(Elena's POV)
Elena sat in the front office, feigning boredom as the secretary droned on about rules of Westbridge detention.
"…and next time, Miss Vincent, please remember we don't throw juice boxes at anyone, even if they're being rude."
Elena solemnly nodded.
"Yes, ma'am. It slipped."
The truth? She hated orange juice.
But if splashing it in a loudmouth boy's face in class got her a detention slip, the same detention Liam had gotten that day, it was totally worth it.
The secretary gave her a final stern glance, tapping her pen against the desk. "We don't run a loose ship here. No drama, no talking, no phones. Do you understand?"
"Yes, ma'am," Elena parroted, her voice just polite enough to deflect suspicion.
When she entered the dusty old classroom, she spotted him immediately.
Liam was slouched in the back, hoodie pulled up, arms crossed. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere in the world but here.
Too bad.
She smiled and made her way to the seat next to him.
He didn't look at her. "Seriously?"
"Hi to you too," she chirped, sliding her bag down onto the floor.
He huffed. "You're not supposed to be here."
"I got detention."
He gave her a cursory side-eye. "What'd you do? Break a nail?"
She leaned closer, voice low. "I hit someone. With juice."
Liam blinked. Then chuckled. "No way."
She grinned. "Way."
He looked like he wanted to smile, but then remembered he was supposed to be angry with her.
"You shouldn't waste your time on this. On me."
Elena's expression softened. "I don't think it's a waste."
That shut him up.
They sat in silence after that. The clock ticked slowly. The teacher at the front stared at a magazine, barely glancing up.
Elena leaned in, speaking in a quiet voice. "Can I ask you something?"
Liam didn't answer, but she saw the way his hand twitched, like he wanted to tell her to shut up but couldn't quite find the words.
"…Who's Maeve?"
His head turned slowly. "What?"
"That girl. From the other day. The one with the lip gloss and murder in her eyes."
Liam huffed out another sigh. "She's… just someone from around here. We used to hang out."
"She likes you," Elena said, voice level but her chest feeling too tight.
"She's not important."
"You sure?" He locked eyes with her.
"Yeah. Why?"
Elena shrugged, putting on a show of nonchalance."No reason."
But her heart beat a little faster.
She didn't know what she expected. But hearing him say it made her stomach flutter.
Maeve was pretty. Loud. Confident. The kind of girl who would fit into Liam's world.
Elena wasn't.
But still… he was here. Next to her.
And he hadn't really told her to leave.
Not really.
The teacher at the front finally raised her head and grumbled, "Quiet back there," before returning to her magazine.
Elena pretended to doodle in her notebook, but she was really just listening to Liam breathe. The slow, even rhythm made her feel grounded, at home.
(Liam's POV)
After detention, Liam didn't leave right away. He hung back by the lockers, trying to figure out what the hell was happening with Elena Vincent.
He was supposed to be the type of guy that she just ignored. He was a bad kid.
But she'd sat next to him. Twice now.
After Maeve warned her. After the rumors.
He leaned his head back against the cool metal of the lockers and closed his eyes. What was she doing?
"Yo." A voice jolted him back to attention.
It was Ben, one of the other kids in school that Liam actually talked to.
Ben raised an eyebrow. "You good?"
"Yeah."
Ben smirked. "Saw you with St. Claire Barbie again."
Liam rolled his eyes. "Don't call her that."
Ben stared. "Okay… what's going on?"
"Nothing."
Ben laughed. "Dude. You never sit next to anyone. You never talk to anyone. And now she's getting detention just to sit beside you?"
Liam remained silent.
"You like her?"
Liam scoffed. "She doesn't like me."
Ben shrugged. "Maybe not. Or maybe you're just too stubborn to believe someone actually wants to be around you."
Liam didn't respond.
Because the truth?
He was stubborn. And a little scared.
Elena was the kind of girl who didn't belong in his story. She was a fairytale princess, not some detention hall outcast. But she'd looked at him like he was worth listening to. Like he mattered.
And that scared him more than Maeve ever had.
(Elena's POV)
The next day, Liam didn't show up in class.
Elena kept looking at the door, worried that she had pushed too far.
Had he regretted letting her sit beside him?
Did she ruin something?
During lunch, she sat alone at the back steps of the gym, her sketchbook open but unused. She couldn't stop thinking about the look on his face when she had asked about Maeve.
He hadn't been angry.
Just surprised.
Like he didn't expect someone like her to care.
And maybe that was the problem.
People didn't care about Liam. They were afraid of him. Gossiped about him. Avoided him.
But Elena remembered a different version of him.
One that had protected her. Loved her. Died too soon.
That Liam still existed somewhere inside the boy with the hoodie and the sharp tongue. She just had to find him.
"Why are you hiding back here?" Her head shot up. Liam was standing at the edge of the steps, hands in his pockets. His eyes flicked to her sketchbook, then back to her face.
"You weren't in class," she said.
"I had stuff to do."
"Important stuff?"
He smirked faintly. "Not really."
She closed her sketchbook and stood. "Then sit with me."
He hesitated. "People will talk."
"They already are."
He stared at her for a long moment, then sat down beside her. Their shoulders didn't touch, but the air between them seemed a little warmer.
(Liam's POV)
He hadn't meant to skip class on purpose.
Well—okay, maybe he did.
But not because of her.
He just needed time to think.
And he hated how being around her made him feel. Like someone worth fighting for. Like someone who wasn't broken.
No one had ever followed him into detention before. No one had ever asked about Maeve without some kind of angle or gossip-mongering plan.
But Elena had looked… jealous.
And maybe it was wrong, but that made him feel a little good.
No one like her had ever looked at him like that.
And now? He wasn't sure he wanted her to stop.