Ruz's POV
The event still rumbled behind us as Liam and Josh walked beside me toward the parking lot. Liam looked like his soul was quietly questioning every choice that had led him to this moment.
"I have a question," he said.
I glanced at him as we walked.
"What?"
"…Who are you?"
I thought for a moment. Then I smiled.
"…Depends on the day."
"And the target," Josh added.
We stopped near the parking lot.
Liam let out a long, suffering sigh.
"You two are evil. You took an innocent boy and turned him into a criminal."
"You were never innocent," Josh and I said in perfect unison.
Liam looked offended.
"That hurt my feelings."
"Good," Josh replied.
A few seconds later, the two of them started arguing about something completely unimportant. Neither of them seemed to know what they were arguing about anymore. They both climbed into Liam's car.
His driver has the patience of a saint, to tolerate him the whole journey home. Liam once told me his mom doesn't want to leave him alone not because she's afraid not for him, but for the car. What if he crashes it?
And for the first time all day, I was alone.
Clouds drifted lazily overhead, completely indifferent to everything that had happened below.
How I had spent the entire day laughing with them.
How we had practically created a death notebook for the Velvet Girls.
How I had screamed alongside Danica like we were competing in some bizarre screaming championship.
How I had dramatically shouted,
"I almost died!"
A quiet laugh escaped me.
Then I realized what I was doing.
The laugh faded.
The smile followed.
I've been here for less than a month.
Less than a month.
And somehow I'd already started forgetting myself.
I didn't even know some of their full names.
Yet I laughed with them.
Roamed around with them.
My expression settled back into its familiar calm.
Zayn appeared out of nowhere. He stood beside me, calm, hands in his pockets.
"You started already."
I Didn't look at him
"They started first."
He leaned against his car casually. I stood facing him.
"So you finished them."
"They planned it against me. They wanted to embarrass me, they tried to make me fall. What if I had gotten hurt instead?"
He snorted a laugh.
"You're impossible."
"So are you," I shot back. "You laughed today… so hard."
"After a long time," he admitted.
"Yeah… after a long time."
A brief silence stretched between us.
Then I hesitated.
"…Do you still miss him?" I asked.
Zayn blinked once.
Then his expression shifted half annoyed, half amused.
"Don't ask me that," he said. "I want to punch him. Just once."
That made me laugh under my breath.
"Me too."
"He drives us crazy," Zayn continued. "If I saw him right now, I might actually end up fighting him."
"Yeah," I nodded. "He deserves it."
A beat.
He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out two chocolates, and held one out to me.
My face lit up immediately.
My favorite.
Actually, our favorite.
"Oh," I said, unable to hide my smile. "You remembered."
A small smirk appeared on his face.
"Always."
I rolled my eyes, but I took the chocolate anyway.
"Show off."
"You're welcome."
I leaned against the car beside him. At the same time, we unwrapped the chocolates, the familiar crinkle of the wrappers breaking the silence.
I took a bite and sighed dramatically.
"Still perfect."
Zayn chuckled.
"Ruz," he said suddenly.
"Hm?"
"What is Adrian to you?"
I nearly choked on the chocolate.
My eyebrows shot up.
"What kind of question is that?"
His face stayed completely straight.
"A normal one."
I narrowed my eyes on him.
"He's my brother. Cousin, actually. His family adopted me two years ago."
Zayn paused mid bite.
"…Oh."
A beat.
"Wait… you still use 'Cruz'?"
"Hm."
"And Adrian…." he tilted his head slightly, thinking. "Cruz?"
I blinked, a little confused by what he was trying to ask.
"…Wait. You used to use 'Cruz' before your adoption… you still do?"
I exhaled sharply and shook my head slightly.
"Let me clear this up," I said slowly. "Tita and Tito….Adrian's parents. They used their surname to enroll me in school as my guardians when I was younger. So they allowed me to use it."
I paused.
"Now I'm officially a Cruz. They adopted me."
Zayn nodded once.
"Oh."
Then, after a beat,
"…You still call them Tita and Tito?"
