Our literature teacher, Mrs. Hawthorne, thrived on fear. One day, she grabbed a notebook from Addison’s desk—her diary—and started reading it aloud to the class. We were stunned. Addison sat frozen in humiliation. Then, out of nowhere, Nolan stood up.
Quiet, unnoticed Nolan. “That’s enough,” he said firmly. “You’re humiliating her.” Mrs. Hawthorne was shocked. But after a tense pause, she shut the diary and backed off. The moment went viral in our school. Nolan became a quiet hero. But Mrs. Hawthorne retaliated—piling pressure on him, trying to break him.