**Title: A Troubled Goodbye**
In a dimly lit classroom, the weight of silence hung heavily in the air. It was supposed to be just another Thursday afternoon at Maplewood High, but today was different. Students shuffled in, their hearts heavy with confusion and fear. They had heard whispers in the hallways, felt the tension in the air, but nothing could prepare them for what they were about to hear.
The school principal, Mrs. Anderson, stood at