Boundaries

🌑 ELARA 🌑 

The rest of the school day passed in a blur for Elara.

Everywhere she went, she could feel eyes following her. Students whispered behind her back, some staring openly, others quickly looking away whenever she glanced in their direction. Normally, being the center of attention would have made her miserable. Today was different.

Nobody dared approach her. Nobody made snide comments. Nobody mocked her. And most importantly, Aiden and his friends stayed far away from her.

For the first time in a long while, she walked through the hallways without feeling like she was being hunted.

She hated to admit it, but it felt good.

Still, the events of that morning refused to leave her mind. The image of Lucian Voss stepping through the crowd replayed itself over and over, the way everyone immediately moved aside for him, the way Aiden's face had gone pale, the way Lucian had looked at her as if she were the only person standing there.

And then there was the biggest problem of all.

"She's my girlfriend."

Elara groaned softly and buried her face in her hands. The memory alone was enough to make her want to disappear.

What had he been thinking? Why would someone like Lucian Voss involve himself in her problems? The two of them barely knew each other, if anything, they were complete strangers. Yet he had stepped in without hesitation. Protected her, defended her and claimed her.

None of it made sense.

By the time her final class ended, her head was pounding from overthinking. As she boarded the bus home, she settled into a seat by the window and watched the city pass by. The afternoon sun painted the streets in shades of gold. Students chatted around her. Cars filled the roads. Life continued as normal.

But her thoughts kept drifting back to Lucian.

Why did he help me?

The question repeated itself endlessly. She thought about his calm voice, his silver eyes, the strange concern she'd seen on his face. For a brief moment, she wondered if there was more to him than the cold, intimidating image everyone talked about.

Then she immediately shut the thought down.

No. Whatever his reason was, it didn't matter. Getting involved with someone like Lucian Voss would only bring complications, and her life was already complicated enough.

With a quiet sigh, she rested her head against the bus window. Forget about him. Forget about this morning. Forget about the ridiculous boyfriend lie. That was the safest option.

And for the first time all day, she finally decided to let it go.

Or at least try to.

—

When Elara arrived home, she was surprised to find her mother already there. The delicious smell of food drifted from the kitchen, and a warm smile instantly appeared on her face.

"Mom?"

Her mother looked up from the dining table and smiled. "There you are."

The tension in Elara's shoulders eased immediately. No matter how bad her day was, coming home always made things better. She dropped her bag beside the couch before walking over and hugging her mother.

Her mother laughed softly. "Long day?"

"You have no idea."

"That bad?"

"Worse."

Her mother chuckled. "Then tell me about it."

For the next hour, they sat together talking about their day. Elara carefully avoided mentioning Lucian or the drama at school. Instead, she listened as her mother talked about work, annoying customers, and funny stories from her day. The familiar conversation was comforting. Normal. Exactly what Elara needed.

Eventually, exhaustion caught up with her.

"I think I'm going to take a shower."

Her mother nodded. "Go ahead. Dinner will be ready soon."

Elara smiled. "Thanks, Mom."

She grabbed her bag and headed upstairs. Once inside her room, she closed the door behind her and leaned against it. The silence felt wonderful.

After a long, hot shower, she changed into comfortable clothes, went downstairs for dinner and collapsed onto her bed as soon as she was done. The soft mattress welcomed her immediately, and within minutes her eyes began to grow heavy.

The last thing she expected was for silver eyes and a teasing smirk to appear in her thoughts just before sleep claimed her.

And somewhere deep down, a small voice whispered that forgetting Lucian Voss might not be as easy as she wanted it to be.

—

🌑 LUCIAN 🌑 

Lucian sat in the dim light of his room, the city below his window buzzing with life he couldn't focus on. His laptop was open. Unread messages from Miguel kept popping up.

He ignored them.

Instead, his mind kept replaying one thing: Elara Sean. The way she'd looked earlier, angry, embarrassed, and scared in a way she'd tried too hard to hide.

His jaw tightened. He leaned back in his chair and exhaled slowly.

"This is ridiculous," he muttered to himself.

But even as he said it, his wolf didn't calm down. It paced, restless and unsettled beneath his skin, circling a thought he refused to name.

Miguel's voice echoed in his head from earlier. You've never reacted like this before.

Lucian ran a hand through his hair. That was the problem, he couldn't explain it. It wasn't just that he'd helped her. It was how automatic it had felt, like something inside him had decided before he did.

His phone buzzed again. This time, he checked it.

Miguel: So… are we pretending you didn't almost declare war on a whole campus today?

Lucian stared at the message for a second, then tossed the phone onto the bed.

"Idiot," he said under his breath, though there was no real heat behind it.

Silence settled again. But it didn't last, because the moment his thoughts drifted back to her face saying stay away from me, something inside him tightened. Not anger. Not annoyance. Something sharper, Uncomfortable and Wrong.

Lucian stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor.

"This makes no sense," he said quietly.

And yet he already knew he wouldn't listen to her. Not fully. Not when everything in him kept pulling him back toward the one person who clearly wanted distance.

