" Jump! "
Pearl looked at Lucas as tears filled her big eyes. " Please let me go."She tried to move away but his grip on her wrist tightened." I told you to jump! " he pushed her forward and now she was standing at the edge of the rooftop." I don't want to die, " she looked down. Her blood ran cold. it was so high she shivered." But I want you dead " Lucas whispered in her ear, smirking, " never see you again " he pushed her off." Ahhhh! " Pearl screamed as she fell. Just when her head was about to touch the hard floor her eyes opened." noooooo! "she screamed waking up from her nightmare. she broke into cold sweat.Pearl whipped her forehead and noticed her whole body was covered in sweat. She looked around to find herself sitting on her bed. Pearl drank a glass of water to calm herself down and after sometime her breathing became normal." it was a dream "she thought, looking at her alarm clock she rose up from her bed to take a shower.Half an hour later Pearl stood before the mirror wrapped in a towel. She picked up her uniform and changed into it. She pulled her hair in a ponytail and applied lip gloss. She stood still to examine herself. She was satisfied with her look. She took her bag and locked her room behind her. Slowly she made her way towards the school building." Ah! " her head bumped into something hard and she fell on the ground." you dumbass don't you know where are you going? "Lucas growled looking at the girl before him.She had her head lowered and was rubbing her head with her small hand." you blind bull "Pear raised her eyes. " don't you have eyes or are they useless? " she lost her voice when she realised who he was," the..the bully."she thought and slapped her mouth to stop herself from speaking any further.Lucas was shocked to see that this girl not only chose not to run away from him, but she also dared to call him a blind bull!She raised her head to look at him and he froze. Big blue eyes stared back at him with anger. Her cherry lips opened and moved in a sexual way.She lifted her hand to rub her head again and he noticed her small hand.Suddenly he wanted to know how it would feel to hold her small hand in his. He was so lost that he didn't even realise what she was saying. he saw her eyes widen and she slapped her mouth. " I... I am sorry " Lucas said he was feeling nervous around her. His heart beat fast against his chest and he raised his hand to feel the fast beating. He saw so many expressions on her face in such a short time. Anger, frustration, shock and fear. He felt hurt seeing her fear him. He wanted to hold her and tell her that he would never hurt her. Lucas felt strange. " Why am I feeling this way? " He wanted to know this so bad.Pearl stared at the big hand before her. " Stay away from him " Daniel's word flashed in her head, but she still put her hand in his against her will. Her body worked on its own.Lucas pulled her back at her feet and handed her bag." A.. Are you hurt? " What was wrong with him? Lucas cleared her throat when he didn't get any response. He saw her still staring at him with her wide eyes." A sorry is not enough. Kneel down and salute at me " Pearl spoke with her chin raised high.Silence...More silence...A little more silence...Everyone was shocked to hear this including Lucas and Pearl herself. She wanted to just disappear.Lucas stared at her. Shocked.His eyes suddenly turned red and he started giving a very dangerous aura.Everybody moved back and said a silent prayer for Pearl in their heart. " God save this fool. "" We…Well I will forgive you this time… hehehe " Pearl gave a nervous laugh but she noticed the situation got worse. She wanted to slap herself.Her vicious tongue will be the cause of her death.Sigh…Lucas looked at her helplessly. He couldn't bring himself to hurt her no matter how much he tried." Just get lost " He threw those words at her and saw her run away.He looked at her disappearing back and smiled. She looked like a small bunny running away from its predator.The girls who were standing there to get a look of him fainted when they saw him smile.Everyone was shocked to witness this scene." Did he just let her go? Just like that? " This question was in everyone's head, but on one dared to ask.The bully let a girl insult him and he let her go! He even smiled looking at her! This news spread in the college like a wildfire.When Pearl reached her classroom she saw her classmates giving her a jealous look. They looked at her with anger as if they wanted to tear her apart.Pearl shivered. " What did I do? Did I somehow offend them? " She thought and reached her desk." Still not fully awake? " Daniel mocked her.Pearl ignored him." Look isn't it the bit*h that seduced our Lucas? " Pearl raised her head after hearing this." She is so shameless, " Another one added.Pearl stood up, " Who gave you the power to judge me and my character? " She looked at the fat girl before her." Are you blaming us now? " The fat girl spoke." Stay away from our Lucas. "Pearl felt funny. " How is he yours? " She wanted to laugh so bad. " Are you his girlfriend? "" You…The fat girl moved forward to grab her hair when a hand was grabbed by Daniel's." Do you want your family to go bankrupt? " He asked calmly. He saw the shock and fear in her eyes." Young.. Young master Daniel… I… I am sorry. " She quickly apologised. She was shocked to see that he was taking a stand for Pearl." Get lost. " He sat back in his seat pulling Pearl with him." It seems she is very important to him, " One of the girls whispered.They saw Daniel whispering something to Pearl and she smiled in return, hitting him playfully on his arm. They looked so intimate and in love.The fat girl shivered from anger. " She is trying to seduce both of them " She spoke and the rest of the girls nodded in return.My breathing was too slow that my heart