Mag-log in~LUCAS~The hallway is quieter than usual.Most students are either in class or heading out.I adjust my bag slightly on my shoulder, walking toward the lecture hall.Marcella’s voice is still in my head.‘I don’t trust him.’I exhale softly.“She worries too much,” I mutter under my breath.But even as I say it, something doesn’t feel right.I slow down slightly as the feeling grows.Like I’m being watched.Then…..“Lucas.”It's an unfamiliar voice.I stop, and my shoulders tense instantly.I turn slowly to see two unfamiliar faces staring at me.“Who are you??” I ask them.They smirk before walking closer to me.“Xavier sent us to pass a message across to you, bastard,” one of them say.The mention of Xavier's name makes my jaw tightens, and I wonder why he's not here by himself, and why he sent the two guys staring at me sternly.The other guy walks to the wall and leans casually against the wall like he has all the time in the world.“I was wondering when
~MARCELLA~The moment Lucas disappears through the door, the air changes.It’s subtle, but I feel it.Like something just… shifted.I don’t even realize I’m staring at the door until Stephanie nudges me again.“Relax,” she says lightly. “He’s not going to war, he’s going to a lecture.”“I know,” I murmur.But my chest still feels tight….too tight.Stephanie stretches. “I’m going to grab a drink. You want anything?”I shake my head. “No, I’ll just wait here.”“Suit yourself, lover girl,” she teases me.She grabs her bag and walks off, leaving me alone in the classroom.Alone.And the second I realize that, my stomach drops.Because I’m not really alone.A chair scrapes, slow and deliberate.I don’t need to look up to know who it is.My fingers curl slightly against the desk.“Marcella.”His voice is calm….too calm.I inhale slowly before lifting my gaze.Albert is standing right in front of me now, and he's close….too close.“Albert,” I say, keeping my voice ste
~MARCELLA~I squeeze Lucas’ hand lightly because he's all mine.Stephanie claps once, satisfied.“Okay, I approve,” she declares like a judge passing a final verdict.“Let’s sit before the lecturer throws us out,” I say, still smiling.The three of us start walking toward our seats together, Stephanie still talking, Lucas occasionally responding, and me just… soaking it in.This feels normal, happy and safe.“You two are actually disgusting, by the way,” Stephanie suddenly mutters, folding her arms dramatically.I blink. “What?”“The hand holding? The soft smiles? The whole ‘we’re in love and glowing’ thing? Yeah, I hate it.”Lucas lets out a quiet laugh beside me. “You’re just jealous.”“Jealous?” she scoffs. “Please. I could get a boyfriend in ten minutes if I wanted.”“Then why don’t you?” I tease, raising a brow.She pauses… then shrugs. “Because I enjoy peace.”Lucas chuckles. “Translation: no one is good enough.”Stephanie flips her hair. “Exactly.”I shake
~MARCELLA~Albert is walking towards us so fast, and the crowd gets louder.‘Here we go…’'Drama…’‘Oh my God, it’s about to start…’’ someone whispers behind me.“Isn’t that Albert?” another voice adds, excitement rising.Albert stops right in front of us, and without a word, he grabs my arm….trying to pull me away.“No,” I say immediately, stopping him.My voice is calm, but firm, and his grip loosens slightly.His fingers linger for a second longer than necessary… like he’s reluctant to let go. Like he doesn’t want to lose control.He stares at me, then laughs….a low, disbelieving chuckle.“I knew it,” he mutters. “I knew that ‘other friend’ was around at your house…. seeing that you came to school together on a Monday morning.”I straighten, and flash a smile at him.“Lucas is not ‘some other’ friend.”I lift my chin slightly. “He’s my boyfriend. My lover. My world.”The crowd gasps.“And you will not disrespect him,” I add.Albert’s smirk returns…slow and da
~MARCELLA~I wake up smiling the next day.Not the soft, sleepy kind of smile that fades the moment reality sets in… no. This one lingers. It stretches across my face before I even open my eyes, like my body already knows something good is waiting for me.School.God… I’ve actually missed it.The noise. The drama. The attention. The chaos.My eyes flutter open slowly, and the first thing I see is him.Lucas.He’s lying beside me, still asleep, one arm thrown over his head, the other resting loosely on the bed like he owns the space.My chest tightens in the best way.For a second, I just watch him.The sharp lines of his jaw… the way his lips part slightly when he breathes… the faint rise and fall of his chest.And then his eyes open.Like he felt me staring.We lock eyes, and just like that… we both grin.“Morning baby,” he says, his voice rough with sleep.I roll onto my side, facing him fully. “Good morning, sweetheart.”There’s a pause…a full and excited pau
~LUCAS~I can still feel her.Even with both hands on the steering wheel… even with the road stretching endlessly in front of me… even with the night air slipping through the slightly open window….Marcella is everywhere.On my skin. In my head. In my chest.I exhale slowly, gripping the wheel tighter as a faint, disbelieving laugh leaves my lips.What the hell just happened back there?I glance at her from the corner of my eye.She’s sitting comfortably in the passenger seat, her hair slightly damp, her lips swollen in the most distracting way possible… and there’s this soft glow on her face. A satisfied, dreamy kind of glow.And it hits me again.Damn!“That…” I mutter under my breath, shaking my head. “That was insane.”She turns to me immediately, a playful smile tugging at her lips. “Insane good… or insane bad?”I scoff softly, finally looking at her properly. “Marcella… that was the best kind of insane.”Her cheeks flush instantly.And I swear, that al
~LUCAS~I'm driving Marcella out of the dinner party venue, in her own car, and I can't help but relieve the incidents that happened earlier.~~~I had gotten to the dinner venue feeling all nervous and anxious. I had never stood outside a door and needed a moment befo
~MARCELLA~It’s really happening. I can’t believe I just kissed Lucas in front of everyone.The thought crashes into me a split second after my lips touch his.Gasps erupt around us like someone just set off fireworks in the middle of the hall.“Oh my God……”“Did she just….
~MARCELLA~I shouldn't have looked in Lucas’ direction again, but I made the mistake of looking.And now, Xavier has seen him.His jaw ticks.“Ah,” he says softly. “There he is.”I snap my eyes back to him. “Don’t.”The warning leaves my mouth before I can stop it.He laugh
~MARCELLA~My breath leaves me in a sharp, broken gasp.The shock isn’t mild. It’s blinding.For a second, I genuinely can’t process what just happened. My brain lags behind my body. My skin burns where his fingers wrap around my arm, firm and unapologetic.Xavier is holding







