Alexander Voss wasn't used to being dismissed.
In the week since Mira Ellison had brushed him off in the courtyard, he'd caught himself looking for her more times than he cared to admit. In the dining hall. Passing in the hallways. Even during lacrosse practice when the team ran laps around the quad.
She was beautiful—there was no denying that. Long chestnut waves that caught the light, freckles dusting her nose like stars, hazel eyes that seemed to hold entire stories behind them. But it wasn't just her looks. It was the way she carried herself: head high, shoulders back, like she didn't need anyone's approval.
And that, Alexander decided, made her arrogant.
Beautiful girls at Elite Crest usually smiled at him. Laughed at his jokes. Found excuses to touch his arm. Mira did none of those things. She barely looked at him.
It irritated him more than it should.
He told himself it was because she was new. Because she didn't know how things worked here. Because she thought she was better than everyone with her scholarship and her quiet intensity.
But deep down, he knew it was something else.
She didn't see him. Not really.
And for someone who'd spent years perfecting the art of being seen exactly the way he wanted, that felt like a challenge.
Across the dining hall that Friday evening, Tera Langford watched the whole thing unfold with narrowed eyes.
Tera was everything Mira wasn't: senior like Alexander, captain of the debate team, daughter of a senator, with sleek blonde hair and a smile that could cut glass. She'd liked Alexander since freshman year—liked the way he commanded a room, the way his family name opened doors hers couldn't, the way he looked at her like she was the only girl in the world when they hooked up at parties.
They'd never been official. Alexander didn't do official. But Tera had always assumed it was only a matter of time.
Until Mira Ellison arrived.
Tera had noticed how Alexander's gaze drifted toward the new girl's table more than once. How he'd asked casual questions about her in their shared friend group. How he'd laughed off the courtyard story but kept bringing her up.
It sparked something hot and ugly in Tera's chest.
Jealousy.
She slid into the seat beside Alexander at their usual table, closer than necessary.
"You're staring again," she said lightly, following his line of sight to where Mira sat alone with a book and a salad.
Alexander blinked, turning back to his friends. "Was not."
Tera smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "She's pretty, I'll give her that. But kind of... cold, don't you think? Like she thinks she's too good for everyone."
One of the guys snorted. "Voss got rejected. Historic moment."
Alexander forced a laugh. "It wasn't a rejection. She was just in a hurry."
But Tera leaned in, voice lowered. "I heard she got perfect scores on her entrance exams. Thinks she's some kind of genius. Probably why she doesn't bother with anyone."
Alexander's jaw tightened. He didn't like the way Tera said it—like intelligence was something to mock. Like Mira's confidence was a flaw.
"She's focused," he said. "That's not a crime."
Tera's smile faltered for a second before she recovered. "Of course not. Just saying—she's not exactly making friends. People are starting to talk."
Across the room, Mira felt eyes on her and looked up.
Her gaze met Alexander's for a split second before flicking to Tera beside him. The blonde girl was laughing at something, hand on Alexander's arm.
Mira rolled her eyes and went back to her book.
Arrogant, Alexander thought again. Definitely arrogant.
But even as he thought it, he couldn't stop watching the way she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as she read. The way her brow furrowed in concentration. The way she seemed completely content in her own company.
Tera's hand tightened on his arm.
"So," she said brightly, "party at my parents' lake house tomorrow night? They're out of town. Whole senior class is coming."
Alexander nodded absently. "Yeah. Sounds good."
But his eyes drifted back to Mira as she stood to leave, tray in hand, walking out alone without a backward glance.
Tera followed his gaze and felt that jealousy flare hotter.
If Alexander Voss wanted a challenge, she'd make sure Mira Ellison lost.
And if Mira thought she could waltz into their world and take what Tera had waited years for...
Well. She'd learn soon enough that some spotlights burned.
End of Chapter 2