The morning sun was lazy, draping golden light across the university campus as though even the sky wasn't ready for another day. Students shuffled through corridors, clutching coffees, their chatter and laughter filling the air. Shoes squeaked on polished floors, doors slammed, pages flipped.
Inside the group project lounge, the seven were already gathering. Ivy sprawled across her chair, scrolling through her phone as if the world bored her. Kai rocked back precariously on two chair legs, his arms spread wide like he was daring gravity to take him down. Valentina scribbled loops and swirls across her notebook—useless doodles that looked more like art than class notes. Bianca perched neatly, hair perfect, flipping through her laptop tabs with dramatic sighs. Damian sat straighter than the rest, arms crossed, observing the chaos with a detached calm. Rei was already spinning his pen like a dagger, eyes sparkling with mischief.
And then—
Click.
The door opened.
Aira walked in.
She didn't rush. She didn't hesitate. Her steps were measured, her presence heavy yet graceful, wrapped in an aura of coldness that refused to melt. Today, a black turtleneck hugged her frame, paired with dark jeans and polished boots that clicked with quiet authority. Her hair, pinned half back, gleamed like obsidian under the light.
To everyone else, she looked flawless. Immaculate. A blade sharpened to perfection.
But Zane saw it. The fraction-of-a-second pause at the doorway, the subtle stiffness in her shoulders as though invisible chains still tugged at her. To him, her silence wasn't emptiness. It was survival.
And today, though her face was unreadable as always, there was something different in her aura. Something faint, fragile. Like a candle flame struggling against wind.
Rei spotted it too—though in his own way. He leaned across the table with a grin. "Careful, Ice Queen. If you smile today, the sun might explode."
Aira's gaze sliced toward him, black eyes colder than midnight. Her lips stayed flat.
Ivy jumped in, tossing her hair. "No, no, Rei—you don't get it. If Aira even thinks about smiling, time itself will stop."
Laughter rippled across the table.
Kai gasped theatrically and fell back, clutching a notebook to his chest like a shield. "The apocalypse! She's gonna SMILE! Save the donuts! Save yourselves!"
Valentina pressed a hand to her cheek, eyes wide in mock horror. "Quick, build bunkers before she blinks twice!"
Even Damian cracked a faint smirk.
And in that storm of laughter—Aira's lips twitched.
Barely.
Not a smile. Not even half of one. But enough. Enough to shift the air. Enough to make the room warmer in a way no heater could.
Bianca caught it first. "Oh my god," she whispered dramatically, hand over her heart. "She almost smiled."
The group laughed harder.
Zane didn't laugh. He just watched. His dark eyes memorized that single flicker like it was a rare star across a black sky.
But then—everything changed.
Students from other groups trickled in, filling seats, opening laptops. The room buzzed with low chatter, the clink of mugs and shuffle of chairs. And then—poison seeped in.
Cassandra.
She was beautiful in that brittle, deliberate way—the kind of girl who smiled only when sharpening knives. She leaned close to her friend, Janice, her voice pitched just enough to carry. "Isn't that the girl who got kicked out of her last university?"
Janice's eyes widened. "Yeah… I heard she caused some huge scandal. Ruined everything for her class. Imagine—destroying her own team."
The words slithered into the air like smoke.
At first, only a few caught it. A shift of chairs. A hushed glance. Then it spread, carried mouth to ear, each retelling sharper, uglier.
"She was expelled…""She betrayed them…""She's dangerous…"
Dozens of eyes tilted, cutting sideways at Aira. Suspicion. Fear. Judgment.
The laughter from minutes ago vanished, smothered in the heavy chill that replaced it.
Rei froze mid-spin of his pen, his grin snapping off like a broken mask. His knuckles whitened.
Ivy's playful smile dissolved, her jaw tightening as her eyes darted toward Cassandra with venom.
Bianca slammed her pen down, the sharp crack cutting through the whispers.
Valentina's manicured hands clenched under the table, her gaze snapping sharp enough to kill.
Kai straightened, his usual dramatic grin gone, replaced with confusion and anger twisting his brows.
Damian didn't move—but the muscle ticking in his jaw said more than any words.
And Zane…
Zane didn't look at the whispers. Didn't even glance at Cassandra.
He looked only at Aira.
Because this was the moment. The exact moment when whispers turned knives.
Aira heard it all.
Every whisper.Every laugh muffled behind hands.Every sideways glance slicing into her skin.
And for one heartbeat, her body froze.
Again.
Same story, different faces.
Her chest squeezed, her scars tearing open inside. Memories howled—Sana's mocking laugh, her father's slap, Liam's indifference, the emptiness of being left behind.
She almost staggered. Almost.
But instead—she straightened.
Her chin lifted. Her shoulders pulled back. Her eyes turned diamond-sharp, glinting with ice so pure it cut to the bone.
And then—
She spoke.
Not loudly. Not angrily.
But with a voice cold enough to burn.
"If you have time to gossip about me," her words sliced, "you should focus more on saving your own pathetic lives. Because trust me…"
Her black eyes swept the room, pinning Cassandra, pinning everyone.
"…not everyone gets a second chance at surviving their mistakes."
The silence that followed was crushing.
Her voice hadn't been raised. But its weight hit like iron, pressing the air flat.
Cassandra went white, then red, shrinking back into her chair as though she'd been skinned alive. Janice stuttered something but couldn't meet Aira's eyes.
Around the room, students looked down at their laptops, shuffling, avoiding her gaze. Not one whisper followed.
Rei exhaled slowly, leaning back with a low whistle. "Damn… she's terrifying."
Ivy's lips twitched, dark delight glimmering. "I love her."
Bianca gave a short, sharp nod, like a knight bowing to her queen.
Valentina rested her chin on her hands, her eyes dreamy. "She's like… an ancient goddess who just cursed an entire kingdom."
Damian's eyes gleamed, sharp with respect.
Kai muttered under his breath, "Note to self: never get on her bad side…"
And Zane—
Zane didn't blink. Didn't breathe. He only stared at her, every nerve burning. He didn't just see her strength. He saw the way her fists clenched, hidden in her pockets. The trembling she tried so hard to bury. The storm raging under her armor.
She's bleeding inside, he thought. And no one sees it but me.
Without another word, Aira turned on her heel.
Her hair whipped around her shoulders, dark as a storm cloud. Her boots clicked against the marble like gunshots, each step carrying the weight of a queen leaving a battlefield. The icy air around her was so thick it almost shimmered.
The door closed behind her with a sharp thud.
And she was gone.
But deep in her pockets—her fists were trembling, her nails digging so hard into her palms she nearly bled.
Because even the strongest storms could feel the sharp edge of loneliness.
Even the coldest queens could bleed inside where no one could see.
And as she walked, her thoughts whispered the same, relentless refrain:
Don't trust.Don't hope.Don't love.