The week after the incident, they were glad that the vice principals did not say anything about their weekend detention.

"Do you think they know what really happened?" Badr questioned Yousef during their second break on Sunday.

"I don't think so, because if they did then they would probably do something about it. Maybe they didn't check the room afterward."

At the same minute, Mr. Samer walked behind them and overheard what the boys had said.

"Well, not really! Of course we would check the room then otherwise how would you get out?"

"E-em," Yousef stuttered and flinched uneasily as he saw Mr. Samer.

"We got out..we're clever aren't we?" Badr answered Mr. Samer assuredly.

"Very clever. If it were Mr. Nabil, he would surely suspend you for the next week, but I won't do anything this time. But if you repeat something like this then you'll get punished, all right?" Mr. Samer's voice became a little harsher and his expression showed a sign of distress.

"Uhh, yes sir! Thanks for understanding!" Badr replied gratefully.

"No problem. After all, you are new students of Evenlane Academy now, so it is my responsibility to make sure you are happy here," he told them.

"Thank you sir!" Badr chuckled while Yousef smiled.

Silence followed afterward. A while later, Badr decided to say something.

"How did...your wife die, sir?"

Mr. Samer sighed a little. "I'm not too sure you would like to hear something as horrible as that."

"I'm curious!"

"Okay...well..." Mr. Samer said silently. "My wife was from Rimor. In this academy, it was not permitted for anyone from Rimor, Alin or Belrubin to work here." He paused for a while. "The previous principal killed her."

"KILLED HER!? THE PRINCIPAL?" Badr shouted while Yousef was in shock, "Just like that? Why would he do that?"

"It was partly my fault," Mr. Samer explained. "The principal had his reasons. But that was years ago. Everyone had forgotten."

Yousef nodded but Badr was still freaking out, not able to believe what he heard.

"Well, don't worry about things like that. Just focus on your studies and classes," Mr. Samer smiled, then continued walking until he disappeared out of their sight.

"He's a nice guy, but that was weird," Badr concluded.

"Yeah," Yousef agreed.

A few weeks had passed since that incident. The story behind how Mr. Samer's wife died wasn't entirely clear, and Badr and Yousef, though still curious, stopped going to out-of-reach areas. Eventually, their midterm exams week came up.

"So...what do we have first again?" Badr wondered. On Friday, Badr and Yousef were sitting in the dorms, 'preparing' for their exams.

"Algebra, I think," Yousef clarified.

"Ew, math..." Badr groaned, since math was his weakest subject. "Is your math teacher even good?"

"Not really. He's really boring," Yousef commented. Badr rested back on the sofa and exhaled.

"Do you know how to solve this, then?" Yousef queried, showing him an equation which read: '5x+7=52'.

"What's this? I don't know this..."

"But that's the easiest one! Are you sure you're gonna pass this year, Badr?"

"Yeah, I'll get through! Don't worry about me!"

Badr watched all the boys around the dorms with his huge eyes, then suddenly had an idea.

"I know! I'll ask some genius to explain! Are you a genius, Yousef?"

"Um...yes...maybe?" Yousef looked around him at the other boys who were nearby; he spotted a boy from his class. He stood up and walked over to a thin-looking bespectacled boy who stood near the side window behind the dinner table. He was standing with his head forward, his back a little hunched and his messy black hair that covered his head.

Yousef greeted him with a handshake, "Hello, Bilal...you got hundred in the math quiz, right?"

"Hi. Yeah..." the boy replied awkwardly.

"Uh...can you help my friend Badr in math?"

Badr ran over to them and grinned. "Hey! I'm Badr!"

"Bilal, nice to meet you."

They shook hands, then Badr asked, "Can you-"

"Bilal! Yo! Over here!" the red-haired boy, who was in Badr's class, yelled and came over with his basketball in his hand.

"Oh, hey," Bilal greeted in a low voice.

"Wait you're in my class, right? I'm Badr!" Badr introduced himself.

"Yeah, I'm Jack," Jack said quickly. He turned to Yousef and beamed, "I haven't seen you before! What's your name?"

"I'm...Yousef."

"Yousef?" Jack took a look at his golden hair. "But your hair sooo light! Are you from Albasea?"

