Despite the disaster, school was still in session the next day. But no student or faculty member dared to go near the elevator that was surrounded by scorched marks and rubble. An “Out of Order” sign was taped on the doors, as a dark reminder of the sudden disaster.

  ***

  The whole gymnasium was a chattering sea of blue and khaki. A uniformed Misty kept her head down with clenched fists on her pants. Her eyes darted as the murmurs and giggles echoed through the gym. She scanned the thinner students next to her, wondering if it could still be possible to shrink herself so that her presence wouldn’t overwhelm them.

  But a sudden reminder interrupted Misty’s racing thoughts.

  Yesterday…she held him.

  Her heart had chosen a blind boy, not only for his beauty and chivalry, but most importantly—he couldn’t see Misty’s hideousness.

  But his friends and his evil cousin seeing her body defeated the purpose of keeping Misty’s body type a secret from Eric, didn’t it? Not only that, she just had to give into his temptation and ride the elevator with him—and the elevator was engulfed in flames!

  And they saved her again…those heroes that the news were too eager to label as “cosplayers”. And everyone saw them. So, people could finally believe her, right?

  Then, the booming of a voice in a microphone and thundering applause interrupted Misty’s thoughts as one faculty member approached the podium. “All right, settle down, kids,” she coaxed before announcing, “Welcome freshman of Sternberg Public Residential High! Is everyone excited?!”

  Before Misty could decide to cheer along or stay quiet, the roaring response of the freshman class already began.

  “That’s great! Please welcome your principal—he’s a nice guy, I promise—Mr. Herman Petroski!” The female faculty member stepped aside to make way for the principal.

  The tall, muscular, and chiseled young man kept his poise and posture, although his steps and expression were begrudging. His meticulously combed dark hair shone under the bright gym lights. His slate blue eyes began rolling back as he heard whistles from the female students.

  With a rough sigh, and the way he glanced at the floor at first, it was evident that he didn’t want to be presiding over a bunch of overly-excited teenagers. “Alright punks,” Herman began, his gruff voice booming into the microphone. “I may be young, but I’m still your principal. This school isn’t a game.”

  As the stern lecture continued, Misty’s perplexed eyes fixated on Herman. She read the student guidebook a few weeks before coming here. She took it out again, and sure enough, the picture and the name were different. This man should not have been standing there today.

  For one thing, the principal was supposed to be a woman—a middle-aged Asian woman with a smile much warmer and friendlier than Herman’s constant glare. And…how old…or young was Herman, anyway?! He certainly was a tall, masculine adult. However, his smooth and handsome face was that of someone who belonged to a college student, not in charge of an entire campus.

  “Hmph. Now that that’s over with, let’s just move on to questions…” Herman was just about to wrap up his speech before another female student shouted…

  “Marry me!” A lot of the girls chimed in with whistles and cheers.

  “Do you want me to go to jail?! I’m 24 years old!” Herman shouted back.

  “That’s still young!” Another female student chimed in.

  “Argh…forget it.” Herman growled, momentarily putting his palm on his face. “Serious questions only. Next!”

  With her heart racing faster than her breath could catch up with, Misty very cautiously lifted her hand.

  As his cloudy blue eyes met Misty’s wide brown eyes, Herman had a brief moment of resignation. “Yes. You there.”

  Misty’s face flushed, and her heart was about to burst out of her chest. “Um…I…”

  Herman crossed his arms. “Come on, we don’t have all day.”

  “W-wasn’t there…s-supposed to be another…?” Misty managed to stutter out.

  In a flash, Herman’s eyes widened, and his mouth dropped. There was no way that she knew…

  “Y-you’re out of time! Next!” Herman stammered uncharacteristically before quickly regaining his composure.

  Most of the freshman class erupted in laughter. Misty lowered her head and shielded her face with her hands.

  ***

  Classes have officially begun after the assembly, and the bell had already rung. However, Misty still hadn’t broken her junior high habit of being late. She rushed in the halls, her student handbook feeling absorbing sweat from her palms. Despite the tour Regina gave her, Misty still took a few wrong turns from the gym. The poorly designed map on her student handbook didn’t help much, either.

  When Misty finally found the music room, the creaking of the door stopped everyone’s chatter. As she timidly entered, all the other eyes were boring into her flushed face and plump body. A few subtle snickers were heard from the students. It was already bad enough that she was late, but Misty couldn’t sing, nor could she play a musical instrument. Which higher power or school administrator decided to curse her with a music class?! She would stick out like a sore thumb for the rest of the semester.

  “You’re late,” the elderly-looking woman sternly informed Misty. “Just so that you know, our school has a strict attendance policy.”

  Just then, Misty felt a soft body bumping into her back, followed by a loud yawn. When she turned around, a tall woman with a half-tucked in shirt and a curly brown half-ponytail was casually standing behind her. Her name tag was flimsily dangling from her shirt. “Huh? I’m late, too, I guess…”

  Thankfully, it seemed like the laughter was shifted from Misty to the sloppy-looking adult woman. A weight was lifted from Misty’s shoulders. But from Aria’s bright and lazy smile, she didn’t seem too bothered.

