Chapter 3

The hallway buzzed with the usual after-school chaos, lockers slamming, laughter echoing with the scent of sweat and cheap perfume thick in the air.

I clutched my books tighter, my pulse quickening as I spotted Damien leaning against the wall near the chemistry labs, his dark eyes tracking my every move. His smirk was slow, deliberate, the kind that made my stomach twist with dread and something far more shameful.

I tried to veer left, toward the exit, but his hand shot out, ...