The festival was at its peak. The stalls glowed with lights, smells of food mixed in the air, laughter and music coming from makeshift speakers. Some students hid cans of beer behind tables, others smoked discreetly near the side gate.
Claws watched from a distance, leaning against a tree, arms crossed. Inside the school, he was "kind and polite Claws" — the mask he wore to avoid trouble with his parents. But deep down, everyone knew who he was on the streets.
Isa approached slowly, holding a cup of juice.
— "You're acting weird… Aren't you going to have fun?"
Claws let out a half-smile.
— "If I let loose here, Isa, there won't be any festival left for anyone."
Isa laughed softly, then pointed to the stall where the three bullies continued bothering the first-year student.
— "But remember… this is a festival. It's not school. There are no rules here."
Claws' eyes glinted differently. He let slip a smile he never showed in the classroom.
— "You know you shouldn't have said that, right?"
Isa swallowed hard, realizing what she had provoked.
— "I just…"
But Claws was already walking. The sound of cans opening and festival music blended with his footsteps on the ground.
When the three bullies noticed, they laughed, as if amused.
— "Look who decided to show up… the 'famous' Claws."
— "Thought you'd turned into a daddy's boy now."
Claws stopped in front of them, adjusted his black jacket, and smirked.
— "I'm polite… when it suits me."
The silence was broken by a swift movement: Claws punched the first one directly in the stomach, making the kid double over, with no time to react. The second tried to advance but was pushed against the wall.
— "Whoa, Claws!" — shouted Mateus, appearing right behind, dropping the ball he was carrying. He grinned excitedly. — "You don't think you'll have fun alone, right?"
Claws laughed, and the two moved forward together. Mateus grabbed one of the bullies by the collar and threw him to the ground. Claws punched another from the side, quick and precise, like someone who knew exactly what he was doing.
Rafaela came running, out of breath.
— "You guys are crazy?! This is a festival, not a street fight!"
Diego, biting a French fry, just watched from a distance, as if it were a movie.
— "I warned you the atmosphere would get interesting…"
Lucas, on the other hand, sighed, trying to contain the situation.
— "This is going to result in a huge report to the principal…"
Claws wiped the blood from the corner of his lip with his thumb, chuckling softly.
— "Relax, Lucas. This didn't happen in school. Just festival fun."
The first-year student, once cornered, now looked at Claws and Mateus as if they were heroes—or demons. Hard to tell.
And Isa, standing a little behind, noticed something the others didn't: Claws' smile that night wasn't the same as the one inside school. Here, he wasn't the polite student. He was Claws of the streets.