"Uh-well," Yousef hesitated before answering. "I'm actually half from Welten as well..."

"Wow, nice!" Badr chimed in. "I never even knew that! I'm just from Albasea! What about you, Bilal?"

"My dad is from Kina," Bilal explained. "My mom is from here."

Jack continued to speak: "Isn't that so cool? I never met anyone from Kina before I met Bilal! I'm actually from Viloni, but I was born here. But anyway, it's nice to meet you!"

Jack paused, so Badr decided to talk to Bilal. "About math, I kind of need-"

"So anyways!" Jack interrupted Badr eagerly. "You guys are best friends, right? You're different, but not that much. I mean, look at Bilal and I! Can't you tell we're so different? I met him a few weeks ago but he used to walk alone. Now I'm his friend. Actually best friend. Is it weird?" Jack blabbered continuously.

"Ah...no, I guess not," Yousef answered slowly, trying to catch up with Jack's undeniably fast speed in speaking.

"Really? I'm glad you think so! 'Cause everyone doesn't get how we're even friends! Like, dude, we're opposites. I'm trying to convince him to join basketball, but sports is not his thing yet. But I'll make it his thing one day! Right, Bilal?"

"No..." Bilal whispered as Jack smiled widely. "He's more interested in chess and other stuff...like weird stuff I don't get. Tell me again, Bilal, why don't you join basketball?"

"Just because...it doesn't suit me..."

"Oh c'mon!" Jack patted him on his back. "You know I'd love to have you on the team! Please? For me?"

"No," Bilal declined Jack's pleading.

"Please! If you love me, join! Don't you love me?" Jack pleaded once more.

"Stop. Let me talk to Badr."

"Huh? Badr? Why?"

"He needs help in math."

Jack's face reddened. "Oh, really? Sorry, so sorry I interrupted! I didn't mean it! I didn't think you were doing something important!"

"It's ok," Badr said, but he was slightly annoyed by Jack's constant babbling. His thick eyebrows furrowed as he wanted to talk too and didn't like being silent. "I just need a little help in math, ugh I hate it so much!" Badr bleated loudly.

"Heh...a little?" Yousef smirked at Badr's big lie. He seriously needed a private tutor or something.

"Okay, just ask me whatever you don't understand," Bilal stated in a monotonous voice. Then he added: "When do you plan on studying? The exam is after tomorrow right? On Sunday?"

"Yeah, it is. Ugh a whole week of exams...Oh I'll study after lunch. I'm starving!" Badr suddenly hurried to the kitchen to see what was left in the big fridge.

"I'm hungry too, let's eat now!" Jack trailed behind Badr. The four of them ate soon afterward, leaving behind their worries about the exams.

The next day, Badr, Yousef, Bilal, and Jack sat down together in the living room of their dorms to study for the math exam. Bilal turned to Badr and assured him: "Ask me anything."

"Ok!" Badr looked at the material. Seconds later, he smiled and said, "May you explain...everything?"

"No," Bilal shook his head. "You won't get it. I don't explain very well."

"Hahaha!" Jack giggled, "C'mon, Bilal! Have confidence!"

Bilal ignored Jack and stared into the distance. A few minutes later, Yousef quietly showed Bilal his worksheet, "Um...Bilal...can you help me with this? It's so hard."

Bilal glanced at the equation which had fractions in it. "Oh, this one. Just find the common denominator by multiplying by 7 and 3 to both fractions, then just subtract."

"Oh...I hate fractions...thanks though," Yousef sighed gratefully, as he went back to solving the next question.

"Do you like math?" Badr questioned Bilal.

"Who, me?" interjected Jack. "I don't."

"Not you, I asked Bilal," Badr remarked. Jack's eyes narrowed and he turned to face the other way.

"Not entirely," Bilal answered finally.

"I hate it. It's horrible!" Badr whined. "I like science better. What do you like?"

"Science," Bilal replied as he pushed the bridge of his glasses further up his nose. Badr smiled and opened his book to try to study, but eventually fell asleep.

"What do we do about this stupid guy?" Jack sighed.

"Maybe he needs some rest," Bilal concluded.

