Follow Me...

The chill of October 1st bit at Autumn Barrett, a stark reminder of the season's change. She walked towards Doves End High, each step a practiced rhythm against the concrete sidewalk. "One breath in, one breath out, you don't have to deal with everything all at once," she repeated, a mantra against the swirling anxieties within.

Beside her, Luke Kent and Ryan Armitage bickered about Sandy Quinn’s viral Snapchat video. “It’s fake,” Luke insisted, convinced it was just another one of Sandy’s stunts for followers. Ryan, ever the gentle one, nudged Autumn, seeking her opinion. A stress headache, like white-hot needles, pricked at her brain. She knew Sandy, knew her thirst for attention, but a part of her wondered if this was different.

Doves End High loomed, as imposing and impersonal as ever, its grey facade matching the overcast sky. Autumn paused, a familiar tightness in her chest. Rejoining school after months away felt like stepping into a different life. She tried to convince herself she was ready, but the churning in her stomach told a different story. Every familiar face, every whispered word, felt like a fresh assault on her fragile composure.