LOGINBy the time the campus started to empty out, it had almost gotten dark.Aria sat on a bench near the quad, an open book in her hands.Sofia had long gone, so she pretended like she was reading to pass the time.From where she was, she could see the faculty building across the lawn, windows glowing here and there like rectangular stars.One by one, the lights went off.First floor, followed by the third floor.Then the ground floor.Eventually, only a single square of light remained. Jason’s office.Her pulse picked up.She checked the time. 7:30PMIt was now or never.She stood, slung her bag over her shoulder, and typed one last message to Jason.Aria: “Lecture Hall 421.”A top-floor number.Her heart raced as she climbed the stairs.It was quiet up there, and the air was cooler. Most of the doors were closed and locked.The one Sofia had secured was near the end of the corridor.It provided some sort of privacy.That way, they could tell if someone was coming before they got to thei
“What do you mean, leverage my scholarship?”“It’s easy,” Sofia explained. “You say there’s a workshop in Europe tied to your scholarship. Academic development, networking, blah blah. It lines up perfectly with the France dates.”She looked very pleased with herself.Aria stared at her in disbelief. “You want me to invent a workshop?”“Not invent. Imply. You’re a high‑achieving, scholarship‑holding student. Of course, there’d be international opportunities dangling in front of you. It’s practically expected.”“And it literally works for both cute baristas and Professor Sarah,” she added. “It’s literally your golden ticket. Use it.”Aria frowned. “That’s risky, Sofia… What if Sarah asks for details? Or letters? Or the conference website? It might work for Tyler, but she’s going to want receipts.”“Yeah… that’s true,” She chewed her lips. “Oh, I got another one. For Sarah, we fall back on a classic: the sick mum.”“Tell me you’re joking.”“No,” Sofia shrugged. “It worked for the other g
Immediately, Aria palmed Sofia’s mouth. “Shh… you’re too loud.”Sofia just giggled.Then, she let her go.“I’m just so excited,” Sofia whispered.“Can we talk about this after class?”“Fine,” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll sit on my genius idea until then.”The hall was already filling with students as the low hum of chatter echoed off the high ceilings.Aria took a seat in the back row while Sofia had peeled off to sit nearer the front.No one sat too close as the seats on either side stayed empty.She needed the isolation.Moments later, Jason entered in his three-piece navy blue suit that matched his eyes, followed closely by Ethan.His presence commanded the room like always, tall frame, dark hair neatly combed, aura unmatched.He set his briefcase on the podium, scanning the class with those piercing blue eyes that locked onto hers for a minute too long.Memories of his cock stretching her too many times last weekend flashed unbidden in her mind.She forced her gaze down."We’ll be h
On her way to school the next morning, Aria decided to call her mum.“Honey?” her mother answered on the second ring. “Is everything all right? You never call this early.”“Yeah,” She adjusted her bag on her lap. “I’m fine. Just… on my way to school. Thought I’d say hi.”Her mother’s voice softened. “Aw. Thank you. How’s school?”“It’s fine,” She paused, then took a breath. “Actually, I wanted to tell you something.”“Okayy… What’s going on?”Silence.“So… there’s the boy I met.”There was shuffling on the other end. “Go on. I’m listening.”“His name’s Tyler,” Aria said. “We’ve been… seeing each other for a while. Like eight months now. He works on campus as a barista, but also interns as a junior software developer.”There was a small pause.“That’s wonderful, honey,” her mum said finally. “I thought you might never let yourself try again after what happened with Marcus.”The mention of his name felt like a ghost hand squeezing her chest.Images of their anniversary day when she’d wa
“It’s for five days, Sofia,” Aria whispered. “I can’t just disappear with him for that long without anyone else getting suspicious.”They were sitting in the backrow of the lecture hall while class was going on.“I really don’t see what exactly the problem is,” Sofia whispered back, but still kept her eyes on the lecturer in front. “You’re overthinking this.”“I’m not,” Aria insisted. “Professor Kline will wonder why I’m suddenly jetting off in the middle of exam season. Tyler will ask questions. And my roommate will connect the dots.”Sofia shrugged. “Then, you—”“Can you two not?” The girl sitting behind them hissed. “I can’t hear what Professor Vasquez is saying.”Sofia turned slowly, eyes narrowing.“Then go sit at the fucking front, bitch,” she didn’t bother to lower her voice. “Maybe your ear is damaged or something.”A couple of heads turned.Professor Vasquez paused mid-sentence, looking up from his slides. “Is there a problem back there?”Sofia shot the girl one flat, dangero
The air in the room was thick with the scent of sex, sweat, and the faint thump of music from upstairs.Aria’s lungs burned, and her thighs ached in that good, used way, while Jason lay half on his side next to her, one arm thrown over his eyes, chest rising and falling hard.Neither of them said anything.She stared at the ceiling, her heartbeat slowly coming down as she replayed the last hour like it was someone else’s life.The possessive anger he’d used to drag that man. The way he’d branded her as his in front of everyone, and then kissed her like he was starving.Jason shifted beside her, dropping his arm.For a second, their eyes met.Tonight was different… and both of them knew it.But voicing it would shatter the fragile balance.Eventually, her eyelids grew heavy, and he pulled her close, wrapping her in the warmth of his body.- - -The next morning’s light filtered through the heavy blinds.She stirred first, her body sore, throat tender from his earlier choke.For a momen
Monday came with that washed-out light that made everything on campus look a little pale, including Aria, since she'd been dreading how she was going to stand on her resolve.As usual, she headed to Jason's office with her laptop hugged to her chest for their morning T.A. meeting. She slowed down
Aria didn’t remember how she got home. One minute, she was just at the campus gate, and the next, she was standing in front of the apartment door, her keys cold between her fingers.Her heart still hadn’t slowed down.She managed to steady her trembling hands to fit the key into the lock to open it
Aria stared at him, the weight of his hopeful gaze pressing on her chest.It was as if Tyler knew he'd just put her on the spot. He saw it the second her eyes widened.“Whoa,” he said, hands coming up like he could catch the word back out of the air. “That… came out more intense than it sounded in
Aria arrived the apartment twenty minutes later, quietly kicking off her heels so as not to wake Lena up. She winced when one heel teetered and fell, the sound impossible loud in the quiet.Her black dress was in tatters, one side ripped from hem to hip, the other barely holding together with a saf







