I walked through the crowded hallway full of unfamiliar faces. Man, I hated having to change schools all the time because of my dad's job. I wanted to explore the place, but no one offered me a tour, so I decided to do it myself.

I wandered through various hallways, but there wasn't much new to see. As I walked outside, I noticed the school slowly emptying as students left. Perfect opportunity to check out that old gym. I headed toward the back of the campus. As I neared the corner, though, I heard voices.

"You've got until next week to finish that assignment, or I'll beat the crap out of you. Got it, you little bitch?" A boy's voice sneered.

Quickly, I hid behind the wall, peeking around the corner. I saw three guys and a girl standing in front of them with her head down.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Cat got your tongue? You're really pathetic..." One of the boys taunted before suddenly shoving the girl, causing her to fall onto the ground.

Instinctively, before things could escalate into something worse, I ran straight toward him, landing a flying kick on one of the boys' backs, knocking him to the ground. I stood in front of the girl, who looked just as confused as the guys.

"Don't you dare touch her, you cowards!" I shouted at them. Crap, they were giants compared to the two of us... Screw it! I grabbed the girl's hand, yanked her to her feet, and dragged her along as we squeezed through a gap in the school fence. We dashed down the street.

we were both panting after running three blocks that felt more like a full marathon. I leaned against the alley wall, trying to catch my breath. Glancing over at the girl. She looked more exhausted than I did, judging by her flushed cheeks from the sprint.

"Looks like we lost them. I thought we were gonna die on my first day of school." I laughed, my voice dripping with sarcasm as I pushed myself off the wall.

"Name's Summer. What's yours?" I asked with a playful grin, extending my hand to her.