Chapter 10 Between French and Fallout

By the time we stepped through the front doors of Ravenshollow High, the bell had already rung, and the corridors had mostly emptied.

Being late wasn't my thing-not at my old school, not here. But somewhere between Sebastian's words and the long walk through gray morn the ing air, we'd both forgotten to care about the clock.

The scent of over-bleached hallways and old textbooks still clung to the air. Lockers clanged in the distance, a teacher's voice floated from an open classroom, and someone's music leaked from their earbuds just loud enough to catch the beat.

I moved through it all like a ghost in borrowed skin.

"See you in third," Sebastian murmured, peeling off toward the science wing with a brief glance over his shoulder.

I had just turned the corner toward my locker when a burst of energy rounded the opposite hall. A girl in full school colors, red and black windbreaker, glossy curls bouncing-nearly collided with me.

"Whoa! You're Noah, right?" she asked, bright-eyed and breathless like she'd been looking for me.

"Yeah?" I said cautiously.

She grinned. "I'm Brielle. Head cheer captain. We've been dying to meet you."

My brows lifted. "Me?"

"Yup. Word travels fast, and your name came up last week after gym class. Coach saiThe coach used to run track in your old school. But you haven't signed up here, so I thought... why not shoot my shot?"

I tilted my head. "You want me to... cheer?"

Brielle gave me a look that was both playful and strategic.

"I saw you move. You're strong, flexible, and balanced, probably more than half our current lineup. And honestly? We could use someone with presence. a You've got that whole 'mysterious quiet girl with secret strength' thing going."

I blinked, caught between amusement and surprise. I'd considered trying cheer back at my old school, but track always came first.

Now, with everything that had changed, the extra strength, the reflexes, the sharpness always buzzing under my skin, running competitively felt like asking for exposure. One burst of real speed and I'd be exposed. Targeted.

Cheerleading, though... that felt safer. Contained. And maybe, just maybe, it would help me feel like I was part of something again.

"I was thinking about trying out," I admitted. "Never got the chance."

"Well, consider this your second chance. Tryouts are next Wednesday after school. No pressure," she added, already pulling a glossy flyer from her bag, "but I think you'd kill it. You've got the look, and if you've got the heart, the rest will follow."

Do I even have a heart?

She handed me the paper and started to turn away, but paused. "Oh, and Sebastian walking you in this morning? Bold. You're definitely making waves. He's like the hottest guy in school."

With a wink, she bounced down the hall, her red sneakers squeaking slightly with each step.

I watched her for a long moment, the flyer light in my hands.

I stared at the flyer for a minute, the paper thin and bright between my fingers. A cheerleader caught mid-jump at the top.

Below it, bold bare lack letters.

RAVENSHOLLOW HIGH SPIRIT SQUAD - TRYOUTS NEXT WEDNESDAY. ALL LEVELS WELCOME.

For the first time that day, I smiled. Barely but it was there.

The rest of the day blurred at the edges as if the news had smudged the lines of everything that came after.

I hadn't seen Aiden all morning. My eyes followed every sound, every shifting figure in the hallway, hoping to catch a glimpse. But he never appeared. Not at lunch. Not in the halls.

French was after lunch, and I walked there with a strange tension in my chest-anticipation and something colder sitting just beneath it.

I hadn't realized how much I wanted to see him again until now.

The classroom was already filling up when I stepped in, the air humming with leftover energy from the cafeteria. Students were laughing, leaning over desks, swapping stories louder than usual. The teacher hadn't arrived yet.

And then-I saw him.

Aiden sat in the same seat he had that first day. One leg stretched out under the desk, the other bent, posture relaxed like nothing in the world could touch him.

He looked up at me, and that easy, familiar smile curved onto his lips.

A soft one, like a secret he wanted to share.

I found myself sliding into the seat beside him without even thinking.

His eyes didn't leave mine, and the look he gave me sent a ripple straight down my spine-intense, unreadable, but warm in a way that stirred something unsettling.

He leaned in slightly, voice barely above a whisper. "I missed you, Noah."

Before I could respond, the door slammed open with a force that made everyone jump. The wall gave a low thud, and a girl burst in like she'd sprinted straight from the parking lot.

Her phone was clutched in one hand, her face pale and eyes wide.

"Did you guys hear?" she half-shouted. "Ash is dead. Like... actually dead."

The room fell into a stunned silence.

A guy near the window laughed, awkward and uncertain. "Okay, what?"

"I'm serious," she said, breathing hard. "My mom's on the force. Ash was reported missing the night of Aiden's party. They found his body this morning."

Her gaze swept the room-and landed on Aiden.

"They're still out there. Investigating. She wouldn't say where, just that it looked bad."

A hush fell like a dropped curtain. The laughter, the conversation, the background noise-it all vanished.

I looked at Aiden again.

He hadn't moved. Not even a blink. His face was perfectly still like he hadn't heard-or like he'd heard it long ago.

My heart pounded. That night at the party... The way Ash had grabbed me. The way Sebastian had looked when he asked me this morning.

Before the teacher could even respond, the intercom buzzed sharply overhead.

"Aiden Hale, please report to the principal's office."

The voice was calm. Measured. But the timing made the room shrink.

Dozens of eyes turned.

Aiden didn't flinch.

He stood slowly, smoothly, and rolled, like every movement was being measured. His eyes never left mine.

Then he turned and walked out, shoulders square, pace steady.

No one spoke. Even the girl who had delivered the news seemed to second-guess herself now.

The classroom pulsed with tension-too many questions and not enough air.

My hands stayed still on the desk, but I felt the shaking deep inside. I stared ahead, pretending to be calm, pretending to be unaffected.

But I wasn't.

Ash was dead.

Aiden had been called in.

And suddenly, everything felt closer. Heavier.

I needed answers.

And I wasn't sure who I was more afraid to get them from. Aiden...? or Sebastian.