Chapter 9 Chapter 9
Chapter 9 Chapter 9
Dominic’s POV
“Watch your step next time.”
I shouldn’t have said that.
I knew it the second the words left my mouth.
Aria didn’t look like someone who needed warnings. If anything, she looked like someone who would take that warning, twist it, and throw it right back in your face just to prove she didn’t need it.
And she did.
“You too,” she said.
Simple. Calm. Sharp enough to land.
Then she walked away like the whole thing didn’t matter.
Like I didn’t matter.
I stood there for a second longer than I should have, watching her disappear into the crowd, my jaw tightening without me realizing it.
“Wow.”
I didn’t need to turn to know who it was.
Lana.
“Did you just… warn her?” she asked, her voice laced with something between disbelief and amusement.
I rolled my shoulders slightly. “Mind your business.”
She laughed softly. “Oh, I am. This is my business now.”
I glanced at her. “Since when?”
“Since she decided to make it hers.”
I scoffed. “She didn’t decide anything. You dragged her into it.”
“I gave her a choice.”
“You set her up.”
Her smile didn’t drop. “And she still didn’t fall.”
That shut me up for a second.
Because she was right.
I saw it.
The moment her foot slipped.
The exact second everything could’ve gone wrong.
And she fixed it.
Not perfectly.
Not cleanly.
But she stayed on her feet.
Most people wouldn’t have.
Most people would’ve panicked.
She didn’t.
“That doesn’t change anything,” I muttered.
“It changes a lot,” Lana replied. “It means she’s not as weak as she looks.”
“She is weak.”
“Then why are you bothered?”
I shot her a look. “I’m not.”
“Really?” she tilted her head slightly. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you care.”
“I don’t care,” I said flatly.
“Then stop looking at where she went.”
My eyes snapped back to her immediately.
“I wasn’t—”
“Relax,” she cut in, waving a hand dismissively. “I’m not judging you. I’m just… curious.”
“About what?”
“About why you hate her so much.”
The question landed harder than it should have.
I frowned. “I don’t hate her.”
She raised a brow. “You call her names every chance you get.”
“So?”
“You go out of your way to humiliate her.”
“She deserves it.”
“Why?”
I opened my mouth.
Closed it.
Because the answer wasn’t simple.
Because the real answer wasn’t something I said out loud.
Because the real answer made me sound like the problem.
“She’s annoying,” I said instead.
Lana stared at me for a second.
Then she laughed.
“That’s your reason?”
“It’s enough.”
“No,” she said, shaking her head slightly. “That’s not it.”
I exhaled sharply. “Why do you care?”
“I don’t,” she replied smoothly. “I just don’t like not understanding things.”
“Then get used to it.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn’t push further.
Instead, she crossed her arms and looked toward the direction Aria had gone.
“She’s coming tomorrow,” she said.
“I know.”
“Six a.m.”
“I heard you.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
I shrugged. “Not my problem.”
“That’s funny,” she said. “Because it kind of is.”
I frowned. “How?”
“She’s your tutor.”
The word felt wrong.
I scoffed. “Not for long.”
“You think you can get rid of her?”
“I know I can.”
She smiled slightly. “I’d like to see you try.”
I smirked. “Watch me.”
\---
By the time I got home, the house was too quiet.
It always was.
Big. Clean. Empty in a way that didn’t make sense considering how many people worked there.
I tossed my bag onto the couch and ran a hand through my hair, exhaling slowly.
“Welcome back, sir.”
I didn’t look at the maid. “Yeah.”
“Dinner will be served in an hour.”
“Not hungry.”
She hesitated. “Your parents asked to see you when you return.”
Of course they did.
“Where are they?”
“In the study.”
I nodded once and headed upstairs.
Each step felt heavier than it should have.
Not because I cared.
Just because I already knew how this was going to go.
I pushed the study door open without knocking.
Dad looked up immediately.
Mom didn’t.
She was too busy with her phone.
“Dominic,” Dad said. “Sit.”
I stayed where I was. “I’m good.”
His expression hardened slightly. “I wasn’t asking.”
I rolled my eyes but walked in anyway, dropping into the chair across from him.
“What is it?”
He leaned forward slightly. “Your tutor.”
Here we go.
“She starts immediately,” he continued. “I expect full cooperation.”
I laughed under my breath. “That’s not happening.”
His eyes sharpened. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t need a tutor.”
“You do,” he said simply. “Your grades say otherwise.”
“I’ll fix them.”
“You’ve been saying that.”
“And I mean it.”
“Your results don’t reflect that.”
I clenched my jaw. “Because I haven’t tried.”
“Then try,” he snapped. “With her help.”
“I don’t need her help.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
“I always have a choice.”
His hand slammed lightly against the desk. “Not this time.”
Silence filled the room.
Thick. Tense.
I leaned back slightly, crossing my arms. “You’re really doing all this over grades?”
“I’m doing this because you’re wasting your potential.”
“I’m not wasting anything.”
“You are,” he said firmly. “And I won’t stand by and watch it happen.”
I let out a dry laugh. “Funny. You don’t watch anything else I do.”
That got his attention.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you only show up when something’s wrong,” I said. “When there’s something to fix. Something to control.”
“That’s not true.”
“Really?” I gestured vaguely. “When was the last time you came to one of my games?”
He didn’t answer.
Because he couldn’t.
“Exactly,” I muttered.
“This isn’t about that,” he said.
“It is for me.”
“Dominic—”
“I’m done with this conversation.”
I stood up before he could respond.
“Sit down.”
“No.”
“Dominic.”
“I said I’m done.”
I turned and walked out before he could stop me.
Because if I stayed any longer, I’d say something worse.
\---
Later that night, I couldn’t sleep.
Of course.
My room was quiet, the city lights filtering in through the window, casting faint shadows across the walls.
I lay there, staring at the ceiling, replaying the day whether I wanted to or not.
The game.
Lana.
Aria.
My jaw tightened.
She should’ve fallen.
That’s what kept looping in my head.
She should have slipped, lost her balance, made a fool of herself.
That’s how it always went.
That’s how it was supposed to go.
But she didn’t.
She adjusted.
Stayed up.
Finished.
Like it didn’t even shake her.
I turned onto my side, exhaling slowly.
“Annoying,” I muttered.
Everything about her was annoying.
The way she didn’t react the way people expected.
The way she didn’t break.
The way she looked at me like she wasn’t afraid.
That part especially.
Because she used to be.
Back then, it was easier.
Everything was easier.
Before.
Before she became… this.
I shut my eyes briefly, then opened them again.
Pointless.
Sleep wasn’t coming anytime soon.
I sat up, running a hand over my face before grabbing my phone.
6:12 a.m.
Practice.
I scoffed.
She wasn’t going to show up.
There was no way.
Not after today.
Not after what Lana pulled.
She’d quit.
Anyone would.
I leaned back against
the headboard, staring at the screen for a second longer.
Then, without thinking too much about it, I set an alarm.
5:30 a.m.
Just in case.
I dropped the phone beside me and lay back down.
“Let’s see how serious you are,” I muttered under my breath.
Because something told me this wasn’t over.
Not even close.
And for some reason I didn’t fully understand, I wanted to see what she’d do next.