Why were there so many news vans parked in front of the school? I knew it was the start of the semester but I assumed not even the news stations were eager to waste precious air time on something so mundane.

Other students walked into the building as expected but glanced at the vans every so often.

I instinctively put a hand over my face in an attempt to avoid the leering gaze of the cameras. I should’ve just stayed at home but Reynard convinced me to go.

“Please leave the premises. You are blocking the student drop-off area.”

Ms. Morgan took a defensive stance in front of the vans. Despite her wide and short stature, she looked intimidating enough to rival any villain’s pose.

“We’re just here for Haresa! We’ll leave once we get to talk!”

Who the hell said that? I know it wasn’t the echoes of the past coming to haunt me.

Ms. Morgan crossed her arms. “The buses can’t drop off any of the students. If you do not leave in five minutes, I will have to call the authorities to forcefully remove you from the space.”

That was when a man appeared in what seemed like thin air with a camera sitting snuggly under his arm. He looked annoyed and his hand ran through his shaggy red hair. “Look, we don’t want to cause any issues lady. We’re just trying to get the latest scoop.”

“Harassing one of my students and making it inaccessible to other students is not a good enough excuse. Leave now.”

That was certainly interesting.

I turned back to the school and made my way to the entrance.

“Morning, Mr. Phan. How are you doing today?”

Ms. Lemming sat in the foyer next to a table and began to open the metal box. I didn’t reply and eyed the two halves inside it. She glanced at my face before placing the box on the other side of the table.

“Alright, which arm would you like it on?”

I pressed my lips together and held out my left arm. She put the halves around my wrist and they clicked together like magnets. The sensation of the bracelet was instant and I winced.

“You feeling alright there?”

“Meh.”

“Alright, I’ll see you in class later today. Who’s next?”

That was when I noticed the person behind me.

Haresa had a hoodie covering their head and their signature yellow clothing was now replaced with dull black and grey. I don't think I saw them in any other colour clothing before.

They got their bracelet put on while making quick replies to Ms. Lemming.

They caught my stare and I quickly looked away. Stupid heroes and their rabid paparazzi.

I made my way into the hallway and I felt something warm near my neck. I stopped immediately knowing that I wasn’t alone.

“Hey, aren’t you Shelly?”

Anxiety filled my body. My body reacted on its own. Before I knew it, I found myself on top of what seemed to be nothing at first. My eyes darted around unsure of what the hell I was processing until long red hair came into my vision. I had my forearm pressed against his neck. He lifted up the camera and a flash blind my eyes.

I waved my arm wildly and heard the camera fall. I stood up with my hand covering my eyes. I felt something hard touch my foot and I instantly crushed it underneath my foot. There was a loud crack. I blinked a few times and saw a very broken camera.

No way was I letting him blab to the whole city that I was back.

“What the hell was that about! You just broke my camera!” The man shouted.

“What are you doing in here? You don’t even have a visitor’s pass!” Ms. Morgan’s voice boomed.

I instinctively froze. I was in trouble.

“Your student broke my camera! It’s worth a thousand dollars. This villain has to pay.” The man pointed at me and I scowled.

“You were the one that snuck up on me! I’m just trying to get to class.”

“Enough,” Ms. Morgan held up a hand and I gritted my teeth. “Both of you are coming with me.”

I shouldn’t have listened to Reynard. I wish I was home with him instead of dealing with this whole mess.