skipped a beat. Caelum stood there, smoking slowly. I couldn't see his face clearly but I could bet my life on the fact that he was staring straight at me and for some strange reason it made my stomach drop. but not in a bad way, not because I was feeling anxious or nervous no, it was the opposite. I was feeling a strange type of peace that made my stomach feel weird and that fact scared me to my bones. " Caelum " I whispered slowly as if he would hear me. And I saw him leaning his head back exactly at that moment like he heard me whisper his name, and it relieved him in some way. My ringtone startled me. I looked down at my phone, he was calling me. I picked it up and moved it closer to my ears. I heard his deep breathing first and then his deep, velvety voice came next. " Amara " He spoke my name with so much care, that he made it sound almost sacred. " Caelum " " How are you my swan? " I closed my eyes. After
I had just finished applying my face mask when the door bell rang, without even any doubt I knew who it was. Marina told me she'll be sending a assistant for me. But I still checked the security camera before opening the door. You can't take any risk if you're a woman living alone, and as expected it was her. A young girl, probably same as my own age. she stood before the door, her right hand was tightly clutching the sling bag at her side. She was nervous. I opened the door quickly, I smiled at her. She raised her eyes at me and I looked into a pair of chocolate brown eyes, she nervously smiled back. I envied her innocence. I was just like her once before I turned into this particular version of myself, who was cold and.. and strong. " Hello, please come inside, " I opened the door wider and stepped aside. She looked down, nodded once and stepped in. I closed the door behind her with a soft thud. " Have a seat, don't be so nervous, " I smiled once again. I wanted he
The city changed as I left the café. At first, it was subtle—a black car that lingered too long at a turn, a woman with a phone pointed just a second too long in my direction. I tightened the collar of my sweater and kept my face angled away from the street. But I knew that feeling. The air grows tighter. And the world, smaller. My driver opened the door for me, and I stepped into the backseat with practiced grace. We pulled away from Verde Fiore, winding through the ancient veins of Rome, heading toward the studio. The second rehearsal was due in less than an hour. I didn’t notice the third car until it sped up beside us. The first flash came like lightning. Then came another. And another. The sound of camera shutters, like mechanical gunfire, filled the space around us. My driver cursed under his breath. “Signorina—paparazzi.” I turned sharply. Three cars now. One directly behind us. One to the left, keeping pace. One ahead, slowing to block our path. From ever
The office was too quiet, even for someone who’d come to love silence. Or maybe not love it—just forget how to hate it. The rain tapped against the glass of the penthouse windows as I stood staring at the city skyline, the vast sprawl of glass and chrome stretching beneath me. It should have felt triumphant. It didn’t. "Mr. Whitlock, the Tokyo team has confirmed the merger." I didn’t look away from the window. "Put it on my desk. I’ll review it later." "Yes, sir." I heard the secretary retreat, her heels clicking softly against the marble floor. I waited for the door to close with a muted hiss before finally turning. The office was sharp and sterile. Mahogany desk, floor-to-ceiling shelves lined with untouched books, and a liquor cabinet I never used. The only thing personal in the entire room was a single velvet box in the bottom drawer of my desk—locked, untouched. My reflection caught in the glass. The tailored black suit, the gray eyes that no longer sparked, the hair
The city was quiet at dawn. Rome always woke slowly—like a lover reluctant to leave bed, curling back into warmth and marble silence. I stood by the tall window of my apartment, my hands wrapped around a cup of black tea. Below me, the street was just beginning to stir. A Vespa buzzed. A café owner unlocked his doors. The sky above was pale lavender, the kind of color that made me feel like I had already danced through a dream. I turned away from the view and moved through the apartment—barefoot on cool, polished floors, the silk hem of my robe whispering at my ankles. My rehearsal bag was packed. Hairpins ready. Pointe shoes tucked in like sleeping swans. A knock at the door broke the quiet. Three knocks. Not loud. Not urgent. Just... expectant. I didn’t even need to ask. It was him. I opened the door and found him standing there. Black suit, no tie, simple white shirt. Tall, lean, not brutish. The kind of man who blended into any hotel lobby or opera house. You wouldn’t rememb
The city of Rome gleamed beneath the dusky sky, its ancient streets echoing the low hum of life. After the warm dinner with Mama and Papa, I returned to my sanctuary—the apartment that cradled the version of me the world knew as Amara Liora. The Swan of Rome. The driver pulled up to the front of the building, and the doorman, Roberto, greeted me with a warm smile. " Good night, miss." "Good night, Roberto," I replied softly, stepping out as he opened the door for me. I nodded politely, tired but glowing from the comfort of home. The building was tucked in the quieter part of Trastevere, away from the tourists and noise. But nothing about it was modest. A beautiful blend of classic Roman architecture with subtle modern elegance, its cream façade held wrought-iron balconies adorned with red and white flowers. I took the private elevator to the top floor—my floor. The doors opened with a soft chime and I stepped into my apartment. Light spilled across marble floors, polished to a mu