He came to school the next day.

Genesis's breath caught in her throat when he walked into history class. He looked awful. The red mark on his cheek from his uncle's hand had bloomed into a dark, ugly bruise. He moved like every muscle in his body ached.

He ignored the stares and whispers, slumped into his seat in the back, and immediately put his head down on his desk.

Genesis felt a fragile mix of relief and dread. He was here. He hadn't given up completely. But his presence also made him a target.

As if on cue, Mrs. Gable swept into the room, her eyes immediately landing on the figure in the back corner. Her lips thinned into a razor line.

She walked down the aisle, her heels clicking ominously on the floor, and stopped right in front of his desk. She slapped a textbook down on the wood, the sharp crack making Cas flinch and lift his head.

"Well, well. Look what the cat dragged in," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Mr. Riley. So good of you to grace us with your presence."

Cas just stared at her, his face a blank canvas.

Mrs. Gable crossed her arms, enjoying her audience. "You've missed an entire week of school, Riley. What's the plan? Falling behind seems to be a habit."

A wave of cruel snickers rippled through the classroom. Everyone knew the Rileys had no business, no money, nothing.

Genesis glared at the laughing students, a hot fury building in her chest.

The teacher wasn't finished. She leaned in, her voice dropping to a stage whisper that everyone could hear. "Some students have family legacies to uphold, Mr. Riley. Others seem determined to squander what little they have. Which one are you?"

The words were a stiletto, slid cleanly and quietly between his ribs.

Cas's body went ramrod straight. The blank look in his eyes was replaced by something dangerous. Genesis saw his hands clench into fists under the desk, his knuckles turning white. She was terrified he was going to explode, to do something that would get him expelled, to prove them all right about him.

She couldn't let that happen.

She stood up.

"Mrs. Gable."

Her voice wasn't loud, but it cut through the tense silence of the room like a knife.

Every head turned toward her. Cas looked at her, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Mrs. Gable looked genuinely shocked. "Miss Greene, this does not concern you. Sit down."

"I think it does," Genesis said, her gaze unwavering. "As a teacher, I don't believe it's appropriate for you to publicly humiliate a student about their family situation."

The color drained from Mrs. Gable's face, replaced by a blotchy, angry red. "I am disciplining a problem student! This is not a debate! You, and you, Riley. My office. Now."

Cas looked at Genesis one more time, a flicker of something unreadable in his eyes, before he pushed his chair back and walked out of the room.

Genesis followed without a moment's hesitation.

"Gen, don't," Chelsea hissed, grabbing her arm. "She'll make trouble for you!"

Genesis just shook her head and pulled her arm free.

In the cramped, stuffy office, Mrs. Gable unleashed her fury. She paced back and forth, calling Cas a delinquent, a disgrace to the school, a lost cause. She threatened suspension, expulsion, a permanent mark on his record.

And through it all, Cas just stood there, silent. A stone statue in the eye of a hurricane. He wasn't numb, Genesis realized. He was just... done. Done fighting, done explaining, done caring what people like her thought.

She took a deep breath. It was up to her.

She couldn't tell the truth. She couldn't talk about the construction site, or his aunt and uncle, or the man with the brick. That would strip him of the last bit of dignity he had.

She had to lie.

A bold, crazy, perfect lie began to form in her mind.

---

"Mrs. Gable," Genesis began, her voice calm and even, a stark contrast to the teacher's tirade. "The reason Cas has been absent is that he was involved in stopping a mugging outside of school."

The words hung in the air. Cas's head snapped toward her, his eyes wide with pure, unadulterated shock.

Mrs. Gable scoffed. "A mugging? Please. He's more likely to be the mugger than the hero."

"It's true," Genesis pressed on, her confidence growing. "He stepped in to help a freshman who was being harassed by a couple of older guys. He was trying to protect him." She gestured toward Cas's bruised face. "That's how he got hurt. In the fight."

The lie was seamless. It explained his injuries, his absence, everything.

Cas stared at her, his mouth slightly agape. He didn't confirm it, but more importantly, he didn't deny it. He let her speak for him.

Mrs. Gable was momentarily silenced, her suspicion warring with the possibility. "If that's true, who was the student he supposedly saved? What's his name?"

Genesis had anticipated this. "The freshman was terrified. He begged Cas not to report it, not to get his parents involved. Cas was respecting his wishes, keeping it quiet."

It was the perfect, unverifiable story. It painted Cas as noble and protective, not just of the victim's safety, but of his privacy.

Genesis pressed her advantage. "I would think," she said, her tone respectful but firm, "that when a student is injured while performing a heroic act, the school's response should be commendation, not punishment."

She had turned the tables completely. She had made Cas the hero and Mrs. Gable the villain who was persecuting him.

The teacher's face was a mottled mess of red and white. She was trapped. To punish Cas now, especially with Genesis Greene-daughter of one of the school's largest donors-as a witness, would be a disastrous move.

Genesis offered her a way out. "Of course, violence is never the answer. I'm sure Cas learned that getting hurt was a lesson in itself. I'm positive he'll find a better way to handle things in the future."

