Reckless Charms (New Boy from Juvie)

Shattered Silence

The soft, muffled sound of sobs filled the room, a stark contrast to the otherwise still night outside. Luna was on her knees, her face buried in her trembling hands, tears streaming down her cheeks as her body shook with every breathless sob. Her hair clung to the dampness of her face, and the perfectly arranged room around her seemed to fade into the background, irrelevant against the storm of emotion raging within her.

She couldn't hold it back any longer. All the pressure, the expectations, the secrets—it all came crashing down at once, and now she was breaking under the weight. She had always been the composed one, the one with answers, the one who knew how to hold everything together. But here, in the privacy of her room, the facade crumbled.

Her knees dug into the plush carpet as she hunched over, gasping for breath between sobs. "Why... why does it always come to this?" she whispered to herself, her voice barely audible.

The crumpled paper, now discarded and forgotten in the corner of her room, seemed insignificant compared to the whirlwind of thoughts tormenting her. Her mind replayed the moments from earlier, the words spoken, the decisions made—each one a sharp sting in her heart.

Wiping her face with the back of her hand, Luna tried to steady her breathing, but the pain refused to leave her chest. It gripped her tightly, suffocating any hope of clarity. She glanced at the mirror across from her, seeing her own reflection—tired, vulnerable, and lost.

For the first time in a long while, she didn't know what to do.

As Luna knelt there, her sobs slowly quieting, her mind drifted back to earlier that day. She squeezed her eyes shut, the memory flooding her senses like a tidal wave.

She was in the back seat of her family's luxury car, the soft hum of the engine a constant background noise as they glided through the city streets. The tinted windows blocked out the outside world, offering her a moment of peace and privacy. Her father's driver, stoic as always, sat up front, while she sat in the plush leather seat, legs crossed, preparing to read her favorite book.

She opened her designer bag, searching for the novel, her fingers brushing against the familiar smooth cover. But instead, her hand bumped into something else. Frowning, she pulled out a folded piece of paper, one she hadn't remembered putting there.

Her curiosity piqued, Luna unfolded the paper carefully. As her eyes scanned the words, her heart dropped.

It wasn't an ordinary note—it was something far worse.

The words on the page twisted her insides, causing her throat to tighten as the reality of what she was reading sunk in. She could hear the echo of her father's voice in her head, lecturing her about discretion and appearances, about the importance of keeping everything spotless, perfect, untouchable.

But this paper, these words... they were the opposite of everything her life had been built upon.

Her hands trembled as she held the paper, the sharp sting of betrayal and fear cutting through her like a knife. She quickly folded it back, stuffing it deep into her bag, hoping that ignoring it might somehow make it go away. But the weight of what she'd read lingered in the air, pressing down on her, suffocating her.

The rest of the ride home had been a blur. She couldn't think straight, couldn't hear the driver as he spoke politely, couldn't focus on anything but the words that now felt permanently etched in her brain.

She'd avoided everyone—her father, her friends, everyone—since arriving home. She'd gone straight to her room, her sanctuary, only to have the emotional dam burst once she was alone.

Now, back in the present, Luna sat there, knees on the floor, hands shaking as she replayed the moment she read the paper. Tears welled up again, but this time it wasn't just sadness—it was anger, fear, and an overwhelming sense of dread.

She couldn't run from it anymore. Whatever was written on that paper was real, and it had the power to destroy everything.

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The school was silent as the students bent over their desks, diligently filling out their OMR sheets for the test. The scratching of pencils and the occasional sigh of frustration filled the air, a quiet tension settling over the classroom. Cleo, seated near the front, was focused, her eyes darting back and forth as she filled in her answers. Beside her, Max appeared confident, breezing through his paper, while Luna sat at the back, her hand trembling slightly.

Kai, sitting alone near the window, was expressionless, his dark eyes flicking over his own test, filling in each answer with precision, though his attention seemed elsewhere. The students' attention remained on the test—everyone but Luna.

Halfway through the test, Luna's eyes suddenly widened as something flashed across her mind—the paper. The one she'd found in her bag earlier, the one that had rattled her so much the previous night. The memory hit her like a wave, and panic quickly set in. Her grip on the pencil tightened, but her mind was no longer on the exam. Instead, her thoughts spiraled around that piece of paper, the ominous message she had seen.

Her breathing quickened. She looked down at her OMR sheet, realizing with a sinking heart that she'd misaligned the last few answers. Panic swelled in her chest as she tried to erase and correct them, but her hand was shaking too much. In her haste, she made another mistake, then another, and suddenly, the entire test seemed like a blur. The bubbling panic was taking over, clouding her vision and judgment.

"Five minutes left," the teacher announced, oblivious to Luna's struggle.

Luna let out a sharp, quiet breath, her heart racing. She was fumbling now, desperately trying to fix her answers, but each correction only made things worse. She could feel eyes on her, though it was all in her head—no one was watching her. Except for one.

Kai. His eyes, dark and unreadable, slowly lifted from his test, watching her out of the corner of his gaze. He didn't move, his pen still in hand, as if calculating every motion. He noticed her panic but gave no sign of interest, merely observing her from afar.

As soon as the bell rang, signaling the end of the test, Luna couldn't take it anymore. She shot up from her desk, her chair scraping loudly against the floor, startling a few students. She didn't wait for permission to leave; she bolted out of the room, her breaths shallow, her face pale.

Cleo and Max exchanged worried glances.

"Did you see that?" Max whispered, his voice laced with concern. "She looked like she saw a ghost."

Cleo nodded, biting her lip. "Yeah, something's definitely wrong. I've never seen her this panicked before."

The two of them gathered their belongings quickly, hurrying out of the classroom after Luna. As they stepped into the hallway, Cleo glanced back one last time, catching sight of Kai still at his desk, calmly packing his things. His expression remained the same—cold, detached—but his gaze lingered on the door Luna had rushed out of.

Max nudged her. "Come on, we've got to check on her."

Cleo followed, but she couldn't shake the feeling of Kai's silent presence behind them. His stare, though calm, felt unnerving, as if he knew more than he let on. As they turned the corner, leaving Kai behind, Cleo's thoughts were already racing, wondering what could have shaken Luna so badly—and why Kai always seemed to be watching everything so closely.