Rumors and Consequences
733 Words
đź“– Chapter 7: Rumors and Consequences
By the time I left the bathroom, my heart still hadn’t calmed down.
My lips tingled.
My thoughts were a mess.
And the worst part?
I couldn’t even pretend it didn’t happen.
“Liana!”
I flinched slightly as Emily rushed toward me.
“Where did you go?” she asked. “Everyone’s talking about the donation—and Dante is still here!”
I forced a normal expression. “I just needed air.”
She studied me for a second.
“You look… flushed.”
“I’m fine,” I said quickly, walking past her. “Let’s just go.”
But it was too late.
The moment we stepped back into the hallway—
I felt it.
Eyes.
Whispers.
Everywhere.
“Isn’t that the girl who left earlier?”
“I saw her watching Dante—”
“Do you think she knows him?”
“No way, she’s just a student—”
My chest tightened.
This was exactly what I didn’t want.
Attention.
Trouble.
Him… mixing with my world.
“Ignore them,” Emily whispered.
It's easy for her to say.
Classes felt longer than usual.
Every time I tried to focus, my mind drifted back to him.
To the way he looked at me.
To what he said.
Those women don’t matter.
I don’t want them.
Then why did it still bother me?
Why did I care?
By the end of the day, I was exhausted.
Mentally.
Emotionally.
Completely.
“I’m going home,” I told Emily.
She nodded. “Text me when you get there.”
“I will.”
The walk home felt different.
Like I was being watched.
I shook it off.
Paranoia.
That’s all.
Until—
A black car pulled up beside me.
My heart skipped.
The window rolled down slowly.
And there he was.
Dante.
Of course.
“Get in,” he said.
No greeting.
No hesitation.
Just that same calm command.
I crossed my arms. “No.”
His eyebrow lifted slightly.
“No?” he repeated.
“I’m not getting into your car,” I said. “People already think I’m—”
“You care too much about what people think.”
“And you don’t care at all,” I shot back.
“Correct.”
That didn’t help.
At all.
“I can walk home,” I added.
“You could,” he agreed.
Then his gaze darkened slightly.
“But you won’t.”
My heart skipped.
“Why?”
“Because I said so.”
I let out a frustrated breath. “That’s not a reason!”
Silence.
Then he opened the door.
Stepped out.
And suddenly—
The space between us felt smaller.
“You’re tired,” he said, his voice lower now. “You’re thinking too much. And you’re still pretending you don’t feel anything.”
My breath caught.
“I don’t—”
“You do.”
He stepped closer.
Not touching.
But close enough.
“And it scares you.”
That part…
That part hit too close.
I looked away.
“I just don’t want problems,” I admitted quietly.
“You already have them.”
My heart tightened.
“And you’re one of them,” I said.
Something flickered in his eyes.
Not anger.
Something else.
“Say it again,” he said.
I frowned. “What?”
“That I’m a problem.”
I hesitated.
Then, stubbornly—
“You are.”
Silence.
Then—
“Good.”
I blinked. “What?”
He stepped even closer.
Now, there was no space left.
“Because I’m not going anywhere.”
My breath caught.
Before I could respond, he reached out—
And opened the car door wider.
“Get in, Liana.”
My heart raced.
Everything in me said this was a bad idea.
It's a very bad idea.
But another part of me…
The part that couldn’t stop thinking about him—
Didn’t want to walk away.
I hesitated.
Just for a second.
That was all it took.
His gaze softened—just slightly.
“Trust me,” he said quietly.
That was new.
Different.
Dangerous in a whole new way.
Because trust?
Was something I wasn’t ready to give.
And yet—
I found myself stepping forward.
Getting into the car.
The door closed behind me.
And just like that—
I crossed another line.
- Writer
