The guy stood in the middle of the group, same cold expression. Same aura that dared you to speak and warned you not to.
Too cold. Too handsome.
"Infamous cousins. They are a walking trouble. You see them, walk the opposite way." Elara warned Nova after she noticed her gaze. "The one with the red hair, Alex Barrett. Surgery major. Senior year. No. I mean they are all in senior year. Group of delinquents but perform really well. The girl next to him is Cassie. No one ever knows her last name. She's an International Relations major. The one is the middle, Alaric Hawkings. Walking trouble. He's the most dangerous of all. No one even knows what he is. "
"And the others?"
"Jude Vandrel and his twin sister Isla. They apparently hate each other's guts."
Nova glanced back.
His eyes met hers.
And the world didn't stop, but it paused.
Three seconds.
That's all.
Three seconds of being held in his gaze. Three seconds that tasted like a warning and prophecy and something far too familiar. But it was enough to make her breath catch.
Then she turned away. She couldn't gaze more than that.
Nova blinked and looked down.
And there it was.
A folded note.
Her fingers were curled around it as it rested in her palm like it had always been there.
She hadn't picked it up nor had she seen anyone hand it over to her. She hadn't been holding anything a moment ago
She opened it slowly, the paper almost soft and pale and almost glowing under the light.
'You shouldn't be able to read this'
She blinked. What does this even mean.
"Did you..." Nova stared, holding it out to Elara.
Elara glanced down. She squinted, confused. "It's blank?"
Nova stared at it again.
The words were still there.
Perfectly written in a strange, sharp script. Like etched thoughts.
But Elara didn't see anything.
Nova folded it slowly, fingers trembling slightly and slipped it into her pocket.
"What is it, Nova?" Elara asked, noticing the tension.
"Nothing." She said as she looked down trying to mask her unease.
Nova suddenly wasn't hungry anymore.
She ate faster than necessary, half-aware of Elara matching her pace, glancing at her now and then like she could feel the shift.
By 10 minutes, they were out of the lunchroom.
As they crossed the courtyard, the sky dimming into evening gold, Elara slowed her pace. "You stay in West Wing?"
Nova nodded. "Yeah."
Elara blinked. "Seriously? Me too."
They both chuckled lightly at the coincidence.
"Guess we're line neighbors," Elara said with a small grin. "See you in the morning."
Nova smile back "Goodnight." she entered her room.
Inside the room, her roommate Eris was already asleep, blanket pulled over her head barely moving. Nova closed the door and locked it. Then unlocked it. Then locked it again, pushing the small desk chair beneath the handle for good measure.
She stood still for a second, her eyes on the mirror over Eris's dresser.
Nothing moved. Her image stayed the same. But her heart thudded anyway.
She hadn't slept the previous night. Not after what happened.
Not after waking up outside her room. Not after going back to bed.
Nova climbed into bed, facing the wall. She didn't bother turning off the light. She didn't want to. shut her eyes anyway.
Behind them, the hallway returned, white walls, long mirrors, voices murmuring where no one stood.
She didn't sleep.
She was tired as fuck, sleepy but still wary of her suicide sleepwalking that a single mishap and she's late.
Thursday morning, Nova was up before her alarm. She slowly dressed in her same all black uniform, like her bones were waterlogged. Her hand hesitated over the note from the previous day. She didn't read it again instead she flashed it in the bathroom.
Outside, campus was just waking up. She made it to her 8 a.m. lecture early. Students were still trickling in, sleepy and silent but the wolves seemed hyper.
Nova found a seat near the window and watched the clouds move.
The door opened a few minutes later.
The lecturer walked in, Professor Barrow, he was a guy in his late 40's, with his thin framed glasses.
Twenty minutes into the class, the door creaked open.
Professor Barrow paused.
Nova, scribbling notes in the back row, lifted her eyes as tall boy stepped in, hair tousled, bag strap half slipped, breathless like he'd run all the way there.
"Mr. Vandrel," The professor said, "You're late."
The boy froze like a kid caught sneaking into the house past curfew, but he seemed somehow unbothered.
"My apologies Professor Barrow," he said, flashing a crooked smile. "I have insomnia because of the noises then I slept late."
"You know the rule," the professor sighed, already turning his eyes down to his book. "Reconditioning room."
Jude groaned softly, dragging a hand down his face. "Aw, come on, not the room again. It's barely Thursday."
"You're lucky I don't add double time," the professor added.
Jude pressed a hand to his chest dramatically, "You wound me, sir."
A few students chuckled because if the was he said it,
Even Nova's lips twitched.
The lecturer paid no attention to him.
Jude looked around the room and for a second, his eyes landed on the only empty seat left.
Right beside Nova.
Nova had placed her bag on the empty seat to look like it was reserved for someone, just so that no one could seat next to her.
Jude made his way over, he stood there and, "Mind if I crash here?" he whispered.
Nova blinked, a little startled, as she removed her bag from the chair and placed it behind her seat...
"Thanks," he said