A few minutes later.
— But, Sarah… you can't solve everything with violence. I know this bothers you, you are different. But you shouldn't take this to a negative side. — The principal's voice remains firm, yet measured.
Sarah keeps her head lowered, listening in silence.
— If you don't improve this behavior of yours, we will be forced to expel you from the school.
"No! I don't want to leave here, I don't want to abandon my friends!"
Sarah panics internally. Then she lifts her head with a frightened look.
Tears run down.
The expression of fear mixes with sadness.
— I know you don't want that. Promise me this will be the last time this kind of thing happens. — The principal stretches her arm over the desk and gently touches Sarah's face, wiping away some of the tears that fall. — Do you promise?
Sarah nods affirmatively. Her shoulders relax. A faint smile appears on her face as she feels the warmth of that gentle gesture.
— You are strong. People mock you and look at you with envy and contempt. Even so, you still manage to smile. One day, you will be proud of being like this! — Márcia finishes speaking with a serene voice, filled with optimism.
The door opens.
— Excuse me, Márcia. I brought Gabi — Marcos gently pushes the door open. — Come on, she's not going to bite you!
Sarah quickly wipes away her tears.
— There's no need to be afraid of me! — The principal's voice addresses Gabi in a calm tone.
— It's not you… — Gabi says as he enters through the door, already casting a look searching for Sarah. When he finds her, he decides to keep his distance, staying leaned against the door with a piece of toilet paper stuffed in his nose.
— That's fine. You can stay there. — Márcia does not insist.
— Come on, Gabi, apologize to Sarah, just like we talked about in the bathroom.
— Gabi. — Sarah stands up and approaches him with her head lowered. — If you don't want to, you don't have to forgive me. I ended up exaggerating.
— Exaggerating? I thought I was going to die! — He murmurs for a moment.
— Hey, no need to exaggerate! — Marcos scolds him, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Sarah looks at Gabi's face and extends her hand as a gesture of peace.
He looks her directly in the eyes. However, he finds no trace of that beast that had frightened him moments ago. After a brief sigh, he detaches himself from the wall.
— It's okay, I also shouldn't have insulted you. Sorry! — He extends his right hand as he finishes speaking. Then the two shake hands.
— Sarah, you can go. I'll talk a bit with him! — With a smile on her face, Márcia says goodbye to Sarah. — Come, Gabi, sit down!
Sarah walks out of the principal's office. And the door closes behind her. She stops for a second and, instead of heading toward the court, she goes the other way.
— Gabi, I know I don't have the right to ask you this…, but I wanted to ask you a favor. Could you not tell your parents what happened? You know… Sarah is a difficult girl to deal with. She appears strong to everyone. But she is fragile inside, easily swayed by her emotions. — The careful tone in Márcia's voice hits exactly where it needs to.
— Don't worry, I'll make up an excuse. My dad would make fun of me if he knew I got beaten by a girl. — He lets out a light laugh in the form of a puff of air through his nose, causing one of the papers in his nose to fall. And the brief smile on his face soon turns into an expression of pain. Then he bends down to pick up the paper.
— Good boy. Now you can go back to the court! — Marcos dismisses him.
Gabi stands up without delay and leaves the room. As he closes the door and turns around, he finds himself face to face with Sarah.
— Here. Put this on your nose, it will help! — She offers a small plastic bag with ice inside, which she has just taken from the kitchen with the lunch ladies.
— Thank you… — Gabi thanks her timidly as he heads toward the court. — Aren't you coming?
She shakes her head in refusal. Lost in thought, she is worried about her friends. When she was still on the court, she noticed they were not there.
— Well… see you! — He goes on his way.
After a few minutes searching for them through the corridors and behind the classroom blocks, she hears a conversation coming from behind the gym. She leans against the corner of the wall and tries to observe what is happening. Her eyes widen at what she sees, and soon a smile appears on her face.
— We could go out sometime, you know. Walk around a bit at night… What do you think? — Bernardo is sitting, leaning against a wall.
He caresses Marcela's face, who is lying with her head on his lap. Her long hair spreads across his legs.
She looks directly into his eyes while gently running her hand over his face.
— I would really like that, but I don't know if my dad will allow it. He's been very worried. — Her greenish gaze drifts away for a moment, watching a leaf fall crookedly beside her. — I'll need to make up some excuse. — She looks back at him with her face flushed.
— Talk to Sarah, she'll definitely help you! — Bernardo throws the idea into the air while admiring her golden strands.
— But… and us? What am I going to tell her? — Marcela stands up and sits leaning against his side. Then she rests her head on his shoulder.
— What about me?
Sarah takes advantage of the opening to catch the two lovebirds in the act. She makes a surprise entrance with her voice slightly loud, as if she wanted to scare someone.
Marcela jumps up, completely red-faced.
— Great, now she knows! — Bernardo just accepts it.
— As if it was a secret that you like each other. Only you two didn't see it. — Sarah says, smiling.
— Was it really that obvious? — Bernardo asks into the air while looking away, trying to hide it.
Sarah does not answer, she just smiles with her eyes closed.
— I looked for you all over the school, I almost got screwed, I went to the principal's office…
Sarah begins to tell them what happened, while Bernardo stands up and the three of them start walking toward the court.