ADELINA'S POV I didn't feel like leaving my room the entire night; I stayed buried in my sheets, eating chips and watching a movie. It was the only way to free up my mind. The door creaked open followed by footsteps. I didn't bother to check who it was, Petra was the only one in this house with me. She walked up to my bedside and unceremoniously pulled off the covers over me. I groaned at her, “Give back the covers.” I requested not having the slightest intention to leave the bed, I knew that was her intentions "No way, Adel, I know today was shitty, but you can't hide in here forever.” She started, my eyes narrowed at her. “I am not hiding, I just need a break,” I argued back at her. I crawled to the end of the bed and then stretched out, trying to grab the covers from her. Petra moved away from my reach. “Why didn't you go to work today?” She asked me with a firm expression. “I didn't feel like it; please, can you give me the covers? I am begging. It is cold
ADELINA'S POV Sometimes, I wonder if Professor Perkins ever smiles; he always has an ever-present frown on his forehead. "I am very disappointed at what you did, Miss Marino. You embarrassed the entire department in front of so many distinguished guests.” He started reprimanding me. I was innocent. His eyes then darted around us, settling on me; I knew he was blaming me for everything. “What do you have to say for yourselves? Not only did you do such a shameful thing, you went ahead to cause a scene and injured a lecturer.” I flinched at his sharp tone. My nails were digging into my palms trying to keep my emotions in check. His eyes said it all, I was more than certain he had concluded this was all on me. “I didn't do anything, Kimberly stole my report and swapped it. “ I immediately defended myself. “She is right. I had worked on the report with Adel, and I am more than certain that the report Kimberly presented is Adel's.” Petra immediately chirped in my defenc
ADELINA'S POV How was that possible? What was going on? My brain couldn't process everything properly; a part of me didn't want to believe it, but I watched it; every single detail was exactly how I remembered. "Isn't that your presentation?" Petra gasped, her face twisting up in anger. She had helped me work on it so she had an idea what it was about. I didn't answer her but she quickly got a gist of it. Petra jolted on her feet, "that scheming bitch." She cursed, her hands clutched into a tight fist. I didn't need a genius to know that Kimberly had deliberately embarrassed me in front of everyone including Mikhail. I understood why. She did it because of Asher. I was so tired and frustrated about everything. There was no way I could get back at her, she came from an elite family and must have used her connections to tamper with my project. "Are you going to just sit here and let that bitch steal your show?" Petra asked me, her voice was tired and frustrated. Her eyes g
ADELINA'S POV The spotlight shone on me, "You can do this!!" I heard Petra scream from the exit, cheering me; Asher stood there also watching. The auditorium was packed to the brim, just like how Venessa described. They were right I can do this, "THE NEXT PARTICIPANT FROM THE FINAL YEAR, ADELINA MARINO." The officiator announced, from the sound system. There was a soft round of applause welcoming me on stage. "Come on Adelina, blow their minds." I heard Mr Simon urge me from the earbuds I had in my ear. I adjusted the mic pinned on my collar then my mouth parted "Good morning, distinguished guests and honourable...." My voice trailed as I started the address; I felt the tension oozing off as I spoke with confidence. After introducing myself and greeting the audience, I moved on to introduce my topic, but the words got lost from my mouth for a bit; a group that seemed pretty important was entering the auditorium unceremoniously. It was someone pretty powerf
ADELINA'S POV Asher had insisted on reporting to the police; I rejected the idea, knowing it would only reveal my ties with Grand Ale's nightclub. I didn't want that to ever resurface; it was a memory that I rather forget. I kept on tossing in my sleep, I could not sleep because of the feeling of being watched. Someone was watching me, it was part of my anxiety for a while now. It felt like someone was close and was about to touch me. My eyes shot open, sweat dripping off my skin; I quickly sat up, my eyes darting around the dark room. The bed lamp clicked on, its dim lights illuminating the room. Some corners were dark, and there didn't seem to be anyone there, but I still asked. "Is anyone there?" My voice was barely a whisper. My heart thudded against my chest so hard that every other sound faded. Including fast breathing, I placed my arm on my chest, which was rising rapidly. "Relax, Adel, there is no one here," I told myself but the words were not even
ADELINA'S POV Mikhail left me in a mess as I could not understand why my body reacted the way it did. After leaving the company building, I took a short walk to the nearest bus stop to save on transportation costs. The entire ride, a soft smile hung on my lips and my cheeks as I ran the entire situation in my mind. I didn't know when a giggle left my lips. Something was definitely wrong with my head and it was his fault. I should not be acting like a love-struck teenager when I had a lot going on in my life, but it wasn't that easy to forget how gentle his touch felt. I wondered if we ever did it, would he be gentle or rip me apart? For crying out loud, why were my thoughts straying? There was something about him I could not understand from the day I saw him after running from the party. He was dangerous, he was arrogant, and he never hid that part, yet there was something around him that made me feel safe. I didn't understand why, but his cologne and signatur
ADELINA'S POV Why! Why! Why! I almost screamed out. Why do I always find myself in the most embarrassing situations with Mikhail? My brain froze for a moment; I could feel him right under my panties; why didn't I wear trousers today? "Shit!! I am sorry. I didn't mean any of this, " I shrieked, jumping off him and then grabbing my phone that was still on the floor. What just happened now?! In a state of panic, I pressed the elevator button to exit immediately, unable to face the embarrassment. My mind just wanted to flee. The doors immediately slid open on a random floor; before I could sprint off, a large arm circled my waist, pulling me backwards. Mikhail reached out for the elevator button to close the door immediately. I could catch a glimpse of others on the floor, in absolute shock and confusion. I was slammed against the elevator wall, Mikhail's height towering above me as he caged me in between his arms. "Why do you love to run ginger?" He asked me. Ther
ADELINA'S POV Genesis, I could not believe my eyes as I stared at the company building. How was Petra able to get connections into Genesis? It was one of the biggest, if not the biggest, companies. To get an internship here was everyone's dream, yet Petra could pull strings with just some calls. It must be great having connections. I clutched my bag as I made my way into the company building. The inside was more breathtaking than the outside. It was beyond words to describe. "Welcome to Genesis, how can I help you today?" The receptionist welcomed me with a bright smile as soon as I approached the counter. She has a friendly demeanour to match her professionalism. "I am Adelina Marino and I am meant to have an interview by 12 for an internship position," I informed her; she narrowed her eyes at me, taking a moment to gauge my appearance before turning her attention to her desktop. I take back my earlier statement about her being professional. Her fingers rapid
ADELINA'S POV After giving it some thought I decided to go with the flow as Petra suggested. It won't take much effort to get the recommendation for the scholarship grant to apply. The weekend went by quickly and it was Monday. The second week of the semester and the day Adelina Marino was going to make her grand appearance at the faculty to remind everyone that I was still alive. I stood in front of the mirror admiring my outfit, and girl! Petra had better taste than I ever did. It was a dress which was just perfect, it was blue in colour, my favourite colour that was a perfect fit. It was not too revealing, nor was it too boring; it was just perfect. There was a light knock on the door followed by Petra's voice. "Aren't you done? I am about to leave. Is either you coming out now or you might have to walk down to the bus stop." She reminded me. "Coming. I am already done." I raised my voice a bit for her to hear me. There was no way I was going to walk d