Two hours of Mrs. Ogundiran's droning finally ended and the bell felt like a mercy. I loved school, loved learning, but I'd never forgiven that teacher for making Yoruba feel like punishment. I was Yoruba my parents had taught us our mother tongue at home, and I liked knowing where I came from but today it felt pointless. My mind wandered to Dad and Grandpa instead: how Grandpa built the company from scratch, how Dad took it forward, and how I wanted, one day, to be a businesswoman like him. Aspirations were quieter in the hallways than they were in my head.
I was halfway through packing my books when I tried to stand and my butt literally refused to cooperate. I tugged, pushed, wiggled, but nothing. Sam across from me was frozen too, her face the same mix of confusion and panic.
"Someone" I started.
"That's for messing with my boyfriend, Adira," Ashley said, all sweetness with knives underneath.
Heat crawled up my neck. "Ashley, you didn't have to do this. Last I checked, you and Kendrick weren't"
"Oh, but we are now." She smiled like she'd won the lottery. "You should've known I'd make him prove his love."
I looked at Sam. Her mouth said nothing, but her eyes begged me to breathe. My stomach dropped. "So humiliating me is 'proof of love' now?" I asked, low.
"Don't be stupid," Ashley snapped. "You won't get out unless someone helps you. And who would risk the King of Monamore High?" She dropped the title like a challenge.
My classmates shot sympathetic looks but no one moved. Fear had a way of making people small. Then Joan Ashley's shadow and unofficial accomplice walked in carrying two bottles of ketchup, slow and deliberate. Sam and I exchanged a look: we had to move now.
I'd thought ahead this morning; I'd worn knee-length leggings under my skirt. That small, stupid decision felt heroic as I unzipped, wiggled, and climbed onto the desk. Joan lunged, but I kicked my leg free and toppled her onto the floor. Sam was on the other side, doing the same. For a moment I tasted victory then a sharp tug at my hair.
I didn't let go. I kept my weight on Joan's chest while Sam and I scrambled for the ketchup. I managed to smear one across Joan's uniform; Sam got the other. The classroom erupted some laughed, some gasped and I felt a cold drop at the back of my neck. I turned.
Ashley stood there, smirking and holding a cracked egg. Without thinking I grabbed the nearest egg and smashed it across her hair. The classroom fell into a stunned silence, broken only by the wet plop and the hiss of someone dropping to the floor.
It should have been over. Instead, Kendrick lunged from his seat, rage distorting his face. He shoved through the desks like he owned the room. "You'll pay for that," he snarled.
Someone shoved back. And then another. I didn't see who at first. A blur of movement, a flash of a sleeve Jayden. He stepped between Kendrick and the smaller kids, voice calm but steel underneath. "Stop it, Kendrick."
Kendrick swung at him. Jayden ducked and countered with a quick, clean punch that landed on Kendrick's face with a sickening crack. Kendrick staggered and collapsed, clutching his nose. Blood leaked between his fingers, and the classroom finally broke not into laughter this time, but into shocked murmurs.
My heart hammered so loudly I thought it might burst. Someone shoved me off Joan's stomach. My skirt snagged on the chair. As I scrambled, a strong hand closed around my wrist, hauling me upright.
I looked up into Jayden's face calm, eyes dark with an intensity that made the air feel thin. He kept a hold on my arm like he'd anchored me to safety.
"Are you all right?" he asked, but his voice wasn't gentle; it had the same steady force that had stopped Kendrick.
I opened my mouth and nothing came out. Behind him, Kendrick was on the floor, the color drained from his face, while Ashley glared like a caged animal. Around us the class shifted, new alliances forming in the wake of the chaos.
I met Jayden's gaze and realized, with a jolt, that whatever this boy was he was not someone to be ignored.
"Jayden?" I said, my own name sounding small in my ears.
He squeezed my wrist once, then let go. "Yeah. Don't let them do that to you again," he said. Then, almost as an afterthought, his voice softened, "You okay?"
I nodded before I could think about it. The bell rang, and people moved like they'd been let off some leash. But the day had changed. The hallway that had once felt predictable now thrummed with something dangerous and new.