Chapter 28 "GET IN"

Chapter 28 "GET IN"
Ruby walked into the lecture hall a few minutes before class was set to begin. Her cheek still faintly stinging beneath the thin layer of powder she’d brushed on to hide the redness.

She drew in a breath, pressing her folder against her chest as she scanned the room.

Then spotted Anna Newton sitting in the middle row. Her perfect hair tumbled over her shoulders, and her lips curved in a bright grin as she leaned toward Edsel, doing exactly what she had done yesterday. Even this time, she didn't even acknowledge her. Leslie sat beside them.

Ruby’s chest tightened with anger as that same smug light from earlier flickered in Anna’s eyes when she caught her gaze.

Ruby’s spine straightened. She cleared her throat, looking away. It was best to avoid her. She told herself, it wasn't worth it.

The chatter died almost instantly as heads turned, and then Leslie’s eyes found hers, darkly with something flickering there the moment he caught her face, something like concern, maybe? Guilt? Whatever it was, it lingered longer than it should have.

For a second, neither of them looked away. The air between them felt taut and burning. Then Leslie’s gaze dropped, breaking the moment.

In seconds, a soft ping buzzed in Ruby’s phone in her pocket. Her hand twitched toward it, but she ignored it and forced a small and professional smile instead, and silenced it without checking.

Ruby set her folder on the desk and clasped her hands in front of her.

“Before we begin,” she said, her voice steady despite the tightness in her chest, “I’d like to make an announcement regarding the Switzerland project groups.”

Her students straightened in their seats, and the room fell into an expectant hush.

“Anna Newton will be joining Group Three,” Ruby continued, her tone composed but precise. “That includes Edsel Linwood, Nash Webster, Yvonne Blake, Hailey Wolfe and Leslie Meyer.”

Her eyes flicked up briefly just enough to catch the faint flicker of surprise on Leslie’s face, and the satisfied gleam in Anna’s.

Ruby’s smile didn’t waver. “I expect full participation and professionalism from everyone,” she finished calmly. “Now, let’s proceed.”

As she began the lecture, her pulse still raced but her voice never faltered. Every word was like hardened control.

Leslie sat hunched slightly over his phone, thumb hovering above the screen. Her name glowed faintly in his messages. Ruby Allaire.

He’d texted her minutes ago, just a quiet.

Leslie: Are you okay?

After noticing the faint flush on her cheek when she walked in and her cold glare. But she hadn’t responded and dared to even turn it off.

He exhaled slowly, jaw tightening. She had seen it. He was sure she had. Ruby wasn’t the kind of person who ignored messages without reason. Something was off, he could feel it in the way she carried herself.

A soft voice broke through his thoughts.

“I thought she was going to pick on me again,” Anna Newton said, her tone light, almost playful. “Good thing my mother set it straight for her.”

Leslie’s head turned sharply, his dark brows furrowing.

Anna giggled, leaning closer. “Also, now I’m in your group. Do you want to come over to my place for the project?”

His frown deepened, his entire expression hardening. “What did you just say?”

Anna blinked, caught off guard. “Do you want—”

“No,” his voice cut through, low and edged. “Before that. You confronted Ms Allaire with your mother?”

Anna hesitated, then nodded with a small pout. “Yeah.”

For a heartbeat, Leslie said nothing. His jaw flexed, the muscle there twitching as his fingers curled around his phone until his knuckles whitened. The air around him seemed to thicken.

“Why would you do that?” His voice dropped an octave lower, but heavy enough that even Edsel, sitting beside them, straightened.

“She asked me to read and embarrassed me,” Anna said quickly, defensive now, her tone losing its sweetness.

Edsel scoffed softly. “That’s it?”

Anna glared at him. “You weren’t there. She was being rude.”

Leslie’s eyes stayed on her unblinking burning with something that wasn’t just anger. Disappointment. Disgust.

He leaned back in his seat, voice calm but razor-sharp. “You know, if you don’t want to learn, then don’t be here.”

Anna’s lips parted, stunned.

Edsel exhaled, leaning back too, a smirk tugging faintly at his lips as he muttered, “Well said.”

Leslie didn’t even glance at him. His gaze was still distant, lingering on the front of the class where Ruby stood, explaining something on the board, her voice steady despite everything.

He didn’t know what had happened behind closed doors, but he could guess. And it made his blood run cold.

Because whoever thought they could humiliate her…
They’d just made a very bad mistake.

The sun was low by the time Ruby left the faculty building, the orange wash of evening painting the campus in quiet gold. Her bag hung loosely from one shoulder, and her steps were heavy, not from fatigue but from everything she’d been holding in since morning.

She just wanted to reach her car, shut the door, and breathe. Maybe even cry. Today dawned on her with so much humiliation. If it were another colleague, it would have been better, but a student?

As she approached the staff parking lot, her keys clinked softly in her hand. But before she could press the unlock button, the sound of another car door opening made her pause.

A sleek black sedan was parked beside hers. From the driver’s side, Loy stepped out, tall and silent as ever, his expression unreadable.

Ruby’s chest tightened instantly. “Loy?” she exhaled, already weary. “Please... If this is about Leslie, tell him I can’t see him today. I’m not...”

She stopped when Loy didn’t reply. He didn’t even look at her. Instead, he walked around to the other side of the car, opening the passenger door.

And then Leslie stepped out.

Her heart gave a startled, uneven beat. “W–why are you— we’re still at school,” she stammered, stepping back instinctively.

“You weren’t responding to my message, sweetheart,” he said, his voice low but heavy with a command that made her pulse quicken. “Get in.”

“Les—”

“Get in,” he repeated. Ruby’s gaze burned with defiance, and then he continued, but his tone this time was laced with warning, “Before I help you in, and you surely don’t want that.”

Ruby’s breath almost dropped. His stare alone rooted her in place.

She swallowed, glancing around the near-empty parking lot. Luckily, no one was here, but she needed to escape before someone found her. “I have a lot to do,” she murmured with almost the last flicker of resistance.

Leslie took a single step forward. That was all it took. The tension snapped like a string pulled too tight.

“Fine!” she blurted, exhaling sharply. “I’ll go.”

Without another word, she turned, rounding the front of the car with her heels clicking faster now. The passenger door was already open and waiting for her.

Ruby slipped inside, gripping her bag to her chest as the door shut with a muted thud.