---Twelve Years Ago---

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During one of those sweltering summer days when the heat seemed to hang in the air like a thick blanket, Christine was at summer school, a place she didn't particularly want to be, but her parents had insisted it would be good for her.

"It'll help you get ahead," they said, though Christine was sure they just wanted her out of the house for a few weeks.

The classroom was stuffy, the overhead fan barely cutting through the oppressive heat.
Christine sat near the back, half-listening to the teacher drone on about fractions. She was more interested in daydreaming, as usual, her mind wandering to far-off places and romantic stories she made up in her head. She had a few friends in the room, but none who shared her love for the fantastical tales she wrote in her notebook.

It was during one of these daydreams that she noticed a new face in the room.

Lara was sitting alone, a small figure huddled over a book. She was different from the other girls—her hair was cut short, and she wore simple clothes that had a tomboyish air to them. There was a nervous energy about her, like she was trying to shrink into herself, to avoid being noticed.

Curiosity piqued, Christine approached her during the break. "Hi, I'm Christine. Want to play outside?"

Lara looked up, her wide eyes filled with a mix of surprise and hesitation. "No, thank you," she mumbled, barely loud enough to be heard. Then, without another word, she buried herself back in her book.

Christine was taken aback. She wasn't used to being turned down, especially not so bluntly.
There was something about Lara's response that made her feel annoyed, as if she had been slighted. But she shook it off, deciding that Lara was probably just shy. Still, the encounter left a mark on her memory, a lingering thought in the back of her mind.

Time passed, and Christine didn't give much more thought to the quiet girl from summer school. Life went on, and soon enough, summer turned to autumn, and she was back at her regular school. But as the new school year began, she was surprised to see a familiar face in her classroom—Lara, the girl she had met over the summer, had transferred to her school.

Lara still seemed as shy as ever, keeping to herself at the edge of the room. The other kids didn’t pay her much attention, but Christine noticed that she was always at the top of the class. No matter the subject, Lara consistently scored the highest marks. She was a model student, the kind teachers loved—diligent, quiet, and always prepared. Yet, despite her success, she seemed isolated, as if the accolades meant nothing to her.

It was a few weeks into the school year when their teacher, Mrs. Hathaway, called Christine to the front of the class.

“Christine, since you know Lara from summer school, I’d like you to help her get settled here. She might need some guidance with how things work in our class.”

Christine hesitated. She wasn’t particularly close to Lara, but she couldn’t exactly say no to a teacher. So she nodded, and from that day on, she found herself sitting next to Lara, helping her with anything she needed.

At first, Lara was reserved, only speaking when necessary and keeping her head down. But as time went on, something began to change. They started working together on assignments, and Christine realized just how brilliant Lara was. Lara, in turn, noticed something surprising about Christine—she was actually quite smart, especially in math, even though she hardly put in any effort. Christine seemed to breeze through problems that Lara had to work hard at, though her laziness often meant her grades didn’t reflect her potential.

Christine spent her days writing romantic poems and daydreaming about far-off places, while Lara dedicated herself to her studies with a single-minded focus. Lara couldn’t understand how Christine could waste her talent, and at first, it frustrated her. She had always been competitive, driven by a need to stay at the top, to prove herself through her achievements. Losing her position as the top student was unthinkable, and she worried that Christine might eventually surpass her if she ever put in the effort.

But as the days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, something unexpected happened. Lara began to enjoy Christine’s company. Christine had a warmth to her, a lightness that seemed to chase away the shadows that always hung over Lara’s mind. Christine would drag her away from her books to take a walk outside or make her laugh with a silly poem she’d written. Lara, who had always been so serious, found herself laughing more, feeling happier, more alive.

Christine became a ray of sunshine in Lara’s life, someone who brought color into her world of black and white. Lara, in turn, found herself letting go of some of her competitive edge. She didn’t need to be the best at everything as long as she had Christine by her side. They balanced each other in ways neither of them had expected.

For the next three years, they were inseparable. They studied together, laughed together, and became the best of friends. Christine’s carefree nature rubbed off on Lara, while Lara’s dedication and focus helped Christine when she needed it most. They were an unlikely pair, but together, they found a happiness that neither had known before.

But even the brightest days eventually give way to shadows. Life, as they would both come to learn, has a way of changing things, of pulling people in different directions. But for those three years, at least, they were each other’s world, and nothing else mattered.