Bella’s POV
June pushed between two girls and got in front of them. “Enough!”
Keisha shoved her. “Back off, dyke!”
That did it.
June didn’t flinch. “Try that again.”
Jayla paused, chest heaving. Keisha stepped forward, but someone—finally—stormed in from the hallway. A shelter worker, tall and irritated.
“Break it up!”
Both girls were yanked apart. Keisha was dragged toward the office, still screaming. Jayla slumped to the floor, hand covering her face, shaking.
“Are you okay?” I knelt beside her.
“Fine,” she muttered, then sniffed. “She always targets me. I didn’t take her stupid stuff.”
“Why didn’t you just tell someone?” I asked.
“They don’t care,” she snapped, voice cracking.
June crouched beside us. “They’ll separate you two now. You’ll have space to breathe.”
Jayla didn’t answer. She just wiped her lip and looked away.
Later that night, as things settled, June leaned against the wall next to me.
“Fights are normal around here,” she said quietly. “People snap, no rules. Just surv
