• Selena sat on the floor against the bleachers of the lower level of the gym. The class was playing dodgeball and she was out, waiting for someone to catch the ball so she could get back in. Next to her, Nelly and Christine were trying to bug her, but she was able to block them out. When the sound of flying balls had stopped, she looked up. The teachers began ushering kids under the stairwells to hide them. Nelly and Christine quickly ran off. Selena quickly followed them and stood off to the side. Doors opened above them.

    “I’m sure she’s here, Boss. She’s gotta be!” they heard above them.

    “Find her.” Four sets of footsteps ran down the staircase.

    A man noticed the students huddled under the staircase he just stepped off of. A spark of recognition showed on his face. He reached in and grabbed Selena. “I found her!” Someone tried to pull her back but the man pulled harder. She was pushed into the gym floor. The other students watched, afraid to jump in and help. Four men surrounded her before she was able to get up.

    “Why are you doing this?” she asked, trying to keep her face straight.

    The man in the middle coldly stared at her and replied, “You killed my son.” He paused. He pulled out a gun and aimed it at her. “So now I’m going to kill you.” She recognized him as Colt’s dad, James, from the photos on his record. The students gasped around them.

    Flashback

    Selena looked at where she set down her bag. She turned around and kicked the gun out of Colt’s hand. Before he could go after it she punched him in the face and ran for her bag. He grabbed the gun and aimed it at her as she found her gun and aimed it at Colt. He fired one round. She instinctively fired three back. He fell to the ground. Selena grasped her arm where his shot had hit and fell to her knees.

    End Flashback

    “It’s not how you think it is.”

    “Prove it,” he spat.

    She rolled up the left sleeve of her shirt showing a scar. “That is from the bullet he shot at me first.” She looked around for a way out. Students were scared and confused. She could tell no one knew what this man wanted out of her.

    “I don’t believe you!” The two outer men charged at her. She round kicked one in the head and punched the other in the face. The second guy stumbled back but charged forward again. The other man by James’ side joined him. They each grabbed one of her arms and tried to pin her down. She kicked them both and punched the same man she hit earlier. This time, he fell down and groaned. The other man tried to retaliate but she grabbed his wrist and kicked his chest. She let go in time for him to fly back across the gym floor.

    Selena turned toward James. “Now, where were we?” She kicked the gun out of his hand, sending it across the floor. “Wanna guess there?”

    He charged forward. She quickly elbowed his chest. He was able to get a punch in and hit the right side of her face. He tried to get another in but she ducked and tripped him. Quickly, she ran after the gun. James recovered fast and grabbed her wrist. He sneered before flinging her across the gym floor.

    He grabbed the gun and aimed it at Selena. “You killed my boy. You deserve to die.” She could hear students gasp and mutter but she still felt their eyes on them.

    Doors busted open above them. “Federal Agents! Drop your weapon.” The team and FBI agents showed up around the perimeter of the upper level of the gym.

    “You shoot me, and they’re going to fire at you,” she said calmly.

    “I don’t need to listen to you, girl. I can do what I want!” He pulled the trigger and agents above fired at him. James’ bullet was too low and hit her left thigh. He got shot in the chest but it wasn’t fatal.

    “Why does this always happen to me?” she sighed. She pressed down on the wound to try to stop the bleeding as EMTs rushed down the steps.

    Quickly and efficiently, they wrapped a temporary bandage on the wound. “We need to call your parents,” the female technician said.

    Selena noticed Leo among the crowd of agents. “Talk to him,” she said pointing to him. “He’ll take care of it.” With a little help, she was able to get up the stairs and to the waiting ambulance, luckily not with James and his crew, and was rushed to the hospital.

    The students were ushered into the locker rooms to get changed and the gym was marked off. Nelly and Christine looked at each other. “Oh my gosh,” was all they could say.