First message
The new girl had heard the warnings all day.
“Stay away from him.”
“He’s scary.”
“He never talks.”
At lunch, she noticed him sitting alone except for one friend. Black hoodie, messy dark hair, eyes fixed on the table. He looked intimidating, but not angry. When a heavy box slipped from a teacher’s cart, he caught it with ease and quietly set it down. Later, she smiled at him in the hallway. To everyone’s surprise, he gave a small, shy nod back.