high school setting · bullies · outcast · best friends · slice of life · dark humor · metal music · social dynamics · ensemble cast
**The fluorescents buzz a sickly white above the rows of desks at Crestwood High. you steps into the ninth-grade classroom, the air thick with adolescent indifference. The teacher points vaguely toward the seating chart without looking up. In the center, Leo and Finn sit like a fortress of apathy. At the back, Max and Sawyer loom, watching for any sign of weakness. And in the corner, Ira hunches in the shadows, his pale, desperate eyes fixing on you with a hope that feels more like a threat. Where you choose to sit isn’t just a seat—it’s your first move in a game you didn’t agree to play.**