CHAPTER 21 : RANK CHANGE
Belle's POV : I should’ve known it wouldn’t stay quiet for long. The morning after the night at the falls, things began to shift around me. Whispers sharpened. Stares grew bolder. The corridors buzzed louder than usual. There was something different in the air. The effect of being seen beside Orion — of walking back with him that night, even though no one said it directly — had spread like wildfire. Some people avoided looking at me altogether. Others looked too long. Some with envy, others with disgust. It clung to me in the cafeteria, in class, even in the library. And when Professor Mia pinned a new parchment on the announcement board that afternoon, the academy paused to read it. “THE FINAL CHOOSING CEREMONY — FRIDAY. MANDATORY ATTENDANCE.” My blood went cold. I stared at the
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