"She's planning something."
Lilly froze.
"She?" she whispered back.
Samy nodded. "Aisha. She's… saying things about you. Trying to make everyone believe you've been lying about her, about Jessi. She said… if people didn't believe it, she'd just… make something up."
The words hit Lilly like a stone.
"She's making things up?" Lilly asked, her throat tight.
Samy hesitated, then nodded again. "I just… thought you deserved to know. I don't like what she's doing. But… she scares people. And everyone's too scared to say anything."
Lilly swallowed hard.
She looked past Samy, toward the classroom door where she could hear Aisha's laugh floating into the hall — bright and fake and sharp all at once.
Something in her chest burned.