Chapter 7: The fight

The classroom was stuffy in the afternoon, and the faint breeze coming through the half-open window barely stirred the pages of the textbooks. Keller sat at his desk, quietly focused on his notebook, his pen gliding steadily across the paper.

Aiden leaned back in his chair beside him, his headphones dangling around his neck. He lazily spun a pen between his fingers, occasionally glancing at Keller with a faint smirk playing at the corner of his mouth.

The low hum of whispers and muffled laughter buzzed from the back row, breaking up the otherwise quiet atmosphere.

Suddenly, the classroom door slammed open, hitting the wall with a loud bang.

Everyone froze.

A boy with dyed blond hair, wearing a varsity jacket, swaggered into the room with his hands stuffed in his pockets and an arrogant gleam in his eyes. His name was Ryan, one of the school's infamous rich kids. His father was a major donor, and Ryan had always used that status as a shield to act out however he pleased.

"Keller!" Ryan barked. The room went still, and all eyes shifted toward Keller.

Keller calmly put down his pen and looked up, his expression unreadable. "What do you want?"

"Oh, drop the cool act," Ryan sneered, taking a step closer to Keller's desk. "You think I don't know about Sophie? You think I don't see the way she looks at you, you little know-it-all?"

Sophie was a girl Ryan had been trying—and failing—to impress for months. Her kindness and quiet affection toward Keller had been a thorn in Ryan's side for far too long.

"Ryan," Keller said evenly, his voice steady, "if you've got an issue with Sophie, take it up with her. It has nothing to do with me."

Ryan slammed his hand down on Keller's desk, knocking over a pencil case. "Don't play dumb with me! You think being a straight-A student makes you untouchable? Think again."

Aiden slowly sat up, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Ryan. His voice was low, dangerous. "Back off, Ryan."

Ryan turned his head sharply toward Aiden, his lip curling into a smirk. "Oh, look who's talking—the rich kid playing bodyguard. What are you gonna do, Aiden? Daddy's money gonna save your little friend here?"

Aiden's knuckles went white around the pen he was holding, but he didn't move.

Keller stood up, his voice calm but sharp. "Ryan, stop. This isn't going to end well for you."

"Stop?" Ryan barked out a laugh. "You want me to stop? Fine, Keller. But first, let me tell everyone here a little something about you."

He turned toward the rest of the class, his grin widening.

"Hey, everyone, listen up! You know what Keller really is? He's nothing but a Boy Toy—a little pet for someone with too much money and too little taste. Pathetic."

The classroom fell silent. A few people gasped softly; others shifted uncomfortably in their seats. Most of them didn't believe Ryan, but the words still hung heavy in the air.

Keller's expression didn't change, but his hands were clenched tightly at his sides, and the veins on his arms stood out.

"And look at him," Ryan continued, his voice dripping with venom. "All quiet and sulky—typical little charity case."

Ryan didn't see it coming.

Aiden was out of his seat in an instant, his fist connecting with Ryan's face with a sickening crack. Ryan stumbled backward, clutching his nose as blood began to pour from between his fingers.

"You—You hit me?!" Ryan's voice cracked with a mix of rage and disbelief.

Ryan lunged toward Aiden, but Aiden was faster. He sidestepped and delivered a swift, brutal kick to Ryan's knee. A sharp pop echoed in the room, and Ryan went down, clutching his leg and screaming in pain.

The classroom was dead silent except for Ryan's ragged gasps and the sound of his knees hitting the tile floor.

But Aiden wasn't done. He grabbed Ryan by the collar and dragged him across the floor, pulling him past the rows of desks until they reached the front of the room.

"Apologize," Aiden said, his voice like a knife's edge.

Ryan coughed, spitting blood onto the floor. "You… You can't do this… My dad will—"

"I don't care about your dad," Aiden interrupted, his voice low and controlled. "Apologize. To Keller."

Ryan's lips trembled, but he stayed silent.

Aiden's fist connected with his jaw again, and a loud crack filled the room. Ryan's head snapped to the side, blood smearing down his chin.

"Apologize!" Aiden roared.

Ryan's voice was weak and trembling. "I—I'm sorry…"

"Louder," Aiden barked.

"I'm sorry!" Ryan cried, tears mixing with the blood streaming down his face.

Aiden let go of him, his chest rising and falling with deep, angry breaths. His shirt was smeared with blood, and his knuckles were raw and split open.

Keller stood frozen, his expression a mixture of shock and something else—something unreadable.

"Aiden," Keller said softly, his voice breaking slightly. "Stop. Please."

In the distance, faint sirens began to wail—someone must have called security or an ambulance.

Aiden straightened up, breathing hard, his gaze still fixed on Ryan, who was now a trembling heap on the floor.

With one final look at Ryan, Aiden turned and walked past Keller, his shoulders stiff and tense.

The two of them walked out of the classroom together, side by side. The hallway was empty, the distant echo of sirens growing louder with each passing second.

Keller finally broke the silence, his voice quiet. "Why did you… Why did you do that?"

Aiden didn't turn to look at him. His voice was soft, but firm.

"Because no one talks to you like that. Not while I'm here."

The hallway stretched out in front of them, the fluorescent lights buzzing faintly overhead. Outside the window, the sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the empty corridor.

And in that fleeting moment, Keller felt something unspoken settle heavily between them—something raw and unyielding, like a promise made without words.