"I don't know." (Talk to the boys.)

Penny decided to make small talk with the esports boys. She had become more of a sports girl after puberty because she found that exercise helped her deal with stupid girl body hormone shit, but she still dabbled in some of the hottest gaming trends. It wasn't hard to avoid more serious subjects.

Philosophy class wasn't bad. The boys weren't great conversation partners but they helped Penny to avoid stewing in her own misery for a while.

However, something felt wrong when the bell rang. Penny looked at her watch, which defaulted to chat contacts.

Emma had a red circle for "away."

Fuuuuuck, that's code for "serious corruption," how is it possible? I thought children blocked my power? Am I in danger from the guys?

The boy called Tiger noticed her concern. "Shit going dorp-shaped again already?"

"I don't know. I got a weird message from a friend." Penny really couldn't see any danger in the immediate area, but she couldn't shake the feeling that her skin wasn't hers. When her clothes rubbed against her body she had little flashbacks to her contact with her attackers.

"Can I help?"

"Uh, yeah, would you mind walking me to gym class?" It seemed like a perfectly reasonable request, but with every word she spoke she felt smaller.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, get it together, Penny. You didn't even get penetrated, why are you having a breakdown, you might have superpowers, you can do this, get that origin story energy.

She didn't feel better. Tiger didn't seem to notice. "Yeah, no problem."

They mostly walked in silence, but it helped to have him there. Penny felt vulnerable in a way that she couldn't describe.

After Tiger turned back to go to his next class, Penny reached the locker room door and made an unpleasant discovery. There was a sign on the door:

"Alternate class program begins Friday. All adult students to remain in daily clothes and meet in room 238."