تسجيل الدخولAva PovI stared at the blinking cursor on my laptop screen. The official response to the administration was due in three hours. My scholarship, my degree, and my entire reputation sat on the edge of a cliff. One wrong sentence and I’d lose everything I worked for.So why was I thinking about the way Kai’s hand felt against my neck?I’m supposed to be the smart one. The girl with the plan. But right now, the plan felt like a cage. My room was too quiet. The air felt thick, like it was waiting for a storm to break. I closed the laptop. My fingers were shaking, and I couldn't pretend to care about "academic conduct" anymore.What was I actually protecting?The school wanted me to say Kai pressured me. They wanted a story where the good girl was a victim of the bad boy athlete. It was a clean narrative. It saved my career and ruined his. By the way, the administration loves a scapegoat, and Kai was the perfect target.I stood up and paced the small square of my dorm room. My heart hammer
Rival (Leo) PovWatching them crumble is better than any trophy I’ve ever won.I stood by the glass windows of the athletic department, my reflection looking back at me with a sharp, satisfied grin. Down on the quad, Kai and Ava looked like two people watching their entire world catch fire. They were staring at their phones, faces pale, probably reading the email I spent all night orchestrating.Did they really think they could play house in a restricted warehouse and get away with it? Kai is the golden boy, the star athlete, the one everyone forgives. But even golden boys melt when you turn up the heat."You look far too happy for a Monday morning, Leo," a voice drawled behind me.I didn’t turn around. I knew it was Coach Miller. "Just appreciating the view, Coach. It’s a big day for the team, isn't it? Lots of changes are coming.""What are you talking about?"I finally turned, leaning against the cold glass. I held up my phone. The screen was paused on a grainy but unmistakable ima
Kai PovThe shadow of the administration building loomed over us like a tombstone. Ava’s hand was cold in mine, her fingers trembling against my palm. I hated that. I hated that the people who were supposed to protect her future were the ones trying to tear it down. We had just dodged a security patrol by ducking into the basement of the Fine Arts wing. It was a labyrinth of half-finished sculptures and the smell of turpentine."We can't stay here, Kai," Ava whispered.Her voice echoed against the concrete walls. She looked small among the giant blocks of marble and draped canvases. The dim emergency lights cast long, jagged shadows across her face."I know," I said. "But we can't go out there yet. My father’s car is still at the curb. He’s like a hawk."I leaned against a heavy workbench, my heart hammering a rhythm I couldn't control. The high of the confrontation with the scholarship board was fading. Now, the cold reality was settling in. They had the video. They had us in that re
Ava PovI stared at my phone, the screen glowing like a warning light in the dim dorm room. My mother’s name blinked back at me. She didn’t call at ten on a Tuesday unless something was burning down. Usually, it was my future."Hello?" I said, my voice thin."Ava Marie, do you have any idea what people are saying?" Her voice was sharp, a blade honed by years of managing expectations and high-end real estate.I sank onto my bed. The springs groaned, a pathetic sound that matched how I felt. "Mom, if this is about the rumors—""It is about the photos, Ava. The ones of you in that warehouse with that... that boy." She spat the word like it was a contagion. "The athlete. The one with the police record and the failing grades.""He doesn't have a record," I snapped. My heart hammered against my ribs. "And he’s not just an athlete. He’s—""He is a liability," she interrupted. "I didn't work three jobs and sacrificed my sanity so you could throw your scholarship away for a boy who wears a jer
Kai PovThe locker room smelled like sweat, cheap champagne, and the kind of victory that’s supposed to change your life. We had won. The trophy sat on the bench, gleaming under the harsh fluorescent lights. My teammates were screaming, pouring drinks over each other, and planning the after-party that would probably get us all suspended.I couldn't join them. My eyes were glued to the door, waiting for Ava.I needed to see her. Not the "star athlete" version of me, but the man she’d turned me into. The man who actually cared about passing finals and showing up."Yo, Kai! Toast!" Jax yelled, shoving a plastic cup into my hand.I shook my head and pushed through the crowd. "Later, man. I have to find Ava.""She’s outside," a voice said.It wasn't a friendly voice. I turned and saw Miller leaning against the lockers. He had a nasty grin on his face, the kind that usually meant someone was about to get tackled. He held his phone like a weapon."You really thought you could bury it, didn't
Ava PovThe fluorescent lights in the administration hallway hummed with a clinical, predatory energy. It felt like the sound of a countdown. I stared at the heavy oak door of the Dean’s office, my hands shaking so hard I had to shove them into my coat pockets.How did everything fall apart so fast?One minute, Kai and I were finally finding our rhythm. We were a team. Now, he was being escorted toward the athletic department by two stern-faced security guards, and I was standing here, waiting for a board to decide if my entire life was still valid.The email had been cold. Direct. It didn't ask questions; it made demands.Inquiry into Academic Conduct and Scholarship Eligibility."Ava? They're ready for you."The secretary’s voice snapped me back to the hallway. She looked at me with a mix of pity and curiosity. I was the "good girl" scholarship student, the one who never missed a deadline. Seeing me here was like seeing a glitch in the university’s perfect system.I walked inside. T







