Chapter 15

Selena's POV

My heart tightened. Of course he had to appear. "Jake," I said, flat and my tone colder than I meant it. "What do you want?"

My whole body became tense, every single hair on my arms stood. Cullen shifted fractionally in front of me, instinctively placing himself between Jake and I.

Jake smiled even wider than he was smiling before. “Straight to the point. I should not even be surprised, I guess you have always been impatient with me.” 

“Don’t do that now Jake,” I snapped at him from where I was standing behind Cullen. And as I said those words, my chest became hot and all the memories that we made, everything started coming back even when I did not want it to. “Don’t talk as though you know me.” 

Jake bent his head to one side, as if the way I got angry made him surprised. “Oh, but I do know you. At least, more than he does anyway.” He said it and used his chin to signal Cullen's direction, and the way his voice sounded made me even more angry. 

Cullen's jaw became hard, his voice was smooth but there was a small edge to it. “You have got five seconds to leave.”

Jake laughed like Cullen was a joke to him. “Or what? You’ll hit me? Please. You cannot even keep your temper in check when you’re on skates.” 

“Jake,” I cut in, and my heart was beating loudly in my chest as I took a step out from behind Cullen's back. “Stop stalking me like some vulture. Just tell me what you’re here for.” 

His expression became unsure, but it was just for a short moment. Then something flashed inside of his eyes, something bitter. Then he moved forward and he started laughing in that same mocking way. “What I want? Oh, nothing much. Just to remind you that you are not as inaccessible as you think you are.” 

I tensed again. My nails were digging into my palms as I curled it into fists. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” 

Jake looked back at Cullen, and then his voice became low, also sounding dangerous. “You don’t even know what she really is, do you?” 

The air that was around us immediately became cold. 

Cullen's eyes became wide, and he looked shocked at first but it was replaced with anger. He stepped forward, and his presence shifted, dominating the space now. “What did you just say?” 

Jake didn’t waste time to smile that stupid smile again. His lips formed into a thin line that looked cruel and teasing. “You heard me.” 

Cullen’s hand had formed into fists by his side, and his voice became deeper than it was before. “What is she?” 

Jake didn’t answer. He just shrugged his shoulders in a lazy way and he moved back. He was already turning to leave when he said, “figure it out yourself, captain.” 

He walked away, but the sound of his laughter was still echoing in the air. 

My heart was hurting so bad in my chest that I almost broke down. I looked at Cullen, my eyes were wet. His jaw was still hard and his eyes were still dark and full of emotions, like he had so many questions to ask but he was going to hold them back for now. 

“Don’t mind him.” Cullen finally growled. His voice was rough, but I could still feel the softness under it, one that was just for me alone. “Jake feeds off drama. That is what this is. He is trying to get to you… to us.” 

I was not sure, but I did not push my luck. At least not yet. “Cullen.” I gasped, calling his name even when I did not know what I wanted to say. 

He hugged me and kissed my hair. Then he whispered softly against my hair. “Forget him.”

And before I could even protest, we heard some voices like people were coming from the corner of the building. Cullen quickly held my hand and pulled me to his dorm room. 

The way he held my hand made my heart calm down. Everything that Jake said, all started to fade away like I never even heard it in the first place. 

We walked together through the corridor until we reached Cullen’s dorm. My eyes immediately caught a folded slip of paper taped to the handle.

Cullen was the one to see it first, and he removed it before I could. He looked at the paper, as he read it inside his mind, then his mouth moved like he was holding back his laughter. 

“What’s that?” I asked, leaning forward, but he tucked it behind his back.

“Nothing,” he said too casually. “Just Brian being stupid.”

“Brian?” I raised my brows. “What did he say?”

Cullen shook his head, smirking now. “Trust me. You don’t want to know.”

That made me want to know even more, but before I could push further, he had opened the door and told me to go in. 

Inside, his room looked nothing like a normal college boy’s room. It was comfortable, sleek even, like a little oasis carved out of campus chaos. A single bed sat against the far wall, with crisp dark sheets that somehow stayed perfectly in place. A sofa rested under the window, a tiny coffee maker humming on the corner table. The walls were dotted with hockey star stickers and posters, each one placed neatly—Cullen clearly wasn’t the messy type. For a dorm, it looked almost expensive.

I stepped inside and shook my head. “You know, this looks way too put-together. Where’s the dirty laundry pile? The pizza boxes? The chaos?”

Cullen smirked as he closed the door behind us. “Sorry to disappoint. Captain’s privileges. I like my space clean.”

“Well, congratulations,” I said, dropping onto his bed and bouncing slightly. “You’ve officially ruined my expectations of male dorm rooms.”

He chuckled, running a hand through his damp hair. “Make yourself comfortable. I’m taking a quick shower.”

With that, he disappeared into the bathroom, the sound of running water following seconds later.

Left alone, I kicked off my shoes and folded my legs on the bed, stretching my arms above my head. My bones cracked with satisfaction. “Ugh, finally,” I muttered. It felt like I’d been on my feet forever.

I grabbed my phone from my hoodie pocket, the screen lighting up instantly. The time flashed—3:02 PM. Wow. Where had the day gone?

My notifications bar was full, but two names jumped out immediately: Ava and Nia. Ava had spammed me with at least five texts, while Nia had only sent one.

Nia: Training combat today. Wish me luck!

Ava: Selena where are you??

Ava: Nia’s at training rn.

Ava: You’re not gonna believe this.

Ava: She’s fighting Jasmine.

Ava: LIVE. Like literally fighting her right now. I swear someone’s recording this.

The time of the last three messages were just two minutes ago. My eyes widened. “Oh no.”

Before I could even respond, a new notification popped up—Instagram Live. The title was impossible to ignore:

“NIA VS JASMINE: Who’s gonna win??”

My thumb clicked before my brain could catch up.

My screen was filled with chaos. There were a lot of people talking at once, shouting in the background. The camera was shaking until it finally stopped on two figures, standing in the middle of the training ground. 

Nia was standing with her fists rolled at her sides and her eyes were glaring at Jasmine. Jasmine was on the other side, smirking like a bitch. She threw her hair over her shoulders like she was on a runaway, and not a fight. 

Nia stood, fists clenched, eyes blazing. Across from her, Jasmine smirked, tossing her perfect hair back like this was a runway, not a fight.

The crowd were standing around them, making cheers that made the situation even worse. 

I pressed the volume higher just as Nia’s voice cut through.

“All I’m saying, Jasmine,” she snapped, “is that you back off from Selena.”

Gasps echoed from the crowd.

Jasmine’s lips turned into a mean smile. “Back off? Please. Are you so bothered about her, or are you just trying to play pity like her, hoping Cullen will notice you too?”