Rooming With Royals ✔️

The bell shrieked, slicing through the agonizing drone of Mrs. Hartley’s lecture. I practically vaulted from my seat, a sigh of pure relief escaping my lips. Another day, another hour of mind-numbing boredom endured. My locker, a battered metal fortress, was my next destination, and I yanked it open, pulling out my books with a practiced ease.
Then, a shadow fell over me. A familiar, sickeningly sweet voice cut through the hallway’s chaos. "You’re not wanted in this school." April, the school’s resident queen bee, sneered, her eyes raking over me with practiced disdain.
I slammed my locker shut, the metallic clang echoing my rising fury. "Shut up." I shoved her, hard, watching with grim satisfaction as she stumbled. Frustration, annoyance, anger – a toxic cocktail brewed inside me. I’d had a horrible day, and I wasn't about to let her make it worse. April glared, then flounced off, her gaggle of 'followers' trailing like pathetic, lost puppies.
My eyes narrowed, scanning the hallway. Everyone was gawking, of course, but quickly looked away when they met my gaze. Idiots. I chuckled, a low, humorless sound, and continued down the hall. School. Who cared about school, anyway?
