Chapter 5: The First Kiss: You're Mine

Lila.

Jace didn’t slow as he strode past us down the corridor, his broad shoulders cutting through the air like he owned it. His gaze never touched me at least, not in any way I could prove but for a split second, as he passed… I swore something invisible brushed against my skin.

I swallowed hard, my fingers tightening on the strap of my bag.

By the time I blinked, he was gone, leaving only silence and the faint echo of his boots against the floor.

“Lila.”

I turned, startled. He was still there… kael. He hadn’t moved an inch, his eyes were still locked on my face… like he was waiting for me to say something, or for me to bolt.

“Sorry for asking but…. Can I help you though?” I slowly spoke as I stared back at Kael.

“You don’t have to be scared,” he said gently. “Not of me.”

The words twisted something deep inside me. My lips parted before I could stop them. “Then… why?”

His head tilted. “Why what?”

“Why are you outside the girls bathroom?” My voice came out fragile, but it was the only question I could choke out.

Kael’s jaw shifted like he was debating something. Then he smiled faintly, almost sad. “Because I had to know.”

My pulse jumped, my heart skyrocketed. “Know what?”

“That you’re real.”

The floor felt like it tilted under me. “What…?”

But then he cut me off with a soft shake of his head.

“Forget it. I already confirmed what I needed to know.”

Before I could say anything, before I could demand answers, Kael stepped back. For one moment, his gaze lingered on mine, warm and almost… protective. Then he turned and walked away…

And just like that I was alone again.

My chest clenched. Why did that feel like losing something I didn’t even have?

The air shifted again but this time it wasn’t because of a handsome hockey captain walking by… no, this time it felt ominous… like I was being watched, but there was no one in sight.

By the time I got to class, Kael’s words were still tangled inside me. “…I had to know you’re real.”

What did that even mean? Real? Of course I was real. But the way he said it, like I was something rare, something impossible… it left my thoughts spinning.

I repeated my mantra under my breath as I slid into the back row:

‘Low profile, no trouble.. be.. Invisible.’

The rest of the day dragged on although I kept expecting Kael to show up again, maybe even explain himself, but he didn’t. He disappeared just as suddenly as he had appeared, and I was left clutching the fragile warmth of his smile like it was a stolen light.

By the final bell, my nerves were fried and tired. I ducked the crowded hallway, cutting through the side staircase that led toward the library wing. No one ever used it… too drafty, too far from the main building.

Perfect for being unseen.

But halfway down, the air changed.

That same cold edge…. Heavy, sharp, alive.

I immediately froze at the landing.

He was there.

Jace.

Leaning against the wall like he’d been waiting all along, arms crossed, dark eyes fixed on me.

My books pressed tighter to my chest. “You— ”

What the hell was going on today?

First Brielle and her obnoxious character then Kael and now him…

“Well, hello Lila.” His voice cut clean, low and dangerous.

The words slammed into me harder than Kael’s ever had. My throat closed, but my body wouldn’t move.

“I… what… ” My voice cracked.

“You’re.. ”

“Don’t say my name.” His eyes narrowed, and for a second I swore they burned. “Names have power. Yours most of all… ironically.”

My knees nearly gave out.

He stepped closer, the stairwell suddenly too small, too silent. Every footfall echoed through me like a command.

“You should’ve stayed hidden,” Jace murmured, his voice dipping lower. “But it’s too late now.”

My chest heaved. “Stay hidden?… I don’t understand… ”

“You will… sooner than you think.”

My head tilted in confusion, but suddenly I froze as I felt his shadow cover me, I raised my head in shock, and something more shocking happen.

His lips pressed on mine. Warm, sharp, and possessive.

My eyes widened in shock as his eyes bore into mine and I swear I saw it change.

His eyes contained emotions that couldn't be separated.

Was that Possessiveness, madness, protectiveness, longing and hope I see in his eyes?

But…Why?!

“Lila…”He whispered softly. Then suddenly, the air around us thickened, “You’re mine!”

And then before I could blink… he was gone. Just… gone. The cold, the weight of him, all ripped from the air as if he had never been there.

My body trembled hard, my lips still cold and my head spark with fire.

What the hell just happen?! He kissed me..? Jace kissed me?!

My books spilled from my arms as I let out a breath I never knew I had been holding, pages scattering across the stone steps.

Kael’s words rang in my ears.

“I had to know you’re real.”

And Jace’s voice followed, colder, darker…

“You should’ve stayed hidden.”

“You’re mine!”

My fingers trembled as I scrambled to pick them up, but my body just wouldn’t stop shaking and then I froze as my eyes widened in shock and disbelief…

My body freezed, I felt there was fire burning inside my heart. Painful and…

“Urgggh..!”