Noah

The halls of Ridgeville High always sounded the same before first bell — locker doors clanging, sneakers squeaking, voices echoing off metal and tile.

But today, it all felt sharper. Like the noise couldn’t quite drown out what was going on inside my head.

Jackson stood next to me at our lockers, spinning the combination dial without actually opening his. He hadn’t said much yet — which wasn’t unusual after Coach ripped into us yesterday, but still weird for him. ...