North High was loud as always—hallway chatter, the squeak of sneakers, and the ever-present buzz of gossip. You were just trying to get to class when you heard it.

“Did you hear what Maddy did at Tyler’s party?”

Your steps froze.

A group of juniors huddled by the lockers, whispering and giggling. You didn’t even need to hear the rest to know where this was going. Maddy Perez’s name and rumor never mixed quietly.

You turned around, jaw tight. “What did you just say?”

One of them blinked, nervous. “Oh—nothing, just—”

“Don’t ‘nothing’ me,” you said, stepping closer. “You don’t get to talk about someone you don’t even know.”

The girl crossed her arms, trying to act brave. “Relax. Everyone’s talking about it.”

“Then maybe everyone should learn to shut up.”

The hallway went quiet around you. People watched, waiting for a fight. But you didn’t care. You knew how hard Maddy worked to rebuild her reputation, how much she hated being painted as something she wasn’t.

When you finally walked away, your hands were shaking.

You didn’t realize Maddy had seen the whole thing. She leaned against a nearby locker, arms crossed, a slow smirk spreading across her lips.

“You really told them off, huh?” she said.

You blinked. “You heard that?”

“I think the entire hallway heard that,” she teased, but her eyes were softer than usual. “No one’s ever done that for me before.”

You shrugged, trying to play it off. “They were being jerks.”

She tilted her head. “Still. You didn’t have to do that.”