로그인Erica's POV The bass in this place was so thick I could feel it vibrating in my damn fillings. I loved it. I was currently sandwiched between two guys whose names I had already forgotten, but they were hot, they were buying me shots, and they knew how to move. That was all the criteria I needed. I was mid grind, laughing as one of them whispered something uselessly dirty in my ear, when a hand grabbed my shoulder. Hard. "Erica. It’s late. We need to go." I spun around, nearly spilling my drink down my silk dress. Gabriel was standing there, looking like a total wet blanket. He used to be fun, but since he started fucking Leo the sparks in his eyes had totally disappeared. "Gabriel, you are absolutely no fun," I shouted over the beat, pulling my shoulder away. "It’s barely one in the morning. The night is young, and so am I. Go home if you’re tired." I turned back to my two conquests, but Gabriel stepped in front of me again, blocking the view. "Seriously, Erica. The vibe is of
Danny's POV I hit accept. My heart wasn’t just beating, it was trying to punch its way out of my chest. "Hello?" I whispered. My voice sounded like it belonged to someone else. Someone smaller. "Hi, Danny. I missed you." The voice was casual. Too casual. It was the same arrogant, smooth tone he used when he was cornering me in the guest room. There was no trauma in it. No fear. "Leo?" I choked out. "Where are you? Everyone’s looking for you. They said you were kidnapped, they said..." "I have been released," he interrupted, and I could practically hear the smirk through the speaker. "Surprisingly, lol. I guess my luck hasn't run out yet." He laughed. A short, dry sound that made the hair on my arms stand up. I just played along. I didn’t know what else to do. My brain was short circuiting, trying to figure out how a guy goes from a Missing poster to lol in two weeks. "That’s... that’s good, Leo. I am glad you are okay." "Come to campus, Danny. Now. I am back in my dorm."
Danny's POV Elena didn’t even wait for me to reach the door. She pushed past me, her silk robe fluttering like a moth’s wings, and snatched the card out of the massive pink cloud of flowers. I stood there, my hand still on the door handle, feeling like a kid caught stealing from the cookie jar in my own house.The delivery guy looked awkward, holding out a gold wrapped box of chocolates while Elena squinted at the handwriting."‘Sorry for yesterday,’" she read out loud. Her voice was sharp, cutting through the quiet hum of the lobby. She flipped the card over. "‘From Noah.’"I grabbed the chocolate box and scribbled a signature on the guy’s electronic pad. I didn't say thanks. I just wanted him to leave before the air in the room caught fire. The door clicked shut, and the silence that followed was heavy enough to crush my ribs."Who is Noah?" My mom stepped forward, her arms crossed over her chest. She looked from the flowers to me, her eyes narrowed. "Danny? Since when do you have
Danny's POV I cried until my throat felt like I had swallowed a handful of thumbtacks. I cried until my eyes were so swollen I could barely see the cracks in the dorm ceiling. Eventually, the world just went gray, and I fell into a heavy, suffocating sleep.When the sun hit my face the next morning, I didn’t feel refreshed. I felt like a bruise.My phone was vibrating against the floor. Mom. I stared at her name on the screen. “Danny, please come home. We need to talk about the baby. I am worried about you.” Then another: “I am sending Chadwick to get you. Be ready.”I didn’t even have the energy to delete them. I just sat there, staring at the door.Thirty minutes later, the heavy, rhythmic thud of knuckles against wood started. It wasn’t a request. It was an order.I stood up, my legs feeling like lead, and pushed the desk away from the door. I turned the lock.Chadwick stood there. He looked perfect, as usual. Not a hair out of place, his suit crisp, his face a mask of cold, acade
Danny's POV Two weeks.That’s how long it takes for a person to turn into a ghost while they are still breathing.I had washed the black dye out of my hair. It took four rounds of scrubbing until my scalp was raw and red, but the blonde finally came back dull and stripped of its shine, just like me.I had popped the brown contacts out, too. My oceanic blue eyes were back, but when I looked in the mirror, they looked like a sea that had gone stagnant. Dead water.I was back to being the innocent Danny. The academically struggling student. The quiet stepson. But inside? Inside, I was a hollowed out shell, filled with nothing but the echoing sound of Chadwick’s voice calling me a slut.The lecture hall was freezing. Or maybe it was just me. I sat in my usual front row seat, my back straight, my notebook open. I didn't look at the podium. I didn't have to. I could feel Chadwick’s presence like a heavy, suffocating blanket. He hadn't called. He hadn't texted. He hadn't come to my dorm sin
Danny's POV The air in Chadwick’s office usually smelled like expensive mahogany and the kind of high end espresso that cost more than my weekly groceries. Today, it just smelled like ozone and a storm about to break.I stood there, my hands shoved deep into the pockets of my baggy black jeans. I could feel the fake mustache itching against my lip, and the black dye on my scalp felt tight, like a helmet. "I will ask you one more time," Chadwick’s voice was a low, dangerous vibration. He was standing behind his desk, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the wood. "Why are you dressed like this? What is this... charade?""Because I can, Sir," I said. My voice sounded small in the high ceilinged room, but I kept my eyes locked on his. "It’s my hair. My face. My life." "You will go to the bathroom, you will scrub that filth off your face, dress like my Danny and you will come home with me. Now.""No," I whispered, my lip trembling despite how hard I tried to be tough. "Do what
Danny's POV My fingers were still buried in the expensive wool of Chadwick’s lapels, my heart hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird as I was being consumed by a lust that felt more like a fever. I had wanted this. I had wanted to snatch the mask off his face, to prove that the Perfect Prof
Danny's POV"Wait...wait, Sir," I gasped, my hands bracing against the cold, polished wood of the office door.I managed to wedge an arm between us, pushing against Chadwick's broad chest. The soft fabric of the professor's shirt, smooth under my trembling finger, but the heat radiating from him wa
Danny's POV "Give me my book, Erica! And how the hell are you even in here?"I didn't wait for an answer. I scrambled off the bed, my face burning with a mix of shame and pure, unadulterated rage. I moved fast, clicking the lock on my bedroom door with a sharp thud that felt way too loud in the mi
Danny's POV The sun came up the next morning like it hadn't just witnessed the total collapse of my sanity. It was disgusting. The birds were chirping, the kettle was whistling, and the house smelled like expensive coffee and my mum's favourite cinnamon rolls.I stood in the kitchen doorway, leani