"I'm not used to it yet," I admitted. "And they understand me."
Another pause.
"After Lola Gloria died, they officially adopted me. But for school… for my studies, I had to stay with them for two more years with Lola Ana."
My voice softened slightly.
"Then… for a reason, they finally decided to bring me here."
He looked at me, took a dramatic bite.
"You definitely got into a fight, didn't you?"
I gave him a weird grin with my teeth.
"Hehehe."
"You're insane."
"I know." I agreed easily.
"So what's your real surname?"
The question caught me off guard.
My smile faded slightly, and judging by the way Zayn's expression shifted, he noticed.
"Mendoza."
He repeated it under his breath, testing the sound of it.
"Ruzelle Richelle Mendoza. Not bad."
He placed his hand around my shoulder and pulled me into a side hug.
The gesture was easy and familiar, more like something an older brother would do than anything else.
Before I could complain, his hand landed on top of my head and ruffled my hair.
I immediately swatted at him.
"Hey."
He ignored me.
"See? Mendoza suits you."
"Stop acting like you're some kind of surname expert."
"I'm very qualified."
"Qualified in being annoying."
For a moment, neither of us moved.
The evening breeze drifted through the parking lot. The noise from the school grounds had faded into the distance, leaving behind a rare pocket of quiet.
Strangely enough, it wasn't awkward.
Just... comfortable.
Then his phone rang.
Zayn let go of me and pulled his phone from his pocket.
"Hello?" he answered. "Yeah, I'm on my way."
A brief pause.
"Okay. See you soon."
He ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket.
"Ate Mia," he said. "She's wondering if I plan on going home today."
I snorted.
"Fair question."
He took a step back toward his car.
"I have to go."
I nodded once.
For a second, neither of us said anything.
Then he opened the driver's door and slid inside.
The engine started with a low hum.
Just before pulling away, he rolled down the window and leaned out.
"Hey, Miss Gulo," he called. "Have some mercy on those poor girls."
I stared at him.
"Drive before I throw something at you."
His laugh followed him down the road as he pulled away.
I watched the taillights disappear into the distance.
Then,
"Hey, Adopted. Ready to go home?"
Not again.
I turned around.
Who else could it be?
My partner in crime.
My keeper of secrets.
My incredibly annoying brother.
Adrian.
He was walking toward me looking like he had just stepped out of a fashion magazine effortlessly stylish and unbelievably irritating.
"I warned you last time," I said. "Don't call me that."
He didn't stop.
Didn't slow down.
He just pulled a face that perfectly mimicked my annoyance.
"Whatever. Get in the car."
I rolled my eyes.
"You're impossible."
"And yet, here we are."
I muttered something under my breath and followed him to the car.
A moment later, I climbed into the passenger seat.
Adrian started the engine.
Neither of us spoke.
The comfortable silence settled between us as the car pulled away from the school and into the evening traffic.
Author POV
Next morning
The school looked different this morning. Not physically. But the atmospherely.
Students walked through the halls with a different kind of energy. Not the nervous excitement of the first day, not the competitive fire of the middle days, but something closer to resignation mixed with anticipation. Everyone knew that today was the end. Everyone knew that today would decide everything.
And everyone knew that the Velvet Girls had been humiliated yesterday.
The glitter had been cleaned from the lockers. The adhesive gel had been scraped off the floor. Danica had stopped muttering curses under her breath sometime around midnight, according to rumors.
But the humiliation remained.
It clung to them like the glitter had clung to Clarisse's hair invisible in some lights, but always there, always noticeable, always reminding everyone what had happened.
And today, the final day of the festival, they wanted revenge.
Ruz arrived at school earlier than usual.
The gates were still quiet when she walked through them, her bag slung over one shoulder, her footsteps steady against the pavement. The morning light was golden and soft, the kind of light that made everything look peaceful and safe.
She knew better.
Peaceful and safe were lies that schools told themselves. The truth was always underneath, waiting to come out.
