Chapter 16 : The Rescue

One sunny noon, the sky was painted a beautiful blue, tinted with white clouds. Sun lights beat down on our faces, warm but not overly hot. Flowers showed off their bright reds and light yellows and soft pinks and pure whites and strong purples even more than before, as if they knew that summer is closing in and they will have no more energy to shine. Elodie and I was walking on the playground, talking about a movie that recently came out.

     As we approached the South side of the track Elodie tugged on my sleeve and pointed to a crowd gathered. They were pointing and chattering.

      “What’s there?” she asked me, her voice so low I barely heard her.

      Then I heard it—a wheezing, choked breath.

     I pushed past the crowd and saw her. Samantha Reyes.

     One of the most well-liked girls in our class, she had the kind of popularity that wasn’t cruel or fake. She was smart, athletic, and naturally charismatic—people just gravitated toward her. But right now, none of that mattered.

     She was on her knees, her face pale, gripping at her chest with shaking fingers. She was struggling to breathe.

     I recognized this. When I was 5, one of my friends had the exact same symptoms when we were playing tag. Her mother had hurried over and held something over her mouth and soon she was okay again. I think it was called asthma.

     Panic rose in me as I took a step forward. “Where’s her medicine?”

     The crowd murmured, but no one answered.

     Then Samantha gasped out, “Locker... couldn’t get it...”

     I didn’t wait to hear more. “Where’s your locker?”

     She pointed weakly down the hall, and I ran. I ran faster than I ever did, like an eagle swooping, throwing all those reminders of not to run in the hallways far, far behind.

     Elodie was right behind me, her footsteps quick as we weaved through the other students. The second we reached the locker, she helped me yank it open, rummaging past books and bags until I saw it—the small blue inhaler resting in the back corner.

     We sprinted back.

     By the time we reached Samantha, she was worse—her lips were slightly blue, her hands clutching at her throat as she desperately fought for air. I dropped to my knees and pressed the inhaler into her hands.

    She took it with rigid fingers, shakily bringing it to her mouth, pressing down. One breath. Another. A third.

     Slowly, the color returned to her face. Her breathing steadied.

     Elodie let out a relieved sigh, and I felt my heart finally start beating at a normal pace again.

     Samantha coughed, still a little weak, but she looked up at me with something I hadn’t seen from anyone in a long time. Respect.

“You…” She swallowed, then gave a breathless laugh. “You really saved me.”

I shook my head. “I just did what anyone should’ve done.”

     At that, her expression darkened slightly. “No. Everyone else just stood there.” She looked around, eyes narrowing at the classmates who had watched but done nothing. Some of them shuffled uncomfortably under her gaze. Some of her loyal sidekicks looked as if they expected Samantha to murder them or something.

    Then, Samantha turned back to me and Elodie, offering a small smile. “Thank you. Really.”

     Elodie beamed. “Not a big deal. I know you would have done it too if it was me in your place.”

     Samantha hesitated for a second before straightening, her confidence returning. “You guys… want to sit with me at lunch tomorrow?”

     My heart skipped a beat.

    Someone popular—someone people actually liked—was offering us a seat with her?

     I glanced at Elodie, and she gave me the tiniest of nods.

     “We’d like that,” I said, holding my voice down best I could.

     Samantha grinned. “Good.”

     And just like that, everything started to change.

     The next day at lunch, we joined Samantha’s table.

     And people noticed.

     They saw us laughing, talking, as if we belonged there. And slowly, the others started to change their tune. A few classmates actually made conversation with me again, and they did it more publicly. A few smiled at Elodie in the halls. More and more people discharged from Felicia’s table to sit with us. The isolation that had clung to us for weeks started to crack.

     Felicia and her friends? They watched from the corner, eyes dark with something between disbelief and anger.

     They had pushed us down, thinking we’d stay at the bottom.

     But we had climbed back up.

***

     The atmosphere in the classroom had shifted dramatically. The whispers had quieted, the cold stares softened, and there were actually people who would glance at me and give a smile—not just Samantha’s circle of friends, but even some classmates who had ignored me for the past few months. It felt strange. I couldn’t help but notice the subtle change: I wasn’t invisible anymore. I have a name, respect, a rep. A few weeks before, this is so much for me to even dream of.

     But there was still Felicia and her friends to think about.

