CHAPTER 5: THE WAY PEOPLE LOOK AT FIRE
1777 Words
By morning, rumors had already spread across Obsidian Dominion like poison through water.
Fast.
Invisible.
Impossible to stop.
And somehow, every single one of them involved Cassian Draven and Eleria Veyron.
Eleria realized this the moment she stepped into the central academy hall and conversations immediately lowered around her.
Not stopped.
Lowered.
Which was worse.
Because silence meant fear.
Whispers meant interest.
And interest inside Obsidian Dominion was dangerous.
Her expression remained perfectly calm as she walked across the black marble floor beneath towering chandeliers, but internally, irritation simmered beneath her skin.
Someone had talked.
Probably several people.
Lucien walked beside her looking exhausted already.
“You know,” he muttered quietly, “most girls would be flattered.”
Eleria didn’t look at him.
“Most girls aren’t accused of secretly entertaining enemy heirs after midnight.”
“That’s fair.”
Another whisper followed from nearby students.
“She let him into her suite—”
“I heard they were alone for hours—”
“The Veyrons are going to lose their minds—”
Eleria stopped walking.
Instantly.
The entire corridor froze with her.
Cold silence spread outward immediately.
Slowly, Eleria turned her head toward the group whispering nearby.
The students visibly paled.
One girl nearly dropped her phone.
Eleria smiled slightly.
Which somehow made the atmosphere even worse.
“If any of you are brave enough to continue discussing my personal life,” she said softly, “please do it louder.”
Nobody breathed.
The girl holding the phone looked moments away from collapse.
Eleria’s gaze sharpened faintly.
“Good,” she said calmly.
Then continued walking.
Lucien stared at her in disbelief once they turned the corner.
“You enjoy terrifying people too much.”
“I enjoy silence.”
“That’s not true.”
She glanced at him coldly.
“You’re alive because we’re related.”
Lucien smirked slightly.
But the amusement faded quickly when he lowered his voice again.
“You know this is getting bigger now, right?”
Eleria already knew.
That was the problem.
Last night had changed something.
Not publicly.
Not officially.
But emotionally.
The private conversation with Cassian kept replaying in her head in fragments she couldn’t seem to silence.
That’s loneliness.
The memory irritated her immediately.
Who gave him the right to understand her like that?
And worse—
why had she felt understood?
Eleria hated questions she couldn’t answer.
Especially when they involved him.
Across campus, inside the upper strategy hall reserved for elite heirs, Cassian sat alone near the massive windows overlooking the academy grounds.
Several students occupied the room quietly around him, but nobody disturbed the silence surrounding his table.
No one at Obsidian Dominion approached Cassian Draven casually.
Not unless they had a death wish or exceptional stupidity.
Today, however, one of the Draven heirs ignored common sense.
“You caused problems.”
Cassian didn’t look up from the file resting in front of him.
“That sounds vague.”
His cousin dropped into the seat across from him.
“People saw you near the Veyron suites last night.”
Cassian finally lifted his gaze slowly.
Calm.
Unreadable.
Dangerous.
“And?”
The cousin blinked once.
Because that answer somehow felt more threatening than denial would have.
“You’re not even pretending it didn’t happen?”
Cassian leaned back slightly in his chair.
“I don’t waste effort pretending.”
The room fell quieter around them.
Several nearby students were now pretending not to listen.
Poorly.
The cousin studied him carefully.
“This isn’t like you.”
Cassian’s expression remained still.
“Neither is Viktor Soren appearing inside academy walls.”
That ended the amusement instantly.
The cousin exhaled quietly.
“So this is really about the Syndicate?”
Partially.
But Cassian didn’t say that aloud.
Because the truth was becoming increasingly complicated.
At first, Eleria Veyron had simply been another dangerous variable connected to powerful families.
Now—
now she was becoming distracting.
And Cassian disliked distractions he couldn’t control.
His cousin lowered his voice.
“You’ve been watching her.”
The statement lingered carefully between them.
Cassian looked back toward the windows.
Toward the academy courtyard below.
Toward nothing specific.
Which meant he was thinking.
“That’s dangerous,” the cousin added quietly.
A faint smile touched Cassian’s mouth.
Not warm.
Not amused.
“Everything interesting is.”
The answer unsettled even the other Draven heir.
Because Cassian almost never described people as interesting.
Especially not enemies.
Later that afternoon, the academy’s underground lounge overflowed with noise, music, expensive alcohol, and carefully hidden hostility.
Obsidian Dominion’s heirs gathered here for the same reason predators circled watering holes.
Observation.
Power.
Entertainment.
Eleria rarely attended these gatherings voluntarily.
But tonight, avoiding attention would only create more rumors.
So she entered anyway.
And immediately regretted it.
The moment she walked inside, heads turned.
Not subtle glances.
Direct attention.
People were waiting to see what would happen.
Because everyone knew Cassian Draven was already there.
Eleria spotted him instantly near the far side of the lounge speaking quietly with several heirs from allied families.
Black shirt.
Dark rings against long fingers.
Controlled posture.
Even relaxed, he looked dangerous.
As if violence sat naturally beneath his skin.
And somehow—
the moment she entered—
his attention shifted toward her automatically.
Like instinct.
