6:41 AM – Just Outside Newport City
It had rained the night before.
The forest still smelled like wet leaves and old soil. Mist clung to the ground like a secret that didn't want to rise. Somewhere, a dog barked. Distant. Echoing.
Then… silence.
A bird flew up from the trees as if startled, wings slicing through the quiet. But nothing followed. No noise. No footsteps. No reason.
Except… the earth had shifted slightly. As if it had breathed something in.
Maria's Day School – 8:00 AM
The gates groaned open like every other morning.
Maria's Day School was spotless, expensive, and exhausting. The kind of place where students wore ties tighter than their friendships. Where everyone either scored high, looked good, or pretended well.
Inside, conversations ran on autopilot.
"Did you revise for bio?"
"Sir's checking the assignment today, I swear—"
"Aarushi! He texted me back, finally!"
"Bro this bag is fake—can't believe she flexed that."
Everything normal.
Until he walked in.
No announcement. No new student introduction.
He just entered.
Tall. Calm. Dressed exactly like everyone else, yet nothing like them.
His blazer fit like it had been made for him. His black school shoes touched the ground like they didn't need it. His collar was unbuttoned—just one button, but it made him look untouchable.
And his eyes…
They weren't cold.
But they weren't warm either.
Sharp. Direct. Still.
Not a boy trying to impress.
A boy who didn't care who was watching.
Girls' Side of the Hallway
It started with Maya.
She didn't mean to look. She was just picking up her water bottle. But something in her chest pulled her attention—like her body noticed him before her eyes did.
And when she saw him, everything in her line of sight blurred.
He wasn't smiling.
Wasn't looking at anyone in particular.
But the way he moved—
Straight. Silent. Controlled.
It made her forget what she was doing.
The bottle dropped again.
A few steps away, Zoya actually stepped into the wall.
"Ow—what the hell…" she blinked, turning—then stopped.
"Oh."
"Oh, he's—"
"Shh. Look at his jawline."
Meher just whispered, "Holy sh*t," like it was a prayer.
Then turned to Naina.
"Please don't fall for him."
"I already did," Naina replied flatly. "It's over for all of us."
Within minutes, every girl on the first floor hallway knew two things:
1. He wasn't normal.
2. He wasn't trying to be liked.
And that somehow made him even harder to ignore.
"Did he look at me?"
"No. I don't think he even sees people."
"So mysterious…"
"It's hot."
"He's giving… tortured soul vibes."
"Wait—he sat next to Maya?"
"WHAT?"
"No. F***ing. Way."
Boys' Group Energy: Shaken
"Dude's acting like he owns the place."
"Who even is he?"
"Did you see how girls looked at him?"
"That's not real. Bro just walked in and stole everyone's attention."
"Arrogant much?"
"He won't last. Watch."
Ravi clenched his jaw as he watched the hallway reaction.
Girls who never looked twice at him were frozen now. Their eyes followed that one boy like he had dragged the sunlight in behind him.
"Someone needs to put him in place," Ravi muttered.
Principal's Office – 8:10 AM
"Name?"
"Marshy Verne."
"Last school?"
"Private. Files are uploaded."
The principal looked at the documents.
Everything was there—grades, ID proof, transfers, medical file.
All correct.
Too correct.
He raised an eyebrow.
"You don't say much, do you?"
"I say what's necessary."
"Hmm. You've been added to Class 9-A."
Class 9-A – 8:15 AM
The classroom door opened.
Voices died.
Even chairs stopped creaking.
Twenty-four students turned. And froze.
Maya's pen stopped mid-word.
Her lips parted slightly, but she didn't speak.
She just stared.
Something in her chest moved. Not fast. Not loud.
But deep.
Like recognition without memory.
Marshy scanned the room—not curiously, but carefully.
Then walked straight to the seat beside the window.
Second row. Middle.
Next to Maya.
He sat.
Didn't speak.
Didn't even glance sideways.
The teacher adjusted her glasses, a little thrown off.
