005

Christiana walked away from the courtyard with her hands shoved in her pockets, her mind replaying the confrontation.

Noah's shoulder slamming into hers. Jess's venomous accusations. And that other guy, the quiet one, who had looked at her like he could see straight through her skin.

She found a bench near the library and sat down, watching students pass by. Most of them were in groups, laughing or complaining about assignments. Normal. Easy. She envied them for reasons she did not want to examine too closely.

Two girls walked past, their voices carrying.

"Did you see them? Both of them were there."

"Of course they were. Wherever Noah goes, Asher follows."

"Or the other way around."

"Either way, that girl was stupid for getting involved. Everyone knows you don't mess with the Vale brothers."

Christiana's head snapped up. Vale brothers. She watched the girls disappear around a corner, their conversation fading. So they were related. That explained nothing and somehow made it worse.

She pulled out her phone and searched their names. The results were sparse. A few mentions in campus newspapers about athletics and academic achievements. Nothing personal. Nothing revealing. But the comments sections were full of speculation. Rumors about fights. Money. Family scandal. The kind of whispers that followed people who had secrets worth protecting.

Dangerous, one comment said. Untouchable, said another.

Christiana closed her phone, irritation flaring in her chest. She had spent her whole life around people with secrets and reputations. She was not impressed. But something about the way Asher had looked at her stuck in her mind like a splinter.

"Christiana!"

She looked up to see two people approaching. A girl with short auburn hair and a guy with warm brown skin and a bright smile. They both looked friendly in a way that made her suspicious.

"I'm Nania," the girl said, sitting down beside her without asking. "This is George. We saw what happened earlier."

George sat on her other side, his movements careful. "That took guts. Stupid guts, but still."

Christiana studied them both. Nania had sharp eyes and an easy confidence. George had a bruise along his jaw that he had tried to cover with makeup, but she could still see the faint purple beneath it. She filed that detail away.

"I didn't realize I was signing up for campus drama," Christiana said.

"You weren't," Nania said. "But you walked right into it anyway. Points for commitment."

"Or lack of self-preservation," George added. He tilted his head, examining her. "You're new, aren't you?"

"Transfer."

"That explains why you didn't know better." Nania leaned back against the bench. "Rule one here: don't get involved with the Vale brothers. Rule two: see rule one."

"Noted."

"Too late now, though." George grinned, but there was something knowing in his eyes. "They've seen you. That means you're on their radar."

"Lucky me."

Nania laughed. "I like her. She's sarcastic and clearly has terrible judgment. We're going to be great friends."

Christiana found herself almost smiling. "Is that how friendship works here?"

"It's how ours works," George said. "We collect strays. You look like you could use some collecting."

They stayed with her for another twenty minutes, talking about classes and professors and which dining hall had the least terrible food. It was easy in a way she had not expected. Nania was blunt but warm. George was quick with jokes that had an edge of truth beneath them. Neither of them asked about her parents or where she came from. They just treated her like a person, not a tragedy.

When they finally left, Nania squeezed her shoulder. "Text us if you need anything. Or if the Vale brothers try to kill you. Whichever comes first."

Christiana watched them walk away, something loosening in her chest. Maybe this place would not be entirely unbearable.

She met Julian near the parking lot an hour later. He looked the same as he had that morning, controlled and distant. When he asked how her day went, she lied.

"Fine. Boring. Nothing happened."

He studied her for a moment like he did not believe her, but he did not push. They drove back to his house in silence. She went to her room and closed the door, grateful for the space.

That night, she could not sleep. She lay in bed staring at the ceiling, her mind refusing to quiet. She kept seeing Asher's face. The way his eyes had locked onto hers with an intensity that felt deliberate. Like he had been memorizing her. Like he knew something she did not.

Noah's anger had been straightforward. Easy to understand. But Asher's silence felt loaded with meaning she could not decode. It unsettled her more than it should have.

She thought about Julian downstairs, keeping his distance, painting emotions he refused to acknowledge. She thought about her parents and the lies they had lived. She thought about Marc and the way he had looked at her when she caught him, like she was the one who had done something wrong.

Everything in her life had been built on control. On careful planning and calculated moves. But now the ground beneath her felt unstable, shifting in ways she could not predict.

She had thought coming here would give her a fresh start. A chance to rebuild away from the wreckage of her old life. But sitting in the dark, replaying the events of the day, she realized something that made her stomach tighten.

She had not escaped disaster.

She had walked straight into it.