CHAPTER 18: SHADOWS IN THE HALLWAY

✦ 𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐍 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐓 ✦

The administrative hold was gone by noon.

When I checked my portal between classes, the warning box was just gone. No email, no explanation, nothing. My application status was back to normal like the complaint had never even happened in the first place.

When Tristan passed me near the lecture hall, he didn't say a word. He just kept his head down, looking pissed off while his friends talked around him.

Part of me tried to tell myself it was just a system mistake that got cleared up. But every time I tried to convince myself of that, Xavier’s voice from last night kept playing back in my head.

*Fixing a problem.*

There was no way it was a coincidence. But how could Xavier pull strings at my school overnight? It didn't make any sense, and the doubt was driving me insane.

"Earth to Julian," Leo said, dropping his tray onto the cafeteria table across from me with a loud clatter.

I blinked, pulling my eyes away from my phone screen. "Sorry. What?"

Leo unwrapped his burger and leaned back, eyeing me up and down. "You've been staring at that table for five minutes like it owes you money. What's going on with you?"

"Nothing," I murmured, messing with the cap of my water bottle. "Just thinking."

"About the hold getting cleared?" Leo took a bite, chewing before pointing his straw at me. "Adrian told me about it earlier. Man, you got so lucky. University admin usually takes like three weeks to move their asses on anything."

"Yeah," I said, looking down. "I guess."

Leo narrowed his eyes, a teasing smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "You and Adrian seem to get along pretty well."

"We're just working on the project," I said, keeping my tone casual.

"Relax." He laughed, raising both hands in mock defense. "I didn't say anything. I just meant it's nice seeing you actually enjoy working with someone for once."

I shook my head with a quiet laugh. "He's easy to work with, that's all."

"Good," Leo said, taking another bite of his burger. "Just don't let him distract you. We still have exams coming up."

"Trust me," I said. "The project's stressful enough."

"Exactly," Leo grinned. "Focus on surviving the semester first."

Talking to Leo helped clear my head, but as the day went on, that quiet suspicion about Xavier just wouldn't leave me alone.

By eleven that night, the house was dead silent.

My mom and Richard were out at a corporate dinner downtown, leaving the massive place completely empty. I was sitting on my bed trying to read through my project notes, but I couldn't focus on a single line. My mind kept trailing back to Xavier.

Finally, I gave up, closed my notebook, and stepped out into the hallway to head downstairs for water. The house was dimly lit, casting long shadows across the dark floor.

I was halfway down the corridor when I heard the heavy front door open downstairs.

I froze near the top of the stairs.

Slow, heavy footsteps echoed through the foyer. Xavier walked into the light at the bottom of the stairs, unbuttoning his collar with one hand while holding his suit jacket over his arm. He looked totally exhausted—his dark hair messy, his tie loose, his top shirt buttons undone, showing his neck and collarbone.

He started walking up the stairs, his eyes low.

When he reached the top landing, he lifted his head—and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw me standing there in my thin white t-shirt and grey sweatpants.

Neither of us moved. The hallway suddenly felt way too quiet, way too hot.

"You're up late," Xavier said, his voice lower and rougher than usual from the long day.

"Couldn't sleep," I murmured.

Xavier didn't walk past me toward his room. Instead, he took a slow step closer, closing the distance until he was standing right in front of me. He was so much taller than me that I had to tilt my head back just to look at him. I could smell him clearly—cold night air, cedarwood cologne, and a faint trace of whiskey.

"You should be sleeping," he said softly, his grey eyes dipping down to my lips for a second before rising back to my eyes. "You have class in the morning."

My heart did a sudden, violent kick against my ribs. "The application hold got cleared today," I whispered, watching his face closely for any reaction. "Tristan’s complaint was dropped."

"I know," Xavier replied smoothly. His expression didn't change at all. He just stood there, towering over me, his presence heavy and overwhelming.

"Did you do something?" I asked, the doubt spilling out before I could stop it. "Xavier... did you talk to someone?"

Xavier lifted one hand slowly.

My breath caught. For one reckless second, I thought he was going to touch me.

Instead, his palm landed against the wall beside my head with a quiet thud. He leaned in, caging me between his arm and the wall without laying a single finger on me.

My pulse spiked. He wasn't touching me... and somehow, that made it worse.

"Does it matter?" he asked, his voice dropping into a low, dark tone that vibrated straight through me.

"Yes," I breathed, my heart hammering as his gaze dropped down my throat. "It matters to me. I need to know."

Xavier leaned down further, his mouth ending up just inches from my ear. "And what about that project partner of yours?" he asked softly, a dark, dangerous edge in his voice. "Does it matter to him too?"

I blinked, my back pressing flatter against the wall. "Adrian? What does Adrian have to do with any of this?"

"I drove past the campus cafe this afternoon," Xavier murmured, his hot breath brushing against my ear and sending a sharp shiver straight down my spine. "I saw the two of you sitting outside. He was leaning so close to you, his shoulder was practically in your lap."

My chest heaved. I couldn't move. Trapped against the wall beneath his arm, I was completely at his mercy, yet he wasn't touching me at all.

"We were working on our class assessment," I gasped out, trying to keep my voice steady. "We're partners for the project."

"Partners," Xavier repeated, the word sounding dark and lethal coming from his lips. He leaned in even closer, his jaw hovering right next to my neck. "He looks at you too much."

"He doesn't—"

"He does," Xavier cut in quietly.

His eyes trailed slowly from my mouth back up to mine. The space between us was so thin I could feel the heat radiating off his chest, burning right through my shirt.

I should've stepped back. I should've pushed him away or told him to stop.

So... why hadn't I?

"You spend too much time around him, Julian," Xavier whispered.

He stayed right there for one agonizing second longer before his hand slowly left the wall.

"Stay away from him," Xavier said, his tone quiet, heavy, and absolute.

I blinked, staring up at him through the dim light of the hall. "Why?"

A long, suffocating silence stretched between us. Xavier didn't blink. He just looked down at me, his grey eyes dark, unreadable, and dangerous.

"Because I don't like the way he looks at you."

Before I could say another word, Xavier turned, pushed his bedroom door open, and stepped inside.

The door shut with a quiet, solid click.

I stood alone in the dark hallway, my back pressed against the wall, my heart refusing to slow.

*Because I don't like the way he looks at you.*

Those words echoed through the silence, tearing apart every excuse I'd been hiding behind. Whatever was happening between Xavier and me... it wasn't normal anymor

e.

And for the first time, I wasn't sure I wanted it to be…….