Chapter 1

At Holy Oak High, being the Top Flyer isn't just a crown.

It’s a ticket to the upper class.

Girls would pay any price to stand at the top of that pyramid.

But I didn't understand that the spotlight hid a man-eating abyss until I had to put on that blood-stained uniform.

Listen. Do you hear that scratching sound coming from inside the locker?

——

"I quit. The Top Flyer spot is yours! Just... stay away from me!"

Jessica gripped her pleated skirt, her knuckles turning white. She looked at me like I was a serial killer.

"Jessica, what are you talking about?" I asked, completely baffled.

Coach Miller had just praised her aerial form yesterday. Why give up the top spot now?

"Please, just let me go." Tears spilled over her lashes. "I concede. I swear I won't get in your way!"

I stood there, watching her tremble, realizing this breakdown hadn't just happened out of nowhere.

Jessica had been acting paranoid all week.

Her eyes constantly darted toward me, filled with a primal, suffocating fear.

During water breaks, if I stood on the left side of the gym, she’d immediately cross to the right.

The tipping point happened during our pyramid drills.

Jessica was in the air, pulling a heel stretch. Suddenly, she lost her focus and wobbled. As her main base, I immediately stepped up and reached out to catch her.

The second my fingers brushed her ankle, she let out a blood-curdling scream. She violently yanked her leg away, twisting mid-air.

She preferred to crash hard onto the safety mat rather than let me touch her.

The music stopped.

The entire varsity squad surrounded her, whispering and throwing me weird looks. Coach Miller frowned and sent her to the locker room.

I stood frozen on the mat, completely lost. What did I even do?

"Am I pushing her too hard during conditioning?" I asked my best friend, Sarah, while we packed our bags later.

Sarah rolled her eyes, shoving her cheer shoes into her duffel. "She's just cracking under the pressure. The starting lineup gets announced soon. Ignore the high school drama, Viv."

But I couldn't just ignore it. I hated the weird tension.

I bought a brand-new lip oil as a peace offering and cornered Jessica in a blind spot in the hallway.

"Jess, if there's some misunderstanding between us, I'm really sorry," I said, holding out the small box.

She didn't look at the gift. She looked at me.

"No, you don't need to apologize!" she shrieked. She panicked, knocking over a recycling bin as she scrambled backward.

"Take the spot! Just stay away from me!"

Her face twisted into a grotesque mask of horror. Instead of taking the makeup, she turned and bolted down the corridor.

I stood there holding the lip gloss, clueless.

A few feet away, a sophomore lowered her phone. She had been recording a TikTok the whole time.

On camera, it looked exactly like I was mercilessly bullying a terrified teammate into quitting.

Sarah appeared out of nowhere, grabbed my wrist, and dragged me into the nearest stairwell.

"If she wants to quit, let her quit!" Sarah fumed. "She's acting like we held a knife to her throat. If that video goes viral, you're done."

I rubbed my temples, a massive headache building. "I don't get it. I didn't do anything."

Sarah paused. A sudden, sharp ambition lit up her eyes. "Well, since she's actually dropping out... I'm going for the Top Flyer spot."

Sarah stayed over at my place that night. The sudden squad reshuffle had her buzzing with adrenaline.

"If I can secure the top of the pyramid, it’s a guaranteed full-ride athletic scholarship," she kept chanting from her sleeping bag on my bedroom floor.

I laid in bed, my muscles screaming from the intense drills. I was too physically and mentally drained to even reply. With Sarah still rambling excitedly in the background, my vision went dark, and I slipped into a dead sleep.

When I woke up, the morning light was harsh. The room was dead quiet.

I sat up and looked down. Only Sarah's empty sleeping bag remained on the floor.

I checked my phone. No texts. A spike of annoyance hit me—she actually went to morning practice without waking me up after crashing at my house?

I quickly washed my face, threw on my practice gear, and rushed to school.

When I reached the gym, I didn't go inside. I spotted Sarah pacing restlessly on the concrete outside the closed double doors. She was biting her nails, looking completely unhinged.

I walked up behind her. "Sarah? Why are you just standing out here?" I tapped her shoulder.

She jolted.

Stumbling backward, she crashed hard against the metal lockers.

She stared at me, trembling. And in her eyes, I saw that exact same, paralyzing terror I had seen in Jessica.