The next morning, the entire school was buzzing before the first bell even rang. I swear, the rumor mill here worked faster than the internet.
By the time I drove in through the gates cause my dad lend me his other car, everyone already knew about what Piper and her girls did to my car.
It wasn't even that surprising, honestly. What was surprising was the number of people whispering things like,
"Did you see it?"
"I heard she cried."
"I heard Adrian helped her clean it off!"
Yep. Of course that part spread too. But heaven help me, I didn't cry. Geez.
I kept my head high as I walked through the hallway, pretending like I didn't hear any of it. Avery and Charlotte flanked me on both sides like bodyguards, their faces tight with murder mode.
"She better not show up today," Avery muttered.
"Oh, she's here," Charlotte said, nodding toward the end of the hallway.
And there she was — Piper Mortigan herself — standing by her locker with Molly and Ronnie, acting like she hadn't done anything wrong. She looked perfect as always: face heavily powdered, a short mini-maxi skirt, and a crop top. I wouldn't call that perfect.
Her eyes met mine, and she smiled — that small, smug smile that made me want to throw something.
But before either of us could say a word, the intercom crackled to life.
"Piper Mortigan, Tess Monroe — please report to the principal's office."
Oh, perfect.
Avery blinked at me. "You're kidding."
Charlotte whispered, "Okay, but… this might actually be good."
I wasn't sure what to think. My stomach twisted as I walked toward the office, Piper and her two backup dancers a few steps ahead of me. She glanced back once and smirked. "Guess we're famous now."
"More like infamous," I muttered.
---
When we got there, Mrs. Rulux — our principal — was already waiting: tall, serious-looking, glasses halfway down her nose, like she hadn't smiled since the early 2000s.
"Sit," she said simply.
We did.
She looked between us for a long moment, tapping a pen against her desk. "I'm sure you both know why you're here. And I'd like to state the fact that only Tess and Piper were called here — a total of two, if I'm not mistaken — but I'm seeing four."
Piper immediately flipped her hair and looked at her minions. "If this is about the little car thing, it was just a harmless joke—"
"Harmless?" she cut in sharply. "You vandalized another student's property, Ms. Mortigan. You humiliated another student. Does that sound harmless to you? You know, good thing both of you are also here," she added, looking toward Ronnie and Molly. "You'll be taking the punishment together because you helped Piper with her goal."
Piper's fake smile faltered for the first time all morning. "I—I didn't mean it like that."
Mrs. Rulux leaned back in her chair. "You've been warned before, haven't you?"
Silence.
She turned to me. "Tess, I spoke to your parents last night. They're understandably upset, and so am I. You did the right thing by not retaliating."
I nodded, not really sure what to say.
Then her voice dropped a little, quieter but sharper. "Bullying, public humiliation, and destruction of property — those are not things we tolerate here. Piper, you'll be serving two weeks of after-school detention and writing a formal apology. And both of you," she said, pointing toward Molly and Ronnie, "will be joining her in detention for a week."
Piper's mouth actually dropped open. "Two weeks? That's ridiculous!"
"We actually did nothing! Why are you punishing us?" Ronnie shot back.
Mrs. Rulux's expression didn't budge. "Maybe because you both joined in Piper's perfect plan. And if it happens again, it'll be suspension."
Molly and Ronnie shifted awkwardly beside her, clearly wishing they'd stayed out of this.
Piper crossed her arms. "Fine."
"You can leave now," she said to her, then turned back to me. "Tess, stay a moment."
Great. My least favorite words.
The door closed behind Piper, and I could practically feel her glare through it.
Mrs. Rulux's voice softened a little. "I know you've had some trouble adjusting socially this year. Incidents like this can make that harder. But I want you to know we take this seriously. You're a good student, Tess — don't let people like her get to you."
I nodded again. "Thanks, Mrs. Rulux."
She smiled faintly — the tiniest smile ever — and waved toward the door. "You can head to class now."
---
The second I stepped out, I saw him.
Adrian.
He was leaning against the lockers, scrolling through his phone like he wasn't causing mini heart attacks just by existing.
He looked up when he saw me. "Hey, you."
"Hey," I said, trying to sound casual but probably failing miserably.
He pocketed his phone. "I heard Mrs. Rulux called you in."
"Yeah, she did"
"What happened?"
"Piper got detention. Two weeks. And Molly and Ronnie have a week each."
His eyebrows lifted. "Two weeks? Damn. Mrs. Rulux isn't playing."
"Yeah, well, she earned it."
He grinned a little. "Good. Maybe that'll teach her to keep her Doras in check."
That made me laugh, which felt weirdly nice after the morning I'd had.
"Why?" he said, walking beside me as we started down the hall. "You okay, though? For real."
I glanced up at him. His tone wasn't teasing this time — it was soft, real.
"Yeah," I said quietly. "Better than yesterday, at least."
He nodded slowly. "Good. You handled it well."
I shrugged. "Well, thanks for, you know… helping me out yesterday. It meant a lot."
He laughed under his breath. "You know, you guys fighting would've been kinda epic, though."
"Epic and illegal," I said.
He gave me that small, crooked smile that made my stomach do that stupid thing again. "Details."
---
We both headed to class — we were having physics.
Before we sat, he said, "Hey, uh, if you ever need another ride… you know, just in case Piper decides to turn your tires pink or something—"
I laughed. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Good," he said, backing up a little, still smiling.
Then the teacher entered the class, and we started our lesson.
---
Charlotte and Avery practically tackled me when I got out of class.
"What happened?" Charlotte whispered. "Did they expel her?"
"Detention. Two weeks."
Avery grinned. "Yes! Justice!"
Charlotte giggled. "Did Adrian see you there?"
I tried to sound casual. "He was outside, yeah."
They exchanged looks. Avery's grin got wider. "You know, telling him you like him isn't a bad idea at all."
"I can't. I'll look desperate," I said too quickly.
Avery nodded. "True."
Charlotte smirked. "Uh-huh. Sure. That spark yesterday didn't mean anything, right?"
I buried my face in my notebook. "I hate you both."
Avery nudged me with her pen. "You'll thank us later."
I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't help smiling.
Because yeah — maybe I did think about that spark more than I wanted to admit.