chapter 29 " Bruised knuckles , bruised pride "

The hallway was almost silent, save for the soft click of Helena’s shoes against the marble floor.

Everyone was in class, but she needed air. A moment to think. She’d just left the library after finding an old notebook tucked behind a shelf—its pages blank, but the leather cover strangely familiar. It was embossed with a single letter: S.

She didn’t know why, but it gave her chills.

As she turned the corner toward the east wing staircase, a low voice cut through the silence.

“Well, well... if it isn’t Brentford’s most untouchable girl.”

Helena stopped.

Henry.

He stood near the lockers with two boys she didn’t recognize—both dressed like they’d stepped off the cover of a prep school magazine. Henry leaned against the wall, arms folded, eyes glinting.

She said nothing, kept walking.

He fell into step beside her.

“You always walk alone?” he said, smirking. “Risky. Especially with legs like yours. Someone might follow.”

Helena froze. “Back off.”

Henry tilted his head, eyes dragging over her frame with an unashamed hunger. “What? I’m just saying—beautiful girls like you shouldn’t be left unsupervised.”

She stepped away, heart racing now.

But Henry grabbed her wrist—not hard, but firm.

“I like a little fight,” he whispered. “Makes it more fun.”

Then—

“Let her go.”

The voice was lethal. Cold. And far too familiar.

Greg.

He stormed down the hallway, eyes locked on Henry’s hand still wrapped around Helena’s arm.

Henry chuckled. “Relax, lover boy. I was just saying hi.”

Greg didn’t slow down.

Helena pulled free just as Greg reached them—and without warning, Greg’s fist slammed into Henry’s jaw.

The crack echoed off the walls.

Henry stumbled back, wiped blood from his lip, and smiled. “So we’re doing this, huh?”

And then he lunged.

The two collided like fire and gasoline.

Fists. Grunts. Shouts. One of Henry’s friends tried to pull Greg off—only for Greg to swing at him too.

It wasn’t a brawl.

It was war.

Minutes Later – Principal’s Office

Helena sat in the hallway, shaken, her pulse still rapid.

Inside, she could hear the principal’s voice rising.

“You’re both lucky you’re not expelled! If this had happened in front of other students—!”

Greg and Henry sat across from each other, both with split lips, bloody knuckles, and defiance burning in their eyes.

The principal sighed.

“But since your families are significant contributors to Brentford, I’m placing you both under disciplinary warning. No expulsion. But one more stunt like this…”

She didn’t finish the sentence.

Greg didn’t care. He wasn’t sorry.

Not for a second.

Outside the Office – Later

Helena rushed to Greg as he stepped out.

“Greg—your face…”

He winced but smiled through the pain. “You should see his.”

She touched his bruised cheek gently. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“Yes, I did.” His gaze turned serious. “You’re not alone in this. You never were.”

She swallowed. “He looked at me like I was a thing. Like I didn’t matter.”

Greg’s jaw clenched again. “He’s going to learn that touching you has consequences.”

She leaned into him, their foreheads touching. “I’m scared, Greg.”

“I know,” he whispered. “But we fight together now. Always.”

Cliffhanger Ending – Chapter Twenty-Nine

That night, Helena returned to her dorm room and opened the strange notebook again.

Inside, on the last page—now faintly visible under the light—a name had appeared in smeared ink.

Sophia Blackwood

Beneath it, a single line scratched in uneven writing:

“Trust no one wearing white.”

She stared at the words, heart pounding.

White… like the nurse uniforms?

Like the school admin?

Or someone else entirely?

Absolutely! Here's the continued Chapter Twenty-Nine of The Bully Who Fell First, where new alliances begin to form—and Bianca’s manipulations take a darker turn.

Tessy lay sprawled across her bed, headphones on, scrolling mindlessly through her phone when Helena’s text came in.

HELENA: Greg punched Henry. Whole hallway saw it. I’ll call you.

Tessy sat upright immediately, her heart skipping. She yanked out her headphones and typed back fast.

TESSY: Are you okay? What happened??

Seconds later, her phone buzzed. Helena’s name lit up.

“Tess,” Helena’s voice cracked through the speaker. “He grabbed me.”

“What?! Who did?” Tessy was already off the bed, pacing now.

“Henry. He said weird things. Grabbed my wrist. Greg saw and—he lost it.”

“Oh my God.” Tessy’s voice was sharp. “That psycho just got here and he’s already touching people like that? I swear if I was there—”

“I’m okay,” Helena cut in. “Shaken, but okay.”

Tessy exhaled hard. “You need to stay away from him, Lena. I’m serious. Guys like Henry? They don’t take no for an answer.”

“I know. But there’s more. Bianca…”

Helena didn’t finish the sentence.

She didn’t have to.

Tessy’s voice turned cold. “She’s involved, isn’t she?”

“Not yet. But she will be.”

Brentford Academy – School Canteen

The cafeteria buzzed with after-lunch chatter. Laughter, trays clanking, phones lighting up with fresh gossip.

At the center table—beneath the skylight where the popular kids claimed their kingdom—Henry lounged with his crew. Shirt unbuttoned halfway, expensive watch glinting, sneakers propped on the seat across from him.

He was chewing lazily on a piece of grilled chicken when a familiar scent of perfume cut through the air.

Bianca.

She strolled up, perfectly composed, a fresh gloss on her lips and mischief in her eyes.

“Well, well. Look who’s still in one piece,” she said, eyes flicking toward the fading bruise on Henry’s jaw.

Henry smirked. “Tell your boy Greg he hits like a rich kid.”

Bianca chuckled. “And yet… he still landed the girl, didn’t he?”

Henry’s smile faltered slightly. “She’s not his forever.”

Bianca slid into the seat beside him without asking. “No. She’s not. Not if you want her badly enough.”

He narrowed his eyes. “And you care because…?”

She leaned in closer, lips nearly brushing his ear. “Because I hate Helena just as much as you want her.”

Henry glanced at her, amused. “You’re jealous.”

“Deadly,” she whispered. “And smart. You want Helena? I know how she moves, where she hides, what makes her tick.”

Henry’s grin returned. “So what’s your price?”

Bianca’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “I don’t want your money, Henry. I want her gone.”

Henry looked at her for a long moment, then raised his glass of juice in a mock toast. “Then let’s make sure Greg Carter doesn’t get a happy ending.”

Bianca clinked her glass softly against his.

“Let the games begin.”

Scene Ends with:

In the shadows behind the drink station, Theo stood watching.

Phone in hand.

Recording.

His jaw tightened as he whispered to himself:

“Helena needs to know. And soon.”