She walked through the empty hallways, her shoes squeaking softly against the polished floors. The silence was strangely disorienting after four days of constant noise and chaos. No students yelling. No teachers blowing whistles. No announcements crackling through speakers.
Just her.
And then, footsteps.
Not heavy. Not rushed. Just a present.
She turned around.
"You are early," Josh said.
"So are you," she replied.
"I could not sleep."
"Neither could I."
They walked in silence for a few steps, the only two people in the hallway, the only two people who seemed to understand what today really meant.
Josh spoke first.
"They are going to try something today. They are going to come after us."
Ruz nodded slowly.
"I know."
"They have been planning all night. Selene sent out a group chat. Someone showed me screenshots."
"I know that too."
Josh glanced at her.
"Then why do you look so calm?"
She stopped walking.
Turned to face him.
Josh studied her face for a long moment: the sharp eyes, the controlled expression, the slight tension in her jaw that she could not quite hide.
"You are not calm at all," he said. "You are excited."
She did not deny it.
"…Maybe," she said.
And then she smiled.
It was not the small smile. It was not the dangerous smile. It was something else entirely, something wilder, something freer, something that looked like a promise and a threat wrapped together.
Josh smiled back.
It was the exact same smile.
And in that moment, something shifted between them.
"We are going to ruin them," Josh said.
"We are going to destroy them," Ruz agreed.
"Not physically."
"No. Worse. We are going to make them irrelevant."
Josh laughed, a real laugh, not the careful one he used in public.
"I like you."
"I know," Ruz said. "That is why this works."
By the time the first bell rang, the gym was already packed.
Students filled every seat, The energy was different from the previous day's more sharper, more focused, more dangerous. This was the final day, and everyone could feel it.
The Velvet Girls stood at the front of the gym, near the Section A and D area. They looked flawless, hair done, uniforms pressed, expressions composed. But if you looked closely, you could see the cracks. Bianca's jaw was too tight. Clarisse's eyes kept darting toward the entrance. Danica's hands were clenched into fists at her sides.
Selene was the only one who looked truly calm.
And that was the most dangerous thing about her.
"They are waiting for something," Liam whispered behind Ruz.
"They are waiting for us," Josh replied.
"That is not comforting."
"It is not supposed to be."
Ruz stood near the center of the gym, her arms crossed, her expression neutral. She was not looking at the Velvet Girls. She was looking at the crowd, at the way people moved, at the lines of tension that connected everyone in the room.
She was calculating.
Beside her, Josh stood with his notebook closed in his hand. He did not need to open it anymore. Everything was in his head now every plan, every contingency, every possible outcome.
"They are going to challenge us publicly," he said quietly. "In front of everyone. So we cannot refuse."
Ruz nodded. "I know."
"Are you ready?"
She glanced at him.
"I have been ready since the first day they told me to stay away from people I wanted to talk to."
Josh smirked. "Then let them come."
Selene stepped forward into the center of the gym.
The crowd quieted immediately. Not because they were told to, but because Selene had that effect on people. She moved like she owned the space, like the air itself should part to make room for her.
Her voice carried across the gym without effort.
"Today is the final day of the festival," she said. "And we have a proposal."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Section A and D vs Section C and Z," Selene continued. "Not the scheduled events. Something different. Something that everyone will remember."
She turned to look directly at Ruz.
"A head to head challenge. Winners take everything. Losers…" She paused, letting the silence stretch. "Losers accept that they do not belong at the top of this school."
The crowd erupted.
Liam grabbed Ruz's arm.
"Do not say yes. Do not say yes. This is a trap. This is obviously a trap.
Ruz did not look at him. Her eyes were locked on Selene.
"What are the terms?" she asked.
Selene smiled. It was not a nice smile.
"Three events. One academic. One physical. One wildcard. The majority wins."
"And if we refuse?"
Selene's smile widened.
"Then everyone will know that Section C and Z's are afraid of Section A and D's. That is a different kind of loss. One that does not show up on the scoreboard."
Josh stepped forward, standing beside Ruz.
"We accept," he said.
