Just as Mr. Ronson finished talking about planning one last party before Ethan left for London, one of the teachers walked toward the center of the courtyard.
He clapped his hands loudly.
"Alright, everyone! Graduates! We're taking the official class photo now! Please gather near the front building!"
Immediately, the entire courtyard became even noisier.
Students who had been talking to their parents hurried over.
Some fixed their gowns.
Some adjusted their caps.
Others simply ran, laughing all the way.
I looked toward my family.
Mrs. May smiled warmly. "Go."
Mr. Ronson nodded. "We'll be right here."
Luca waved both hands dramatically. "If you blink in the picture, I'll laugh forever."
"...You're such a supportive little brother."
"I try."
I laughed before turning toward my classmates.
As I walked across the courtyard, memories came rushing back.
There...
Near the fountain.
Regina. I think she just came to see her friends, graduate.
She was talking to two girls from our class. Those two girls her friends, Ava and Isla.
For a second... I remembered everything. The whispers. The teasing.
The days she tried so hard to make school feel miserable.
And yet... She was smiling now.
Actually smiling. Not the fake one she used whenever teachers walked by.
A real one. Beside her was Isla. She noticed me looking and gave me a small smile.
I smiled back without thinking. Funny.
A year ago... I would've looked away.
Now... It didn't matter anymore.
Everyone had changed.
Or maybe... We all just grew up.
I kept walking. Groups of students filled every corner of the school.
Some were hugging so tightly you'd think they were trying to fuse into one person.
Others were already crying.
One boy was taking pictures of literally everything.
The basketball court. The hallway.
The vending machine.
"The vending machine?" I muttered.
"It has memories!" he defended dramatically. "...You bought expired juice from it."
"And survived."
"...Barely."
I laughed.
Near the garden, a few girls were exchanging small gift bags tied with ribbons.
"I'll miss you!"
"No, you won't! I'll literally call you tonight!"
"Still!"
They hugged anyway.
Nearby, someone had brought colorful markers.
Not for paper. For uniforms.
Liam's idea.
Of course it was Liam's idea.
He stood in the middle of the courtyard holding up three giant fabric markers like a salesman.
"Ladies and gentlemen!"
He cleared his throat dramatically. "Today's special event!"
He pointed proudly at his graduation gown.
"Write something embarrassing on your friend's clothes so they'll never forget you."
Jake immediately grabbed a marker. "I'm in."
Emma sighed. "I knew this was a bad idea."
Liam handed everyone markers anyway.
Within seconds... Chaos.
Absolute chaos.
Jake wrote across Liam's sleeve.
'Professional Professional Procrastinator.'
Liam looked offended. "I studied."
Jake blinked. "...Eventually."
"I hate you."
"No, you don't."
Emma carefully wrote on Nena's sleeve. 'Keep smiling.'
Nena looked at it.
Then immediately pretended to gag. "Ew."
Emma laughed. "You love it."
"...Maybe."
Mark quietly stood there, reading everyone's messages.
Luca suddenly appeared from absolutely nowhere. "I WANT TO WRITE SOMETHING!"
"You don't even graduate here," Mark said.
"I graduate spiritually."
"...That doesn't count."
Too late.
Luca had already stolen a marker.
He grabbed Mark's sleeve.
Mark looked down. "...Luca."
"I'm creating art."
"You spelled my name wrong."
"I added personality."
Mark sighed. "...You drew a potato."
"It's you."
"..."
"..."
"...Fair."
I couldn't stop laughing.
Jake walked over to me, holding out a marker. "My turn."
He grabbed the edge of my sleeve before I could escape. "Jake..."
"Stand still."
"I don't trust you."
"You shouldn't."
He quickly scribbled something.
I looked down. 'Still owes me snacks.'
I gasped. "I paid you back!"
"You paid me back emotionally."
"That doesn't even make sense."
"It doesn't have to."
I rolled my eyes and took the marker from him.
"My turn."
He looked confident.
Big mistake.
I wrote across the back of his gown.
'Professional Drama Queen.'