—

🌑 ELARA 🌑 

The next morning at University A felt different the moment Elara stepped onto campus. Different in the worst way.

She barely made it past the main gate before she noticed it, clusters of students whispering in tight circles, phones angled slightly too casually, eyes flicking toward her and then quickly away.

It was subtle at first. Then it wasn't.

By the time she reached the central walkway, the whispers were impossible to ignore.

"That's her…"

"Lucian Voss's girlfriend…"

"No way, right? She looks so normal."

"I heard Aiden got warned personally…"

Elara's steps slowed. Her fingers tightened around her bag strap.

Girlfriend.

The word hit her like a headache she couldn't escape. She turned her face slightly downward and walked faster, hoping foolishly that invisibility might still be an option.

It wasn't.

A group of girls near the fountain parted just enough to let her pass, but not enough to stop staring. Someone whispered, "She doesn't even look like his type."

Elara almost laughed. Almost. If only they knew how absurd this whole thing was.

By the time she reached her department building, her mood was already ruined. She took a quiet seat near the window at the front row of her lecture hall, hoping to disappear into the environment like she usually did.

But even there, she could feel it. The attention,the curiosity,the rumor had officially spread everywhere.

And the worst part? Nobody dared confront her about it directly. Fear of Lucian Voss had apparently become louder than curiosity.

—

Meanwhile, across campus, Lucian walked in like he always did calm, composed, untouchable. Except today, the atmosphere shifted the moment he appeared. Students straightened. Voices lowered. Phones were suddenly hidden.

Miguel walked beside him, already amused.

"I love campus mornings," Miguel said lightly. "Everyone looks like they're surviving a horror movie."

Lucian didn't respond.

Miguel tilted his head. "You saw the group chats?"

"No."

"Liar."

Lucian shot him a look.

Miguel grinned. "You're trending. Again."

Lucian exhaled through his nose. "Ridiculous."

"Not as ridiculous as your sudden relationship announcement," Miguel replied, laughing under his breath.

Lucian ignored him. But his mind didn't ignore the consequences. Everywhere he passed, students looked at him differently now, not just fear, but curiosity, speculation, and something else he didn't like.

Expectation.

Miguel nudged him. "So what's the plan? Let the whole school believe you've suddenly fallen in love with a mystery girl?"

Lucian didn't answer immediately.

Because the truth was, he hadn't planned anything. It had just happened. And now it had a life of its own.

—

🌑 ELARA AND LUCIAN 🌑 

By midday, Elara had fully accepted that peace was not part of today's schedule. She stood outside her lecture hall, debating whether skipping the remaining classes entirely counted as self-care or avoidance.

Before she could decide, the air shifted, and a familiar presence appeared beside her.

She turned slowly.

Lucian Voss. Again.

Her heart did something irritating in her chest, but she forced her expression flat.

"What do you want?" she asked almost immediately.

Lucian studied her for a moment, then, too casually, he spoke.

"Come have lunch with me."

Silence.

Elara blinked. Once. Twice.

"…What?"

Miguel, standing a few steps behind, visibly paused, like he was watching a disaster unfold in slow motion.

Lucian didn't look away from her. "I said," he repeated, calm as ever, "have lunch with me."

Elara let out a short, incredulous breath. "No."

That was immediate. Clean. Final.

Miguel made a noise that sounded suspiciously like laughter.

Lucian, however, didn't react. Instead, he took a small step closer, not threatening, just persistent.

"Why not?"

Elara crossed her arms. "Because I don't have time for whatever this is."

"It's lunch," he replied simply.

"That's not what I mean."

A beat passed. Lucian tilted his head slightly. "You're avoiding me."

Elara scoffed. "I'm not avoiding you. I'm setting boundaries."

Miguel muttered under his breath, "This is going so well already…"

Elara continued, her voice firmer now. "You already caused enough drama yesterday. People think I'm your girlfriend."

Lucian's expression shifted, just slightly. Not guilt. Not apology. More like consideration.

"Yes," he said.

Elara stared at him. "…Yes?"

"That's what they believe."

Her eyes twitched. "That is not the point."

Lucian watched her carefully again, then spoke like it was the simplest thing in the world. "Then having lunch together won't make it worse."

Miguel covered his mouth with his hand.

Elara looked like she was one sentence away from combusting. "You are unbelievable."

Lucian didn't deny it. Instead, he added calmly, "I just want to talk."

That made her pause. For the first time, her expression shifted slightly, uncertainty breaking through her frustration.

"…Talk about what?"

Lucian's gaze held hers for a second longer than necessary. Then he answered quietly.

"About yesterday."

And suddenly, the air between them changed.

"About yesterday," Lucian said. "I was only trying to get you out of a bad situation."

Elara didn't let him finish.

"Did I look like I needed saving, Mr. I-Wanted-To-Save-You?" Her voice was sharp, controlled. "Just keep your distance from me." She pointed at Miguel, who raised an eyebrow, clearly delighted to have been volunteered for something. "Go have lunch with him. He looks thrilled."

She turned to leave but Lucian caught her hand.

The contact stopped her mid-step, like something in her had simply forgotten how to keep walking.