The cafeteria emptied out quicker than normal.
It wasn't some big scene, no alarms or yelling, but the chatter died down too fast, like somebody twisted an invisible knob. Chairs scraped. Trays banged. Groups that usually hung around got up and left without even finishing their food.
I sat there longer than I probably should have.
I didn't know why I felt reluctant to stand, only that the moment I did, the pressure in my chest might spike again. Like stepping into open water without knowing how deep it went.
"You okay?" my friend asked, pulling me back.
"Yeah," I said automatically. "Just tired."
It was a lie, but an easy one.
I dumped my tray and headed for the exit, eyes down. The second I stepped out, that feeling came back, stronger. This low buzz under my skin. Awareness without a source.
I got halfway down the hall before it hit me I wasn't alone.
Footsteps synced up with mine.
Not hurrying. Not chasing.
Just matching.
I stopped short.
So did he.
I turned.
The quiet boy was a couple feet back, hands jammed in his hoodie pockets like he didn't trust them loose. Up close, that weird tension in him stuck out. His stance was all wound up, like he was fighting to keep something in check.
For a second, we just stood there.
"You shouldn't walk alone," he said at last.
I blinked. "What?"
His jaw got tighter. He looked down the hall, then back at me, some irritation crossing his face, at himself, I figured, not me.
"Just don't," he said.
I crossed my arms. "Is this some kind of warning? Because if it is, you're being really vague."
His lips almost twitched into a smile, but he stopped it.
"Trust me," he said softly. "I don't want to be doing this either."
Doing what?
Before I could spit it out, a yell came from the end of the hall. Two guys going at it loud, pushing each other by the lockers. Nothing major, just typical school crap.
But the instant that shove connected, something cracked.
I felt it like static popping in the air.
The boy in front of me went rigid.
"No," he muttered.
He moved before I could react.
One second he was right there; next he was between those guys, too quick. Not sprinting. Just there.
"Back off," he said.
The words weren't yelled, but they cut through. The hall kind of held its breath around them.
One of the guys laughed it off. "Mind your-"
He didn't get to finish.
The quiet boy tilted his head a bit, and something in his face changed. Not mad. Not threatening.
Instinct.
The guy who'd been yelling stumbled on his words, all his tough act gone like a light switch. He backed up without thinking, looking confused.
"I, whatever," he mumbled, grabbing his buddy and bailing.
The hall started breathing again, slowly.
I stared.
"That was intense," I said.
The boy turned back my way, eyes darker now. Not gold, good, but kind of shadowed, like he was staring inside himself more than at me.
"I told you," he said. "You shouldn't be alone."
I looked at his face hard. "Why?"
For a beat, I thought he might actually tell me.
Instead, his shoulders dropped a little, like he'd argued with himself and lost.
"Just stay around people," he said. "And if a teacher says go somewhere specific, go."
That made my skin prickle.
"That's weird advice."
"I know."
He paused, then added, "And don't break the rules."
"What rules?"
But he was already walking away.
Elsewhere
The girl with dark hair sat by the library windows, a book open in front of her that she hadn't touched.
She hadn't flipped a page in ten minutes.
Her senses reached past the words, past the walls. The scent hung there, faint now, mixed with distance and crowds, but clear as day.
Hybrid blood.
Her fingers curled slowly.
Impossible, she thought. They were all destroyed.
Across the room, another kid caught her eye for a second and shook his head once.
Not yet.
The rules were clear.
No feeding on school grounds.
No transformations before dusk.
No claims without council consent.
And above all
No attention.
She looked down at her book, lips curving just a bit.
But her eyes burned.
By the time the last bell rang, the sky outside had gone dark with clouds rolling in fast.
I stepped out on the front steps, phone in hand, and froze.
The quiet boy was by the gate, going back and forth with a teacher.
"I'm fine," he said, teeth gritted.
"You're staying," the teacher shot back sharply. "Full moon protocols."
Full moon.
My stomach sank.
I didn't know why that hit me.
Just that hearing it made the buzz under my skin spike, stronger than before.
The boy's eyes snapped to mine across the yard.
For a split second, his guard dropped.
Fear.
Not for him.
For me.
And that's when I got it, something I couldn't put words to yet
Whatever rules this school was hiding?
They were about to break.