He turned around. "What did you write?"
"Nothing."
"...Ayana."
"Nothing."
Liam read it first.
Then burst into laughter so hard he had to bend over.
Jake slowly reached behind himself, trying to read upside down.
"...AYANA!"
"I REGRET NOTHING!"
He chased me halfway across the courtyard while everyone laughed.
"I'M GOING TO FRAME YOU!"
"YOU CAN'T FRAME AN INNOCENT PERSON!"
"YOU WROTE ON MY GOWN!"
"WITH LOVE!"
"IT'S STILL A CRIME!"
By the time he caught me, both of us were laughing too hard to continue.
Even Nena shook her head.
"You two have problems."
"We know."
I turned To Ethan, He looked down at me Already suspicious.
"What?" He said.
I smiled "I want to Write something."
He sighed and handed me his sleeves. And I wrote.
'LIVING REFRIGERATOR.'
He glared at his sleeves and then me, I was trying not to laugh. Then he gently took the marker away from me and caught my sleeve and wrote something.
'LOUDER THAN FIREWORKS.'
I gasped "That's absolutely true."
Ethan laughed.
A teacher finally called us over. "Class! Line up!"
Everyone hurried toward the staircase in front of the main building.
Tall students moved toward the back.
Shorter students—including me—were sent right to the front. Again. Story of my life. I looked around. Regina stood only two people away from me.
Ava and Isla stood beside her.
Jasper—the class clown—was somehow already making three people laugh before the picture had even started.
He looked at the photographer. "Sir."
The photographer looked up. "...Yes?"
"If I blink..."
"..."
"...Can you Photoshop my eyes open?"
The photographer stared at him. "...No."
Jasper nodded thoughtfully. "Worth asking."
The entire class laughed.
Even the teachers.
Mr. Rick sighed into his hand. "This class..."
Jasper grinned proudly. "You're welcome."
The photographer lifted his camera. "Everyone ready?"
We all nodded. "Look here!"
I looked toward the lens.
Around me... People I'd spent years with.
Some I liked immediately.
Some I argued with.
Some I barely knew.
Some who became family. "On three! One!"
Someone behind me whispered, "Jake, stop fixing your hair."
"I'm making history."
"You have hat hair."
"I have style."
"Two!"
Luca shouted from the guests' area, "AYANA! DON'T BLINK!"
"I WASN'T GOING TO!"
"You blink a lot!"
"I HEARD THAT!"
Everyone laughed again.
The photographer sighed dramatically. "I need exactly five seconds of peace."
Impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
Finally "Three!"
"CHEESE!"
Click.
A flash.
Then another. "And one more! Throw your caps!"
Dozens of graduation caps flew into the bright blue sky.
Cheers exploded around us.
Some students jumped. Some screamed. Some cried the moment the hats landed.
I watched mine spin through the air before catching it against my chest.
And somehow... That simple moment made everything feel real.
We had done it. We had actually graduated. The courtyard erupted into life again.
Students rushed toward one another. More hugs. More laughter. More tears.
Someone started crying while trying to give a speech to their friends. Another group was taking selfies in front of every classroom.
Jasper somehow convinced half the class to recreate our very first school photo, except this time everyone intentionally made the ugliest faces they could.
The teachers could only laugh.
I stood there for a moment, taking it all in. The classrooms. The hallways.
The trees that shaded us during lunch. The bell that I used to hate hearing every morning.
Today... I wished it would ring just one more time.
Just so we could all walk back into class together.
Just once more.
Before life carried us in different directions.
But before the sadness could settle in for long...
I felt two familiar hands land on my shoulders.
Jake leaned in from one side. "Emergency."
Liam appeared on my other side. "Critical emergency."
I blinked. "...What happened?"
Jake looked completely serious. "Liam ate my graduation cupcake."
"I was hungry!"
"IT HAD MY NAME ON IT!"
"It had frosting!"
I stared at them for three seconds.
Then laughed so hard my bouquet nearly slipped out of my hands.
And just like that...
My ridiculous family refused to let me stay sad for very long.