Eveline Foster used to worship the ground Axel Graves walked on- now she wanted to scorch it. The boy who had once been her best friend was now the literal bane of her existence and the campus bad boy at her boarding school (it functions as a high school and college for the rich, elite, or with the right connections- like her parents who managed to get her in as a benefit of their employment). She’d known Axel since they were young and they had been thick as thieves until her family had had to move but then she came here a year ago and stumbled into him, she’d thought they would be friends again, she’d been happy to see him and for a split second she thought he had been happy to see her too, and then he’d opened his stupid fat fucking mouth and hadn’t shut it or left her alone for a moment of peace since

Chapter 10: Chapter 10

The heavy oak doors of Pendleton Academy swung shut behind Eveline with a soft thud, sealing her inside the cavernous foyer. Morning light streamed through tall, leaded windows, catching dust motes dancing in the air and glinting off the polished marble floor like scattered diamonds. The familiar scent – aged wood paneling layered with expensive perfumes and faint lemon polish – usually made her feel small.Today, it felt like fuel. She walked, shoulders back, chin level, the unfamiliar whisper of silk against her skin a constant reminder beneath her Pendleton blazer. Her mother’s ivory blouse felt like borrowed armour, yet strangely, her own. Faux confidence, meticulously constructed over her morning toast, held her posture rigid.

A cluster of senior girls near the grand staircase, draped in designer knits and effortless ease, paused their hushed conversation. Their eyes, sharp and assessing, flicked over her – not with dismissal, but a startled curiosity. One tilted her head, whispering something Eve couldn’t hear, but the intent was clear: Who is that? Further down the hall, near the trophy cases gleaming under ornate chandeliers, Liam Chen from her Poli-Sci seminar stopped mid-stride, his gaze locking onto her, his textbook momentarily forgotten against his chest. His mouth opened slightly, then closed. Beside him, Raj Patel elbowed him sharply, grinning, but Liam didn’t look away. The heat of their stares, unexpected and undeniable, prickled across Eve’s skin. And damn it, Axel was right. Owning it, feeling it, knowing she looked… well, hot… because the warmth blooming in her chest wasn't just embarrassment, it was a fierce, unfamiliar kind of power.She sure as hell felt like it.

A slow, genuine smile touched Eveline’s lips, surprising even herself.It wasn't forced. It felt like sunlight breaking through clouds. She adjusted the strap of her leather satchel, the movement deliberate, unhurried, and kept walking, her sensible loafers clicking a steady rhythm on the cool marble. The weight of the stares, the whispers, the sheer notice – it didn't shrink her. It propelled her forward. She was sauntering now, not marching, the silk whispering its secret against her ribs, her head held impossibly higher. Faking it?Maybe.But definitely just a little less. Her locker, gleaming brass under the harsh institutional lights, waited just ahead.