Clara didn't go home that night.
She sat in her father's study, the dim glow of the chandelier reflecting off her wet hair. Her ruined blouse was gone, replaced with one of her sleek black dresses. She wasn't crying anymore. Her eyes were cold, calculating.
Vivienne sat nearby, fidgeting nervously. "Clara, maybe we should just… let it go. The cafeteria—"
"Shut up, Vivienne." Clara's voice was sharp, unforgiving. "Do you think I'll let Elena humiliate me twice? In front of him?"
Vivienne swallowed. Everyone knew who "him" was, Adrian.
He has been Clara's crush since day one, remembering how she was embarrassed in front of him breaks her heart the more.
Clara's nails scraped against the armrest of her chair. "If she wants war, then she'll taste it. I'll hit where it hurts most. Let's see how long her little confidence lasts when she's on her knees."
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
One new message.
Clara frowned, unlocked it, and read:
"If you want Elena gone, meet me at the old gym. Midnight. Alone."
Vivienne leaned over. "Clara, that looks dangerous. What if it's a trap?"
Clara's lips curved into a wicked smile. "Dangerous? Perfect. That means whoever it is hates her as much as I do."
Vivienne shivered. "Are you really going?"
Clara stood, slipping her phone into her clutch. "Of course I am. The enemy of my enemy…" she whispered, her eyes glinting with menace, "…is my greatest weapon."
---
⏳ Midnight.
The school grounds were deserted, shadows stretching long under the broken lights of the old gym.
Clara pushed the door open, her heels echoing in the hollow silence.
"Hello?" she called, her voice steady.
No answer.
She took another step inside. The air was colder here, damp with the smell of rust and dust. She was about to call again when heard footsteps behind her.
She spun around, but the door slammed shut with a deafening BANG.
Her phone slipped from her hand and clattered to the ground.
And then… a voice. Low, chilling, almost amused.
"Clara… you want Elena gone, don't you?"
Her breath caught. She couldn't see the speaker, only the shape of someone moving in the shadows.
"Yes," she forced out, her pride not allowing her fear to show. "Who are you?"
The figure stepped forward slightly, just enough for her to see the edge of a grin in the dark.
"Let's just say… I want her destroyed even more than you do."
Will they succeed?
What will be Elena's fate?