Would you say this was a prank or not

I'm a guy, and the odds are that I was in middle school a few decades before you. The late sixties and early seventies were a much more innocent time for kids in general, but for what it's worth, I have some memories of stuff I did when I was that age that still make me cringe. I don't recall ever sneaking a note like the one you got into a girl's desk, but I wouldn't be surprised if I did and I've repressed the memory.

If nobody ever said anything to you about the note, then it seems unlikely it was a prank. As you say, what's the point of pranking someone without a payoff?

I suspect it was from a guy (or a girl) in your class who you never paid much attention to; maybe someone you don't even remember clearly now. Kids that age generally have a long way to go before they're emotionally mature, and many have problems understanding what they're feeling and expressing that. Perhaps the note-writer could see how unhappy you were and that made them feel sympathetic to you - possibly because they were miserable too - and their teenage, hormone-addled brain interpreted that as love.

As for the guy your mother said had a crush on you, perhaps she was right. But then again, she wouldn't be the first parent to tease their child about such things.

In any case, I don't see how there's anything positive to be gained by you believing it was all a slightly nasty joke at your expense. I suggest you assume a more positive and, I think, more plausible explanation and believe it was from someone who liked you, but wasn't confident enough to tell you this to your face, probably because they were terrified of the embarrassment of rejection.

i honestly don't know. it could be that someone was playing a prank on you or that someone genuinely left that note.

I got what looked like quite an expensive Valentine's Day card at school and was convinced it was my friends. Although none of us had any money and if we had enough money to buy a card, we wouldn't waste it on a prank without making sure the person knew they'd been victim of a prank.

I couldn't believe anyone would find me attractive at school (I was one of the kids who wore glasses and got bullied too), but reconnecting with people on Facebook, a few have confessed they had crushes on me. In retrospect, the card was probably real. I think your note is probably real too as I once sent a girl a similar kind of note and then did nothing at all to let her know it was me. I imagined she'd somehow work it out, but how could she?

Do you remember what the handwriting looked like? Especially at that age male handwriting tends to be messier.