  “Everyone, please excuse Miss Nespola. She is my assistant,” The music teacher said before shooting a glare at her assistant.

  Miss Nespola’s demeanor immediately brightened as she walked in front of the students. “What’s up, everyone? My name’s Aria Nespola—just call me Aria. Are we going to have fun?” Her voice was deep for a young woman, but still carried a childlike playfulness that eased the tension all around her.

  “Yeah, looking at your chest!” One male student blurted out. The other boys snickered and whistled, leering at Aria’s well-endowed frame.

  Aria froze, shuddered, and crossed her arms over her chest. “Sh-shut up!” She shouted with a light stammer. The music teacher, Misty, and the other girls glared at the boys with disgust. Misty then turned her attention back to Aria. Her lips were quivering and her face was flushed. Her eyes were fixed on the ground, betraying the bright and unbothered demeanor that she showed earlier.

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  “A-anyway…” Aria began after recovering. “I hope we can all have fun in Intro to Music!” She then subtly made eye contact with Misty, and winked. Misty’s face flushed and her eyes widened.

  ***

  After a grueling (for Misty, anyway) introduction activity, the elderly teacher announced, “All right, class dismissed!” She then sternly turned to Aria, “As for you…you could make things easier for everyone if you acted more professional.”

  Aria grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of her neck. “Oh come on. We’ve all had our first days on the job.” Aria then glanced away, looking for Misty, who already left class…then immediately ran out to the hallway.

  “Hey wait up!” Aria frantically rushed to Misty, on the way to her next class. Misty was already trotting on her way there, determined not to be late again. But Aria made a leap to close the distance between her and Misty. “Waaaa-AAAAIT!” Misty finally turned around, to see Aria, clutching her knees, and catching her breath.

  Misty looked quizzically at Aria, wondering what could possibly be wrong this time…did she drop something again? Was she too scared to talk in class again? …Or, hopefully, there would be a schedule change…?

  Aria lifted her head to meet Misty’s eyes. “Hey, I know this is awkward, but can we meet again after your classes?”

  Misty tilted her head. “Um…okay…?”

  “Look, I know it’s your first day, and you’re probably going to be tired. But everything’s going to be o-kay!” Aria smiled, elongating that last word. “I work at the girls’ dorm, too. Don’t forget to meet me at the entrance!”

  With an awkward smile, Misty bid Aria goodbye. “Okay…” She then turned around, and made a frantic dash to her next class.

  As Aria smiled at Misty, a short-statured young custodian with his head bowed down silently approached Aria. She only had to glance once to confirm his identity.

  “Things are going smoothly,” Aria whispered, trying to cover her excitement.

  “Maybe a bit too smoothly…” muttered the custodian as he lifted his head. His auburn hair was buried under his cap. His features were smooth and supple, not unlike many of the young students. His slate eyes had a bit of familiarity to them…

  ***

  Misty’s math class took place in a special education classroom, which had fewer students than the mainstream classes. As her terrible luck would have it, as soon as Misty entered the room just in time for the bell, the only other students already sitting…were the last ones she ever wanted to see.

  Ryan and his group of tall, heavily made-up girls were all leering at Misty like their prey. And just how old was Ryan, anyway…? Judging by his tall and muscular physique, he looked more like a college dropout than a high school student. Misty wouldn’t have been surprised if that was actually true. Was this another one of those “administration errors?” Or was Misty lucky enough to skip a grade?

  The math teacher, an uninterested balding man who looked a bit older than middle aged, looked like he’d do nothing to rescue Misty from 50 minutes of torture every day. He leaned on his desk and sighed. “Well, now that everyone’s here, let’s do introductions. Ryan Binley, you’re first according to alphabetical order. Get up here.”

  The swagger that Ryan had when sauntered to the front of the classroom earned a disgusted glare from Misty. …Not that he cared.

  “‘Sup, you know me. I’m Ryan, a game streamer. My uncle’s so rich, I practically own this place. I don’t know why they put me here in a class full of idiots…”

  “Thank you, that’ll do…” the teacher quickly but meekly cut Ryan off. The two girls cheered as he returned to his seat.

  Misty didn’t know why she had to share oxygen with him, either, let alone learn in the same classroom as him. If a delinquent like Ryan was here, he probably did something so egregious that he deserved to be here.

  While the other students were either introducing themselves or absorbed in their gossip, Misty scribbled on her sketchbook. Today’s doodle was of her slim blonde persona performing an aerial kick to Ryan’s face—with Ryan being portrayed uglier than his actual appearance, of course.

  “Misty Tash, you’re up,” the teacher called, interrupting the class and Misty’s thoughts. With a pounding heart, she abruptly dropped her pencil.

  “Tash, huh?” As Misty trudged to the front of the class, Ryan began to whisper with a smirk, knowing he was still within earshot. “Why not ‘Trash’?” As he expected, his little minions burst into giggles. Misty’s face burned and her heart dropped as her ears caught the sound of the insult.

