Chapter 25

After lunch, it felt as if the atmosphere crackled with tension as students hurried through the bustling hallways. The corridors of Shadow High echoed with animated conversations and the shuffling of feet.

I was on my way to my next class period when a voice stopped me in my tracks.

"Shana!" Jessica's voice sliced through the clamor, instantly capturing the attention of those nearby. With unwavering determination, she closed in on me, flanked by her loyal followers.

Whispers filled the air, heads turning to witness the brewing confrontation.

My heart raced as I stood face-to-face with Jessica. She was staring at me as if she wanted to cause me physical harm. What did she want with me now?

"We need to talk," she said, her voice carrying a sense of urgency.

"I have nothing to say to you." I tried to walk away, but she swiftly reached out and grabbed my elbow, pulling me back. I yanked my arm free, scowling. "Don't touch me."

Jessica's followers snickered at my defiance.

"I do what I want," Jessica chuckled, joining in their laughter. But then, her amusement transformed into bewilderment. "I saw you and Lucas training yesterday."

"So what?" I retorted, scanning the growing crowd around us. "Lucas and I train together all the time now."

"No, you don't get it." Jessica stepped closer, her tone growing more intense. "I saw the two of you. Together."

My palms began to sweat as I realized the severity of the situation. The incident from the previous day had come back to haunt me, and now I understood that it was Jessica who had been spying on us.

I maintained my composure, meeting Jessica's piercing gaze, and spoke with unwavering resolve, "Jessica, Lucas and I are just friends. There's nothing more to it."

A devious smirk played on Jessica's lips as she crossed her arms, feigning disbelief. "Just friends, huh? That's not how it looked at training yesterday. You and Lucas seemed pretty cozy, Shana."

A surge of frustration coursed through me, but I refused to let Jessica's taunts penetrate my defenses. "You've misinterpreted the situation. There's nothing going on between us!"

Jessica's eyes narrowed, and her words dripped with venom. "Oh, spare us the act, Shana. Everyone knows about your long-standing infatuation with Lucas. It's pitiful."

The gathering crowd fueled Jessica's audacity, goading her on to further attack me. Anger surged within me, but I fought to keep it in check.

Succumbing to Jessica's level would only serve to escalate the situation.

"We're friends—We've been friends since we were kids! That's all there is to it."

"Liar!"

It appeared Jessica wasn't content with mere verbal torment. In a sudden burst of aggression, she forcefully shoved me, catching me off guard.

I stumbled backward, instinctively bracing myself against the impact.

But in that moment, something shifted within me.

I could feel an explicable strength coursing through my veins.

The more I trained recently, the more I felt this special strength.

At first, I thought it was adrenaline…

But now anger merged with newfound strength, igniting a fire within me.

Something within me was starting to feel… different.

Good different.

No longer willing to be Jessica's target, I straightened my posture.

The crowd gasped, their attention now fixated on the clash unfolding before them.

Swiftly, I raised my hand to block another attempted shove from Jessica. It was an instinctual move, powered by the raw strength that surged through me. I stood my ground, refusing to yield.

In a surprising turn of events, the hallway transformed into the training arena as I launched myself at Jessica, engaging in a fierce exchange of blows.

Our movements blurred with fury and resilience, drawing gasps and cheers from the onlooking students.

I remembered Lucas's advice to block my face as I threw punches at her.

Jessica's expression shifted to one of surprise. "Where did you learn that?"

She attempted to push herself into me, but I swiftly evaded her, drawing gasps from the onlooking crowd.

In that moment, it became evident that the tables had turned. Jessica and I were evenly matched, and as our clash intensified, a profound realization washed over me—

I was no longer the weak girl she thought I was.

My training had fortified me, physically and mentally, to resist Jessica's relentless assault.

With precision and agility, I struck back, defying the expectations of both Jessica and the spectators.

The one-sided power dynamic began to shift, and whispers of awe and admiration filled the hallway.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw flashes of cameras going off, recording our fight.

Great, this was going to end up all over the Shadow High group chat. I thought. If the Dean got word of this, we'd both be in serious trouble.

I tried to shake the worry away as a newfound resilience ran through me.

Jessica’s strikes hurt me, but confidence washed over me as I realized I was also tiring Jessica out. She panted after every blow, appearing as if she was trying to keep up with me.

With each strike, I reclaimed my power and shattered the chains that Jessica had attempted to confine me with.

Weak.

Easily Intimidated.

Bad Luck.

Different.

I was finally going to show everyone that my identity as wolfless didn't define me. I wasn't going to be punished anymore for who I was.

As the fight raged on, the crowd stood witness to a transformation of strength and determination.

Jessica got desperate and finally reached her claws out to me.

I realized she was going to use her wolf to fight me.

People tend to show their weak spots when they are tired and desperate to win.

Lucas’s words about fighting someone stronger than me come back into my mind.

When her claws contacted my skin, I slightly evaded and reached to her face from her side with my fist.

Jessica yelped in pain, stumbling backwards. “You bitch! You just punched my eye!”

She came at me with full force to recover from her loss.

I wiped the blood from the scratch on my jaw.

The angrier she became, the more I could spot her weaknesses.

As the fight raged on, the crowd stood witness to a transformation of strength and determination.

No matter how much Jessica tried, I knew I had emerged victorious, not just in the physical altercation, but in reclaiming my identity.

I just wished Lucas could be here to see this—to see that all of my hard work meant something.

Because of everything I’ve learned from him, I was finally able to defend myself.

Jessica stepped closer to me in an attempt to startle me, but I was prepared. She left me the perfect opportunity to swing my foot back over her heel and quickly stepped aside.

It felt like slow motion as Jessica fell to the ground. Her eyes were wide and terrified, showcasing disbelief.

A hush fell over the hallway as her body fell to the ground and I stood over her with my fists clenched at my sides.

The both of us breathed heavily as the onlookers were left in awe of the unexpected turn of events.

Jessica stepped closer to me in an attempt to fight again, but a few students pulled us away from each other. Probably afraid of us hurting each other even more.

A sudden sense of unease overwhelmed me as I realized what I had just done.

Holy shit, Shana. Did you really just do that? Did you really just take Jessica down in front of the entire school?

I heard whispers from the crowd:

"Did you see that?"

"Was that the wolfless freak?"

"Did she just punch Jessica in her face?"

"How is that even possible?"

I ignored all of their comments, wanting to run away as fast as possible.

But I was being held back by random students. And I realized that I should hold my head high at this moment.

I stood my ground amidst the crowd, refusing to be defined by their perceptions.

A smile of triumph graced my lips as I shattered their expectations.

I defeated Jessica, and everyone had witnessed it.