     She hovered around the edges, like a vulture waiting for the perfect moment to strike. There was no doubt in my mind that she was plotting something, trying to find a weakness to dragg me back down. She didn’t like that I was slowly slipping from her control, and that made her dangerous.

     One afternoon, I was carefully organizing my textbooks after class, trying to gather my things in a hurry so I wouldn’t be late for my next session with Elodie. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around, only to be met by Felicia, Rachel and Ivy.

     I froze. Dark memories assaulted my brain, of them throwing my stuff, hitting me. I totally forgot I was not in the place anymore.

     Felicia’s smile was all too sweet, too fake. “Well, look who it is,” she said, her tone oozing with mock sweetness. “Serena, the new ‘top’ student. I see you’ve climbed to the top, huh? Must feel good, being so close to the top of the social ladder.”

     Her voice was laced with venom, but she wrapped it up in a silky sweetness that was almost believable if you weren’t paying attention.

     I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, unsure of how to respond. I wanted to ignore her, to just walk away. But I knew better.

     Ivy, standing next to Felicia, gave me a sly smile that made my stomach churn. “But I bet you know what happens when you’re not part of the ‘in crowd,’ huh?”

     Before I could react, Rachel took a step closer, her eyes narrowing. “You’re still nothing, Serena. No matter how much you pretend to be somebody.”

     A chill ran through me, but I didn’t back down. I just stood there, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’m not pretending, Felicia. I’m just… I’m just living my life. I have the right to live as Serena.”

     Felicia’s lips curled into a mocking smirk. “Living your life? Don’t kid yourself. You’re here because you wagged your sorry tail and Samantha decided to throw you a bone. You’re nothing but a charity case, a joke. And it’s funny—because you think they’ll keep you around, but you’re just a temporary distraction.”

     I tried to hold my ground, but the words stung. It felt like everything I had been trying to build was being torn down in front of me, bit by bit.

     Just then, I heard a voice that cut through the tension like a knife.

    “Enough.”

     I turned to see Samantha. She stood near the desk, her arms crossed in front of her. Her posture was strong, confident—she didn’t look the slightest bit intimidated by Felicia or Ivy. Her most trusted sidekicks—Julie and Gracie—flanked her, making her seem like a general with an army of men ready the crush the bullies like ants.

     Felicia’s eyes widened. She wasn’t expecting Samantha to step in, and for a brief second, she faltered. Ivy shifted uncomfortably, clearly unsure of what was happening. Rachel stepped back, biting her lip.

     Samantha didn’t wait for any kind of response. She took a few steps forward, closing the distance between her and Felicia. “Felicia, I don’t know what your problem is, but you better stop picking on Serena. You’ve done enough.”

     Felicia opened her mouth to say something, but Samantha silenced her with a sharp wave of her hand. “No, let me finish. You’ve been bullying her for months, trying to make her feel like she doesn’t belong. And that stops right now. If you even think about continuing this, you’ll have to deal with me.”

     Felicia’s bravado started to falter. Her usual confidence was cracking. She opened her mouth to speak but paused, sensing the change in the room.

     “I don’t think you want to go there, Felicia,” Samantha said, her voice firm. “I’m done watching you pick on people who can’t stand up for themselves. If you have a problem with Serena, then you’ll have to deal with me.”

     For a moment, there was silence—just the faint sound of students whispering behind us. Felicia’s face flushed with rage, but she seemed to understand that Samantha wasn’t going to back down. Slowly, Felicia closed her mouth, and Ivy, too, remained quiet. They didn’t know how to respond.

     With a sharp flick of her wrist, Samantha turned and faced me, her expression softening. “You okay?”

     I nodded, my heart swelling with gratitude. “Yeah, I think so.”

     “Good.” Samantha smiled. “I’m not going to let anyone mess with you anymore. And you don’t have to face this alone.”

     I smiled back, feeling a weight lift from my shoulders. For the first time in a long time, I felt like I belonged. Like I had a place.

     Felicia and Ivy exchanged a quick glance before they turned and stormed off, their silence speaking volumes. It was the first time in weeks I didn’t feel like the world was about to collapse around me.

     Samantha’s eyes softened as she placed a hand on my shoulder. “Let’s go. We’ve got a table to get to.”

     As we walked toward the cafeteria, I couldn’t help but feel a little lighter. With Samantha standing by me, I knew I could face anything. The bullies didn’t have control over me anymore.

     And it felt good to finally have someone on my side.