Chapter 1
Lena POV
I stood in Dr. Hale’s office after the last student had filed out of the classroom, my backpack hanging heavy on one shoulder, and I could feel my pulse quickening because I really hated starting arguments, but this grade was something I just could not accept without pushing back.
The air in the room carried that familiar scent of worn books mixed with stale coffee from his mug on the desk, and the sunlight slanting through the half-closed blinds created stripes of light and shadow across the cluttered surface where stacks of student papers sat next to his glowing computer screen.
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other, trying to gather my nerve as he looked up from his keyboard, his eyes narrowing slightly behind those thick-rimmed glasses, and he leaned ba
