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Elizabeth's POV

The week dragged on like an endless nightmare, each day heavier than the last. My phone never left my side. I carried it everywhere, waiting for the buzz that would remind me I wasn’t alone — that someone out there was still pulling my strings.

But for two days straight, silence.

It should have felt like a relief, a breath of air after drowning in fear and anguish for so long. Instead, it was worse. Silence meant they were watching quietly, biding their time. Silence meant they were waiting for me to slip.

And then there was Sebastian.

The lecture hall was packed that morning, students buzzing with conversations that made the walls hum. I sat near the back, head lowered, trying to disappear. My hoodie shielded my face, and my notebook was filled with mindless scribbles. Anything to make me look busy, distracted. Even invisible.

But when Sebastian walked in, everything changed. It always did. His presence pressed against the room, commanding silence without a word. I d