He caught himself, rose, and came back.
Nia could feel panic growing beneath training now.
This was no longer one person.
She kept moving.
Never chasing.
Never following anyone who backed away.
Claire swung again.
Nia redirected her.
Claire fell hard onto the floor beside the display table.
Nia immediately turned away from her.
Dylan attacked one more time.
She blocked his arm, stepped outside his balance, and shoved.
His feet tangled.
The red varsity jacket disappeared downward.
He hit the floor several feet from Claire.
Nia backed away.
Both remained down.
For a second, the entire science fair went silent.
Nia stood between them breathing hard.
Her fists were raised.
Then she saw they were no longer getting up.
She lowered her hands.
The fight was over.
She did not kick Dylan.
She did not approach Claire.
She did not say anything triumphant.
Instead, Nia turned toward the table.
Her solar system was still destroyed.
Earth sat near the table edge.
Jupiter had rolled underneath another display.
Saturn lay upside down with the repaired ring snapped in two.
That image broke through the adrenaline.
Nia walked toward the model and picked up the ring.
Her hands shook.
Caleb appeared through the crowd.
He stopped when he saw the table.
His face changed.
“Your Pluto survived,” Nia said.
It was such a strange sentence that Caleb stared at her.
Then Nia started crying.
Not because she had been hit.
Not because dozens of people were watching.
Because her little brother’s ridiculous Pluto was still standing beside everything else that had been broken.
Denise reached her seconds later.
Anthony followed from the hallway.
Teachers separated the crowd while Cooper called campus security and Dr. Harris stood over Dylan and Claire asking whether either needed medical attention.
Neither had serious injuries.
Dylan had a bruised hip and shoulder.
Claire had scraped one palm.
Nia had redness along one forearm and a small cut near her knuckle.
The science project suffered more damage than any of them.
Dr. Harris tried lifting part of the base.