I must’ve fallen asleep sitting up, arms wrapped around my legs like they were the only thing holding me together. The floor was cold. My body was sore. And my head felt too heavy for my neck.I didn’t hear the door open until someone cleared their throat.“Let’s go,” said a voice. The same staff member from earlier. His expression was unreadable. “Your father’s waiting outside.”I didn’t say anything. I just stood. My legs were stiff. I felt like I was walking underwater.The ride home was silent. My father didn’t look at me. Not once. Not when I got in the car. Not when I sat beside him in the back seat. He stared out the window like I wasn’t even there.When we pulled up to the house, I saw the lights were on.The front door opened before we reached it.A familiar feminine figure was already waiting.My mother.The woman who hadn’t come to my convocation. Who always had work, meetings, clients. Who was rarely home, and when she was, it was more in presence than spirit.But now, she
The screams didn’t come. Not for me.Not yet.The kind of silence that followed wasn’t mercy; it was a massacre. The auditorium, moments ago filled with pride and celebration, now breathed only shame and shock. Eyes that had adored me, applauded me, were now daggers. Staring. Judging. Consuming.And then came the whispers. The poison.“Is that really her?”“God, that’s disgusting…” “With a professor?”“She probably slept her way to that award.”“Slut.”“She’s not even denying it—look at her!”Each word sliced through my skin, raw and humiliating. My hands trembled around the trophy I’d earned. The once-glorious trophy felt like a joke now. I turned, my eyes scanning the crowd through the blur of tears and blinding lights, searching for something—someone to ground me.There.My gaze found him. Professor Wolfe.Frozen.He stood at the side like the impact had knocked the air out of him. His broad shoulders were stiff, but his jaw ticked. Once. Twice. A muscle feathered under the sharp
The auditorium falls silent as the noise of conversation stops. A name echoes clearly over the microphone.A slow smile crept across his face as he announced, “The Highest Honor of Distinction—awarded to the single most exceptional student in our university’s history... Ava Clarke.”My name.My heart pounded like a drum in my chest as I stood, trying to steady myself, desperate to keep my excitement in check. That's right. Spine straight, chin high, my red gown flowing like fire. As I climbed the stage, all eyes followed me. Cameras flashed. Applause thundered.Applause burst like a wave.Bright lights hit my face. The Dean was waiting at the center of the stage with a wide smile and a thick certificate in hand. Cameras flashed. Someone in the crowd screamed my name proudly—my father, maybe.When I reached the Dean, our hands met in a firm handshake. Photos clicked, capturing this moment I’d fought for. He pressed the certificate into my trembling hands, along with a heavy, gold-embos
After that day, everything went back to normal. I threw myself into studying like usual—maybe even harder—because the convocation ceremony was right around the corner, and I had to be the best. No excuses.Professor Wolfe was always there, lecturing, mentoring, and supporting me in the way only he could. I was grateful—really. As for Sienna Cross? She never missed a chance to get under my skin. Every day, she made sure to flash that smug, evil smirk at me in passing. At first, it made my spine itch. Now? I just flipped her off and kept walking. I knew it was one of her tired little tactics to throw me off my game.Another favorite? Trying to steal Wolfe’s attention in class by answering questions no one asked and leaning a little too close when she didn’t need to. I swear, there were moments I wanted to launch my notebook at her head. But Professor Wolfe always managed to calm me before I snapped.She’d been clawing for the spotlight since the day she transferred here, desperate to ou
Ava~Because Professor Wolfe was ignoring me on purpose, I had to take matters into my own damn hands and reshuffle my schedule. To avoid me, he didn’t just leave class the moment the lecture ended—no, he took it further. He started skipping faculty lounge hours and refused all one-on-one consultations. Then he started sending feedback through the teaching assistant even when it was clearly his handwriting on the margins. No chances to catch him alone. He hides behind his TA like that’ll keep me at bay. The man’s practically ghosting me in 4k.Hmph! Like that would keep me away. It definitely won’t. He’s a fucking coward, too scared to face what’ll happen if someone sees us. Too scared of the fallout, the whispers, the ruin. And maybe he should be. Because he’s already crossed that line. He’s already touched me. It already happened. Denying it won’t change the truth.I waited after school, just like I had the day before, watching the clock tick past the hours. At exactly 8:45 PM, whe
Ava~The front door creaked as I stepped into the house. My bag felt like a dead weight on my shoulder, and my shoes thudded too loudly against the hardwood floor.Dad looked up from the couch, smiling. “Hey, sweetie. How was school?”“Fine,” I muttered, my voice dry and clipped as I dropped my bag by the door.He didn’t seem to catch my tone—or maybe he just ignored it. “Oh, by the way,” he said, standing and stretching a little. “Professor Wolfe emailed earlier. Said he wouldn’t be in today. Some health thing.”I froze.Health thing?My jaw clenched. My fist curled slowly at my side, fingernails biting into my palm.Health issues, my ass.I nodded once, mechanical. “Okay.”Then I turned and walked straight to my room before the fire in my chest made it to my face.Once inside, I tossed my bag onto the bed so hard it bounced off and hit the floor. I stared at it, breathing through my nose.Liar.Liar.He didn’t even bother telling me himself. He vanished. And now he was feeding my da