Meanwhile...
The theatre, as soon as Elion and William left with Celeste...
"So," Aria said, eyes narrowing, "you gonna explain why you're staring after him like a desperate wh—"
"Finish that," Mira snapped, "and I swear I'll rip that dyed hair out of your skull."
"It's not died, bitch..." Aria scoffed. "And everyone knows you're basically throwing yourself at him. Just like with William. Don't pretend you're some innocent flower, whore."
Gasps shot through the room like arrows.
Mira stood so abruptly that her shoes scraped loudly against the floor. "Excuse me? At least I'm not stalking him like a jealous, obsessive bitch."
Their classmates shifted in their seats, wide-eyed.
Aria leaned in, lips curling. "You? With Elion? Please. You're just convenient—"
"What the hell is going on here?" Jared approached, trying to insert himself between them, voice tense. "Mira, I need to talk to you, William—."
Mira didn't even look at him.
"Fuck off." The entire class froze.
A pen dropped somewhere in the front.
She turned her glare on him. "Did you not hear me? Fuck. Off. Pathetic bastard. You are nothing but a dog that wags their tail at their master!"
If the class had been shocked before, now they were airless.
Jared blinked rapidly, as if trying to reboot his brain. "You— what did you—"
He reached out in frustration, grabbing Mira's wrist roughly. "Enough! You're both—"
Mira's reaction was instantaneous.
She whipped around, eyes blazing with murderous fury. "LET. GO. OF. ME!"
Her voice cracked like lightning, so loud that William actually flinched.
Then she yanked her hand out of his grip so violently he stumbled. "You perverted bastard! Touch me again, and I'll break your arm!"
A breathless hush consumed the class.
Aria's laugh was a sharp, delighted thing. "What, grabbing girls now? Real noble conduct, Jared. No wonder Elion beat your filthy asses, along with Dawncrest."
The class collectively lost their minds.
People exchanged looks, disbelief, awe, and fear. Two girls were actually whispering prayers.
"They're teaming up on him", someone murmured.
Jared looked around and saw it: The disgust in his classmates' eyes. The judgment.The whispers.
His jaw clenched so tight a vein bulged on his forehead.
"You…" he hissed. "You will pay for this."
He turned to his buddies. "Come on."
They shuffled out quickly, more eager to flee than to follow.
The door slammed behind them.
For a single peaceful heartbeat, the room was silent.
Then...
Aria smiled sweetly at Mira.
"You handled that well," she said. "For a scheming whore."
"Oh, you want to go again?" Mira stood up. "Fine. Let's go again."
And just like two cats seeing each other for the first time on opposite sides of territory lines, they launched right back into verbal warfare.
Insults.
Claws.
Hissing.
Death threats.
A chair may or may not have been kicked.
People watched, equal parts terrified and entertained.
Isolde blinked repeatedly, turning to Lyra. "Are they… fighting over Elion?" She actually couldn't believe her own eyes.
Lyra put a hand on her forehead. "I don't know. I don't think I want to know."
Meanwhile, Tessa, who was seated a few rows down, watched the chaos with the brightest, most entertained grin imaginable.
When Mira hurled a particularly savage insult comparing Aria to a "discount alley cat with abandonment issues," Tessa lost it.
She burst into loud, wheezing laughter, smacking her desk, tears forming in her eyes.
Then she actually tipped sideways out of her seat, hitting the floor with a squeak as she coughed for air.
Aria folded her arms. "Oh, look. The academy's resident temptress wants another go."
Mira smirked. "Temptress? Please. You're just pissed he actually likes me."
"Likes you?" Aria barked a laugh. "He's being polite. Elion's too nice to tell you to back off."
"Too nice?" Mira stepped closer, eyes blazing. "This coming from you? The same girl who ignored and treated him like air for six months straight, like he was garbage?"
Aria's smile tightened. "I had my reasons."
"Oh, I'm sure you did," Mira shot back. "Like thinking you were too good for him?"
"That's not—"
"And you suddenly show up the moment he looks different. Taller. Handsome. Stronger." Mira leaned in. "Coincidence?"
Aria's cheeks flushed with anger. "Don't twist things. At least I wasn't flirting with every guy in class before this."
"What?" Mira blinked. "Do you even hear yourself? I wasn't flirting, I was surviving. You have this pretty little princess reputation; everyone worships you. I had to actually talk to people."
Aria's jaw clenched. "You flirt with anything that breathes."
"And you freeze up around anything that breathes," Mira countered. "At least I'm not a pink-obsessed child hiding behind a cutesy facade."
Aria's brow twitched dangerously. "Say that again."
Mira raised both hands mockingly. "Sorry—I meant a pink-obsessed child AND hypocrite. Better?"
Aria stepped closer until their faces were inches apart. "You think Elion would choose you over me?"
Mira didn't flinch. "He already did."
"He was just using you!"
"And you think he wouldn't do the same with you?"
Aria blinked, just for a fraction of a second. Her fingers curled tightly. "…You think just because you sit with him now that he's yours?"
Mira tilted her head. "Oh? Do you want him to be yours?"
Aria stiffened. "That— That's not—"
"Be honest for once," Mira said softly, voice razor-sharp. "You like him. You've liked him for a while. But your pride wouldn't let you talk to him."
Aria's breath hitched. The class went still.
"I—" Aria swallowed hard. "That's none of your business."
"It became my business the moment you started calling me names," Mira said coldly.
Aria's lips parted, but no insult came out. For the first time, she looked… cornered.
And Mira realized it.
But she hadn't won. Far from it.
Aria had the advantage, not because Elion chose her… but because Mira had hurt him before, and now she was desperately trying to make up for it.
And Aira… Elion probably cared about her. Just not fully. But Aria was in a far better position than she was.
Mira exhaled slowly, letting the tension settle.
She could push harder.
She could win this confrontation.
But winning the fight didn't mean winning Elion.
So instead, she stepped back.
"You know…" Mira said, tone softer but no less confident, "You're right about one thing."
Aria frowned, confused. "…What thing?"
"Elion isn't mine," Mira admitted. "Not fully. Not in a way that excludes anyone else."
Aria blinked, startled.
"And he's not yours either," Mira added gently.
The words hit Aria like cold water.
Mira continued, voice calm but firm. "I've been with him. I've been close to him. But you've also been there in ways I haven't. He likes you. And despite all this fighting…"
Mira gestured vaguely at the air between them, "…he wouldn't want us tearing each other apart."
Aria hesitated. Her anger faltered.
Mira took a breath, then dropped the bomb:
"So maybe… we don't make him choose."
Aria stared at her, stunned. "…What?"
"Sharing," Mira said simply. "You and me. We stop fighting. We stop dragging him into our mess. We both want to be with him. So… we share him."
The class collectively choked on their own saliva.
Aria's brain short-circuited.
"M-m-mira," she stammered, face turning crimson, "what do you mean share?"
Mira shrugged. "Exactly what it sounds like."
Aria's jaw dropped.
Mira smiled faintly. "How about it, pink princess? Want to share?"
Aria opened her mouth—
Closed it—
Opened it again—
But no words came out.
For once, Mira had completely, utterly left her speechless.