Se connecterThe feeling didn’t last.Of course it didn’t. Because apparently, peace and I had irreconcilable differences, and the universe refused to let me forget it.We were only a few dozen yards from the academic building when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out absentmindedly, a lingering smile still tugging at my lips from watching Bella nearly pass out just because Lisa’s hand had brushed her waist.Then I looked at the screen. Unknown Number.I frowned. Normally, I ignored blocked or unknown calls, but a strange, heavy sensation settled in my gut. A prickle of intuition.I swiped answer. “Hello?”Silence.I pulled the phone away to check the screen. It was still connected. The timer was ticking up.“Hello?” I repeated, my voice dropping.Then, I heard it. Breathing. Slow, deliberate, and entirely too close to the receiver. A sudden, instinctual wave of cold rushed down my spine.“Elias.”My footsteps slowed. I recognized the voice, but it was like trying to recall a face fro
By the time lunch ended, my brain felt like a browser with fifty tabs open, all of them playing audio at once.Too many heavy conversations. Too many conflicting emotions. And far, far too many dramatic people concentrated at a single table.Bella stretched her arms over her head, letting out a long, weary exhale after finishing her drink. “I feel like that lunch aged me five years.”“You barely survived holding hands,” I reminded her, deadpan. “I think the stress was self-inflicted.”Bella’s gaze flickered to Lisa beside her, and she turned a shade of crimson that shouldn't be biologically possible. Riley gagged with theatrical flair. “Disgusting. The pheromones at this table are lethal.”Lisa simply rolled her eyes, but—crucially—she didn’t let go of Bella’s hand. That small gesture was enough to make Bella beam like she’d just won the lottery. I noticed, of course. It was hard to miss a human sunbeam.Kai was the first to stand. “I’ll walk you to class.”“No,” Bella and I said
“I want to go home,” I muttered, the words heavy with a sudden, desperate fatigue.Bella’s hand clamped onto my arm like a vice. “No. Stay. This is entertaining.”“Entertaining for you.”Riley nodded with the clinical fascination of a scientist. “As an outsider? This is top-tier content. Truly incredible.”Across the table, Lisa was the only one who seemed to possess a soul at peace. She sipped her drink with serene detachment, while Bella continued her streak of avoiding eye contact with her after the whole necklace debacle.I, meanwhile, was sandwiched between Kai and Nikolai, feeling less like a dinner guest and more like the central subject of a high-stakes psychological experiment.Bella pointed a French fry at me dramatically. “You know what your problem is?”“I’m sure I have several. List them alphabetically, please.”“You attract emotionally unavailable, dangerous people.”Kai looked genuinely offended. “I’m emotionally available.”Nikolai didn’t even look up from his plate. “
My head was still on the table.Honestly, I wanted to stay there forever.The poor guy standing beside us looked like he regretted approaching already.Bella sighed dramatically. “Congratulations Elias, you’ve somehow created a love pentagon.”I lifted my head slowly. “That’s not even the correct shape.”“You have too many men around you for me to focus on geometry.”Riley burst out laughing.The guy standing there looked even more confused now. “Uh…”I sat up properly and looked at him. “Sorry. Ignore them. What did you want?”Before he could answer, Kai spoke.“Who are you?”The guy blinked. “Daniel.”Nikolai’s eyes stayed fixed on him coldly. “And why exactly do you need him alone?”Daniel looked between both of them nervously. “I just wanted to ask about the literature notes…”Silence.Then Bella snorted.Riley followed immediately.Even Lisa looked like she was holding back laughter.I stared at Kai and Nikolai in disbelief. “Are you both serious right now?”Kai looked mildly emb
The moment things started feeling normal again, Bella ruined it.Actually, strike that. Bella saved it.Because the second she came barreling down the hallway at a dead sprint, screaming my name like the building was on fire, both Kai and Nikolai were forced to stop their brooding staredown just to avoid being trampled.“ELIAS!”I turned just in time to see her nearly skid into my chest. She looked like she’d just finished a marathon, her hair a mess and her eyes wide.“What happened?” I asked, reaching out to steady her. “Is someone chasing you?”She grabbed my arm with the grip of a Victorian widow. “Lisa... held... my hand.”I blinked. Once. Twice.“That’s why you’re running? A moderate display of affection?”“You don’t understand the emotional subtext behind the grip strength, Elias!”Kai looked genuinely baffled, his eyebrows creeping toward his hairline. Nikolai, on the other hand, just looked irritated, like he was counting the seconds until he could get back to being mysteriou
Bella looked like she was about to pass out.Actually pass out. Like, knees buckling, vision spotting, emergency-room-visit pass out.Lisa stood there with the serene, terrifying patience of a predator waiting for a response, while Bella just stared at her as if her brain had hit a blue screen of death.I crossed my arms, leaning back against the lockers to enjoy the show. "You’re blushing, Bel. It’s actually impressive. You’re the exact color of a maraschino cherry."Bella didn't even look at me. She just slapped her hands over her face. "Elias, shut up. Please. Just... stop existing for five minutes."Lisa’s lips twitched. It was a tiny movement, the ghost of a smile, but it was enough to make Bella’s shoulders hike up to her ears.Interesting. Very, very interesting.Lisa shifted her gaze back to me, her expression unreadable but definitely amused. "Can I take her now?"I tapped my chin, pretending to give it some deep, philosophical thought. "Hmm. I don’t know. She’s technically m
I’ve been staring at my phone screen for the last twenty minutes like it owes me money.No call from Elias.No text.Nothing.He’d promised he’d call once he finished unpacking. That was two hours ago. I kept refreshing the messages app, then locking the screen, then unlocking it again like the not
The Lisbon apartment had one good feature: the balcony overlooked a narrow street where people actually lived. Not tourists. Not expats. Real people—old women hanging laundry at dawn, kids kicking a deflated soccer ball until it rolled into the gutter, a guy in a stained apron smoking while he swep
I didn’t know how I was feeling.One minute I was driving back home to my parents like any normal Sunday, the radio humming quietly in the background, the late afternoon sun casting long golden streaks across the highway. My parents had specifically told me to bring Lisa home. They wante
Elias pushed the door shut behind him again.The soft click echoed through the quiet room.Nikolai hadn’t moved far from where he stood earlier, but the moment he saw Elias walk back in, something in his expression shifted. The calm amusement was still there… but now there was s







