“Who’s that?”

“The new scholarship girl.”

“Look at her shoes, my God, are those from the thrift store?”

People whispered across the classroom the moment Aria stepped inside, clutching her worn out backpack to her chest. Her sneakers made small sounds against the polished floor, and the smell of coffee and expensive perfume hit her nostrils like a wall.

The teacher cleared his throat. “Class, this is Aria Lopez. She's a transfer student. She had top scores on the scholarship exam.”

A sharp laugh cut through the murmurs. Damian Cole, the school bully, and star athlete. He's tall, and broad-shouldered. He stretched out in his seat like he owned the place. “Scholarship? So she’s our charity project. I love this school, always helping the needy.”

Jason Reed, Damien's best friend relaxing beside him with his grin, added, “Don’t worry, Damian. We’ll make her feel comfortable. Maybe chip in something for better shoes.”

People laughed across the room.

Aria tightened her grip on her backpack, forcing herself not to flinch. Her throat burned, but she raised her chin confidently.

“You can sit down,” the teacher ordered, pointing. “Back row. Next to the trash bin.”

As Aria moved, Damian casually stretched his leg across the aisle. Her foot caught his sneaker, and she crashed forward. Her books scattered across the floor.

The class erupted in laughter again. Jason clapped mockingly. “Careful, Damian, she might sue you for breaking her… what do you even call those? Dollar Store footwear?”

Vanessa Hale, the school Queen Bee, and Damien's girlfriend, radiating elegance in her flawless cheer uniform, smirked from the front row. “Jason, please. Even the Dollar Store has standards.”

Aria knelt quickly, picking her scattered notes with trembling hands. Heat flushed her cheeks, but she bit her lower lip until she tasted iron. She would never cry.

Damian leaned over his desk, his voice low enough for everyone to hear. “Lesson one, scholarship girl: watch where you walk. This isn’t your regular gutter.”

The class roared again, drowning out the teacher’s half-hearted, “Settle down.”

Aria slid into her seat, her heart pounding, wishing for invisibility. Behind her, she heard a quiet rustle, Ethan Cross, the class rep, calmly turned a page of his notebook. He didn’t look up at her for once.

Aria rested her head on her desk. Her mind filled with thoughts of how she'd survive the school, if her first day turned out like this.

“Hey, charity case,” Damian called lazily from the front, jolting Aria from her reverie. “What’s it like knowing everyone in this room could buy your entire life with pocket change?”

Muffled laughter broke out through the room.

Aria lifted her head and kept her eyes on her notebook, her jaw tightened.

Jason leaned his elbows on Damian’s desk, smirking. “Come on, D. Don’t be so mean. Maybe she’s just, humble. You know, the kind of girl who thinks Starbucks is too fancy.”

People laughed the more.Someone actually clapped.

It's usually fun for them, nobody stood up to even stop Damien and his crew. Well, who would dare stand up to Damien, the son of the second richest man in the City.

Aria’s pen dug into the nearest paper, the ink blotting. She wanted to snap back, but the words jammed in her throat.

Vanessa twisted in her seat, her glossy hair flipping over her shoulder. “Don’t tease her too much. She might cry and tell the principal. And then what? They’ll make you tutor her, Damian.”

Jason pretended to gasp. “Tutor? Please. He can barely spell his own name.”

The room exploded in laughter. Even the teacher didn’t bother to stop them this time. He was afraid of losing his job. He just gathered his books and left the class.

Aria’s fingernails dug into her palm under the desk. She could hear her own heartbeat,it was faster and louder with every laugh.

Damian stood up, strolling down the aisle with a cup of coffee in his hand, vapor escaping from the lid. He moved with the slow confidence of someone who knew the whole room was watching him and enjoying the show.

He stopped at Aria’s desk, towering over her.

“Relax, Lopez.” His voice dropped into a mock-soothing tone. “We’re just welcoming you. This is how we bond.”

Jason’s grin widened. “Go on. Tell him thank you.”

