Chapter 34 Lines You Don’t Cross
I shouldn’t have stopped walking.
I should have gone home.
Locked my door.
Pretended none of this was happening.
But I didn’t.
Because Adrian was still behind me.
And for some reason…
I didn’t want him to leave.
“You always run when things get real?” he asked, catching up beside me.
I didn’t slow down.
“I’m not running.”
“Mm.” He glanced at me sideways. “Looks like it.”
I stopped abruptly, turning to face him.
“Why do you care?”
That made him pause.
Not long.
But long enough.
“I don’t,” he said.
Then his lips curved slightly.
“Not really.”
I narrowed my eyes.
“You’re annoying.”
“And you’re interesting,” he shot back easily.
That… caught me off guard.
I folded my arms.
“I’m not something for you to study.”
“Too late,” he said. “Already started.”
There was something different about him now.
Less teasing.
More… focused.
And I didn’t like how aware I suddenly was of him.
“You enjoy this, don’t you?” I asked quietly.
“All the chaos.”
His expression shifted.
Just slightly.
“I enjoy truth,” he said.
I frowned.
“What does that even mean?”
“It means,” he stepped a little closer, voice lower now, “everyone here is pretending. Except you.”
My chest tightened.
“You don’t hide it,” he continued. “The anger. The jealousy. The way you look at him.”
I swallowed.
“You’re wrong.”
“No,” he said simply. “I’m not.”
Silence fell between us.
Heavy.
Real.
Then—
“Lenora!”
I froze.
That voice.
I turned slowly.
The hallway wasn’t empty anymore.
Students lined both sides.
Whispering.
Watching.
Phones out.
My stomach dropped.
“What…?” I muttered.
Then I saw it.
The screen.
Projected on the wall.
A video.
My breath caught.
It was me.
From last week.
At the rink.
Laughing.
Close to Kylen.
Too close.
And then—
The part I didn’t even realize someone had captured.
His hand on my waist.
My body leaning into his.
That moment.
That almost kiss.
Gasps echoed around the hallway.
“Oh my God…”
“Isn’t that her step sister’s boyfriend?”
“She’s disgusting…”
The words hit like bullets.
My chest tightened so hard it hurt to breathe.
This wasn’t an accident.
This was planned.
Slowly…
I turned my head.
And there she was.
Lilibeth.
Standing at the far end of the hallway.
Phone in hand.
Smile calm.
Cold.
Victorious.
Our eyes locked.
And she tilted her head.
Like she was asking me—
What now?
Something inside me snapped.
Not soft.
Not quiet.
Sharp.
The whispers got louder.
Phones lifted higher.
People staring like I was something to tear apart.
I felt it.
The humiliation.
The exposure.
The way everything twisted into something ugly.
And for one second…
Just one…
I almost broke.
Then—
“Turn it off.”
The voice cut through everything.
Cold.
Dangerous.
Familiar.
Kylen.
The crowd shifted instantly.
He stepped forward, eyes dark, jaw tight, fury barely contained.
“Turn it off,” he repeated.
No one moved.
Until Adrian did.
He walked straight to the system.
Didn’t hesitate.
Didn’t ask.
The screen went black.
Silence.
Heavy.
Explosive.
Kylen’s eyes found mine.
And for the first time…
There was no confusion.
No hesitation.
Just anger.
And something deeper.
Something protective.
But it was too late.
The damage was done.
I forced myself to stand straight.
To breathe.
To not let them see me break.
Then I started walking.
Straight through the crowd.
No tears.
No hesitation.
Just fire.
“Lenora—” Kylen called.
I didn’t stop.
I couldn’t.
Because if I did…
I would fall apart.
Behind me, I heard it.
Kylen’s voice.
Angry.
Sharp.
“What the hell is wrong with you?”
Lilibeth.
Soft. Calm.
“I just showed the truth.”
Silence.
Then—
“You don’t get to do that,” Kylen snapped.
And that…
That was new.
But I didn’t stay to hear more.
Because something had changed.
This wasn’t just jealousy anymore.
This was war.
And Lilibeth had just made it public.
I stepped outside, the air hitting my face hard.
Cold.
Real.
Footsteps followed.
Of course they did.
Adrian.
He didn’t speak immediately.
Just stood beside me.
“You okay?” he asked finally.
I let out a breath.
Shaky.
“No.”
Honest.
He nodded slightly.
Like he expected that.
Then—
“They’re wrong, you know.”
I looked at him.
“What?”
“The way they’re looking at you,” he said. “They don’t know anything.”
My chest tightened again.
“Doesn’t matter,” I whispered. “They think they do.”
He studied me for a moment.
Then stepped closer.
“It matters to me.”
That…
That did something.
And I hated it.
Because everything was already too complicated.
Kylen.
Lilibeth.
Secrets.
And now…
Adrian.
I closed my eyes briefly.
This was spiraling.
Fast.
And the worst part?
I had a feeling…
This was only the beginning.