18

18
Mirella’s POV

The group project presentation was in three days, and for the first time, all four of us were in the same room — including Kaelen.

He came late, of course. Just walked in halfway through Yuki’s explanation like he owned the place. Iris shot me a look that said you brought this on yourself, while the stutterer nearly dropped his notes in surprise.

Kaelen sat down without a word, pulled out his laptop, and started scrolling through the slides like he was already the group leader.

I clenched my jaw. “You could at least pretend to be part of the team.”

He didn’t even look up. “I am part of the team. I just prefer doing things properly.”

“Properly?” I snapped. “You’ve missed every single meeting until now.”

He finally glanced up, calm as ever. “And yet my work was still the best.”

I wanted to throw something at him. Yuki’s eyes darted between us nervously, and Iris quietly muttered, “Oh boy,” under her breath.

We got through the meeting somehow — if you could call it that. Every suggestion I made, Kaelen questioned. Every idea he gave, I found a flaw in. It was like we couldn’t exist in the same room without arguing.

By the end, Iris looked exhausted. “Okay, I think we’ve done enough for today,” she said, quickly packing her books. “Let’s not kill each other before the presentation.”

Everyone started leaving, but as I stood to go, Kaelen said, “Mirella. Stay. We need to talk.”

I hesitated. The last thing I wanted was more of his cryptic nonsense. But something in his tone made me stop.

“Fine,” I said.

We ended up in an empty classroom across the hall. The lights were dim, the late afternoon sun bleeding through the windows. He leaned against a desk, arms crossed, eyes unreadable.

“What do you want?” I asked.

He didn’t waste time. “Do you even know what you’re doing?”

I frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The legions,” he said flatly. “You’re making enemies faster than you can handle. The female legion’s planning something.”

My stomach tightened. “How do you know?”

He hesitated, just for a second. “I just do.”

That wasn’t good enough. “You expect me to believe that?”

“I don’t care if you do.” His tone was sharp, but his eyes… weren’t. They looked almost worried.

“Why are you even warning me then?” I asked quietly.

He didn’t answer. Just pushed off the desk and walked toward the door.

“Kaelen.”

He paused but didn’t turn around.

“Why are you helping me?”

Still nothing. He walked out, the door closing softly behind him.

I stood there for a long time, staring at the empty space he’d left behind.

I didn’t understand him — not even a little.

\~~~

The next morning, I knew what he’d meant.

My locker was covered in black marker — slurs, insults, things I didn’t even want to read. Someone had also dumped trash all over the floor beneath it.

The hallway was full of whispers. No one said anything to my face, but I felt their eyes.

Iris arrived seconds later, her eyes widening. “What the hell—?”

“It’s fine,” I muttered.

“It’s not fine,” she said, grabbing some tissues from her bag and helping me clean. “They went too far.”

I shrugged. “It’s what they do.”

She stopped wiping. “Mirella, this is only going to get worse.”

“I know,” I said quietly. “But I’m not backing down.”

She didn’t argue. But the look on her face said she wanted to.

By lunchtime, things had gotten worse anyway.

Yuki came rushing to our table, her face pale. “You’re not going to like this,” she said.

I sighed. “What now?”

“Someone’s spreading rumors,” she said. “They’re saying you’re trying to sleep your way to the top — that you’re using Kaelen.”

I froze.

The cafeteria noise faded into a dull hum. “What?”

Yuki nodded, angry and scared at once. “People are saying he’s helping you because you’re… involved.”

Iris swore under her breath. “That’s disgusting.”

I wanted to scream. To stand up and call out every liar in that room. But I didn’t. I just took a deep breath and forced myself to stay calm.

That’s what they wanted — for me to explode.

I wouldn’t give them that satisfaction.

After school, I went to the library. It was quiet, safe — the one place where no one cared who you were.

I wasn’t there to study. Not exactly. I wanted information — something, anything I could use against the legions.

If they were going to destroy my reputation, then I’d hit back where it hurt.

After about an hour of searching, I found something buried in the archives — an old newspaper article from a few years ago. It talked about a cheating scandal involving one of the previous legions. They’d been caught altering exam results.

The names were blurred out, but the headline alone was enough.

Prestigious Student Group Under Investigation for Academic Fraud.

I snapped a photo of it with my phone. This could be leverage.

Maybe the legions weren’t as untouchable as they thought.

As I walked out of the library, still thinking about the article, someone stepped in front of me.

Kaelen.

Of course.

He looked at me with that same unreadable expression. “You’re here late.”

“Studying,” I said quickly, slipping my phone into my pocket.

His gaze flicked down, catching the motion. “What’s on your phone?”

“Nothing.”

He didn’t believe me. Before I could react, he reached out and grabbed it from my hand.

“Hey!” I tried to snatch it back, but he’d already unlocked the screen. His eyes narrowed when he saw the photo.

“Where did you get this?”

“It’s public record,” I said. “I was researching.”

He didn’t say anything for a second — then deleted the picture.

“What the hell, Kaelen?”

He handed the phone back. “If you want to fight them, do it the right way. Don’t dig up old dirt.”

“Right way?” I echoed. “They’re destroying my life and you’re worried about the right way?”

He stared at me for a long moment, his jaw tight. “There’s more going on than you realize. Be careful.”

And just like that, he turned and walked away.

I stood there, clutching my phone, my anger boiling under the surface.

He was impossible — a mystery that made less sense the more I tried to solve it.

But one thing was clear: if the legions were planning something, I couldn’t wait around for him to save me.

I’d save myself.

Even if it meant breaking every rule he believed in.