Aria’s throat burned. She forced herself to meet Damian’s eyes. They were sharp, and almost daring her.

She said nothing.

Damian’s smile shifted. The room went quiet,all eyes were on them, eagerly waiting for the next action. He placed the cup on her desk. The cardboard left a wet ring on her notebook.

“Since you’re our little scholarship star,” he murmured, “I’ll let you borrow my coffee. It might be the most expensive thing you touch all year.”

Jason snorted. Vanessa laughed into her hand.

Aria’s fingers twitched near the cup, but she didn't touch it.

Damian tilted the cup ever so slightly. The black liquid wobbled at the rim.

“Oops,” Damian said, his grinned as a dark wave of coffee splashed across Aria’s desk, soaking her notebook.

Gasps shot through the room before the laughter thundered back.

Jason slapped the desk, laughing breathlessly. “Damn, D! I guess she needed a caffeine boost for those… what do you call it, scholar exams?”

Vanessa’s voice sliced in, sweet and cruel. “Careful, Damian, don’t waste good coffee on her. That’s probably worth more than her entire bag.”

The liquid dripped from the corners of Aria’s papers, spreading into ink stains that blurred the neat handwriting she’d worked so hard on. Her chest heaved once, then twice.

But she didn’t move.

Her fingers curled so tightly against her thighs that her nails left marks on her skin. She kept her face blank, refusing them the tears they wanted.

Damian leaned closer, so close she could smell the bitter coffee on his breath. His voice lowered, pitched just for her, though the room still heard every word.

“Lesson two, scholarship girl,” he whispered, his lips almost brushing her ear. “Around here, you either bow your head or you bleed.”

The class roared again, stamping their feet, chanting, “Bleed! Bleed! Bleed!” like it was part of a game.

At the very back, Ethan didn’t look up. His pen moved steadily across his notebook, his face as blank and cold as ever.

Aria pressed her palm over her wet notes, her jaw trembling. Still no tears. She lifted her chin,her eyes burning with anger, and locked them on Damian.

For a brief second, something flickered in his expression, he was surprised at her defiance. Then he smirked wider, almost amused.

He straightened himself, tapped the side of her desk, and strolled back toward his seat like a king returning to his throne.

The laughter still echoed when Aria slowly rose from her chair. Her notebook dripped, ruined, with coffee pooling on the edge of the desk.

She didn’t wipe it. Instead, she locked her gaze on Damian. Her voice came out rough, trembling but sharp enough to slice through the noise:

“You’re pathetic.”

The class went dead silent.

Jason’s grin faltered. Vanessa blinked. Even Damian stopped and tilted his head, as if the word had shocked him more than a slap would have.

A second stretched. Then Damian's mouth curved back into that slow, dangerous smile again.

He pushed his chair back and crossed the room in three strides. His hand slammed down on the back of Aria’s chair with a deafening bang. The vibration rattled through her spine, freezing her in place.

He leaned so close she could feel the heat of his breath against her ear. His voice was low, just enough for the whole class to hear.

“Tomorrow,” he whispered, “I’ll make you kneel.”

Gasps broke out around them. A ripple of excited laughter followed, cruel and hungry.

Someone chanted, “Kneel! Kneel!” and others joined in, stomping their feet against the floor.

Aria’s fists clenched at her sides. She didn’t move, she didn’t flinch, and she didn’t drop her eyes.

But her heart pounded so loud it drowned out the chaos .

Damian smirked, and strolled back to his seat as if nothing had happened. Jason slapped his shoulder, laughing again. Vanessa smiled as she kissed Damien's left cheek.

At the back, Ethan’s pen paused mid-stroke for a single second. Then it moved again, steady, silent, as though none of it mattered.

Aria stood in the wreckage of her desk, coffee dripping to the floor, Damian’s promise still ringing in her ears. She couldn't help but wonder how Damien would make her kneel the next day.

One question lingered in her mind, “What would he do?”