As it turned out, Badr slept the whole day and came unprepared the next day for his Algebra midterm, which was at 10:00 a.m. All the students revised their sheets hastily as Badr watched them, not even trying to look at some equations because he already knew he was going to fail. A girl with long brown hair tied in pigtails rushed over to Badr and queried, "Do you know how to solve this? This is the only question I don't know!"

"I don't know anything..." Badr smiled sadly. "Sorry..."

"Oh, it's fine! I can help! Is your teacher that bad?"

"I guess...I was never that good at math anyways."

The girl smiled then cleared her throat and said, "I'm Yasmin."

"Badr. Nice to meet you."

Yasmin took a closer look at Badr. She recognized his thick spiky brown hair from the airport. "Hey! I think I saw you before! I asked you about the flight, remember?"

"No...did you? When?"

"Never mind, it's not important. Which class are you in?" Yasmin inquired curiously.

"7-D. You?"

"I'm in 7-A."

"Cool. Who's your math teacher?" conversed Badr.

"Mr. Nizar-din."

"Who the heck is that?"

"He's so annoying. He's short. And bald. And he has a very weird accent and a high voice that goes high then low...high then low! And on the first day, he gave us a pop quiz! All he cares about is pop quizzes! And when we ask him when he will give us one he just tells us it depends on his mood!" Yasmin explained. She then added in a fake voice, "'If I'm in a good mood, then maybe you will have a pop quiz. But if I'm in a bad mood, I could give you a pop quiz too because I'm mad at you! So see, you can really know from my mood!' I mean, what the heck is that supposed to mean!?"

"Wow, how crazy," Badr giggled, accentuating his dimples.

Yasmin breathed then looked around to see students leaving. "Oh, I think it's exam time! Did you check your seat number?" Badr nodded. "Okay, let's go inside!"

"Good luck!" Badr whispered loudly when they entered the huge examination hall through the wide-open door.

"You too!" whispered Yasmin.

The exam hall was very spacious and it had more than one door located on each side. It was a big square room with seamless white walls that had numerical and alphabetical labels stuck directly under the ceilings. The large hall was filled with maple desks and navy-painted chairs pushed neatly inside the desks. Badr stared in front of him at the alphabets that were labeled for each column, and the numerical labels, on his left, that indicated the row number of the desks. He looked for his assigned seat C-2 so he moved over to the front and sat down at his desk, which was very near to the supervisors' front desks.

A few minutes later, the supervisors instructed the students to start after distributing the Algebra exam along with scratch papers.

Throughout the whole examination, Badr scribbled whatever he knew and quickly let sleep take over him for the remaining time. Badr woke up from the sound of Yousef whispering, "Badr! Wake up!"

"Huh? Did the exam finish...?" Badr sputtered loudly.

"Yes," Yousef whispered quickly, helping him up. "Go turn in your paper! Come on!"

After a whole lecture about sleeping in exams from one especially angry supervisor, Badr finally got out of the exam hall safely.

"How was your exam?" Yousef asked as they climbed down the stairs.

"BAD. Like reaaally bad."

"I did good...NOT. All the exam was fractions! I HATE FRACTIONS!" Yousef angrily yelled.

"Whatever...it's just a midterm."

"JUST A MIDTERM? Ugh...I need to be one of the smart students! I was smart, you know! Before I came to this school! But...I think my marks are getting lower..." Yousef sadly confessed.

Malak overheard their conversation and clicked her tongue as she shook her head in disappointment.

"Uff, go away stalker," Yousef irritably ordered her. She smiled playfully, "How was the Algebra? Did you start studying for French? Or do you take Spanish?"

"I take Spanish," Badr said. Yousef looked away. Malak talked with Badr about Algebra until they reached the bus area. Even on the bus they were talking about other things. She seemed to get along with Badr just fine, unlike her relationship with Yousef.

The rest of the week was very similar to this day: just as tiring as ever. Badr felt like he literally failed every subject because he was not used to this advanced material.

Days later, when they finally got the results, Yousef almost cried when he saw his marks, but when he looked over at Badr's paper, he felt like a genius.

Author's Note: Hello guys! I hope you are enjoying this story so far! Sorry for not updating so soon...studies were killing me and I was too busy with them so I couldn't update :( Feel free to vote and comment if this chapter interested you! I'll try to update faster next time.