The next morning came early — too early.
Jayden woke to the sound of Ms. Delaney's voice calling from the hallway, sharp but calm in that way she got when she was holding back frustration.
"Jayden, we need to talk."
He sat up slowly, rubbing his face. His clothes from the night before still smelled faintly like rain and city dust.
She stood in the doorway, arms crossed. "You missed curfew again."
He nodded, quiet.
"You want to tell me where you were?"
Jayden hesitated. "Out."
"Out where?"
"Just… out."
Ms. Delaney sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. "You've been doing better, Jayden. Don't go backward now. You know the rules."
He didn't answer. The silence stretched.
Finally, she said, "You're grounded for the week. No phone, no going out after school. And we'll have to do an extra check-in with your probation officer."
Jayden nodded again, eyes low.
He knew it could've been worse. But it still felt like a cage.
When she left, he sat on the edge of his bed, anger and guilt wrestling in his chest.
He hadn't even done anything wrong — not really. He'd just needed to breathe.
And Tasha…
He couldn't stop thinking about her. The rooftop. Her words. The way she'd seen him — really seen him — for the first time in forever.
Now it felt like that moment was slipping away, like everything good in his life always did.
---
School Again
When he returned to school the next day, the whispers were still there. Marcus had made sure of that.
But Jayden didn't bite this time. He kept to himself, headphones in, eyes straight ahead.
At lunch, Tasha found him sitting alone at their usual spot near the back steps.
"You been hiding," she said.
He gave a faint smirk. "I'm grounded. Got caught."
"For the rooftop?"
He nodded.
She laughed softly. "Worth it, though?"
He looked at her — that half-smile, the way her eyes held warmth even when the world didn't deserve it.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "Yeah, it was."
---
The Talk
Later that week, Ms. Delaney called him into her office again. Her tone was softer this time.
"You've got people pulling for you, Jayden," she said. "Your teachers, your counselor… even that girl from school keeps calling here, checking in."
Jayden's head snapped up. "Tasha called here?"
"She did. Wanted to make sure you were okay."
He didn't know what to say to that.
No one had ever done that before — not once. Not in all the years of foster homes, group placements, and detention halls.
"Why?" he asked finally.
Ms. Delaney smiled faintly. "Maybe because she cares. Sometimes that's enough."
Jayden looked away, throat tight. "People care for a while. Then they leave."
"Maybe. But not everyone."
---
The Apology
Friday afternoon, he found Tasha waiting outside the art room, leaning against the door with her backpack slung over one shoulder.
"You mad at me?" she asked when he walked up.
He shook his head. "Nah. Just got in trouble. Again."
"Well," she said, "at least you're consistent."
That made him laugh — a quiet, real laugh that surprised him.
They went inside and sat by the windows, the sunlight spilling across the desks. Tasha pulled out her sketchbook, flipping through pages until she stopped at one — the drawing she'd made of him on the swings.
"You should sign it," she said.
He frowned. "Why?"
"Because it's yours too. You made me see it like that."
He didn't argue. Just signed his name small in the corner.
For a while, they sat together, pencils moving, paper filling with quiet meaning. No words, no walls — just the soft sound of graphite and breath.
Finally, Tasha said, "You don't always have to fight, Jayden. Not everyone's trying to take something from you."
He looked at her, eyes serious. "You say that now. But people change."
She nodded slowly. "Yeah. But so do you."
He wanted to believe her.
He really did.
---
That night, Jayden sat by the window in his room, looking out at the faint glow of the city beyond. He thought about Malik's steady voice, Tasha's laughter, Ms. Delaney's patience.
Three people who saw him differently — and for the first time, he wondered what it would feel like to see himself that way too.
He didn't know how long it would last.
But for now, he had a reason to try.
And maybe that was enough.