Chapter 18 — Second Floor Library Girl

Class 11A3 split into two sides after the list of housing plans was announced.

One side wants to keep the second floor because the reading room has become a place used by students. The other side supports the new center because they believe the school needs modern space. No one is completely wrong, but each side speaks faster than they listen.

Bao drew two speakers on the board, one labeled "keep" and one labeled "new construction." Minh Chau deleted it, saying the class was not a debate stage.

“But if there is no speaker, who can listen?”

“Listen with your ears.”

Phuc looked at Ngoc. “Do you have an opinion?”

“Yes. But I don't want the group to think I'm the one making the decision.”

“So speaking as a student.”

Ngoc stood up. She said she would like to keep the second floor if possible, but doesn't deny the new center has benefits. She suggested that the class create a criteria table before choosing.

A male friend named Hoang Duy objected. "You want to keep it because you're making a library. If it weren't for you, would people still care?"

Ngoc felt that the question touched the right fear. She replied: "I don't know. So we need to ask others."

Hoang Duy said her group made people think the second floor was more important than the other areas. Bao was about to argue, but Phuc held his shoulder.

“Let Ngoc answer,” he said.

Ngoc asked Hoang Duy if the new center had enough opening hours, seating and the right to comment, would he support it? Duy said yes. She wrote that down on the board.

“So we're agreeing on the criteria,” she said. “The difference is which solution is suitable.”

Minh Chau divided the class into survey groups. Each group must ask at least ten students, one teacher, one staff member, and one parent. Bao objected because of the large number, but still accepted the question for block 10.

Phuc is in charge of the sound and lighting test team. Ngoc consulted wheelchair users and discovered that the stairs on the second floor were a big problem. One student said his friend couldn't go to the reading room without someone to assist him.

Ngoc felt embarrassed because she said "everyone has the right to find a seat" but didn't think about the person who couldn't go up the stairs by themselves.

“We have to add access,” she said.

Phuc asked: "What if the remaining plan can't be done?"

“Keeping it the same is not good enough.”

“You accept that?”

“I accept that I must correct my opinion if the data requires it.”

Phuc nodded. He wasn't trying to protect the second floor at all costs.

The survey lasted one week. Some people say they want a new center because the current library is hot. Some people like the second floor windows and the quiet. Some people don't go in because they're afraid of stairs. Some people just need a place to charge their phone while waiting for the bus.

Bao recorded a student's words: "I don't need a nice room, I need to know when I can come in."

Lam added: “Opening hours are more important than paint color.”

Ngoc read the data table and saw scattered answers. She couldn't use a number to prove the second floor was unique. She can only prove that a learning space needs many conditions at the same time.

The next class meeting was more tense. Hoang Duy presented the group supporting the new center. He has plans for three floors, a children's reading corner, a computer room and an elevator. Everyone clapped.

Ngoc presents the second floor data: usage, feedback, history, repair costs. She doesn't have beautiful drawings, just boards and photos of windows.

Bao whispered: "I can pretend to drop the cake to attract attention."

"Are not."

“I just want to help.”

Phuc looked at the drawing of the new center. “Elevators and opening hours have been committed Not yet?"

Hoang Duy said not yet, but it was a proposal.

Phuc asked: "So we are comparing an operating place with an idea that has no operating responsibilities?"

Duy replied: "If you don't dare to imagine, the school will not change."

Ngoc intervened: “Imagination is necessary. But the decision must be based on testable conditions.”

No one wins the argument. Ms. Hanh reminded the class not to turn friends into rivals.

After class, Hoang Duy looked for Ngoc on the stairs. He said he didn't hate her, he was just afraid that people would be persuaded by their personal story and forget the common good.

Ngoc said she was also afraid that she was using the second story to keep something that was no longer relevant.

“So what will you choose?” Duy asked.

“Choose the option with the clearest responsibility.”

“Even if it's not the second floor?”

“Even.”

Duy nodded. The two did not immediately become friends, but they were no longer on opposite sides.

That evening, Phuc texted her asking if she was okay. Ngoc told the conversation. Phuc said Duy sent him a questionnaire about the elevator.

“She started listening,” Phuc said.

“You realize?”

“I read the message.”

“Do you always analyze people based on their words?”

“Only people who argue.”

“So how do you analyze yourself?”

Phuc was silent for a moment. “You often try to do the right thing so much that you forget to ask if you're tired.”

