Chapter 19 Chapter 19

Chapter 19 Chapter 19

Myla’s POV

This wasn’t right.

None of it was.

Kyle didn’t deserve to get dragged into that. He didn’t deserve whatever punishment Kendrick was planning.

He had reacted. That was it. Anyone would have. Anyone who actually ca—

Wait, could that be why he jumped in for me?

Could Kyle actually care so much for me?

No.

I shook my head, now isn't the time to be thinking of all that.

Now is the time to be thinking about Blake.

My jaw tightened.

Blake was the reason any of this had even happened.

So why the hell was Kyle the one caught in it?

“No,” I muttered under my breath, pushing myself further down the hallway.

I wasn’t letting this sit.

I wasn’t waiting around for some “fair” judgment that clearly wasn’t going to come.

If the system wouldn’t fix it—

I would…

It took longer than I expected to find him.

The academy was way bigger than it looked when you weren’t being ordered from one place to another.

The corridors stretched endlessly and the rooms branched out into more rooms. Some doors led to spaces I hadn’t even noticed before.

I checked the training halls after walking by every room and casually peeping inside to check for him.

I had passed by a few rooms more than once, just to get a better look at the inside.

But he wasn't in any of them for some reason.

And he wasn't in any of the training grounds.

I checked everywhere and was slowly losing it when I pushed open a door labeled as a gym.

Guys like to workout, right?

And then, there he was.

Blake.

He was standing near one of the training sides with his shirt already damp with sweat.

He had his hands working through a set like nothing in the world had touched him.

Like the fight hadn’t happened.

Something in me snapped again at the sight of his laid back nature.

And I walked straight towards him without slowing down with my eyes locked on him the entire time.

He noticed as I got closer, but he didn’t stop, didn’t look at me again.

That just made me angrier.

I got close enough and kicked the water bottle sitting beside him across the floor.

It bounced around loudly, rolling until it hit the far wall.

That got his attention and he paused.

Then turned his head slightly towards me.

“What?” He said flatly.

“What?” I repeated, raising my tone slightly. “That’s all you have to say?”

He turned fully now, but his expression didn’t change one bit.

“If you’re here to talk,” he said, “make it quick.”

I stared at him, widening my eyes. “You’re unbelievable,” I said, raising my voice even more. “Do you even realize what you did?”

He didn’t answer, didn’t react. Just picked up a towel and wiped his hands like I wasn't there.

“You hit him,” I continued, stepping closer. “You went too far.”

“He stepped in,” Blake replied simply.

My hands clenched. “To stop you.”

“He made a choice.”

“You were going to hit me again!” I snapped.

“And?” He asked, looking at me now.

My chest tightened. “And?” I repeated. “Are you serious right now?”

“You crossed a line,” he said calmly. “You don’t get to decide how I respond to that.”

I let out a short, disbelieving laugh. “So that makes it okay to take it out on someone else?”

“I didn’t take anything out on him,” Blake said. “He involved himself.”

“He defended me!”

“That wasn’t his job.”

I shook my head slowly. “You really don’t care, do you?”

“I care about the consequences,” he replied.

My jaw tightened harder. “Then here’s one for you.”

That got his full attention.

“Kyle is going to get punished for something he didn’t even start,” I said and Blake didn’t respond immediately.

Good.

“Which means,” I continued, stepping closer, my voice steady now, “you’re going to fix it.”

His brows lifted slightly. “I’m going to fix it?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“You’re going to admit that you were the one who escalated it,” I said. “You’re going to take responsibility for it.”

He stared at me for a second. Then—

“No.”

I nearly reached out to him as I fought to contain my anger. “No?”

“No.”

“You don’t even have to lie!” I pushed. “You did escalate it—”

“And so did you,” he cut in.

“That’s not the point—”

“That is the point,” he said, his tone sharpening slightly. “All of us made choices.”

“Kyle didn’t deserve to be dragged into it!”

“And I didn’t ask him to step in.”

I clenched my fists. “So you’re just going to let him take the fall?”

“I’m not responsible for him.”

“That’s bullshit!”

“Is it?” He asked and I stopped.

Because the way he said it pissed me off more than if he had yelled.

“He was trying to help me,” I said, my voice quieter now. “That should count for something.”

Blake studied me for a moment..Then exhaled slowly.

“There’s no version of this where he walks away clean,” he said.

“There is,” I shot back immediately. “If you take the blame.”

His gaze sharpened slightly. “And why would I do that?”

“Because it’s the right thing to do.”

A pause. Then—

“And who said I do the right thing?” He asked.

“I.”

He scoffed immediately. “That's not enough.”