Liam made a sound like a dying animal.
"WE ACCEPT?!" he shrieked. "WE ARE ACCEPTING? WITHOUT DISCUSSION? WITHOUT A VOTE? WITHOUT A SINGLE MOMENT OF CONSIDERATION?"
"We do not need a vote," Josh said.
"We do not need consideration," Ruz added.
"WE NEED THERAPY," Liam yelled. "WE NEED THERAPY AND A TIME MACHINE AND DIFFERENT LIFE CHOICES."
The first event was announced: Academic Showdown.
Fast questions. High stakes. One mistake, and your opponent got a chance to steal.
The gym had been rearranged while everyone was talking about two podiums in the center, facing each other, surrounded by students on all sides. It looked like a duel. It was meant to look like a duel.
For Section A and D: Selene and Bianca.
For Section C and Z: Ruz and Josh.
Liam was pacing behind them. "I cannot watch. I am going to watch, but I cannot. Someone hold my hand. I need emotional support."
No one held his hand.
"The rules are simple," the announcer said. "I will ask a question. The first person to buzz in answers. If they are correct, their team gets a point. If they are incorrect, the opposing team gets a chance to answer. First to five points wins."
Selene looked at Ruz across the podiums.
"Any last words?" she asked.
Ruz tilted her head slightly.
"Save them for your apology later."
The crowd gasped.
Liam clutched his chest. "She said that out loud. In front of people. With microphones."
Question One
"What is the square root of 144?"
Ruz buzzed instantly.
"Twelve."
Correct.
The crowd cheered. Liam screamed. Josh wrote something in his notebook that no one could see.
Selene's expression did not change. But her jaw tightened slightly.
Question Two
"Who wrote 'Noli Me Tangere'?"
Bianca buzzed first, her hand slamming down on the button.
"Jose Rizal," she said confidently.
Correct.
She smirked at Ruz.
Josh leaned toward Ruz and whispered something too quiet for anyone else to hear. Ruz nodded once.
Question Three
"What is the capital of Australia?"
Both teams hesitated.
"Canberra," Ruz said after a moment.
Correct.
Bianca's smirk faded.
Question Four
"What is the chemical symbol for gold?"
Bianca buzzed first again.
"Go—" she started.
"A-u," Ruz said calmly, without buzzing, without rushing, just stating a fact.
The announcer blinked. "…Ruz answered correctly. Point to Section C and Z."
Bianca's face went red. "She did not buzz! That should not count!"
"The answer was correct," the announcer said. "The point stands."
Josh smiled slightly.
Ruz did not smile at all. She just looked at Bianca with empty eyes.
"You were saying the wrong thing anyway," she said. "You said 'Go.' Gold is not 'Go.' Gold is Au. Basic chemistry. Second grade stuff."
Bianca looked like she wanted to crawl under the podium and never come out.
Question Five
"What year did World War II end?"
Selene buzzed.
"1945," she said.
Correct.
The score was now 3-2, Section C and Z leading.
Selene looked at Ruz with something closer to respect than anger. "You are better than I expected."
Ruz shrugged. "You set the bar low."
Question Six
"What is the longest river in the world?"
Bianca buzzed frantically.
"The Amazon!" she shouted.
"Incorrect," the announcer said. "Section C and Z, your turn."
Ruz did not even pause.
"Nile," she said.
Correct.
Score: 4-2.
One more point and they won.
Selene's composure cracked. Just slightly. Just enough for Ruz to see.
Question Seven
"Who painted the Sistine Chapel?"
Bianca's hand hovered over the buzzer. She was shaking. She knew that if she got this wrong, it was over. She knew that everyone was watching. She knew that her reputation, her status, her entire carefully constructed image was on the line.
She buzzed.
"Leonardo da Vinci," she said.
Silence.
The announcer shook his head. "Incorrect. Section C and Z "
"Michelangelo," Ruz said.
Correct.
Score: 5-2.
Section C and Z won the academic round.
