On the Way to Ayodale Royal Academy
The slap cracked through the bus, louder than the engine, louder than the chatter, louder than the buzzing phones lifted high by half the passengers.
For a heartbeat, everything froze.
His cheek burned. A clean sting bloomed beneath pale fingers. Karlyle didn't touch it. Didn't flinch. He breathed and looked past the girl—to the stalled line behind her.
"That was uncalled for," he said calmly.
She stood rigid, one arm crossed over her chest as if the touch still clung there, her pale face flushed with fury and humiliation. "Animal… what are you doing first thing in the morning—"
"How dare you touch…" Her voice shook. "…me?"
Karlyle glanced at his watch. Already late.
"Please," he said evenly, finally meeting her eyes. "There are others waiting. We're all getting late."
Murmurs stirred. An old woman near the front clicked her tongue. "Baby, he saved your beautiful face. Otherwise you wouldn't get a husband in the future. Why aren't you thankful?"
The girl's breathing faltered—too fast, too shallow.
Karlyle saw it then. Panic. Sudden and raw.
He reached out and steadied her arm. "It's okay. This happens. I didn't mind. Please—calm down."
He turned to the crowd and bowed slightly. "I'm very sorry. An emergency happened. Please forgive us."
Then, softer, to her: "Are you alone? Can you find a seat?"
Another woman stepped in, guiding the girl down. The tension thinned, draining away like air from a punctured tire.
Karlyle paid his fare and moved forward, deliberately pulling the weight of attention with him. Sat near the old women. Started talking.
It worked.
People relaxed. Cameras shifted toward him.
That took me by surprise. Natural reaction for a girl.He almost smirked. What's she worried about—her chest?
One of the old women studied him. "Son… kind people don't live too long in this world."
He smiled faintly. "Grandma, I'm not kind. If I hadn't helped her, we'd all be late—and she might've gotten hurt."
"But she slapped you."
"I did touch her," he said. "That's true."
He didn't add the rest.
If she were from my village, I'd have returned it harder. But a frail, sickly girl? She wouldn't have survived.Besides, it's the first day of school. No need to make it bitter.
Girls kept staring. Cameras kept rolling.
He ignored them.
Just a slap. I've had worse.
* * *
The slap came before the thought.
Her palm burned—but it was nothing compared to the heat flooding her chest, her skin, her bones.
"He embarrassed me," she whispered hoarsely, clutching herself. "That animal… how dare he…"
Her face burned. Every eye on her. Every phone.
He touched me. He touched me.
The sensation wouldn't leave. It clung, branded into her skin.
"Sophie," she said desperately. "You saw it, right? I was right to slap him. He assaulted me."
Sophie's arms wrapped around her, warm and steady. "Yes, Miss. Of course you were right."
The words soothed her. The shaking slowed.
She watched him from Sophie's embrace—tall, unbothered, talking to old women like nothing had happened. Like her rage meant nothing.
That made it worse.
Why wasn't he angry?
Why wasn't he looking at her?
The bus hissed to a stop. People poured out.
Liora leaned against Sophie, drained.
Then Sophie whispered, "Miss… we're here."
She blinked. The academy gate loomed ahead.
The boy was gone.
He left already?
Fear crept in, sharp and sudden.
"Sophie… should we have settled things?" Sophie asked carefully.
"Betray me?" Liora snapped. "That brute needs to learn a lesson."
She grabbed her bag and stormed off—then froze.
She wasn't in her car.
She didn't know the way.
How could she leave me alone?
Then—him.
He appeared ahead, a can of NordKola in one hand, a bun in the other.
Relief hit so fast it made her dizzy.
Yes. Him.I'll just follow him.
She stayed a few steps behind, breathing easier whenever he stayed in sight, panicking whenever he vanished into the crowd.
"Watch it, lady!"
"Sorry," she murmured, never looking away from him.
When the academy gate finally rose before them, she stopped.
Her heart raced.
Sophie reappeared beside her, smiling. "You followed him."
"I did not!"
A lie.
Her face burned.
As Sophie left, Liora lingered at the entrance, eyes scanning the crowd.
But he did save me.
She smiled without meaning to.
* * *
Sophie had seen fear before.
This wasn't that.
This ran deeper.
On the bus, she watched the boy redirect blame like a shield, draw attention away from Liora without a word. Watched him sit among old women and talk like a grandson.
That boy will go far in life.He'll never be alone.
She looked down at Liora, curled against her like a frightened child.
If only you had a friend like him.
At the bus stop, Sophie scanned the crowd, pulse tight.
Students filmed everything. Social media would feast on this.
Harassing a Wei in public… dangerous territory.
She let Liora walk alone—then hid behind the signboard.
Let me see how you handle this.
When Liora followed the boy, Sophie followed both.
Slow steps. Careful distance.
He's slowing down for her.
Her chest eased.
A real gentleman.
At the gate, Sophie stepped in at last.
If I could, she thought as he disappeared, I'd ask him to be her friend.
She smiled as she left Liora blushing at the entrance.
Maybe this time… life will be kinder to her.