The School

I came to The School hoping for a reset - a place quiet enough to disappear into, to breathe again without feeling like someone was waiting for me to slip. For a moment, it almost felt possible. The halls were calm. The teachers polite. The students distant but harmless. But the calm here is a trick. It always breaks. Bruce was the first one to really look at me - steady, protective, watching me like he was trying to decide if I was someone he should stand near or stay away from. Bilton followed, sharp and mean, jealousy simmering under every glance, especially when he caught me looking at the girl I couldn't stop thinking about. Kairaness. Kairaness, who avoids conversations. Kairaness, who draws things she shouldn't know. Kairaness, who looks at me like she's terrified I'll vanish the way others have. The deeper I got, the faster everything shifted. Lights flickering when no one touched them. Footsteps behind me in empty halls. Whispers that knew my name. And there were moments - too many - when I thought I'd lose her. Moments my heart almost stopped because she was right beside me, and then suddenly she wasn't. I can't lose her. Not here. Not to this place. Because The School doesn't just take students. It takes the ones who stand out. The ones who care too much. The ones who try to protect someone. Now it's not just about surviving classes or keeping my head down. It's about keeping Bruce close, keeping Bilton from breaking apart, keeping Kairaness alive long enough for all of us to escape. Before we're noticed. Before we're marked. Before we're taken like the others. And once The School decides you belong to it... it doesn't let go.