The crowd exploded. Liam fell to his knees. Josh closed his notebook. Ruz did not celebrate. She just looked at Bianca, who was staring at the floor, her face pale, her hands trembling.
"You said da Vinci," Ruz said quietly. "Da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa. The Sistine Chapel is Michelangelo. Different people. Different centuries. Everything is different."
Bianca did not look up.
"That was embarrassing," Ruz added. "For you. Not for me."
The second event was announced: Obstacle Course Relay.
Each team would send three runners through a course of increasingly difficult obstacles. The fastest time wins.
For Section A and D: Selene, Bianca, and Danica.
For Section C and Z: Ruz, Josh, and Nika.
Liam grabbed Ruz's shoulders. "You do not have to win this one. You already won the academic round. You only need one more. You can take it easy."
Ruz removed his hands from her shoulders.
"I do not take it easy," she said. "I take everything."
Leg One - Nika vs. Danica
The whistle blew.
Nika exploded off the starting line like she had been fired from a cannon. Danica was fast, faster than most people expected but Nika was faster. She cleared the first obstacle, a low crawl under netting, without slowing down. She hit the second obstacle, a balance beam, and ran across it like it was solid ground.
Danica stumbled on the beam.
She recovered quickly, but the damage was done.
Nika tagged Josh.
Danica tagged Selene.
Nika was already at the finish line, breathing hard but smiling.
"That one was for the glitter," she said loudly. "You deserved it."
Danica's face turned purple.
Leg Two - Josh vs. Selene
Josh did not look like an athlete. He was lean, quiet, the kind of person who spent more time reading than running. But when he moved, something changed.
He was efficient. Every step had purpose. Every jump was calculated. Every breath was measured.
Selene was graceful, beautiful to watch, flawless in form. But Josh was faster.
Not by much. By just enough.
He reached the tag point three seconds ahead of her.
He slapped Ruz's hand.
"Go," he said.
She went.
Leg Three - Ruz vs. Bianca
This was not a race.
This was a statement.
Ruz moved like water, smooth, unstoppable, finding paths through obstacles that should not have existed. She did not struggle with the climbing wall. She flowed it up. She did not hesitate at the balance beams. She walked across them like they were painted on the ground.
Bianca was fast. Bianca was trained. Bianca had been preparing for this week for months.
But Bianca was not Ruz.
By the time Ruz crossed the finish line, Bianca was still on the climbing wall.
The crowd was silent for a moment.
Then they erupted.
Liam was crying. Actual tears.
"THAT WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING I HAVE EVER SEEN," he sobbed. "I AM NOT BEING DRAMATIC. THAT WAS ART."
Ruz walked back toward her team, her breathing steady, her expression calm.
Josh held out his fist.
She bumped it.
"Two nothing," he said.
"One more," she replied.
The Wildcard
The third event was announced: Trust Fall Challenge.
Each team would select two members. One would fall backward off a platform. The other would catch them. Falls were timed. Catches were judged. The team with the highest combined score won.
Selene stepped forward. "I will fall for our team."
She looked at Bianca.
Bianca looked at the ground.
"…I cannot catch you," Bianca admitted quietly. "I am not strong enough."
The crowd murmured.
Danica stepped forward. "I will catch you."
Selene nodded. "Then let us finish this."
On the other side, Ruz stepped forward.
"I will fall," she said.
Josh stepped beside her. "I will catch you."
Liam grabbed his arm. "Are you sure? She is not light. I mean she is light but falling from that height "
Josh pulled his arm free.
"I will catch her," he said.
Not "I can." Not "I hope."
"I will."
The Falls
Selene climbed the platform. She stood at the edge, her back to Danica, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Ready," Danica said.
Selene fell.
It was perfectly controlled, graceful, exactly the kind of fall that looked easy but was actually very difficult. Danica caught her cleanly, her arms wrapping around Selene's shoulders, her legs bracing against the impact.
The judges gave them a 9.5.
Liam whistled. "That is going to be hard to beat."
Ruz climbed the platform.
She stood at the edge, her back to Josh, her arms crossed.
She did not look down.
She did not hesitate.
