The moment Elizabeth stepped out of the car, a soft breeze rustled her raven-black hair, carrying with it the quiet murmur of students already bustling about campus. Her heels clicked softly against the pavement as she walked toward the Business Management Building, her expression composed and unreadable.
Until—
"ELLIE!!"
The voice echoed across the university grounds like a whip cracking through glass.
Her entire body tensed.
She didn't need to look.
She knew.
There was only one person on this Earth who dared to call her that name.
Only one who said it like it belonged to him.
Niklaus.
Her steps quickened, sharp and intentional.
Around her, students paused in their conversations, turning their heads. Whispers bloomed like wildfire, eyes wide as they took in the scene. The campus's cold queen—elegant, unreachable, untouchable—was being called out by name.
And not just by anyone.
By the transfer student who had already broken forum records for most attention in a day. Girls gushed over his looks, boys admired his confidence, and now… he was chasing the girl no one could even approach.
Niklaus had parked his car earlier after receiving a high-priority call from a client—one that required immediate hacking assistance. It delayed him, and he'd been annoyed… until he spotted her just past the gate. Sunlight kissed her figure as she walked ahead, unaware.
His heart jumped.
Without thinking, he called out, "Ellie!"
She paused for half a second.
Then kept walking.
He blinked in disbelief.
What the hell?
He picked up his pace, weaving through students, ignoring the stares. "Ellie!" he called again.
Still, she didn't stop. Her steps only grew faster.
Was she… ignoring him?
He finally reached her, breath slightly uneven as he stepped in front of her path and blocked her with one arm.
She tried to sidestep.
He moved again.
"Why didn't you stop?" he asked, half-breathless, half-playful.
Her eyes were cold. "I didn't hear you."
He stared at her, eyebrows furrowed. "You didn't hear me? Ellie, I called your name—like, four times—"
"And like I said," she snapped, her jaw clenched, "I didn't hear you."
Nik froze.
Her tone was icy. Her expression wasn't indifferent—it was furious. A quiet kind of anger that simmered beneath her polished exterior like lava beneath snow.
He lowered his voice. "Did… something happen? Did someone say something to you?" His eyes darkened. "Tell me. I'll beat them into the ground."
A chilling aura wrapped around him like a second skin. Students who had been watching the scene unfold quickly retreated, whispering anxiously as the tension thickened.
Now, it was just the two of them.
Alone in a crowd.
She stared at him. Her next words weren't sharp—they were wounded.
"It's you," she said, voice low.
Nik's breath caught. "What?"
"It's you," she repeated, blinking hard as if trying to hold something back. "You're the reason I'm like this. I don't want to feel this way. I don't want to be confused every time you smile at someone else. I don't want my heart racing when I see you. I don't like it."
She stepped closer—so close their hands almost touched.
"So do me a favor, Niklaus," she whispered, eyes glistening. "Stay away from me."
And with that, she brushed past him.
Leaving him frozen.
Breathless.
And very, very alone.
The students had vanished. The world moved on.
But he couldn't.
Not when her voice still echoed in his ears.
Not when the girl he adored just walked away with tears in her eyes and his name on her lips.