The Pressure Cooker
Lockdown had always been loud — fists pounding on walls, guards barking orders, kids screaming in frustration. But to Jayden, the noise had become background static. What ate at him wasn't outside. It was inside.
Every step, every breath, felt like carrying a fuse burning down toward an explosion he couldn't stop.
He replayed Spider's trap over and over, the blade pulled from his pocket, the director's sneer: "Always the victim."
He replayed Rico's laugh, Knox's grin, the guards' indifference.
The walls pressed tighter each day. And the fire inside Jayden wasn't just hot anymore — it was dangerous.
---
The Small Spark
It started with something stupid.
At breakfast, a younger kid bumped his tray, spilling watery oatmeal onto his uniform. The boy muttered an apology, eyes wide.
It should've been nothing. A mistake.
But Jayden's hands clenched so tight his knuckles turned white.
The fire roared: Hit him. Make him pay. Burn everything down.
Dre's voice cut through the haze from across the table: "Breathe, Jay. It's not worth it."
Jayden forced himself to sit, chest heaving, oatmeal dripping down his shirt. But the fuse burned shorter.
---
The Provocation
Later in the yard, Spider slithered close, his grin sharp, voice low.
"Director's ready to ship you, fire-boy. One more slip, you're gone. Max security, where even shadows don't survive."
Jayden's jaw locked, his fists curling.
Spider leaned closer, whispering: "Do it. Give them what they want. Burn out. I'll be here laughing when they drag you away."
Jayden's body trembled, fire raging against the cage he'd built around it.
---
The Crack
That night, in the block, Rico made his move. He slid up as the kids lined for showers, shoulder-checking Jayden hard into the wall.
"Still think you're in control, Scrap?" Rico sneered.
The laughter around them was too much. The weight of every insult, every setup, every sneer crushed down on Jayden's chest until it shattered.
He roared, slamming Rico back against the wall, fists swinging wild. The fire poured out in every blow, raw and unstoppable. Guards shouted, kids screamed, but Jayden didn't hear any of it. He was gone, swallowed by rage.
---
The Restraint
Strong arms locked around him, dragging him back. Dre's voice bellowed in his ear: "Enough, Jay! Enough!"
It took three guards and Dre's grip to wrestle him down. His chest heaved, blood dripping from his knuckles, his vision red.
Rico spat blood on the floor, grinning through swollen lips. "Told you he'd crack."
The guards hauled Jayden away, their voices sharp: "Max security. He's finished."
---
The Edge of the Cliff
Thrown into solitary again, Jayden collapsed onto the concrete floor, sweat and blood mixing. His body shook, his breath ragged.
He'd lost. He knew it. Spider had won. Rico had won. The system had won.
The fire wasn't his anymore. It owned him.
But as he lay in the dark, broken and bleeding, a whisper came through the wall — Dre's voice, low, steady, unshakable.
"You're still here, Jay. That means it's not over. Don't let this place write your story. Not yet."
Jayden stared into the darkness, the fire inside flickering. For the first time, he wondered if he could really control it.
Or if it was already too late.