The hallway was buzzing with noise when Emily walked into school, but her mind was silent — cold, sharp, and focused.
She moved with purpose, each step steadier than the last.
Her sleeves covered the marks on her arms. Her face held no expression, just the empty calm of someone who had already faced death and turned away from it.
As she rounded the corner near her classroom, there they were.
Vanessa stood in the middle of her circle — Chloe, Madison, Brooke, and Jason by her side like always. Her laugh rang out loud and cruel, echoing through the corridor like nails on glass.
Emily stopped. Her heart thudded in her chest, but she didn't look away.
Vanessa spotted her and smirked. "Look who crawled back from the grave."
Chloe snorted. "Still breathing, huh?"
Brooke crossed her arms, eyes glinting. "We didn't hit her hard enough."
The group laughed, but Emily didn't flinch.
She took a slow breath, then stepped forward. Her voice, when she spoke, was calm — too calm.
"You think this is over," she said, looking Vanessa dead in the eyes. "But it's not."
Vanessa raised an eyebrow, amused. "Excuse me?"
"One day," Emily said, voice low and steady, "I will come back. And when I do, I won't come to cry or beg for help."
They fell silent, watching her.
"I'll come for justice. I'll strip you of everything you hold dear — your pride, your name, your power, your money. One by one, all of you will fall. And I'll be the one to watch it happen."
Her eyes burned, not with tears this time, but fire.
Vanessa blinked, then tilted her head with a mocking smile. "Aw, is this the part where you become some kind of avenging angel?"
The others chuckled nervously.
But Emily didn't care if they believed her or not.
She had seen the edge. Faced the darkness. And turned away from it.
Now all that remained was the slow, burning promise of vengeance.
"I'm done being your victim," Emily whispered. "Enjoy your throne while it lasts."
And with that, she walked away.
She didn't look back.
She didn't need to.
The seed had been planted.
And one day, it would grow into ruin.