  Even with a classroom of a few people, Misty could never escape the pain, insults, or jeering. Sweat trickled down her hairline, and her heart kept pounding against her chest. Her hands began fidgeting together as she murmured in a barely audible voice. “M-my name’s Misty…I like drawing…”

  “Could you speak up, please?” The teacher groaned, not even looking up from his desk.

  “Yeah, speak up, Trash Bag,” Ryan chimed in, punctuating the insult by flicking a wad of paper at Misty’s knees. The sound of the group’s cliquish laughter grated against Misty’s ears.

  Misty’s stomach churned, and her eyes stung. The flame inside her began to spark, a flicker of heat rising to her chest. For a moment, it burned brighter—urging her to act. But she clenched her fists, smothering it before it could consume her. Not now. Not here…

  The teacher turned to Ryan and reprimanded him in an only half-annoyed tone, “Ryan, please stop, or you’ll be sent out in the hall.” He didn’t even look up from the papers he was shuffling.

  The flame returned. However, the adrenaline that started simmering inside of Misty didn’t want to go back down now that it had been brought to a boil. Her eyebrows lowered into a disgusted scowl. It was almost like heat inside her clenched fists started generating steam. Before she could stop them, a few soft but defiant words escaped her lips. “Just get out, Ryan.”

  The remark sliced through the commotion like a blade. Ryan’s smirk disappeared, and a glare of disbelief took its place. “Excuse me?!” He sharply rose up from his seat and charged towards Misty. She froze, immediately wishing she could take back those words, and return to her seat. But it was too late. Ryan already loomed in front of Misty with her back to the wall, and the girls were silently boring their eyes into her. “Say that again, I fucking dare you,” Ryan commanded with a low growl.

  “R-Ryan, if you could please…” the teacher timidly pleaded.

  Ryan just ignored the teacher. “Well?!”

  Immediately, Misty responded “Nothing!” and shook her head fervently, hoping that it would be good enough for her to escape.

  …But Ryan still wasn’t satisfied. He loomed in closer, locking onto his prey, and spat out in frustration, “You told me to get out?! Well, I can’t! I’m stuck with you dumbasses!” He paused for a moment, then made a swift recovery, his cruel smirk returning. “…And I won’t. Because my uncle owns this school district! So I can still get away with whatever!”

  “No you can’t!” Misty protested aloud. The adrenaline was now coursing through her veins and there was no sign of stopping. Her heart raced as if to compete against said adrenaline, and her eyes stung as she furiously battled her own tears. “I know how much it sucks to be here, but if you think you’re too smart to be here anyway…” She paused, taking a deep breath before announcing the truth to his face, “…then you probably did something horrible, you worthless punk!” She shot that last word out like an echoing bullet to the face.

  Exchanging concerned glances, one of Ryan’s girls whispered to the other, but then both of them gasped aloud and nearly jumped out of their seats as Ryan grabbed Misty’s collar and pinned her against the wall, a loud thud echoing through the classroom. The impact knocked the air out of Misty’s lungs. Even with Misty’s hefty body type, Ryan’s strength still allowed him to lift her a few inches off the floor.

  “R-Ryan…!” The teacher finally rose from his seat in shock.

  “Listen, you little bitch,” Ryan spat out venomously. Misty’s eyes darted for an escape. Sweat trickled from her hairline. Her heart pounded against her ribs. “I’m so ripped, that I can just throw your fat ass out of the window—and I’ll get away with it, too!”

  “NOOOO!”

  With that shout, the adrenaline finally erupted like a volcano. With pure impulse, Misty’s arms and legs shot Ryan off her, using all of her bodily strength. He fell backwards, and crashed into a few empty desks. Misty collapsed on the floor, panting after all of her energy had been exhausted. She looked at her trembling hands…then at Ryan’s body, with a pained expression. No, surely someone else did that, right…?

  The few other students gasped and looked on in silence and disbelief.

  “I…” the math teacher blinked in shock, then announced, “I’m getting security!” He rushed to make the emergency call.

  Within less than a minute, a uniformed woman with a blonde ponytail barged into the classroom. She cast an intimidating scowl at Misty. “What’s going on here?!” She bellowed.

  Heaving rapidly, and almost on the verge of tears, Misty’s wide eyes pleaded to the officer for help. “He…he…” she started pointing her shaky finger at Ryan’s limp body, sprawled on the floor, next to the fallen desks.

  But the security guard took only a brief moment to scan the area. She already knew who her target was the moment she entered the room. “Alright, you’re coming with me.” With her scowl still fixed on Misty, she roughly grabbed her wrist tightly enough to bruise it. Misty yelled in pain, but her cries were ignored as she was dragged out of the classroom.

  As she looked back to gaze at Ryan, he regained just enough energy…to gaze back at her…

  …and flash a triumphant yet cruel smirk at her.

  That smirk re-ignited the fire within Misty. The same flame that she could never throw back at her enemies, but at the same time, could never be extinguished. And the longer it remained, the more likely it would burst inside of her, even more dangerously than before…like a supernova.