Kayla stormed out of the bathroom, heart racing, eyes stinging with tears. She didn't even know where she was going; she just wanted to get away.
She found a quiet corner near the back of the building, far from everyone. She sat on the floor, hugged her knees, and let the tears fall. She didn't even try to stop them this time.
Back in class, Dan felt a little thirsty. He raised his hands, got permission to leave, and walked out to grab a drink from the vending machine.
On his way back, he heard soft sniffles. He slowed down and looked around, following the sound. Then he saw Kayla curled up in a corner on the floor, crying quietly.
"Kayla?" he called gently.
She looked up fast, wiped her face, trying to hide it, but it was too late. Dan walked over and sat beside her, giving her a moment to breathe.
He didn't rush her. He just said softly, "you okay?"
"I'm fine," she whispered.
He waited a little. "Is it... Sophie?"
She didn't say anything, but the silence said enough. Dan noticed the faint red mark on her cheek and tensed up.
"Did she hit you?" he asked, looking more serious now.
Kayla lowered her head. "Please don't tell anyone."
Dan looked at her for a moment, then gave a small nod. "Okay. I won't."
She looked at him. "Thanks."
They sat there for a while. Dan made a few light jokes, trying to cheer her up. After a bit, she let out a small laugh. It was weak, but it was something. He smiled when he saw it.
A little ways off, Skylar was heading back after going to look for Dan — he'd been gone too long. As he walked, he spotted them.
Skylar stopped walking.
He didn't know why, but something stirred inside him. Jealousy? That didn't make sense. He told himself he was just overthinking it.
Dan was just his best friend. Kayla was just... well, whatever. He shook it off and walked back to class.
When Dan finally came back to class, he sat beside Skylar.
"Where were you?" Skylar asked.
Dan shrugged. "With Kayla. She wasn't feeling great."
Skylar tried to keep his face neutral, but inside, he felt a bit of relief. "Oh. Why was she called to the principal's office then? That was kind of random."
Dan frowned. "Honestly, I think it has something to do with Sophie."
Skylar's face hardened immediately. "What do you mean?"
Dan hesitated, then said, "I saw a mark on her cheek. Like she got slapped. And she looked really shaken up."
Skylar clenched his jaw. He had a feeling what happened—and he didn't like it one bit.
Without saying another word, he stood up and walked out of the class.
"Where are you going?" Dan asked, getting up too.
"To Kayla," Skylar said, voice low, walking fast.
The two of them headed straight to the principal's office.
Meanwhile, Kayla had already arrived. The moment she stepped in, Sophie pointed at her dramatically, holding her cheek.
"There she is!" she cried. "She's the one who slapped me!"
Kayla froze. "What—"
"She bumped into me first. I asked her to apologize, and she just hit me!" Sophie shouted, fake tears running down her face.
Kayla stood there, shocked. "That's not what happened—"
The principal raised a hand. "Kayla, stop. We gave you this scholarship to help you. And this is how you choose to act?"
Kayla's heart dropped.
"I'm sorry," the principal said. "But we can't let this go. We'll have to revoke your scholarship."
Kayla opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Just then, the office door opened hard.
"She's not going anywhere," a voice said.
Everyone turned.
Skylar stood there, eyes filled with anger. Dan was right behind him, quiet but just as serious.
The principal looked up and saw Skylar walk in. A surprised smile crossed his face.
"Skylar," he said gently, "what are you doing here?"
Skylar didn't answer right away. He walked straight over to Kayla and stood beside her. Kayla shifted slightly, unsure of what was going on.
"She's not going anywhere," Skylar said clearly, his voice calm but firm.
The principal blinked, then cleared his throat. "I understand, but she hit Sophie—"
Before he could finish, Sophie rushed over and grabbed Skylar's arm, fake tears running down her cheeks. "She hit me, Skylar! For no reason!"
Skylar looked down at her hand, then pulled away.
"I don't care what you say," he said sharply. "Kayla's not leaving this school. That's final."
The principal looked nervous. He knew Skylar's parents donated the most money to the school—and upsetting them could cost him his job. He forced a smile.
"O-of course," he said quickly. "That's not what I meant at all. I was just trying to understand what really happened. Of course, Kayla won't be going anywhere... but let's not repeat this kind of behavior, alright?"
Sophie stood frozen. Everything had backfired. She turned to her dad, but he just looked away, saying nothing.
Skylar took Kayla's hand and led her toward the door. Dan followed behind, and just before they exited, he turned and shut the door in Sophie's face.
Inside the office, Sophie spun to her dad in frustration.
"You're just going to let them go?" she snapped.
Her dad sighed. "There's nothing I can do now. Skylar's involved."
Sophie stormed out of the office and chased after them. When she caught up, she yanked Kayla's hand away from Skylar's.
"She doesn't belong with you!" she screamed. "I should be the one holding your hand—not this useless trash!"
Skylar stepped forward, trying to stop her, but she kept yelling.
"She's just a gold digger! She's only with you for your money, just like her mother! What, Kayla? You thought I wouldn't find out? Everyone knows your mom goes around borrowing money like a beggar!"
That was it. Skylar snapped.
