LAUGHTER

Chapter 10 New school,same games

My name is laughter and no,it's not a nickname

Laughter’s POV

My name is Laughter.I'm seventeen now.

You probably know my story or at least the parts my moher was able to tell.The pain,the betrayal, the struggle... all of it shaped me.But pain didn't win.We did.

Today,we live a very different life.

My mother's humble akara stand has transformed into the most renowned and exquisite restaurant in the country,a culinary empire,really.Celebrities, dignitaries,politicians,and royalty pass through her doors like it's a five star palace.She doesn't like me hanging around there,though.Calls it"her battlefield."I call it her kingdom.

As for me… well,I've just resumed at a new school Not because I had to but,because I wanted a fresh start.I've never been one for crowds or fake friendships,so leaving my old school was easy.

Thanks to my mother's growing influence and her belief that I deserved nothing but the best,I was enrolled in Starlight Achievers High School,a school so elite it sounds like a title in a fantasy novel. Presidents sons,governors daughters,princes,princesses you name it,they're here.

But I wasn't here to chase status.I wasn't here to play the game.

I just wanted to breathe.

As I walked into the classroom,I kept my head down but my awareness sharp.The teacher looked up, nodded in quiet recognition,he knew who I was.I appreciated that he didn't ask me to introduce myself.

I walked straight to an empty seat near the window.The moment I sat,I felt it,eyes.Stares pressing against my back like heat.If glares could cut skin,I'd be in surgery by now.

Lunchtime.

I walked into the cafeteria,the chatter blending into a background hum.I found a corner table to sit and observe.

Then,without warning,the cafeteria doors burst open.

A group of four girls strutted in like they owned the school.And maybe,in some ways,they did.

Leading them was a girl who looked like she stepped straight out of a music video,shortest skirt I've ever seen,long hair cascading over her shoulders,lip gloss gleaming like polished glass.Makeup caked her face like war paint,fierce,flawless,and bold.

She didn't walk,she glided,her presence pulling the room into a new rhythm.

The guys near me started handing over food, money,even their seats like worshipers offering tribute.

I leaned toward the guy beside me."Hey… who are they?"

He didn't look away."They're the Essas

The most wanted girls in school.The one in front is Vanessa,the queen bee.The others are Sasha, Beatrice and Penelope.”

I raised a brow."Whoa"I muttered,unimpressed.

Hot girls?Sure.But something about them screamed manufactured danger.

Before I could fully process what I was seeing, Vanessa was suddenly standing in front of me,too close.

Her eyes locked onto mine,smirk painted perfectly on her lips.

"This is for you,baby boy"she said,brushing her hand across my chin like I was some cute pet.

Without hesitation,I slapped her hand away.

She paused,surprised,but then she laughed.

It wasn't the laugh of someone offended.It was the laugh of someone entertained,like I'd just been added to her list.

She stepped back slowly,eyes still glued to me,that seductive smirk never leaving her face.

I sighed and leaned back in my chair.

New school,same games.

But they didn't know me yet.

This wasn't just their world anymore.