Chapter 22

FLASHBACK BEFORE THE PARTY

Cassian's POV 

I didn't let Kai finish his sentence before grabbing Drasa's wrist and dragging her out of the classroom. She tried to pull free, but I didn't let go not until we were far enough away. 

I finally released her, and we both stood there, catching our breath.

She straightened up, frowning. "What the hell are you doing?" she snapped, her brows pinched together.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly. "I didn't mean to drag you like that, but if I hadn't, Kai would've kept talking. He never knows when to shut up."

Her glare softened, and she gave a small nod. "Thanks anyway."

She turned like she was about to walk off again, but I moved faster, stepping in front of her to block her path.

"About what I said earlier…" I exhaled, trying to steady my voice. "I think you thought I was joking, but I wasn't."

She stared at me, caught off guard.

"I'm sorry," I continued. "I never meant to hurt you. I was only trying to joke, I didn't know you'd take it to heart like that."

I hoped that would calm her, but instead, her eyes narrowed.

"Are you saying I don't know how to take a joke?"

"No, no…” I raised both hands. "That's not what I meant. Don't twist my words, Drasa. Please, let's not argue about this. I'm sorry. Truly."

The silence stretched between us, heavy and uncomfortable. I could see her processing my words, weighing them against whatever hurt I'd caused earlier. Her jaw was tight, and she kept looking past me like she was calculating her escape route.

"Look," I said, running a hand through my hair, "I know I screwed up. I know I have a habit of saying things without thinking them through first. But with you..." I paused, struggling to find the right words. "With you, it's different. I don't want to mess this up."

She crossed her arms, still guarded. "Mess what up, exactly? We barely know each other, Cassian."

"Maybe that's the problem," I admitted. "Maybe I should've tried to actually get to know you instead of just... I don't know, whatever stupid thing I was doing before."

For a moment, something flickered in her expression surprise, maybe, or curiosity. But then her expression went blank. 

She was silent for a few seconds, then finally nodded.

"Okay. Understandable," she muttered and turned to leave again.

But before she could take a step, a voice called behind us.

"Cassian."

I turned around and saw one of the girls from our group walking toward us.

"Any problem?" I asked, raising a brow.

She shook her head and smiled. "No. I just came to drop the list of the group members."

"Alright. Bring it here."

She stepped closer, holding out the book. But as she passed it to me, her finger brushed against mine deliberately. Her smile gave it away.

I noticed Drasa tense beside me. Her eyes narrowed, clearly annoyed.

I took a step back from the girl and snatched the book out of her hand.

"Don't ever try that again," I warned, my voice cold.

The girl blinked, startled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to.”

She glanced at Drasa with an ugly look before walking off.

"You see that?" She muttered. "This is exactly why you have to keep your distance from me at school. Did you see the way she looked at me? I didn't do anything wrong, and she's already acting like I did."

I watched her walk away, wanting to go after her but I stopped myself. I didn't want to come off as clingy.

I walked back to my lodge on campus. As soon as I tried to open the door, I heard something that made me freeze.

Kai again. Of course.

I pushed the door open. He quickly dropped his phone like he'd been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to.

"I told you, don't ever watch that crap beside me again," I muttered, walking past him and dropping onto the bed.

He laughed. "Don't act like a saint. You watch stuff on your phone, too. So what if I prefer watching it out loud?"

"I'm not in the mood. Can you just give me space? I need to reset my head." I rolled my eyes. 

"Not until you explain what I heard earlier." He didn't move.

I shot him a warning look. "Drop it."

"No way," he said, sitting up straighter. "Did you…or did you not…..call that white hair girl your girlfriend?"

I looked away, avoiding his eyes. "Don't worry about it."

"Seriously?" He scoffed. "You're just going to brush that off like it means nothing? I'm confused."

"She's not my girlfriend," I said firmly. "Don't take it seriously. It was just… something I said."

Kai stared at me like he didn't believe a word of it. But then he shrugged.

"Whatever. I'm not here for that, anyway. I came to invite you to a party."

"A party?" I raised a brow.

"Yeah," he grinned. "Tomorrow. Saturday. Pool party. There'll be music, drinks, and hot girls."

I squinted. "Hot girls?"

Kai nodded like it was the best thing in the world. "Of course! We're going to smash that ass until we're tired. You know how it goes, booties everywhere, and if we're lucky, maybe even some real fun under the water."

I just stared at him, deadpan, this guy can never changes.