Chapter 17 17

Chapter 17 17
ARIA

The cold tonight feels personal.

Not the kind that bites your skin and makes you laugh about needing gloves. No. This cold slips under my clothes, under my thoughts, into the hollow place in my chest where everything has been aching since earlier today.

I walk slowly, hands shoved deep into my jacket pockets, the streetlights blurring as my eyes sting. My boots scrape against the pavement, too loud in the silence. Every step echoes with the same thoughts I can’t shut off.

The classroom.

The whispers.

The way people looked at me and then looked away.

The way Lyra stood there, glowing, effortless, while I shrank into myself.

I swallow hard.

Why does she get to exist like that? Why does the world bend toward her like she’s gravity itself?

And then there’s Jaxon.

My chest tightens just thinking his name.

I tell myself not to look up. I tell myself to just keep walking. To go home. To disappear for the night.

But I do look up.

And there he is.

Jaxon.

Walking ahead of me, hands in his pockets, shoulders hunched like the world is pressing down on him too. He’s almost at the dormitory entrance.

Leaving.

My heart stutters.

“No,” I whisper, breaking into a faster walk.

“Jaxon,” I call, my voice shaky.

He doesn’t hear me.

“Jaxon!” I say again, louder now, my throat burning.

He keeps walking.

Panic rises fast, sharp and ugly. I start moving faster, my steps uneven, breath coming in short bursts.

“Jaxon!”

This time he stops.

Slowly, he turns around.

Relief crashes into me so hard it nearly hurts.

For a moment, neither of us speaks. The air between us feels thick, charged with everything we haven’t said.

“Why do you always do that?” I say, forcing out a small laugh that sounds wrong even to my own ears. “Act like you don’t hear me.”

“I was heading in,” he replies. His voice is tired and too flat.

Now this hurts more than anger would have.

I walk closer, the words tumbling out before I can stop them. “I wanted to show you something.”

He glances back at the dorm doors. “Not tonight, Aria. I’m exhausted. We can talk some other time.”

Some other time.

The phrase hits me like a slap.

If I let him go now, I know what will happen. He’ll drift further away. He’ll disappear into her orbit. And I’ll be left standing alone, wondering when everything slipped through my fingers.

“It won’t take long,” I say quickly. “Please. Just come with me.”

He hesitates, rubbing his face like he’s trying to make a decision he doesn’t want to make.

The door behind him opens.

“Yo,” Alberto says, stepping out. His eyes flick between us, instantly reading the tension. “Everything okay?”

I look at him, desperation clawing at my chest. “Can you talk to him? Please.”

Alberto sighs and turns to Jaxon. “Bro. Just hear her out. Won’t kill you.”

They step aside. I can’t hear what they’re saying, but I watch Jaxon’s shoulders stiffen, then slowly slump. He exhales, long and tired.

When he turns back to me, my heart leaps.

“Fine,” he says. “Let’s go.”

Relief rushes through me so fast my legs feel weak.

We walk together in silence.

The hotel isn’t far. Its lights glow warmly against the night, almost inviting. My thoughts race with every step. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is where I remind him of us. Of everything we were before Lyra existed.

Inside, the air smells faintly of perfume and polished floors. I lead him down the hallway, my hands trembling as I unlock the door.

He doesn’t step inside.

“I’ll be right back,” he says suddenly. “Just need to check something downstairs.”

My stomach drops. “Now?”

“Yeah. Just a minute.”

And before I can stop him, he’s gone.

The door clicks shut behind him.

I wait.

The silence presses in on me, thick and uncomfortable. I sit on the edge of the bed, staring at the door. My foot taps against the floor. Once. Twice. A hundred times.

I check my phone.

Nothing.

Minutes pass.

My chest tightens. Something feels wrong. That heavy, crawling feeling I’ve learned not to ignore.

I stand up, tired of sitting there alone. I can't do it anymore. My legs led me into the hallway, and I head downstairs, my heart pounding louder with every step.

Then I hear it, screams.

My breath catches.

I push through the crowd forming near the entrance, and the sight before me makes me freeze.

Jaxon.

His fists are clenched, his jaw tight with rage. A man stumbles backward in front of him, blood smeared at the corner of his mouth.

And then I see her.

Lyra.

Standing just a few feet away, perfectly composed. Watching.

My chest caves in.

“What are you doing?!” I scream, rushing forward.

Jaxon doesn’t hear me.

Or he does, and as usual, he doesn’t care.

He swings again. The crowd gasps.

“Stop it!” I grab his arm, nails digging into his sleeve. “Jaxon, stop!”

He shakes me off like I’m nothing.

“Don’t touch her,” he snarls at the man.

The words tear straight through me and I feel every eye turn toward me. The whispers. The judgment. The humiliation burning my skin.

And then I see it.

Lyra’s smile, slow and victorious, like it's something she's been looking forward to.. seeing Jaxon embarrass me before this large crowd.

Something inside me shatters. My throat tightens, tears burning hot and useless, I want to scream and disappear and rip that lok off herr face, i want her to bow to me just like Lila.

“Jaxon,” I whisper, my voice breaking. “Please.”

He finally looks at me, and in his eyes I don't see love, or anything close to that, I see distance, boredom, all I see is someone slipping away, and then the crowd surge closer.

This isn't over, I swear...