LOGINAria’s POVI couldn’t move or even remember why I’d come here in the first place.Orion stood in the doorway, one hand still resting on the doorknob.His black hair was damp from what was obviously a recent shower, tiny droplets of water sliding down his neck and disappearing across his broad shoulders.He wasn’t wearing a shirt.Just a pair of dark sweatpants that sat low on his hips.Oh.My.God.My brain completely stopped working. His eyes moved over my face.He was trying to figure out why I looked like I was about to cry.“Aria?” I blinked. “Huh?”“You okay?”His voice was cold.Nothing like the teasing confidence he’d shown during lunch. I looked anywhere except at him.“I…”I pointed awkwardly toward the room behind him.“I was looking for Aiden.”A tiny crease appeared between his brows. “This is my room.”“Oh.”“I knocked on the wrong door then .”“You did.”“I should go.”I turned so quickly that my injured ankle protested.“Ow…” Before I could lose my balance, Orion instin
Aria’s POVThe walk back to my dorm felt much longer than it had earlier. Maybe because my ankle still hurt.Or maybe because, for the first time since arriving at Westbridge University, I finally felt… alone.I had Aiden.I knew that.But he had his own life, his own friends, his own classes. I couldn’t follow him around forever.I had to make friends, build my own life.That was the whole point of coming here.I climbed the stairs slowly, wincing each time I put weight on my left foot. The resident assistant smiled as I walked in.“Feeling any better?”“A little.”“Liar.”I laughed softly.“Is it that obvious?”“You’ve been limping since this morning.”“I’ll survive.”“Ice it tonight.”“I will.”After thanking her, I headed toward my room.I reached for the handle and pushed the door open.Chelsea was painting her nails. Vanessa lay on her bed scrolling through her phone. Mia was sitting at the desk wearing headphones.No one looked up.“Hi.”Silence.I awkwardly closed the door b
Orion’s POVPeople always assumed silence meant weakness.It didn’t. Silence meant observation and it meant listening when everyone else was too busy talking.It meant noticing things no one else ever did.Which was why, despite the cafeteria being filled with almost three hundred students, my attention kept drifting back to one person.Aria Sterling. Aiden’s twin sister.She sat across from us, her lunch tray untouched except for a few bites of rice and chicken. Every vegetable on her plate had been pushed into one miserable little pile as if she’d declared war against them.I scoffed“You’ve got to eat the broccoli,” Aiden said, stabbing one with his fork before dropping it onto her plate again. “I’d rather fail college.”“It won’t kill you.”“It smells like sadness.”Noah laughed so loudly a few students looked over. “She’s actually serious.”“I am serious.”Aiden sighed dramatically.“You’ve hated vegetables since kindergarten.”“And I’ll continue hating them until I die.”“You a
Aria’s POVI stood there for a few seconds after he let go of me.My heart was still beating ridiculously fast. He had already walked several steps ahead as though catching me before I face-planted onto the pavement was the most ordinary thing in the world.No dramatic speech or even asking if I was okay.Just… “You should watch where you’re walking.”Rude. Cold and annoyingly handsome.I cleared my throat and hurried after them.“Um”The three boys turned. “Thank you.”My eyes landed on him.“Orion.”He looked at me. For a second, I wondered if he’d ignore me again. Instead, he simply gave a single nod.“Mm.”That was it.Seriously?A whole “Mm?”Noah laughed beside him.“Don’t mind him. That’s basically a heartfelt speech coming from Orion.”“I talk.” He saidNoah snorted. “No, you don’t.”“I do.”“When?”“Sometimes.”Aiden clapped Orion’s shoulder. “He’s got you there.”Orion looked completely unbothered. “I don’t care.”I couldn’t help smiling.Maybe he wasn’t mean, maybe he just
Aria’s POVThe first thing I felt when I woke up was pain.“Ow.”I stared blankly at the white ceiling above my bunk before attempting to sit up.Bad idea.The moment I shifted my weight, a sharp ache shot through my ankle and lower back.“Ow!”I collapsed onto my pillow again. From the other side of the room, someone sighed dramatically.“Can you keep it down?”I blinked.Right, my lovely Roommates.I slowly climbed down the ladder, much more carefully than yesterday and winced the second my left foot touched the floor.It was definitely bruised or maybe sprained.Great.Exactly what every freshman wanted on the first day of university.I limped toward the bathroom with my towel.Nobody asked how I was or even looked at me.Chelsea was doing her makeup.Vanessa was taking selfies in front of the mirror.Mia had headphones on, maybe they just weren’t morning people.I decided not to take it personally. By the time I got dressed in a cream sweater, black skirt, and white sneakers, the
Aria’s POV“I swear, if you touch my chips one more time, I’ll throw you out of this car.”Aiden didn’t even look guilty. Instead, he casually reached into the family-sized bag resting on my lap, grabbed another handful, and popped them into his mouth.“They’re our chips.” He said with his mouth full“They’re my chips.”“Lily bought them.”“She bought them for me.”I glared at him. “You are unbelievable.”He shrugged lazily from the seat beside me.“I’ve been told.”I folded my arms dramatically.“You know what? I hope your roommate don’t like you.”“I hope yours steals your clothes.”“I hope yours smells.”“I hope yours sings at three in the morning.”I gasped. “You’ve gone too far.”The driver sitting in front tried and failed to hide his laughter.I pointed accusingly at him. “Don’t encourage him.”“I’m sorry, Miss Aria,” the elderly man chuckled. “I’ve been driving you two since you were children. Nothing has changed.”The car rolled through the enormous university gates, and our







