Chapter 23

Zara’s POV

Returning to school felt like walking back into a place that had already decided what it thought of me.

I kept my head down as the car rolled to a stop outside the university gates: same iron arch, same wide courtyard. Same students streaming in clusters, laughing, chatting, living normal lives that suddenly felt far removed from mine.

I tugged at the sleeves of my sweater, an oversized grey thing I’d worn too many times to count with a pair of jeans. My usual flat shoes. Hair pulled into a low ponytail, no effort, no statement. I just wanted to blend in.

The door shut behind me, and the sound echoed louder than it should have.

“Zara!”

I barely had time to look up before Sofia barreled into me, arms wrapping tight around my shoulders.

“Finally,” she breathed dramatically. “I thought you’d vanished into thin air.”

I stiffened for half a second, then relaxed into her embrace. “I was sick.”

“For days?” She pulled back, squinting at me. “You look like hell.”

“Thanks,” I muttered.

She grinned. “I missed you.”

I tried to smile back, but my gaze drifted past her shoulder. And then came the stares around me, almost too many of them.

Whispers that stopped when I turned my head. Phones lowered just a fraction too late when I looked away. A group of girls near the fountain leaned together, one of them glancing at me before quickly looking away as well.

My stomach twisted, and I instinctively shifted closer to Sofia. “Why is everyone?”

“Okay,” she said quickly, grabbing my wrist. “Come with me. Not here.”

She pulled me toward the side of the gate, behind a row of tall hedges where the noise dulled just enough to make breathing easier.

“Sofia,” I said, heart pounding now in my chest. “What’s going on?”

For a moment, she hesitated, and that alone made my chest tighten.

“You remember that party,” she began slowly as my throat instantly went dry. “Yeah.”

“And Alex.”

“Yes.”

“And… you're leaving.”

I frowned. “What about it?”

She glanced around once more, then pulled out her phone. “I didn’t want you finding out like this. But you would’ve eventually.”

Sofia tapped her screen and turned it toward me, looking closely I realized it was a video. Clearly taken from across the street.

I watched myself on the screen, laughing, unsteady, Alex’s arm around my waist. The angle shifted, and a car door slammed from behind. And then a tall figure stormed into frame.

A punch, so fast and brutal. Alex is hitting the ground. Me being yanked back then lifted, carried away like I weighed nothing. Matteo pulls me away to a car nearby and then drives off.

My breath hitched.

“Fuck!” I exclaimed, clapping a hand over my mouth.

Sofia’s eyes were wide. “Right?”

“That’s,” My voice cracked. “That’s real?”

“It’s everywhere,” she whispered. “Private groups. Group chats. Someone sent it to the university gossip page but it got taken down.”

I stared at the screen, my pulse roaring in my ears.

“That’s Matteo,” I said faintly and Sofia blinked. “Wait what?”

“My—” I stopped myself. “Just… someone I know.”

In silence, she studied me. “Zara… that man is fine. Like, illegal levels of fine.”

I shot her a look. “This isn’t funny.”

“I know,” she said quickly. “I’m sorry. It’s just everyone’s talking. About you. About him. About Alex.”

My stomach churned. “Great.”

And then she squeezed my arm. “Hey. Let’s just get through today, okay?”

I nodded, though dread settled heavily in my chest, and as expected the first class was torture.

I sat near the back like other days, eyes fixed on my notebook, but I felt the weight of attention pressing in from all sides. Every time the door opened, my shoulders tensed and every whisper felt aimed at me.

“Did you see the video? That guy went feral. Who even is she?”

By the time the lecture ended hours later, my head was throbbing. The second class wasn’t any better, nor was the third.

By lunch, my nerves were shot. I followed Sofia to the cafeteria, tray in hand, barely tasting the food as we sat at a corner table.

“I swear,” Sofia muttered, stabbing at her salad, “if one more person looks at you like that,”

A shadow fell across the table in seconds cutting her off from her speech and we both looked up.

Alex.

He leaned casually, one foot planted on the bench beside us, arms crossed. A dark bruise bloomed beneath his left eye and I could clearly tell who had done that.

My stomach dropped at the sight of that and I looked away for a second.

“Well,” he drawled, a smirk curling his mouth. “If it isn’t the star of the week.”

Sofia stiffened. “Alex, not now.”

He ignored her, eyes locked on me. “You disappear for days, then come back as if nothing happened?”

“I’m sorry,” I said quickly, standing up to my feet. “About that night. I didn’t,”

He reached out, fingers closing around my wrist and almost instantly my breath caught.

“Hey,” he said quietly, grip tightening just enough to make a point. “Don’t rush off.”

“Let go,” Sofia snapped and Alex glanced at her, amused. “Relax. I’m just talking.”

“I don’t want to talk,” I said, trying to pull free but he leaned closer, lowering his voice. “I guess your guardian angel is watching right now,” he murmured. “I hope he sees me doing this.”

Before I could react, he tugged me forward, in a close and rough manner. But surprisingly my body moved on instinct and I slapped him on the cheeks as it echoed through the cafeteria.

His head snapped to the side and silence followed. Alex stared at me, stunned, fingers loosening around my wrist.

“I—” My chest heaved. “Don’t touch me.”

Without waiting for a response, I turned and ran. I didn’t know where I was going. I just knew I needed distance, and air.

I pushed through the doors, with my heart racing in my chest, vision blurring for a second.

Then I collided with someone hard and my foot caught as my balance vanished in an instant.

And I fell.