Ngoc looked at the message, not knowing how to reply. She typed: “Yes.” then delete. Finally, she sent: “Maybe.”

Phuc replied: "Breakfast tomorrow."

“Is that advice or an order?”

“Conditional proposal.”

"Condition?"

“You can't just drink coffee.”

Ngoc smiled.

The next day, the class agreed to form two small groups to write the minimum requirements for any plan: access, opening hours, manager, budget, right to comment, protection of book donor's name, and transition plan if new construction.

Ngoc wrote the last entry. She understood that if one day the second floor could not be kept, they still had to protect what they had learned. Keeping a wall is not as important as keeping people respected.

Phuc read the draft and said: "You are preparing for the possibility that you will lose."

“I'm preparing so that no one loses completely.”

Phuc looked at her, then placed a new leaf-shaped paperclip on the table. “I will keep this sentence.”

Hoang Duy suggested organizing a joint presentation, in which the two options stood next to each other instead of competing for the last speaker. Ngoc agreed. They divide the time evenly, use the same set of criteria, and let listeners ask questions after each section.

Bao is in charge of the clock, but keeps forgetting to press it. Minh Chau sat next to him and reminded him by lightly tapping on the table. Phuc called from afar to listen, saying the sound was echoing. Ngoc changed the speaker position and tried again.

The presentation did not make everyone completely agree, but one parent said for the first time she understood why those who want to keep and those who want to build have their reasons. Hoang Duy thanked Ngoc for not making his team the winner.

“We haven't won yet,” Ngoc replied.

“Not lost yet.”

Phuc heard the call and said: "So it was a moderately successful meeting."

Ngoc smiled. She began to understand that lasting results often do not come without loud noises. They just make people stop talking from both sides and start talking from the same questionnaire.

The next day, Hoang Duy sent the group the revised survey. He added a column asking how users could reach it, and a column asking what they would do if the room was temporarily closed. Ngoc read and saw the group supporting the construction new people also no longer talk as if their plan has been completed.

“You change quickly,” she told Duy.

"I didn't change the goal. I changed the way of testing."

Phuc nodded. “That's big enough.”

The class held a test session in a first floor classroom to see if the low space could be quiet. The sound of the football field comes in, the light is weak, but when the curtains and lights are placed in the right place, many people say it can still be used. A wheelchair is easier to reach, but lacks room to turn.

Ngoc recorded that. She didn't want the second floor to become a symbol that caused them to ignore the first floor. The goal is not to protect one floor, but to make every floor useful.

In the evening, Phuc texted: "Do you still want to keep the second floor?"

Ngoc answered: "Yes. But I want to keep it because it's good, not because I put in a lot of effort."

Phuc: “So we are going right.”

Ngoc: “Do you ever go wrong?”

Phuc: "Yes. I just don't post to the group."

Ngoc smiled. She saves the new survey, naming the file with the updated date. Arguments will not drive them apart if each person is willing to partially correct their views.

In the evening, the group held a general presentation session for parents. The two options are placed side by side, using the same set of criteria: accessibility, cost, repair time and operation after completion. Hoang Duy presented a new construction plan, Ngoc presented a plan to keep part of the second floor. No one is allowed to speak longer than the allotted time.

Bao is in charge of the clock but keeps forgetting to press it. Minh Chau lightly tapped on the table to remind him. Phuc called from afar to listen, saying the sound echoed because the speaker was facing the wall. Ngoc changed position, then checked again with a short recording. Small errors made rehearsals last longer, but they were fixed before the actual listeners arrived.

One parent asked why not choose the cheapest option. Ngoc said that cheap when built is not necessarily cheap when operating, and a more expensive option is not worth it if few people can access it. Hoang Duy added that the group does not have enough data on maintenance costs, so both options need verification conditions.

Someone asked if this debate would divide students into factions. Minh Chau replied that the group intentionally used the same questionnaire so as not to turn differences into hatred for each other. Phuc said lightly: "I still argue with Bao about the cake, but that doesn't stop me from giving up."

Bao protests that cakes are also data. The whole room laughed, then one parent asked for the survey form. Ngoc promised to send it after hiding personal information and clearly stating the version. She doesn't want a piece of paper to be transmitted without its origin.

At the end of the session, a wheelchair user said the first floor was easier to access but was noisy. Both groups noted that opinion. Ngoc looked at Hoang Duy, he nodded. For the first time, she saw advocates of new construction no longer talking as if their plan had been completed; They are also learning how to fix it.