The rain kept falling since noon. It beat on the school's glass as if trying to tell her, this endless drumming hinting at what she hadn't noticed yet.
Aria sensed it as well.
She sensed it - how heavy Lucien's gaze felt in lit class.
She sensed it in the hushed corridors.
Her pulse kept racing, even though she tried breathing slow - nothing helped calm it down.
Lucien stayed quiet after they argued the day before. Zero talk. No eye contact either. He just sat behind her, cold as stone - frozen, hushed, risky.
But still… she sensed his gaze on her.
Every second.
Every inhale.
Every trembling exhale.
When the final bell hit, her nerves were shot - jittery, close to breaking. Stuffing her books into the bag fast, eyes low, she tried sneaking out without anyone noticing.
Yet Lucien shifted right when she started walking. He acted fast - before her third step even landed.
His hand grabbed her wrist - no force, no gentleness, yet she stopped cold.
"Walk with me," he said.
Two words.
Just two strangely quiet words.
But the storm in his eyes said everything he wouldn't.
Aria hesitated. "Lucien, I - "
"Aria."
His voice stayed quiet, steady, laced with a tone she didn't quite get.
"Just walk."
She gulped tightly while trailing behind him through the hall, sidestepping stares that lingered too long. Damian waited at his locker as they went by - jaw tight, gaze heavy with something she wouldn't try to figure out.
Yet Lucien kept moving forward.
Not once.
He took her out back, when the downpour eased into a light drip, chill biting at their skin. Over by the ancient oak past the gym they paused - this spot was tucked away, still, kept secret from the rest of school.
It wasn't until they were by themselves that Lucien let go of her wrist.
Then it hit her - his hand trembled.
Lucien never shook.
Even if angry.
Even if it cracks.
"Why are we here?" Aria whispered.
Lucien stayed quiet at first. His gaze drifted off, his jaw clenching tight - so much that the strain seemed to hum under his skin.
He spoke soft-like then:
"I need to tell you something. And I don't know how to do it without you hating me."
Her breath caught.
This didn't feel like the cold calm folks were used to.
This wasn't the cocky, cold version of Lucien she'd come to expect.
This felt totally different - not another person at all.
"Lucien," she said softly, moving near without thinking. Yet then stopped. "Just say it."
His throat moved as he swallowed.
"The day your mother died," he began slowly, "I wasn't supposed to be there."
Aria froze.
Her heart dropped.
He… what?
Lucien went on, each word slow, as if pulled up from some dark ocean floor.
"I was fourteen. My father had sent me to return a business envelope to your mother. I didn't want to go. I was angry at him, and I walked out of the house without even knowing where I was going."
Aria's fingertips lost feeling.
Her knees weakened.
Lucien saw her wobble, then without thinking started to grab her - only froze mid-move, fingers shaking above her arm like contact might scald him.
"I went to your childhood house," he said. "I didn't even know you lived there. I didn't know her. I didn't know anything."
The breeze came through, bringing a soft smell of wet ground.
Aria could hear her heart thumping in her head - fast, scary.
Lucien looked down.
"I saw the car," he continued quietly. "I saw the accident happen, Aria."
She gasped, air catching sharp in her chest.
She shook her head slowly. "No… no, that's not… that's not possible. I was told nobody saw—"
"I did," he said, voice raw. "I did, Aria."
Silence took over everything.
The rain, then the wind, after that the far-off noise of kids heading off school - everything dimmed till just them stayed in that empty space where he spoke true and she gasped for air.
Aria stepped back.
Then another step.
Lucien's eyes squinted, hurting bad.
"I tried to pull her out," he whispered. "I tried, Aria. I swear to you—I tried. But the fire—"
"Stop," she choked. "Please stop."
He pushed his trembling palms to his head, breathing shaky.
"Your mother… she wasn't conscious. She didn't feel it. I wasn't fast enough. I wasn't—"
"Stop!"
The scream tore from her throat, shaky and rough. Her hands flew to her face like that might trap the hurt inside. Yet it poured out fast - burning, coiling, wild. It wouldn't stop no matter what.
Lucien stretched out, his fingers brushing her sleeve before settling there. Then - without a word - he let it stay, just like that.
"I've carried this for years," he whispered. "I wanted to tell you, but my father made sure I never did. He said the truth would destroy everything."
Aria's tears ran down, blending into the raindrops soaking her skin.
He raised her chin slow - like it could break any second.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, voice breaking. "I am so damn sorry."
She stared at his eyes - suddenly, there he was, the kid hiding under that flawless surface. A child who'd stood by as her mom passed away. One who'd fought to keep her alive. Someone who kept her spirit close, year after year.
She spoke so softly it was barely audible
"You were the one… who held me when they told me she was gone."
He shut his eyelids.
"Yes."
"And you never said anything?"
"I didn't deserve to," he whispered.
A gasp slipped out, even though she shook trying to hold back.
Lucien moved nearer - hesitant, quiet, as if near an animal that's scared or hurt.
"If you want to hate me," he murmured, "you can. If you want to never speak to me again, I'll accept it. But I needed you to know. Because every time I look at you… I see the moment I failed."
Aria moved her head from side to side while drops streamed down without stopping.
"Lucien…" her voice cracked, "you didn't fail."
His eyes flew wide - stunned, doubtful, falling apart.
She moved nearer, fingers shaking while touching his chest gently - hesitant at first, then firmer.
"You didn't fail," she repeated. "You were a child."
Lucien gasped - her voice stung, yet somehow fixed things too.
The downpour eased into a light sprinkle.
The world seemed oddly quiet.
Aria spoke soft - her words almost gone before they landed
You didn't cause her death…
You existed - so another took a shot
Lucien's breathing shook. Then he moved closer, till his head met hers - soft, aching, open.
"I shouldn't want you," he whispered.
"But God… I do."
Aria shut her eyes - her tears mixed with the chilly downpour, heat meeting frost in a quiet clash.
I want you as well," she said quietly, her voice shaky.
Lucien's breath caught.
The mask he kept on for ages - that icy shield, that quiet wall, that tight grip - just split open.
Then suddenly…
Aria spotted Lucien for who he truly was.
The kid was linked to memories she couldn't shake.
The kid she just didn't despise.
The kid who could win her heart.
The kid could mess things up for her.
Forever