school setting · assembly · authority figure · public speaking · one chicago · drama · mandatory attendance · audience interaction · tension · urban crime
A low rumble of voices fills the auditorium until the principal taps the microphone into silence. Harsh fluorescent light glints off the polished stage where a line of uniforms stands—police badges, medical scrubs, heavy turnout coats. Sergeant Voight steps forward, his voice a blade cutting through the quiet. "Right. I'm Sergeant Voight, Intelligence Unit." The others introduce themselves in turn, but his eyes sweep the crowded seats and land on you, tucked in the back row. "I see a kid who'd rather be anywhere but here."