She did not close her eyes.
"Ready," Josh said.
Ruz fell.
Not gracefully. Not dramatically. She felt like she meant it like she had been falling her whole life and had learned to enjoy it.
Josh caught her.
Not carefully. Not gently.
He caught her like he had been waiting for this moment, like his arms had been designed specifically to hold her weight, like there was no version of this scenario where she hit the ground.
The judges stared at them for a long moment.
Then: "10."
The crowd lost their minds.
Liam collapsed. Nika screamed. Enzo threw his hands in the air. Even Diego cracked a smile.
Adrian, standing at the edge of the crowd, watched with his arms crossed. His expression was unreadable. But his eyes were soft.
"She trusted him," he said quietly.
Rifat stood beside him, also watching.
"…She is not afraid of falling," Rifat said.
"That is not it," Adrian replied. "She is not afraid of who catches her."
Rifat looked at him. "What is the difference?"
Adrian did not answer.
The scores were announced.
Section C and Z: 3 wins.
Section A and D: 0 wins.
The festival champions: Section C and Z.
The crowd rushed the floor. Students screamed. Teachers pretended to be professional while secretly celebrating. Liam was carried around on someone's shoulders, waving his juice bottle like a trophy.
Ruz stood at the center of it all.
Calm.
Still.
Victorious.
Josh stood beside her. Not touching. Just there.
"We did it," he said.
"No," she replied. "You did it. You caught me."
Josh shook his head. "You fell."
"Falling is easy," she said. "Catching is hard."
He looked at her for a long moment.
"…We should do this again sometime," he said.
"Destroy people?"
"Win."
She smiled. "Yeah. We should."
Later, when the noise faded and the crowd dispersed, people found Ruz in different places, at different times, all asking the same question in different ways.
Liam found her first.
He stood in front of her, his arms crossed, his expression serious for once.
"…Who are you?" he asked again. "I asked yesterday, and you did not answer. But I need to know. Who are you really?"
Ruz looked at him.
"I am someone who got tired of losing," she said. "Not games. Not competitions. Losing control. Losing choices. Losing the ability to say no."
Liam was quiet for a long moment.
"…That is not an answer," he said finally.
"It is the only one I have," she said.
He nodded slowly.
"…Okay," he said. "Okay. That is enough for now."
Adrian found her next.
They stood by the window, looking out at the field where the festival had been held.
"You were different today," he said.
"No," she replied. "I was the same. You just saw more of it."
He exhaled slowly. "…You trusted him. Josh. You fell, and you trusted him to catch you."
"Yes."
"Why?"
She turned to look at him.
"Because he asked me to," she said. "And because he did not promise anything he could not deliver."
Adrian was quiet for a moment.
"…I am glad you have that," he said finally. "Someone to catch you."
"You are still the first one," she said. "That has not changed."
He nodded. Did not smile. But something in his expression softened.
Rifat found her last.
He did not approach aggressively. Did not challenge. Did not smirk. He simply stood beside her and looked out at the same view.
"You are hiding something," he said.
Ruz did not deny it. "Everyone is."
"Not like you," he said. "Your hiding is different. It is not shame. It is not fear. It is… strategy."
She glanced at him.
"…That is a compliment," she said.
"It is an observation," he replied. "I am curious about you. Not because I like you or something. Because I do not understand you."
Ruz nodded slowly.
"That is fair," she said. "I do not understand myself most of the time."
He looked at her, past the calm expression and the controlled posture to whatever was underneath.
"One day," he said, "you will stop hiding. And I will be there to see it."
She did not respond.
But she did not say no.
Zayn watched from across the field.
He did not approach. Did not speak. He just watched the way she moved, the way she talked, the way she carried herself like someone who had been through war and was still standing.
"She did not change," he said quietly.
Enzo stood beside him. "No. She just stopped pretending to be someone else."
Diego nodded. "That is more dangerous."
Marco looked at them. "You are all saying that, it is a bad thing."
Zayn shook his head.
"It is not bad," he said. "It is just… real."