Bruises and Revelations

Bruises and Revelations
The silence in Lena’s dorm room felt like it could swallow her whole.

Today’s exams had been nothing short of a nightmare. 

She had barely been able to read the questions, much less answer them. 

Every time she tried to focus, Ethan’s face swam into her mind—pale, bruised, lost—and she was left wondering if he was even still alive.

She felt so damn angry. Angry at all of them.

Lena stood by the window, hugging herself as if that might keep her from falling apart.

“I hate them all,” she whispered into the empty room. Her voice shook with rage. “I wish I could just… destroy them.”

A sudden knock on the door startled her out of her dark thoughts.

She frowned, wiping at her eyes before stalking to the door. She flung it open—and there stood Aiden, looking like he had just stepped out of a magazine photoshoot with his disheveled dark hair and soft eyes. 

He held a pizza box in his hands, and his tentative smile faded a little when he saw the storm raging in her eyes.

“Hey, Lena,” he said, his voice gentle. “I, uh, brought pizza. Thought you might need some cheering up.”

She scowled. 

“Why are you here, Aiden?”

He shifted awkwardly. 

“Because you looked like you were having the worst day of your life when I saw you storming out of the exam hall.”

“Well, maybe I was,” she snapped, turning away from him and leaving the door open. “You can leave the pizza there.”

Aiden stepped inside, closing the door behind him with a soft click. He set the box down on the small coffee table and glanced around. 

“Where’s your roommate?”

“Out,” Lena said curtly, sinking onto her bed. She kicked a pile of clothes off her foot with an angry flick. “Probably with her stupid boyfriend.”

Aiden sat on the edge of the bed opposite her, folding his hands on his knees. 

“Lena… what’s going on with you? You’re not yourself.”

She scoffed. 

“What do you know about me? So sorry I can’t be your sweet little Lena today. Maybe you should leave if you don’t like it.”

Aiden stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. 

“Fine. If that’s what you want, I’ll go.”

He started for the door, but panic rose in Lena’s chest like a wave crashing through her anger. She jumped up, grabbing his wrist. 

“Wait! Don’t… don’t leave. Please.”

He looked back at her, surprise flickering across his face. His dark eyes softened. 

“Lena…”

She dropped his hand, embarrassed by how desperate she sounded. 

“I’m sorry,” she said, her voice hoarse. “I just… today was awful. I couldn’t think. I bombed my exams. I… I don’t want to be alone.”

Aiden hesitated for a long moment. Then he sighed and walked back to her bed, sinking down beside her. 

“Okay,” he murmured. “I’ll stay. But only if you promise not to bite my head off again.”

A shaky laugh escaped her lips, surprising even herself. 

“Deal.”

Aiden opened the pizza box, the smell of melted cheese and pepperoni instantly softening the edges of Lena’s anger. 

She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until that moment. 

He handed her a slice, and she took it, biting into it almost viciously.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, the only sounds the rustle of the pizza box and the distant hum of traffic outside the dorm.

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Aiden said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “But… I’m here. If you ever do.”

Lena set her half-eaten slice down on a paper plate. 

“It’s just… everything is falling apart,” she said softly. “And I feel like there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”

Aiden nodded. 

“I know the feeling. But you’re stronger than you think.”

She rolled her eyes. 

“Don’t give me that motivational poster crap.”

He laughed, and it was so warm, so real, that Lena found herself smiling despite herself.

For a few heartbeats, the world outside ceased to exist. There was only the two of them, the soft rustle of the pizza box, the gentle light of her desk lamp bathing their faces in a warm glow.

Lena swallowed hard. 

Her mind screamed that this was dangerous, that she couldn’t afford to let anyone in—not when she was barely holding herself together—but her heart ached for the comfort he offered.

She opened her mouth to say something—she didn’t know what—but a sudden knock on the door made them both jump.

The door swung open, and her roommate, Jenny, stepped inside. 

Her eyes went wide when she saw them sitting so close together. 

“Oh my god, Lena! Did you hear?” she gasped, breathless. “The Alpha twins and Graham—they’ve been arrested!”

Lena’s heart stopped. 

“What?”

Jenny rushed forward, tossing her bag onto her bed. 

“Campus security took them. They were escorted out of the cafeteria”

Aiden and Lena exchanged a stunned look.

Jenny’s phone buzzed, and she snatched it up, eyes going even wider. 

“Oh my god. The video’s already online—everyone’s watching it!”

Aiden’s phone chimed in unison, followed by Lena’s. She fumbled for her phone, hands shaking, and opened the notification. 

A video filled the screen: a shaky recording of the cafeteria, people gasping and murmuring as two burly campus security guards escorted the Alpha twins toward the exit. Graham trailed behind them, his face pale.

But it was the figure at the back that caught Lena’s breath.

Ethan.

Lena’s eyes stung with tears. 

Ethan was alive. Bruised, but alive. And he had done it—he had stood up to them, had made them pay.

She swallowed a sob and hugged her phone to her chest, closing her eyes.

“What is it?” Aiden asked, his voice low and worried. “Do you know him?”

She wiped her tears roughly. 

“It’s… nothing.”

Aiden placed his hand on hers, squeezing gently. 

She dared a small smile as she glanced at Aiden. 

He looked back at her with such concern, such warmth, that she felt something inside her shift—just a little, just enough to hope.

“Thank you for staying,” she said softly.

Aiden smiled, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. 

“Anytime, Lena.”