BONDED By The MOON

Chapter One: The First Bell

The school gate stood tall and silver, its bars clean but cold, like a warning rather than a welcome.

She stood before it, heart pounding, clutching the strap of her backpack like it was the only thing anchoring her to the earth. Her fingers trembled, and so did the memories hiding behind her eyes-ones she refused to let surface. Not here. Not now.

It was her first day at this school.

Her first time at any school, really.

The brick buildings stretched ahead like a maze, students flowing between them, voices raised in laughter, excitement, and the occasional bark from a teacher. It was a scene most would find normal, forgettable even. But for her, it was overwhelming-loud, fast, and far too alive.

She stepped through the gate like someone stepping into someone else's world.

A girl brushed past her, humming with earbuds in. Two boys on skateboards flipped off the pavement and darted around her without a glance. A group of seniors huddled by the entrance, eyeing everyone like they were already judging how the year would unfold.

She felt eyes on her.

She was new, and new always meant different.

Pulling her hoodie over her head, she ducked her face slightly, scanning for the administrative office. The paper in her hand-crumpled now from being held too tightly-told her where to go. Room 2A. But that wasn't what she was really looking for. She needed the place where no one would look too closely. Where no one would ask questions.

Where no one would remember who she used to be.

"Hey-new girl!"

She froze. The voice was male, confident, and entirely too loud.

Turning slowly, she met the eyes of a tall guy with ruffled hair and a crooked grin. He was flanked by two others-one with a lollipop in his mouth, the other typing something into his phone without looking up.

"I'm guessing you're lost," he said, stepping forward.

"I'm fine," she replied, her voice low but steady.

"Right," he smirked. "Except you're standing in front of the gym with a class schedule in your hand like it's a treasure map."

She didn't answer.

"I'm Kai," he said after a beat. "And you are?"

A pause.

"None of your business."

His brows lifted in surprise, but instead of getting offended, he laughed. "Alright then, Mystery Girl. Good luck surviving this place. First week's always hell."

He walked off, giving her a casual salute. The other two followed without a word.

She exhaled.

The school was already swarming with energy she wasn't used to. It was like being thrown into a pool before learning how to swim-except she was expected to act like she wanted to be here. Like she belonged.

She didn't.

And she wasn't here because she had a choice.

The bell rang, slicing through the air like a blade. Students scattered, lockers slammed, and laughter echoed down the halls. She made her way to Room 2A and stepped inside just as the teacher began calling names.

There were whispers when she entered.

New kid. She's weird. Why's she walking like that? What's her story?

She sat at the only empty desk in the back. She liked the back. It meant fewer people behind her. Fewer people to watch her flinch at sudden sounds. Fewer people to whisper the past back into her ears.

The teacher looked at her kindly. "You must be the transfer. Welcome. Would you like to introduce yourself?"

She hesitated.

Her voice caught in her throat.

Then she simply said, "No, thank you."

A few chuckles rippled through the room.

"Alright," the teacher said smoothly, and turned back to the whiteboard.

As the lesson began, she stared at the lines of text she couldn't focus on. Her mind drifted-back to a time when classrooms felt safe, when her name didn't taste like regret on her tongue. Before everything changed. Before fate ripped her world apart in the cruelest way.

No one knew here. No one knew who she was. What she had done. What had been done to her.

And that was the point.

Until someone remembered.

At lunch, she sat beneath a tree at the far end of the field, away from the crowd. Her lunch remained unopened beside her. She wasn't hungry.

She was halfway into a sketch in her journal when a shadow fell over her.

"Thought I'd find you here," said a familiar voice.

Kai.

She looked up warily.

"I'm not stalking," he said, holding up his hands. "Just... curious."

"Why?"

"You're not like the others."

She gave a dry smile. "That's the point."

He crouched beside her. "So what's your story, new girl?"

She shut the sketchbook and stood. "I don't tell stories."

He looked up at her, something thoughtful in his eyes. "Maybe not now. But stories have a way of telling themselves."

She walked away.

But something in his voice stayed with her. Like a thread tugging gently at the part of her she had buried.

She didn't come here to be seen.

She came here to disappear.

But fate-cruel, complicated fate-was never one for quiet entrances.