and a chocolate into her hands before running away.

It wasn't a new experience for Safoora to receive confessions. However, Ishaq had a way of scaring off anyone who tried to approach her, ensuring they never dared to look in her direction again. Because of this, no one had attempted to propose to her in days, at least not in Ishaq's absence. But today, this boy's bold act left her somewhat surprised.

Before she could open the letter, a hand swiftly snatched both the letter and the chocolate away from her grasp.

"Lunch is over. You should go to your class," Azlaan said seriously before turning to leave.

"Azlaan... That's mine!" she protested, running after him and trying to grab her letter and chocolate back.

However, Azlaan was much taller than her, making it impossible for her to reach. She attempted to jump and snatch them but failed, growing frustrated. Annoyed, she huffed and stomped away toward her classroom, leaving Azlaan chuckling behind her as he followed suit.

"What if Azlaan hands that letter to the teacher? No... He always tries to save me from punishments. But then again, he is the head boy. It's his duty to report such things... But I didn't do anything wrong. That boy was the one who-" She thought nervously, sitting in her seat. Her train of thought was interrupted when her mathematics teacher called her name.

"So, Safoora will tell us the value of x," the teacher announced, noticing her absentmindedly staring at the board. All eyes turned toward her, but Safoora remained oblivious, lost in her worries.

"Safoora? The teacher is asking you something!" Sara nudged her, snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Y-Yes, sir!" she stammered, standing up abruptly.

"Tell me, what's the value of x?" the teacher repeated.

Safoora despised mathematics. She disliked the subject and loathed her math teacher even more, which was why she never paid attention in class. She managed to pass by memorizing the solutions, but she never truly understood the concepts. Ishaq had tried several times to teach her, but his efforts were always in vain. Now, as she stared at the board in panic, not only did she have no clue about x's value, but she also found it difficult to even read the equations written in front of her.

"Excuse me, sir? You called me to collect my notebook," Azlaan's voice suddenly filled the room.

Safoora's eyes widened in disbelief. Her heart pounded loudly in her chest. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, but Azlaan's presence only made it worse.

"Oh, yes. I think I left it in the staffroom. Wait five minutes; the class will be over soon, and we'll go together," the teacher responded, then turned back to Safoora.