On Monday morning, the assembly hall was quieter than usual. No laughter, no commotion, no pushing and shoving at the lockers. Just the buzzing of phones, the tapping of fingers, and that soft, cutting murmur that was worse than any open words.
Lina sensed it before she saw it.
Glances.
Those short, examining, sticky glances that lingered on her.
Her phone vibrated.
A new message.
She opened the link.
A video.
Blurry, shaky, but clear enough: the ring, light, screams.
Alaric, sending his opponent to the ground. Blood. Cheers.
Below, Jana's comment:
"Our school project in Violence Studies đź’…."
Mia had posted flames and hearts. Kevin wrote: "Finally some real education."
Below that, laughter, skulls, thumbs up.
Lina stared at the screen until the words blurred. Her heart pounded all the way to her fingertips.
She didn't know who had recorded the video. But now everyone knew who it was.
---
When Alaric entered the classroom, it was dead silent.