The silence in the office stretched on. Mrs. Gable looked from Genesis's earnest face to Cas's bruised, unreadable one. Finally, with a sigh that was pure theater, she relented.

"Fine," she snapped. "We'll let it go. This time. But one more misstep, Riley, and you're out. Do you understand?"

She waved a dismissive hand. "Get out of my office. Both of you."

They walked out into the empty hallway, the silence between them thick with unspoken words. Genesis could feel his eyes on her as they walked, a heavy, questioning gaze.

Just before they reached the classroom, Cas stopped.

Genesis stopped too, turning to face him.

He looked at her, really looked at her, for the first time. The ice in his eyes seemed to have thawed, just a little. His lips parted, as if to say something, then closed again. He struggled for a moment, the way a man who has forgotten how to speak might struggle to form a word.

Finally, he managed to push one out.

"Thanks."

It was the second time he'd said it, but this was different from the note. This was face to face. The word was quiet, rough around the edges, but it landed in Genesis's heart like a warm stone.

A real, genuine smile spread across her face. "You're welcome."

In her story, he was a hero. In reality, he was her hero.

He held her gaze for a second longer, and she saw it-a tiny crack in the frozen surface of his composure.

Then, without another word, he turned and walked back into the classroom. He didn't tell her to get lost. He didn't push her away. And for Genesis, that was everything.

---

The atmosphere in class after the office incident was different. Cas didn't put his head down. He sat up, his back straight, a silent, brooding presence in the back of the room.

Genesis kept glancing at him. His face was pale, a sickly, grayish color under the fluorescent lights. His lips, usually just pale, were completely bloodless.

She knew why. He hadn't eaten. Probably not since yesterday. Maybe not even then. The money he'd earned, the money he'd been beaten for, had gone to his aunt. He had nothing left for himself.

She had an energy bar in her bag. She could just walk back and put it on his desk. But she hesitated, picturing him pushing it away, the humiliation in his eyes.

While she was debating, she saw his body sway.

Just a slight, almost imperceptible movement.

Then he blinked, slowly, like he was trying to clear his vision. He put a hand on his desk to steady himself, but his arm seemed to give way.

In front of the entire class, Cas Riley slid silently from his chair and collapsed onto the floor.

A collective gasp went through the room.

Genesis was moving before anyone else. She was out of her seat and kneeling by his side in a heartbeat. She touched his cheek. His skin was clammy and ice-cold. His breathing was shallow.

"He hasn't eaten, he's fainting!" she said, her voice cutting through the panicked chatter. She looked up at a stunned Mrs. Gable. "Call the nurse! Now! He needs sugar, quickly!"

Without waiting, she dug into her own backpack, her hands searching for the chocolate bar she always kept for emergencies. She found it, ripped open the wrapper, and broke off a small piece. Gently, she pushed it past his lips, into his mouth, hoping some of it would dissolve and be absorbed.

A few of the boys started to move toward him, intending to lift him.

"Don't move him!" Genesis commanded, her tone leaving no room for argument. "Someone go to the nurse's office and get a gurney or a wheelchair."

Her calm, authoritative presence had a startling effect. Everyone, including Mrs. Gable, seemed to follow her lead.

The school nurse arrived moments later, took one look at Cas, and confirmed the obvious. "Hypoglycemia. Severe," she muttered, assessing the situation.

They got him to the nurse's office, a small, quiet room that smelled of rubbing alcohol. Genesis watched as the nurse gave him a glucose injection. Slowly, so slowly, a little color returned to his face.

"Are you family?" the nurse asked, looking at Genesis.

"No. Just a classmate."

The nurse shook her head. "Well, you probably saved him from a seizure, classmate. Good job."

Genesis didn't stay. He would hate waking up to find her hovering over him, seeing him so weak. Instead, she ran to the small deli across the street from the school. She bought a hot grilled cheese sandwich, still warm in its paper wrapping, and a carton of milk.

When she returned, he was awake. He was lying on the cot, staring at the ceiling, looking lost and disoriented.

He saw her enter, and a flicker of his old defensiveness crossed his face. He tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness made him sink back onto the pillow.

Genesis said nothing. She just walked over and placed the food on the small table beside the cot. "You're awake," she said softly. "You should eat something."

He looked at the sandwich, then at her. He opened his mouth, and she braced herself for the "get lost," for the rejection.

But it didn't come.

He just watched her, his eyes filled with a raw, unguarded vulnerability she had never seen before. It was confusion, exhaustion, and something else. Something that looked terrifyingly like trust.

He made a weak attempt to reach for the sandwich, but his hand was shaking too badly.

Without a word, Genesis picked it up, unwrapped the paper, and held it out for him.

He froze, his gaze fixed on the sandwich she held just inches from his mouth. A war was raging inside him. She could see it in the tightening of his jaw, the flicker in his eyes.

Then, slowly, he leaned forward and took a small bite.

He chewed, his eyes never leaving hers. The simple act of him accepting food from her hand was more profound, more intimate, than a kiss. It was an admission of need. A surrender.

For the first time in what was probably a very, very long time, Cas Riley was letting someone take care of him.

---