There was a loud rumbling sound. Sui froze as huge rocks fell from the sky. The weight of the bamboo basket full of bricks on his back suddenly felt unbearable and made his legs buckle.

He didn’t know which way to turn. He was caught on the narrow path between the mountain face and cliff’s edge as piles of rocks collected on either side of him. Sui cried for help, but no sound came from his mouth.

He jolted awake and realized he was in his own bed. Sweat beaded his forehead, his face was flushed, and his heart was beating fast. 

“It was the same dream," he said. "The rocks were crashing all around me, and none of my classmates turned back to help me."

His mother stroked his hair. “It was a dream, honey. It doesn’t mean anything.” 

Sui’s eyebrows bunched together as he stared out of his bedroom window. In the distance, he saw houses dotting the landscape and the lush green rice paddies that always put a smile on his face. He heard the birds chirping in the trees and sighed in relief, breathing in the serenity and peace.

After breakfast, he walked to school, kicking small rocks out of his way.

When he arrived, he stood in the doorway of the mud-brick classroom. The sun behind him cast his huge shadow into the room. He glanced around at his much younger classmates, who were at least three years younger than Sui. Some were even nine years younger, aged between six and twelve. 

He took a deep breath, forced a smile, and went inside. Some kids who were talking in a group fell silent. A couple turned their faces away. Another kid looked down, pretending to get something from his bag.

Sui’s heart felt heavy as he slumped down in his chair and hauled out his books.

Bru, a mischievous eleven-year-old boy, was helping the teacher hand back yesterday’s test papers while another classmate was wiping down the board.

Math class again?

Sui felt a headache coming on. He dreaded seeing his grade.

Bru grabbed Sui’s test paper and dashed it over to him. “You got 25 out of 100. Failed again,” he said loudly. Bru muttered, “You’re stupid” under his breath. 

Sui stared at all the red marks, the two and five glaring at him like red centipedes on the page.

Yuck. He shook his head. Why were the others so much smarter, and why could he never pass?

Mr. Lee, a middle aged man with white hairs growing from his nostrils, signaled for everyone to be quiet. His eyes fixed on Sui’s. “We’ve done similar problems countless times, but some students still don’t get them,” he said.

The classroom filled with the rustling of papers and the squeak of the chalk as he covered the blackboard with numbers.

Sweat beads formed on Sui’s forehead and his face got flushed. When it came to numbers, he simply couldn’t follow. The digits crawled across the page like insects and jumbled in his mind.  

A small pebble hit Sui’s upper leg. As he turned around, Bru poked his tongue out at him.

Little brat, Sui thought.

He tried to ignore Bru by busying himself with copying down the answers, but soon another pebble hit him. 

Don’t lose your cool.

Sui remembered his mother telling him to take pity on Bru. Sui had come home with a sore hand after the little jerk had glued a sheet of sandpaper into his cubbyhole. Sui's mother had caressed his face and told him that the poor boy had lost his parents when he was only nine. He had to live with his aunty and her three sons.

Sui’s mom insisted that, as cruel as his pranks were, Bru would grow out of it eventually. She said that Sui should ride it out for everyone’s sake.

Reporting Bru would only lead to a disastrous embarrassment for him. It could cause him to spiral into a black hole.

The metallic ting of the brass school bell cut through Sui’s thoughts. The classroom filled with the noise of moving chairs, giggling, and the shuffling of books. The door was flung open and the students spilled out like beans from a can. They were excited and active, eager for a swim in the river before heading home for lunch. The aroma of cooking wafted from the houses’ open-stoved chimneys and filled the air.

Sui was still packing up slowly, sadness welling in his chest. He laid his arms on the desk and buried his head. He could still picture his classmates’ smiling faces from years ago. They had all been his same age but, unlike him, they had graduated and left for high school in the city.  

Since then, he had become more and more alone. With each failed final exam, the age gap between Sui and his classmates had grown. His poor academic performance was a tattoo on his face. This year, his anxiety was at a record high because this was the last year they would allow him to attend school.

Shifting uneasily in his seat, he wondered what he could do to make it all work out. He was startled by a pebble striking his back. “Ouch,” he said.

Bru and three other kids made faces at him and burst into laughter.

“Lalalalalala,” they chanted, their voices growing farther and farther away.

Most of the children ran straight to the river. It was so tempting when the sun was scorching hot. They dumped their clothes and bags randomly on the riverbank and jumped in.

Happy squeals echoed through the mountains. Some kids tried to catch shrimp and fish while others went underwater, laughing and squirting water at each other.