His eyes remained on mine, empty in the same way as the other children's.
For just the briefest of moments, I froze, my hand tensing slightly.
Did...
Did he hear me?
I glanced towards the folded note beneath my book. It could've been how they were taught to write, but even the spacing looked similar.
'...Did you write this?'
My lips parted as I readied to ask, but—
A certain step stopped me.
Step.
I lowered my eyes and slid the paper beneath the exercise book. The boy continued looking at me while the teacher's footsteps moved between the desks, his pencil still resting against the unfinished word.
Something touched the back of my chair. I kept writing, listening as the footsteps stopped beside us. Through the gap beneath my arm, I could see the boy's shoes facing forward. Neither had moved towards me.
He...
He was still looking at me.
My heart pressed tighter against my chest.
The pressure against the chair increased, and not slightly.
Rattle! Rattle!
