The distance between my house and school is relatively close. Even by casually walking, it will probably take approximately 15 minutes to reach there. That is why there was no reason for me to take any other forms of transportation other than walking by foot. Moreover, I like to witness and observe the things that were happening around the neighborhood. Truth be told, there are not many things or events that could be considered as intriguing; any large incidents rarely occur here. This neighborhood is almost to the point of being desolate, even motored-vehicles are a rare scene. However, I found it refreshing enough still.

"Bread! Come get your bread here!”

In the not so far distance, I heard the yell of a man. His figure was riding what seemed to be a bike which was modified with a box container that was placed right behind the rider’s seat. And within, there was a plentiful quantity of bread selections which were wrapped in plastic.

It was a bread merchant named Roy. He would always circle this neighborhood, yelling under the heat of the sun as how a bread merchant usually would be.

If looking from a business point of view, it was quite the unwise choice for the merchant to sell his products around this quiet neighborhood. If I am not mistaken, there is a more crowded domiciliary not far from here. Naturally, it will be more profitable to focus his sales there.

“Wait… How do I even know his name?”

The bread seller, whose name I somehow knew, kept yelling as he rode his bike. Now, his voice faded as he put more distance between us.

Actually, Mr. Roy never did “circle” around this area. There was a big possibility that he also knew that this neighborhood was not much of a good market prospect. Instead, he was here only to visit one specific household.

I stopped and turned my gaze towards the bread seller, whose figure was now much tinier. I saw him dismounting from his ride of choice and peeked into his bread box container. Both his eyes and hands were sorting through the qualities of the products he had. And while he was doing so, his expression was bright, painting scenery of warmth. After picking those he deemed well, he pressed the bell to the house where he parked his bicycle. Not long after, an old couple appeared from behind the gates of the house, answering the ring. And when they did, their face did not show any traces of shock as if they knew of his arrival beforehand.

The couple greeted the bread seller with a polite bow, a gesture that Mr. Roy replied by handing the bread he held on both of his hands. As the couple accepted and were to pay for the items, Mr. Roy shook his head, rejecting the kind offer. However, the husband pulled Mr. Roy’s arm forward and placed an amount of money on top of his palm, leaving the payment in his grasp.

And of course, as a mere outsider to the interaction, I did not understand their relationship, nor what lied within their minds. I was left to judge through my own set of standards. And all I could say that what I saw was good.

While all of this was happening, I stood still in the middle of the road, quite irresponsibly. But fortunately, proving as another point to the quietness of the neighborhood, there were no vehicles that had crossed the road. There were only locals who were walking. As I have said, there are not many things that can be considered as intriguing here. However, there are times where such scenery exists.

One that is refreshing and slightly sparks envy.

After not a long walk, the road started to feel a bit more crowded, now filled with other students who were trying to get to the same destination as I was. Evident, I could hear the high pitched shrieks of giggles and laughter of teenagers.

Ugh… Calling them as “teenagers” makes me sound like I’m old.

“Gween. Good morning.”

As I have finally arrived at my destination, a stoic-looking teacher greeted me at the front gate of the school. It was a usual tradition for teachers to usher the students in the morning, but calling their names mistakingly was not.

Well, judging from his tone, I do not think that was the case. It is possible that he just could not pronounce my name correctly. Perhaps it is an accent thing or some sort.

There are some kinds of people that get pretty offended when someone calls their name wrong. I mean, I get it. Everyone wants to be correctly addressed because it is a part of their identity yadda yadda yadda.

But as it did not bother me by much, I decided to reply with a nod and move on.

And by moving on, the abundance of students multiplied as I entered the school building. Even without trying to look around, the overwhelming energy of youth blasted the entirety of what comfort I had left.

These “youngsters” were greeting each other they knew with such excitement, doing various types of “Hello.” as to how a high school student would. Yeah… everyone wants to have signature high-fives of their own just so they could think of their relationships as unique.

While drowned in thought, I found myself arriving right in front of my classroom’s door. Once again, a sense of hesitation sprouted from within me as I reached out my hand to pull the door’s handle. But knowing that I was left with not much choice, I managed to find enough amount of will to do so. Thus, I then stepped into the room and viewed what was within.

And not to my surprise, each and every student was grouped with those who they prefer. If one were to observe carefully, it was easy to tell such a thing merely from their body language. By seeing where their body was aligning, it was simple to identify a select number of groups. Moreover, I could take it a step further just by observing the identical traits of each individual within those groups.

Those who wear thick glasses, carrying book-filled backpacks, and were conversing with references most cannot comprehend, are what societies define as “Nerds”. Women who were masked in dense makeup and were carrying famed branded possessions are what I call as "Divas". Spot someone loud, energetic, and overbearing? Those are the "Jocks".

Indeed, people would usually call this stereotyping. And nowadays, most would deem this term as something negative as it marks another with an instantaneous judgment. However, the fact that these stereotypes existed in the first place was due to them being generally correct. Of course, “Generally” being the keyword.

And talking about generally, most parents would advise their children not to comply with these stereotyping, advocating them to befriend everyone instead. Understandably, to not be picky is to show how courteous you are as a person. In addition, if we were to look from transactional perspectives, it is beneficial to have more friends for future potential interests. Undeniably, it is good to have "friends".

However, I find it impossible to understand the word.

Then again, does anyone really truly understand that word?

Often, people tend to question the relationship status of another. And to give an answer, most would just say “Oh! He/she is my friend!”, without much of a thought.

And there is where the word friend becomes a bit blurry.

Whether that friend was someone who had already made 10 years' worth of history or was someone whom we just met for 5 minutes, we would still answer the question similarly. Because of that never-ending uncertainty, how could one ever hope to achieve a complete understanding of the word?

“Ugh, human communication is terrifying.”

Without knowing whether this was a blessing or a curse, I did not really need to worry about such a daunting thing. Because starting from the time of my entry until what was now, no one has shifted their center of gravity towards me. Even when I dragged the seat of my desk, the screeching legs of the chair did not divert anyone’s attention in the slightest.

Nothing changed.

Everyone stayed where they deem it comfortable, with those who they thought as comfortable. And if I only feel that comfort when I am not with anyone, then I am too, normal, am I not?