She looked up, her eyes meeting his, not with fear but with a quiet confidence that caught him off guard. There was a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, but it was quickly masked by arrogance.

Anna straightened her back, her voice steady now as she spoke: “I didn’t tell the principal for attention or to cause trouble. I did it because it was the right thing to do. What you did was wrong, and you know it.”

Her words, though spoken softly, echoed through the gym, reaching the ears of every student present. The bully’s smile faltered, his bravado slipping just a little. He wasn’t used to being challenged, least of all by someone who seemed so insignificant.