CHAPTER ONE
1043 Words
The rain hadn’t stopped for hours.
It fell relentlessly over the sprawling grounds of St. Victoria’s Academy, drumming against rooftops and soaking the perfectly trimmed gardens. Students hurried across the courtyard, their uniforms damp despite the umbrellas they clutched tightly.
The first day of the final academic year was supposed to be exciting.
Instead…
Someone screamed.
“You’re a liar!”
The voice echoed across the courtyard, loud enough to silence hundreds of conversations at once.
Every head turned.
Standing in the middle of the rain was a girl with trembling hands and tear-streaked cheeks. Her breathing was uneven, and anger burned in her eyes.
Facing her stood Oliver Hayes.
Captain of the basketball team.
Head Boy.
The student every teacher admired.
The boy almost every girl secretly liked.
Yet in that moment, none of those titles mattered.
“You promised me,” the girl whispered, her voice breaking.
Oliver took one careful step forward.
“Claire… please.”
“No.” She shook her head. “Don’t say my name like you still care.”
Rainwater dripped from Oliver’s hair into his eyes, but he didn’t wipe it away.
“You don’t understand.”
Claire laughed a hollow, painful laugh.
“I understand perfectly.”
She reached into her blazer pocket and pulled out a silver bracelet engraved with the words Forever.
Without another word, she threw it at him.
The bracelet struck his chest before falling into a puddle.
“You can keep your promises.”
Her voice rose until it was almost a scream.
“They’re as fake as you are.”
A chorus of whispers rippled through the crowd.
“What happened?”
“Did he cheat?”
“I heard she caught him with another girl.”
“No, my roommate said he dumped her this morning.”
Within seconds, the story had changed five different times.
Oliver looked around at the sea of students staring at him.
Phones were already recording.
Someone laughed.
Someone else whispered his name.
Claire stepped closer, tears mixing with the rain.
“I trusted you.”
Then……
Slap!
The sound cracked through the courtyard.
Oliver’s face turned slightly from the force of it.
But he didn’t raise his voice.
He didn’t defend himself.
He simply bent down, picked up the bracelet from the puddle, and closed his hand around it.
Claire stared at him for one last second before turning and disappearing into the rain.
Silence.
Then the gossip exploded.
A black SUV rolled through the academy gates just as the crowd began to scatter.
Inside sat Amelia Bennett.
She watched everything through the tinted window without saying a word.
“So much for a quiet school,” she murmured.
Her father glanced up from the documents in his lap.
“School drama?”
“It looks worse than drama.”
He sighed.
“You don’t have to stay here if you’re uncomfortable.”
Amelia looked out of the window again.
She had already changed schools twice in three years.
Running away had never solved anything.
“No,” she replied softly.
“I’ll stay.”
Her father smiled faintly.
“Good.”
The car stopped outside the administration building.
A member of staff hurried over with an umbrella.
“Welcome to St. Victoria’s Academy, Miss Bennett.”
As Amelia stepped out of the car, the cool rain kissed her face.
She took a deep breath.
This is my fresh start.
No distractions.
No friendships.
No falling in love.
She had made that promise to herself long before arriving.
She intended to keep it.
An hour later…
The chatter inside Class 12A was deafening.
Students were still discussing the incident in the courtyard.
“I heard Claire transferred because of him.”
“No way.”
“My cousin said Oliver’s family paid the school to keep everything quiet.”
The classroom door opened.
The teacher walked in.
“Good morning, everyone.”
The room fell silent.
“We have a new student joining us today.”
Amelia stepped inside.
Her long dark hair framed her face, and although she looked calm, dozens of curious eyes made her heartbeat quicken.
The teacher smiled.
“Introduce yourself.”
“My name is Amelia Bennett.”
A few students greeted her politely.
Others simply stared.
The teacher scanned the classroom before letting out a small sigh.
“It seems there’s only one empty seat.”
Amelia followed the direction of her hand.
Near the window.
Beside Oliver Hayes.
A quiet murmur swept through the room.
“Poor girl.”
“She doesn’t know.”
“This should be interesting.”
Oliver looked up from the notebook on his desk.
The faint red mark on his cheek was still visible.
Their eyes met for the first time.
He offered a polite smile.
“Hi.”
Amelia didn’t smile back.
She placed her bag on the desk and sat down.
“I’m only here because there isn’t another seat.”
Several students exchanged shocked glances.
No one spoke to Oliver like that.
Instead of looking offended, Oliver chuckled quietly.
“Fair enough.”
For the rest of the lesson, neither of them said another word.
But every now and then…
Amelia caught him staring out of the rain-covered window, absent-mindedly turning a silver bracelet over in his fingers.
For the first time that morning, she wondered if the rumors were missing part of the story.
And for the first time in a long time…
Oliver wondered why the new girl looked as though she was carrying a secret of her own.
Oliver slid a folded piece of paper onto Amelia’s desk without looking at her.
“I think this belongs to you.”
She frowned.
“I’ve never seen that before.”
“Really?”
“It’s not mine.”
The teacher turned to write on the board.
Curious, Amelia unfolded the note beneath her desk.
Her heart stopped.
It wasn’t a welcome note.
It wasn’t homework.
It was a single sentence, written in neat black ink.
I know why you transferred here.
Amelia’s fingers tightened around the paper.
No.
That wasn’t possible.
No one at St. Victoria’s was supposed to know.
Slowly…
She turned around.
Someone in the classroom was already watching her.
…and smiling.
- Writer