"Sophie!" he yelled so loud she flinched. He raised his hand halfway like he was going to hit her, but stopped himself.
Dan immediately stepped in, grabbing Sophie's arm tightly and pulling her away. His grip left red marks, but he didn't care.
Kayla stood there frozen. Her heart pounded. Her secret was out... and worst of all, there were students standing nearby, watching. Whispering.
She didn't know what to do, so she did the only thing she could.
She ran.
And behind her, without thinking twice, Skylar followed.
***
Kayla kept running, not even sure where she was going. Her heart was racing, and her eyes were full of tears.
She just wanted to get away from everything. But Skylar didn't stop. He ran after her and finally caught up, grabbing her arm gently.
"Kayla," he said, out of breath.
She turned around, her face full of panic. "Please," she said, trying to pull away, "just leave me alone. I've had enough."
Skylar shook his head. "No. I'm not leaving."
She looked down, tears falling harder. "This isn't the life I wanted," she whispered. "I can't even look at anyone after what Sophie said. What do I do now?"
She started crying harder, venting everything she'd been holding in. "I promise I'll stay out of everyone's way. I won't bother any of you. I'll just disappear if that's what it takes to stop all this."
Skylar's chest tightened. He couldn't take it anymore. He pulled her into a hug.
Kayla froze at first, but then slowly melted into him. She buried her face in his chest and cried as hard as she could.
Skylar held her tight, not saying anything, just letting her cry it out. Eventually, she started to calm down.
She wiped her eyes and pulled back. "Sorry... I probably ruined your shirt."
Skylar looked down at the tear stains and laughed softly. "It's fine."
Kayla let out a small laugh too.
"You wanna get something to drink?" he asked.
She nodded.
That's when they realized they were just standing in the middle of the street. They looked at each other and laughed again before walking to a small café nearby.
***
Meanwhile, Dan had dragged Sophie away. She kept yelling at him to let go, but he didn't say a word. When they got far enough, she yanked her arm free.
"What's your problem?!" she shouted. "Why are you dragging me away when I was just putting that trash in her place?!"
Dan turned to her, his face full of anger. "Stop it."
Sophie scoffed. "Wait... don't tell me. You're falling for that thing called Kayla too?"
Dan stared at her, shocked. "Seriously? You're unbelievable, Sophie. You throw yourself at someone who clearly doesn't want you, and now you're insulting someone who's done nothing to you? You're so desperate it's pathetic."
He took a deep breath and continued, "Stop being so miserable Sophie, are you really that attention starved? Just stop, it's irritating."
She looked shocked. Dan had never talked to her like this before.
"Get a life," he said. "Stop trying to be the main character in everyone else's story."
Then he turned around and walked off, grumbling under his breath. He headed to the bathroom to calm down and clean up.
***
Back at the café, Skylar and Kayla sat in quiet peace. Kayla sipped her drink and slowly started to feel a little better.
"Thanks," she said softly. "For helping me back there."
Skylar looked at her. "It's nothing."
"Why'd you do it?" she asked.
Skylar froze for a second. He opened his mouth, then laughed nervously and looked away.
Kayla just smiled a little and didn't push it.
When they finished their drinks, they got up and started walking back to school.
As they walked, their hands brushed. Slowly, they laced their fingers together. They both blushed, looking away, but no one let go.
When they got to the classroom, Skylar stopped at the door.
"You sure you'll be okay?" he asked.
Kayla nodded. "Yeah."
"If Sophie tries anything, let me know," he said.
Kayla smiled. "I'll handle her."
They waved goodbye, and Kayla walked into her class. People were still staring, but she ignored them. She sat down and thought about the time with Skylar. It made her smile.
Should I really be smiling like this? she thought. But she pushed the doubt away.
Skylar headed to biology class. Dan wasn't there, so he figured he was still out. Skylar sat down, thinking about Kayla and smiling to himself.
Then the door opened. Dan walked in with a bandage on his nose and a furious look on his face.
"What happened to you?" Skylar asked.
Dan dropped into his seat with a hiss. "Liam."
"The football captain?" Skylar asked.
Dan nodded, still muttering curses. Skylar couldn't help but laugh at how annoyed he was.
A few minutes later, Liam walked into the class.
Dan hadn't noticed him yet, but Skylar did. He gave Liam a curious look, but Liam ignored it and walked up to Dan, gently tapping his shoulder.
"Hey," Liam said.
Dan turned around, clearly already annoyed. The moment he saw who it was, his face tightened even more.
"What do you want?" Dan muttered, looking away like he couldn't be bothered.
"I just wanted to talk about earlier—"
"I don't want to," Dan snapped, already standing up.
Skylar sighed and finally stepped in. "Why don't you listen to what he has to say?"
Dan looked at him like he was crazy. "Why would I? He literally broke my nose."
Skylar gave him a small shrug. "And that's exactly why," he said, placing a hand on Dan's shoulder. "Just hear him out. I'll be waiting at the gym."
Without waiting for a reply, Skylar turned and walked off, leaving the two behind.
At the gym, Skylar sat on one of the benches, resting his head back and smiling to himself. His thoughts drifted to Kayla — her laugh, her tears, her smile.
Yeah. He was falling real hard.