The halls of Woodsboro High were always the same—crowded, loud, and filled with the same faces Billy had grown used to seeing every day. But today, there was a new one.

He spotted her near the lockers, flipping through a notebook, her back against the cold metal. She was alone, but not in a way that screamed loneliness—more like she was comfortable that way. Billy knew the difference.

Her hair caught his attention first. Not in a flashy, attention-seeking way, but something about the way it framed her face made her stand out. Then there was the way she moved—deliberate, unhurried, like she wasn’t trying to prove anything to anyone.

Interesting.

He didn’t mean to slow his pace, but he did. Just for a second. Just enough to get a better look. She was pretty. Not in the obvious, magazine-cover way, but in a way that made you want to keep looking, to figure her out.

Something pulled at him—a quiet, automatic attraction, the kind that sneaks up on you before you can make sense of it. And then, just as quickly, something else. Guilt. Hesitation.

Sidney.

His jaw tightened slightly as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket, forcing himself to look away. It wasn’t like he and Sidney were perfect. There had been tension lately, moments where he felt her slipping away, like she was just out of reach. And here was this girl—new, unknown, a blank slate. A temptation.

But what did that even mean? It wasn’t like he was doing anything. Just looking. Just noticing.

Still, noticing could be dangerous.

He exhaled slowly, shaking off the thought as he stepped forward, closing the space between them. If he was going to acknowledge her at all, it wouldn’t be in some obvious, drooling-over-the-new-girl way. That wasn’t his style. Instead, he leaned casually against the locker beside hers, angling his body just enough to catch her eye.

"New here, huh?" His voice was smooth, unreadable, like he wasn’t already analyzing her reaction.