"Class, this is—"
"I'm Marshy," he said, voice low. "Ignore me."
And just like that, he leaned back slightly in his chair.
The class resumed.
Or pretended to.
Because every girl had the same problem now.
They couldn't look away.
And every boy had one thought:
"What makes him so special?"
Behind him, Maya stared at her page. The words blurred.
She didn't know who he was.
She didn't know where he came from.
But something about him…
Felt like he'd been carrying silence for too long.
12:37 PM – Lunch Break
The school was loud again.
Canteen trays clattered. Voices bounced off the walls. Students swarmed into their usual groups—some laughing over memes, some dying over chemistry, some silently scrolling through their phones.
But Marshy had disappeared.
No one saw where he went.
Only Maya noticed his seat was empty before anyone else did.
And somehow, that bothered her.
She didn't even know why.
Rooftop
The rooftop door was usually locked.
But not today.
Marshy stood at the edge, his blazer hanging loose behind him, one hand resting on the rusted railing. The city stretched beyond—silent traffic, quiet clouds, a breeze that barely moved his hair.
His face was blank. Calm.
But his fingers… kept tapping the railing in a slow rhythm. Like he was counting something. Or waiting.
Behind him, the door opened.
Heavy boots. Loud laughter.
Ravi.
With two of his boys—Aman and Daksh.
"Well, well," Ravi said, stretching his arms like he owned the air. "Look who thinks he's above us. Literally."
Marshy didn't turn around.
"Hiding on the rooftop now?" Ravi walked closer, chewing gum. "Or do you just think the rest of us aren't worth breathing near?"
Still no reply.
Daksh scoffed. "Is he deaf?"
Aman laughed. "He's mute, bro. Too busy looking pretty."
Finally, Marshy turned. Slowly. No reaction. No change in posture.
Just one look.
"You done talking?"
His voice was even. Too even.
Ravi took a step forward, fake smile dropping.
"You think you're better than everyone?"
Marshy replied, "I don't think about you at all."
It was quiet.
For a second.
Then the punch came.
Ravi's fist hit Marshy's jaw with a dull thud.
His head snapped to the side.
Blood touched his lower lip.
He didn't fall.
Didn't cry out.
Didn't even flinch.
He just… looked back at Ravi.
Straight in the eye.
"Hit him again," Daksh said.
Ravi didn't wait.
Second punch — this time to the stomach.
Marshy bent slightly. One knee dipped. A grunt escaped.
Still, he didn't swing back.
Downstairs – Maya
Maya was heading up the stairs, half wondering if he was on the terrace.
Her friends had dared her to go check.
"Go na, maybe he's crying in the corner like a tragic hero."
"Or brooding at the sky, obviously."
"You have the best chance. He sits next to you."
She rolled her eyes at them but… still came up.
As she reached the door, she heard a hit. Then a second.
Then she heard him.
"I don't think about you at all."
She froze.
Her heart dropped.
She opened the rooftop door slowly—quiet enough not to be seen.
Her breath caught.
Three boys. One cornered.
And Marshy…
Bleeding, but not broken.
---
Then—A Voice. From the Stairs.
"Enough."
Steps.
Calm, heavy, steady.
Another boy walked in.
Ayush Kumar Thakur.
Rough-cut hair, white shirt sleeves folded. Not tall, but anchored. The kind of boy who didn't speak often, but when he did—people listened.
He looked at Ravi, expression unreadable.
"Pick on someone who actually fights back."
Ravi sneered. "This isn't your fight."
Ayush stepped forward. Slowly. No rush.
"Now it is."
Daksh shifted uneasily.
Ravi hesitated. Something about Ayush was always hard to explain. He wasn't loud. Wasn't muscular like them.
But there was something… solid in him.
A kind of quiet threat no one wanted to test.
Ravi spit on the ground.
"Not worth it."
They turned and left. No jokes. No laughter.
Just silence.
Aftermath
Ayush walked up to Marshy.
"You good?"
Marshy wiped his lip with the back of his hand.
"I'm still standing."
