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ARK's POV
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Days and nightswept by but-
Sleep never came.
Every time I closed my eyes, his voice pressed through the dark. That low murmur, smooth but cutting, wrapping itself around me like smoke.
"I can hear you breathing… You miss me."
I woke with my sheets twisted around my legs, scarf strangled half-loose around my neck. My phone was in my hand like I'd been clinging to it all two night. The screen lit the second my thumb brushed it, but it was empty.
No messages.
No calls.
The silence was heavier than any answer could have been. My chest pulled tight, both relieved and aching at once. If he had texted… what would it have said? Something cruel? Something teasing? I didn't know if I could survive either.
I buried my face into the scarf, pulling the fabric until it pressed into my lips, my nose, like it could muffle the beating in my chest. But the scarf couldn't protect me from myself. The memory of his voice lived too vividly in me, every syllable echoing.
I whispered into the fabric, "Why did you answer?"
But the room didn't answer back.
It was already Monday, and I wasn't ready to face anyone especially Jade.
The hallway buzzed with the usual morning noise- lockers slamming, sneakers squeaking, voices calling out. But I didn't hear any of it until his voice slid through, cutting clean across the air.
It wasn't soft. It wasn't private. It was the kind of voice meant to be heard, meant to pull people in. A girl leaned against him, head thrown back like he'd just told the funniest thing in the world. Her fingers brushed his arm casually, like they belonged there.
I turned too quickly, nearly bumping into someone. My scarf scratched against my skin as I pulled it tighter, dragging my gaze down. Don't look. Don't let him see you looking.
My seat was already waiting, safe in its corner. I slid into it, dropped my bag by my feet, opened my notebook. Pretend you're busy. Pretend you're invisible.
But invisibility was a lie. I felt it before I saw it-his eyes, those beautiful rare eye colour.
The papers moved down the row, my hand trembling as I reached forward. His hand was waiting. His fingers brushed mine, slow, deliberate. Like he was daring me to notice.
I snatched my hand back, pulse sparking like electricity in my veins. My chest tightened, and I forced myself to keep staring at the paper. Don't look up. Don't give him the satisfaction.
But the smirk that flickered in my peripheral vision told me he'd already won.
It was a PT lesson after when the classroom was in already bizarre. Everyone else spilled out in a rush of chatter and shuffling shoes. I kept my eyes on my desk until the room thinned, then gathered my books carefully, deliberately. Maybe if I timed it right, I'd slip away unnoticed.
But he was waiting.
Leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, posture loose but eyes sharp. Like he'd been expecting me.
I froze mid-step. My throat locked, my body screaming to move but refusing.
He tilted his head, gaze burning through me, and then he bent low, just enough that his words brushed against my ear.
"You shouldn't hang up next time."
My chest caved in. My pulse screamed. I couldn't breathe.
I stumbled past him, nearly knocking into the doorframe. The heat of his stare followed me, heavy, suffocating, like it wrapped itself around my neck.
I didn't look back. I couldn't. His smirk was already branded into me.
At lunch
The cafeteria was too loud, too bright, too full of eyes. Whispers followed me before I even sat down, their weight digging under my scarf.
Melissa's stare cut like glass from across the room. Tasha and Charlotte leaned close to her, whispering, their glances flicking toward me. I could feel their words even if I couldn't hear them.
I picked the corner of a table, head low, tray untouched. But then the air shifted.
He was walking toward me.
Not just toward me. Past rows of empty chairs, past the noise of his friends, straight to the seat across from mine.
He sat. Calm. Easy. Like it was natural. Like it was nothing.
But it wasn't nothing. It was everything. His gaze landed heavy on me, his smirk curling just enough to make my chest twist. He didn't need to speak. Every second of silence screamed louder than words.
The cafeteria rippled. Heads turned. Whispers surged.
Melissa's tray slammed against the table. She stood, storming out with her face tight and furious. Tasha and Charlotte scrambled after her, throwing me looks that felt like daggers.
Heat burned my skin. My scarf felt too tight, choking me. Every eye was on me, seeing me, judging me.
I couldn't breathe.
I grabbed my bag and bolted, the sound of laughter and whispers chasing me down the hall.
The bathroom was mercifully empty.
I gripped the sink, turned the faucet, and washing my hands with cold water, letting it soak into the my jersey. My chest heaved, shallow and ragged, as if air itself didn't want to reach me.
"Get a grip," I whispered to the mirror, my reflection blurred through damp fabric and watery eyes.
But when I pushed open the door, I froze.
He was there.
Leaning against the wall, arms folded, gaze locked on me like he'd been waiting all along. His expression was unreadable- calm, predatory, amused.
My stomach dropped. My pulse stuttered, then raced, hammering so hard it echoed in my ears.
He stepped forward slowly, each movement deliberate, steady, as though the hallway belonged to him and I was just caught in it.
"Don't run from me again." His voice was low, dangerous.
Another step. My back pressed against the wall without me realizing I'd moved.
"You wanted me enough to call. Now deal with it."
My throat worked uselessly. My hands clenched at my sides. "Stop," I whispered, the word cracking.
He lifted his hand. Fingers brushed the edge of my scarf, light as air, but enough to make every nerve in me ignite.
His smirk deepened, sharp and merciless.
"That's not what you mean."
For a terrifying second, I thought he'd pull it away. Strip me bare. Expose me right there in the hallway.
My breath stuttered, chest collapsing, terror and heat tangling until I couldn't tell them apart.
But then he pulled back. Not far- just enough to let the space breathe again. His smirk lingered, his eyes dark with something I couldn't name.
"Next time, don't hide."
And then he was gone, his footsteps fading down the hall like he'd taken the air with him.
I slid down the wall, scarf clutched tight, trembling so violently I thought I might shatter apart.
My heart was still racing, too loud, too wild. My chest burned with panic, shame, and something I didn't want to name.
Because deep down, under the fear, under the humiliation-
I knew he was right.