heat index hit 35 degrees Celsius, making it feel like the air could be scooped up and spooned into a bowl. I sighed and slumped over the back of the windowsill, my eyes dull and heavy. The classroom air was thick with the smell of chalk dust and stale sweat, a rather unpleasant combination.

Just then, the classroom door burst open and a bright young face filled it. It was Lin Wei, my neighbor, and she looked like she’d stepped straight out of a painting. Her jeans weren’t jeans at all, but sunglasses fluttered down to her knees like butterfly wings. I had to look twice to make sure I wasn’t seeing things.

“Hey,” she chirped, her voice like a bell in the oppressive heat. “You’ve been staring outside like you’ve lost your favorite toy.”

I grumbled and turned back to the windowsill. “It’s hot,” was all I could manage.

Lin Wei took that as her cue to join me. She casually slid into the seat beside me, her presence instantly making the space feel more cramped, yet strangely livelier. She pulled out a book and flipped through it, occasionally sighing dramatically.