Val's P.O.V

The final scratch of a pencil, the last click of a pen. A collective, held breath released in a room of thirty exhausted students. The last Mock exam was over.

A shudder of pure relief went through the classroom. It was done. The grueling two-week gauntlet of Prelims and Mocks, a brutal preview of the finals that loomed after Christmas, was finally behind them. The tension that had gripped Northwood High snapped all at once, leaving behind a giddy, manic energy. It was October ...