LOGINMy lips brushed his, soft, tentative at first, tasting, testing, and I felt a shiver race down my spine. Aiden’s hands cupped my face, strong and steady, pulling me closer until every inch of me pressed against him. His mouth claimed mine with more urgency, and I responded instinctively, my fingers threading into his messy hair, holding on as if I could never let go.His tongue traced mine slowly, teasing, exploring, igniting a fire deep in my chest. I gasped into the kiss, breath mingling with his, and he hummed low against me, a sound that vibrated through my body. Each press of his lips, each flick of his tongue, sent a pulse of heat through my veins, making me ache for more, though I held back, not ready to surrender fully.Our foreheads touched as we paused, panting, hearts hammering in sync. He pulled me into his chest briefly, the warmth of his body pressing against mine, and then kissed me again, this time deeper, slower, more demanding, as though he was memorizing every curve
I was absolutely still, my hands trembling slightly, the air around me still vibrating with the last words she had said still replaying in my mind. “You deserved everything you got. And I would do it again.”A knot formed in my stomach. My skin prickled with cold confusion. Anger. Hurt. The realization felt like something sharp pressing into my chest. Gina had truly done it. Not just by accident. Not because she was pressured. Not because she was confused. But because she wanted to break me.Because she wanted to watch me fall. She wanted to break me and destroy me, the girl who I once loved and adored had so much disdain for me.She said no one would ever take me seriously after this. That I ruined myself.Aiden steps close.“Elena. Look at me. You did not ruin anything. She did. I swear on my life, I will not let her rewrite your worth.”Aiden stood up, a few steps behind me, chest rising and falling unevenly, his jaw clenched so tightly the muscles along his neck looked carved fro
The apartment felt too quiet after everything that happened. Too still. Almost wrong. After the police took Aiden away, the silence felt like it had weight, pressing down on my chest until every breath scraped like sandpaper. Lily had left for work. The apartment was too quiet without her voice grounding me, too hollow without Aiden pacing or arguing or whispering something reckless at my cheek. Every wall felt like it was listening, waiting for me to break.I didn’t sleep. I didn’t even try.When my phone rang, I flinched so hard I nearly dropped it.I didn’t recognize the number at first. Then my breath caught.My father.“Hello?”His voice came through warm, steady, too full of concern for me to bear. “How are you, sweetheart?”My throat tightened. I pressed a hand to my forehead and forced my voice not to shake. “I’m okay.”It was a lie. A stupid, obvious lie. I was anything but okay.“You sound tired,” he said gently. “Your voice is strained. Did something happen? I’ve been heari
Morning came too quickly.It felt like I had only closed my eyes for a moment, only drifted for a fragile second wrapped in Aiden’s warmth, but when light filtered through Lily’s thin curtains, I knew the world had moved without waiting for either of us. The faint glow of sunrise painted the living room in soft orange, casting long shadows across the floor, and for the first time since yesterday afternoon, I was not drowning in panic.I was lying on the couch, curled into Aiden’s chest, my cheek pressed over his heartbeat. His fingers were still tangled in my hair, the steady rise and fall of his breathing grounding me. I could have stayed like that for hours. For days. Forever.But reality was not kind enough to let moments like this linger.My phone buzzed first. Then Lily’s from her room. Then Aiden’s. Then mine again. And again. A vibrating noise reminding that the world outside was not silent.I felt Aiden tense. Completely still at first, except for the single breath he drew in,
I did not know how long we stayed like that, his forehead resting against mine, our breaths tangled and uneven in the quiet of Lily’s living room. The world outside felt distant, blurred, unreal, as if the uproar of the university belonged to another universe entirely. Here, there was only the soft trembling in Aiden’s hands and the slow, careful rise of his chest as he tried to breathe without breaking.The storm inside me had not passed. Not fully. It hovered in the background like a bruise that still throbbed each time I touched it. But there was something else woven into the chaos now. Something warmer. Something steadier. The truth.It had been Marcus.Not Aiden.And even though the terror and humiliation of the day still clung to me, even though the shadows of doubt still lingered in corners of my thoughts, there was a new thread running through the fear. Relief. Painful. Fragile. But real.Aiden pulled back slightly, just enough to search my face. His eyes were soft, but the ex
The night felt too still for a day that had torn itself apart. I walked until my legs ached, until my breath turned cold in the quiet air, until the frantic beating in my chest had softened enough for me to pretend I was made of something steadier. My thoughts would not stop rolling over themselves. Each step felt like I was trying to outrun the whispers that still clung to me from the university corridors, the sting of the camera flashes, the crowd pressing in like a storm I could not escape.But worst of all was the memory of Aiden reaching for me, desperate and frantic, while I fled from him as if he were a danger rather than the person who had held me together for weeks.I kept replaying it. The fear. The noise. The pressure. His eyes when I pulled away.I hated that I hurt him. I hated that I could not stay.I hated that I did not feel safe with the only man who ever made me feel seen.By the time I returned to my street, the sky was already dimming to a soft purple. Lily’s build