My stomach dropped slightly. “What do you mean that’s not enough?”

“It means,” he said, stepping closer now, “if I’m taking the fall for all of it, I get something out of it.”

I frowned. “What?”

“A trade.”

My eyes narrowed. “For what?”

He held my gaze. “You do something for me,” he said. “I take the blame.”

A slow, uneasy feeling settled in my chest. “What kind of something?” I asked carefully.

He didn’t answer immediately, and that hesitation told me everything I needed to know.

“This already sounds like a bad idea,” I muttered.

“Then walk away,” he said simply.

But I didn’t. I just exhaled sharply. “What do you want?”

His voice dropped slightly. “Kendrick’s reports.”

My brows furrowed. “What?”

“He’s been filing them on me for months now,” Blake said. “Every fight, every shit I do.”

My chest tightened slightly.

“And if that keeps going,” he continued, “I don’t get to graduate.”

Silence.

“I’m not staying here longer than I have to,” he added.

And I stared at him. “You want me to steal them?” I asked slowly.

“Yes.”

“That’s insane.”

“It’s necessary.”

“That’s not my problem,” I snapped.

“Then neither is Kyle’s situation,” he replied immediately.

That shut me up.

Screw him.

“You want me to break into Kendrick’s office,” I started carefully. “And just what? Take random files and hope for the best?”

“You’ll figure it out.”

I let out a breath, running a hand through my hair. “You’re asking me to get caught.”

“I’m offering you a solution.”

“A terrible one,” I shot.

“But the only one.”

Silence stretched between us again.

I hated this. I hated him.

But—

Kyle’s face flashed in my mind.

The way he had stepped in. The way he had hit the ground. All for me.

My jaw tightened. “Fine,” I said.

The word felt wrong the second it left my mouth.

Blake didn’t react much, just nodded slightly.

“Then do it fast,” he said. “Before Kendrick finalizes anything.”

I glared at him. “And you keep your end.”

“I will.”

I didn’t trust that. Not even a little.

But I turned anyway.

Because I had already made up my mind to do it for Kyle.

I stormed out the doors seconds later.

Sneaking around the academy at night felt different.

Everything was quieter. Sharper.

Every sound felt louder than it should have been, every shadow deeper, every step more noticeable.

I kept close to the walls, moving carefully and listening before turning at any corner.

Kendrick’s office wasn’t hard to find.

Getting inside was another one, I never even gave it a thought.

How would I get in?

I thought for long before deciding to just try the door handle first.

So I walked over to the door, ensuring I wasn't seen on the way before reaching for the handle and twisting it.

I did and pushed the door open. That alone sent a chill running down my spine.

That was too easy. Something's wrong.

I slipped inside quickly, closing the door behind me as quietly as I could.

The room was dim as I stepped in, but from what I could see, it was well arranged.

Everything was in its place.

A desk with cabinets and files, so many of them.

I exhaled slowly, stepping further in. “Okay,” I muttered under my breath.

Find the reports.

Simple. Right?

I moved to the cabinet first, opening it carefully and scanning through the labeled sections.

Names. Codes. Dates.

Too many of them.

My fingers moved faster, less careful now as I searched.

Then—

I found one with Blake's name on it.

My chest tightened slightly as I pulled the file out.

It was pretty thick, and it wasn't the folder.

That wasn’t a good sign.

I hesitated for just a second. Then opened it, but regretted it at once as everything went cold inside me.

They were reports, so many of them.

Most of them were about fights, but not normal fights.

Severe fights with several injuries listed and most were to the other people.

A couple of them were about excessive force, and fewer were about loss of control.

I shouldn't have flipped over, but I did, and my fingers froze on the next page.

No. No, that couldn’t—

I read it again. And again. And again.

Fatal.

The word didn’t change. It didn’t disappear.

Three. Three reports.

My stomach twisted violently as my hands started shaking before I could stop them.

The room suddenly felt colder. Too quiet
Too still.

What the hell?

This was who I had just made a deal with. This was who I was trying to help.

A slow, uneasy feeling crept up my spine, settling deep in my chest.

For a moment, I didn’t know what to do.

Leave it?

Take it?

Run?

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to move, to think.

Kyle. This was for Kyle.

I pulled a few files out quickly, not even sure which ones mattered anymore.

I folded them slightly as I tried to organ
ize them enough to carry.

My hands were still shaking and I barely felt my breath.

I pushed the drawer closed, clutching the files tightly as I turned towards the door.

One step.

Two—

My hand reached for the handle and I opened it, stepping out and closing the door quietly behind me.

And turned, then my entire body went still as I turned to find no other person but… Kendrick.