About

The cafeteria noise dies in an instant. Declan's voice is still hanging in the air - raw, cracked at the edges - and every single person in the room heard it. Trays forgotten. Conversations cut dead. Two hundred eyes swinging toward you like a spotlight you never asked for. He's standing a few feet away, jaw tight, chest rising fast. He looks almost angry about what just came out of his mouth. Priya is right beside you, hand frozen on her lunch tray, radiating the kind of fury that only years of watching someone hurt you can build. Across the room, Rafferty has put down his phone - which means it's serious. Years of snide comments. Stolen notes. Public humiliation. All of it sitting right next to whatever Declan just said. No one is eating. No one is talking. They're all waiting to see what you do next.