"Yeah. That's something."
"You don't hit back?"
"Didn't feel the need."
"Next time, feel it," Ayush said. "Or at least duck."
Marshy gave the faintest smile.
Almost unnoticeable.
But Maya saw it from the door.
And something in her chest twisted again.
Later That Evening – Maya's Notebook
She didn't even realize she had written his name three times on the corner of the last page.
Marshy.
Marshy Verne.
Marshy V.
She scratched it out before anyone could see.
But her mind… wasn't done.
She remembered the blood on his lip.
And the way he didn't hit back.
And the way his eyes didn't match his age.
8:00 PM – Maya's Room
The room was quiet. But her thoughts weren't.
The fan spun slowly above her. The lights were off. Only the soft blue of her desk lamp lit the space.
Her notebook lay open.
She wasn't writing. Just staring.
At the single line she had scribbled again and again… without realizing.
"Why didn't he fight back?"
She bit the end of her pen. Closed her eyes.
His face flashed again.
Not the blood. Not the punches.
The calm.
The way he looked at Ravi—like violence was beneath him. Like nothing could really reach him.
But something had.
Just for a moment.
That tiny flicker of pain he didn't let out, but couldn't completely hide either.
It hit her chest again. That weight.
She didn't know this boy. Didn't know where he came from. Why he looked like that. Moved like that. Stayed so damn quiet.
But she couldn't stop thinking about him.
Girls' Group Chat – 9:16 PM
Naina: She was on the rooftop. I saw her.
Zoya: Maya?
Meher: Wait fr???
Naina: Yup. Just standing there.
Aarushi: Why was she even up there?
Naina: She's acting like she doesn't care. But she sat next to him first day and now this???
Meher: I SWEAR she always gets the quiet hot ones
Zoya: I mean she's sweet but like…
Aarushi: Let's just say, she better not flirt.
Naina: Too late. She probably already made eye contact and fell in love
Next Morning – Classroom Before Bell
Marshy was already in his seat.
Maya walked in five minutes early. She usually didn't.
She paused at the door, then walked to her chair next to him.
He didn't glance at her.
But he knew she was there. She felt that.
She sat down slowly. Fumbled with her pencil. Tried to ignore the looks from Meher and Naina behind her.
Silence.
Then…
"You alright?" she whispered, without turning to him.
A pause.
He blinked once.
"Yes."
His voice wasn't cold.
It was… factual.
She nodded. Looked forward.
And then, almost without thinking—
"Why didn't you hit back?"
He didn't answer at first. She thought he wouldn't.
But then—
"What would it change?"
That's all he said.
She looked at him, really looked.
His face was blank.
But his eyes…
They held something tired. Older. Like he'd seen too many fights already.
And suddenly, she didn't want to ask anything else.
Behind Them – Girls Whispering
"She's talking to him now?"
"This is getting annoying."
"How does she always end up close to these types?"
"Maybe she plays the quiet card. Pretends she's not interested."
Naina muttered, "We'll see how long that lasts."
Break Time – School Courtyard
Marshy sat on a bench, alone.
Ayush walked over with a juice box and dropped it on the bench beside him.
"For the record," Ayush said, "I wasn't trying to be a hero yesterday."
Marshy looked at the box. Then at him.
"I know."
"Just hate guys like Ravi. Think fear equals respect."
"It usually does," Marshy said.
"Doesn't mean it should."
Ayush sat down beside him.
"You fight?"
"Only when I have to."
"Hmm," Ayush said. "Hope you don't have to again. But… if you do, don't bleed alone."
Marshy turned his face slightly. Almost smiled again. Almost.
Ayush noticed.
"You're weird, man."
"I get that a lot."
They both sat silently. But it wasn't awkward.
Just… peaceful.
Meanwhile – Ravi, Watching
From across the courtyard, Ravi stared.
Jaw tight. Eyes cold.
He saw Marshy talking to Ayush.
Saw Maya walking past, her eyes flicking toward them.
He clenched his fist under the table.
This wasn't over.