Their eyes met across the crowded room.
The atmosphere tightened immediately.
Several nearby conversations lowered.
Eleria hated how aware she became whenever he looked at her.
It wasn’t attraction.
It was pressure.
Awareness.
Like standing too close to lightning.
Lucien appeared beside her with a drink in hand.
“You know,” he muttered, “if the s****l tension gets any worse, someone in this room may actually die.”
Eleria looked disgusted.
“You’re embarrassing.”
“I’m observant.”
Before she could answer, another voice interrupted smoothly.
“Well,” a male heir drawled nearby, “this should be entertaining.”
Eleria recognized him immediately.
Damien Moretti.
Arrogant.
Wealthy.
Annoying.
The kind of man who confused attention with importance.
Damien smirked openly at her.
“You’ve become popular overnight, Veyron.”
“I’d say the same for you,” she replied calmly, “but irrelevance isn’t popularity.”
Several students nearby nearly choked on their drinks.
Damien laughed once.
But irritation flashed briefly beneath it.
“You know,” he said, stepping closer, “people are beginning to think the Draven heir has a weakness.”
The room quieted instantly.
Dangerously.
Eleria’s expression cooled.
“A weakness?”
Damien’s smirk widened slightly.
“You.”
The word landed heavily.
Across the lounge, Cassian’s attention sharpened immediately.
Not visibly.
But enough.
Eleria noticed.
Of course she noticed.
And somehow that only irritated her more.
Damien continued carelessly, unaware of the tension building around him.
“Honestly, I expected better from Draven. Falling for a Veyron is almost pathetic.”
Big mistake.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
Cold.
Sharp.
Violent.
Eleria’s eyes darkened first.
But Cassian moved before she could speak.
The lounge fell completely silent as he crossed the room.
Not rushed.
Not emotional.
Worse.
Controlled.
People moved aside instinctively.
Because everyone suddenly understood something dangerous was about to happen.
Cassian stopped beside Eleria slowly.
His gaze settled on Damien without expression.
“You speak too confidently for someone so unimportant.”
The insult landed like a blade.
Damien stiffened immediately.
Still, pride pushed him forward.
“I’m just repeating what everyone else is already thinking.”
Cassian stepped closer.
The room held its breath.
“No,” he said softly. “You’re repeating gossip because attention is the only thing keeping people like you visible.”
Damien’s face darkened.
Eleria watched the interaction carefully.
And for the first time—
something unfamiliar twisted quietly beneath her ribs.
Not satisfaction.
Something warmer.
More dangerous.
Because Cassian had stepped in without hesitation.
Not dramatically.
Not possessively.
Naturally.
Like protecting her reputation had become instinct.
The realization unsettled her deeply.
Damien laughed bitterly.
“What? Did I offend your new obsession?”
Wrong choice of words.
Eleria felt the shift beside her instantly.
Cassian became very still.
And stillness on him felt lethal.
“You should leave,” Cassian said quietly.
Damien scoffed. “Or what?”
Silence.
Then Cassian smiled slightly.
And somehow that terrified the entire room.
“Or you’ll discover why people lower their voices when I enter one.”
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed too loudly.
Damien finally stepped back first.
Smart decision.
The tension broke slightly once he disappeared into the crowd.
But the damage had already been done.
Now the entire academy had witnessed Cassian Draven defending Eleria Veyron publicly.
A disaster.
Lucien muttered under his breath nearby.
“Oh, this is catastrophic.”
Eleria ignored him.
Her attention remained fixed on Cassian.
He still stood beside her.
Close enough for her to notice the faint tension in his jaw.
Close enough to feel the controlled anger still lingering beneath his composure.
And suddenly the lounge felt too crowded.
Too warm.
Too aware of them.
Cassian looked down at her finally.
“You should avoid people like Damien.”
Eleria almost laughed.
“You sound protective again.”
His gaze held hers steadily.
“Maybe you attract problems.”
“There it is,” she murmured softly. “The superiority complex.”
Something almost amused flickered in his eyes.
Then disappeared.
“You enjoy provoking me.”
“I enjoy surviving boredom.”
For the first time that night, genuine amusement touched Cassian’s expression briefly.
Small.
Dangerous.
But real.
And the sight of it affected her more than it should have.
Which was deeply irritating.
Around them, students continued pretending not to stare.
Poorly.
Because now the tension between them felt undeniable.
Not romance.
Not softness.
Something heavier.
Like two people slowly becoming each other’s weakness without permission.
Cassian studied her quietly for another moment.
Then his voice lowered.
“You should leave early tonight.”
Eleria frowned slightly.
“Why?”
His expression darkened again instantly.
“The Syndicate moved more people into the academy an hour ago.”
The warmth vanished from the atmosphere immediately.
Back to danger.
Back to reality.
Eleria’s gaze sharpened.
“You think something’s happening tonight?”
“I think,” Cassian said carefully, “that Viktor Soren didn’t come here to observe.”
A strange silence followed.
The music around them suddenly felt distant.
Muted.
Because deep down—
they both knew he was probably right.
And somewhere above the crowded underground lounge—
hidden behind the dark balcony railings—
someone watched them together once again.
Patiently.
Like they were waiting for the exact moment everything would finally fall apart.
- Writer
