LOGINJULIANI sit up slowly as my heart starts racing. Could he be…Me: Why?Nikolai: Because I’m parked downstairs.Before I have time to react, another message comes in almost immediately.Nikolai: Wear something casual but cozy. I’m taking you somewhere.Even though he sounds mysterious, anticipation swirls within me.Before I can overthink this, I stand up from bed immediately and rush to the bathroom.Forty minutes later, I stand outside my apartment building in a hoodie and jeans, staring at Nikolai’s black Bentley parked by the curb.He leans against the driver’s side door, hands tucked into the pockets of a dark coat.The moment his eyes land on me, something soft enters his eyes before it is immediately replaced by a careful expression.Theo is not the only person that has been acting weird. Nikolai has, too.He’s still as intense and cold as always, but there’s an edge to him lately. Something that feels… dark.It makes me wonder if he heard something that day. But I don’t think
JULIANToday is March 13th. It’s a day I both dread and love.My fingers tremble slightly as I bring up the contact on my phone and dial the number.I bring the phone to my ear, listening to the dial tone as it rings and rings.I bite my thumb nervously.For a moment, I expect her not to pick up. It certainly won’t be the first time.But then a soft, feminine voice fills my ear. “Hello. Lauren Cross speaking.”I almost laugh as her crisp voice comes down the line. Of course, she would speak like this over the phone.Doesn’t matter that she’s speaking to her own son.“Hi, mum.”“Julian?” Her voice sounds surprised like she can’t believe I’m calling her. Which is no surprise considering we only speak once a month, if even that.But I have to wonder if she didn’t even bother to check the caller ID.Knowing her, I won’t be surprised if that’s the case. At least, her secretary isn’t the one that picked up this time.“Is everything okay?” she asks.I stare at the ceiling above my head. M
NIKOLAIThere’s a spark to him now as he talks about Theo, a fondness in his eyes. He almost looks like he’s…My grip tightens on his shoulder again.Those dark thoughts of possessiveness well up in me for the second time.I don’t care what feelings he has for his friend, whether they are platonic or not.It doesn’t matter what feelings he has accumulated over the past years, because I’m in the picture now. And the moment Julian agreed to step into this with me, the moment he approached me, he already became mine.“So… would you say you’d do anything for him?”He frowns as he looks up at me. “Yes. Maybe. Why?”His tone is careful, like he’s trying not to give anything away. But it’s too late for that.Fuck. How did I not see this? Or maybe I did and I just chose to willfully ignore it.The second one sounds like the more probable option.Theo, Theo, Theo.Why the fuck does that name bother me so much?I’ve been wracking my brain ever since I first saw him.Something about him irritat
NIKOLAIThe thought flashes through me so fast it almost drives me insane.He’s mine even if he lied.Mine even if he betrayed me.Mine even if I have to rip apart everyone around him to remind him of it.I inhale sharply, trying to force the thoughts back down, but they only multiply. I can practically feel the violence simmering beneath my skin now, hot and restless, begging for somewhere to go.If any other person had done this, any other person apart from Julian, then I’d already be plotting how to erase them from existence.No one plays with me and gets away with it. Especially someone I was planning to give my all to.I want to break something… no, someone.I want to see Julian pinned beneath me, forced to finally tell me which parts were real and which parts were fake. I want to tear the answers out of him until there’s nothing left to hide behind.I stop walking and break away from Julian’s hold. I turn to face him and grab his waist, dragging him closer.He looks up at me wi
NIKOLAII watch as Julian’s eyes go wide, his mouth dropping open in shock. He’s gone completely still, like his body has forgotten how to move. His expression looks strange, caught somewhere between shock and panic, like his brain is struggling to comprehend what is happening.His friend behind him seems to have a calmer reaction. He just stares at me blankly, like he doesn’t really care if I heard it all or not.And for the record, I heard. I heard everything.I force my face to an impassive mask as I turn my attention to Julian.I straighten lazily from the pillar I’m leaning against. “Done talking?”He doesn’t react for a moment, as if he didn’t hear me but then he nods slowly, his mouth still parted, like he can’t get any words to come out.Any other person in my shoes would probably confront them, question them about what I’d heard, ask them if it’s really true, make such a big fuss about things.But I’m not going to do that. Where is the fun in that? It’s much more entertaining
JULIANTheo laughs once in disbelief. “Excuse me?”“You heard me. It’s incredibly rude to demand that when I’m sitting right here.”Theo’s eyes narrow. I can tell he’s one second away from losing it. “How dare you talk about what’s rude—”I quickly intervene before this can escalate any further.“It’s fine,” I say, looking at Nikolai. “We’ll just talk and I’ll be back soon.”His lips thin in displeasure. I genuinely think he’ll prevent me from going but then his hand leaves my thigh.“You can go.” His voice is flat.Theo looks offended at his tone and I stand quickly before he can say something about it.I don’t need these two trying to kill each other. Not right now, and definitely not in public.Theo turns and walks away without another word.I follow after him nervously.I can feel Nikolai’s gaze on my back but I don’t dare to look back.Theo walks fast down the hallway, his shoulders tense.He pushes open the door to an empty classroom and steps inside.I follow carefully.The sec







