The next morning, Sunvale Academy felt… different.
The whispers were still there, but softer, heavier — not the mocking snickers Riven was used to, but something harder to read.
He caught snippets as he walked down the hall.
"Did you see the way he just walked out?"
"Marcus looked stupid."
"I heard they're—"
The last part trailed off as soon as the speakers noticed him.
---
In chemistry, Mrs. Tan was explaining the day's lab when she stopped mid-sentence.
"Mr. Castillo," she said, "excellent work on the club's science fair proposal. I'm recommending it for regional competition."
The whole class turned.
Riven muttered a quiet, "Thanks," and tried to ignore the stares — but a flicker of pride slipped past his guard.
From the back row, Eli caught his eye and gave a small, encouraging nod.
It helped. More than Riven wanted to admit.
---
Lunchtime Shift
At lunch, Marcus was conspicuously absent from his usual table.
A few of his teammates threw Riven quick, unreadable glances, but no one approached.
Instead, it was Hannah — vice president of the student council — who came over.
"You handled that mess yesterday well," she said, leaning on the edge of their table.
Eli raised an eyebrow. "Mess?"
She smirked. "Let's just say Marcus isn't thrilled you didn't take the bait. But a lot of people noticed you didn't blow up."
"Great," Riven muttered. "Maybe I'll get a medal."
"Or maybe you'll get an invitation," Hannah said, tossing a folded piece of paper onto the table before walking off.
Eli unfolded it.
It was a flyer — Inter-School Academic Decathlon, Team Tryouts This Friday.
"You thinking about it?" Eli asked.
Riven snorted. "Me? Compete with the best schools in the district? Yeah, right."
"Riv… you're good at this stuff. And after yesterday? People might actually listen to you."
---
The Storm Hits
They didn't get to talk more.
Halfway through lunch, the school's PA system crackled to life.
"Attention students: there has been an incident at the east wing. Please remain in your classrooms after lunch until further notice."
Eli and Riven exchanged a look.
Incidents at Sunvale usually meant one thing — fights.
---
When they finally made it to their next class, the news was already buzzing.
Marcus had been involved.
Worse — someone claimed he'd said Riven's name right before it started.
By the time the last bell rang, the whole school seemed to know.
---
Outside the gates, Riven and Eli walked in tense silence.
"He's not going to let this go," Riven said finally.
"I know," Eli replied. "But neither are we."
There was no bravado in his voice — just quiet certainty.
For the first time, Riven wondered if Eli was ready for how ugly things might get.
---
That night, as rain began to tap against his bedroom window, Riven sat at his desk, the Decathlon flyer in front of him.
He didn't know why he couldn't throw it away.
Maybe it was Hannah's smirk.
Maybe it was Eli's quiet faith in him.
Or maybe… it was the thought of proving — to Marcus, to the school, to himself — that he was more than a fight waiting to happen.
---