Chapter 42: The Sharpest Edge of Love

Ryan didn’t sleep.

The audio message kept replaying in his head Adrien’s voice smooth and deliberate, each word sharpened with intent.

“Legends are written with blood, Ryan. And I’m done being a ghost in someone else’s story.”

He couldn’t breathe. Not properly. Not with those words lodged in his chest like thorns.

Chris had tried staying up with him, offering water, music, silence anything. But by 3 a.m., Ryan had waved him off with a quiet, trembling, “I’ll be okay.”

Now, standing in front of the mirror in the dorm bathroom, Ryan stared at his own reflection. His eyes were sunken, and the redness around them painted exhaustion into his face. But it wasn’t just sleep he’d lost. It was safety. Privacy. Even his thoughts no longer felt like his own.

His phone buzzed again. Another message. This one just a photo.

It was Ryan. Caught mid-step in the hallway earlier that day. The picture was grainy taken from a distance but unmistakably him.

And underneath, Adrien’s text:

Even your shadow looks beautiful when it’s afraid.

Ryan flinched, gripping the sink. He wanted to scream, to throw the phone into the drain, to disappear. But running had never helped not with Jake, and definitely not with Adrien.

When he returned to the room, Chris was sitting upright on his bed, bleary eyed but alert.

“You okay?”

Ryan nodded, lying. “Just tired.”

Chris didn’t press. Instead, he got up and handed Ryan a folded piece of paper. “Daniel stopped by. Left this.”

Ryan unfolded it.

Meet me in the greenhouse. Before sunrise. Don’t tell anyone. Just come.

His heart thudded.

He looked out the window. Dawn hadn’t yet broken, but the first hints of light were creeping into the sky.

The campus greenhouse was one of the few places Ryan actually liked. It was always warm, filled with life, humming quietly with the sound of insects and dripping water.

He slipped inside.

Daniel was already there, leaning against one of the tables, arms folded, hair slightly messy like he hadn’t slept either.

“Thanks for coming,” he said softly.

Ryan tried to smile. “Didn’t really have much choice, did I?”

Daniel gave a sad chuckle. “No. You didn’t.”

They stood in silence for a moment before Daniel finally said it:

“I think Adrien’s planning something worse. He’s quiet. And when people like him go quiet, it means they’re making something.”

“A trap?” Ryan asked.

Daniel shook his head. “A message. One everyone will remember. He doesn’t just want to hurt you. He wants to immortalize it.”

Ryan felt cold. “Why me?”

Daniel stepped forward, his voice low. “Because you stood on that stage and spoke with a voice that didn’t shake. You were something powerful in a world he could never control. And now… you’re the only thing he wants.”

Ryan’s chest ached. “What do I do?”

Daniel hesitated, then reached into his coat and pulled out a flash drive. “We found something. From Adrien’s old therapist. Someone saved their sessions. You need to hear what he said. How he thinks. It’ll help you see his next move.”

Ryan took it with a trembling hand. “And if I don’t want to understand him?”

Daniel’s eyes were tired but firm. “Then you won’t survive him.”

Back in the dorm, Chris stayed close. He didn’t ask questions when Ryan curled up on the floor with headphones, plugging in the flash drive and pressing play.

Adrien’s voice poured through the audio.

“It’s not about making someone love me. It’s about becoming a story they’ll never forget. If I can’t live in their heart, I’ll live in their scars.”

Ryan closed his eyes. The words felt like acid down his spine.

Adrien’s voice grew softer in the next recording:

“People don’t understand that obsession is a kind of devotion. It’s love, sharpened until it cuts both of you open.”

Chris crouched beside him. “Ryan,” he whispered. “Are you sure you want to keep listening?”

Ryan looked at him with eyes that didn’t feel like his own anymore.

“I don’t have a choice,” he whispered. “Because he’s already inside the story… and if I don’t understand the ending he’s writing, I won’t be able to change it.”