POV: Samira's
The moment I stepped through the heavy front doors and into the main hallway, the shift in atmospheric pressure was undeniable. The fragile peace of the last week had not just ended; it had been systematically dismantled.
Ashley leaned against the lockers with her hair falling in a straight, obsidian sheet and her makeup looking as sharp as a blade. Her heels clicked against the tile with a rhythmic, predatory sound that seemed to silence the surrounding chatter. Her crew moved in a tight formation around her, laughing and casting glances at the passing students as if they were surveying a kingdom that had never actually been out of their control.
I tightened my grip on my backpack strap, the nylon digging into my palm, and kept my eyes fixed on a point directly ahead. Eve
