I'M SORRY.
697 Words
ZANE'S POV
A strange feeling settled in my chest the moment I left the training hall.
Practice was supposed to start in ten minutes, and Aurelia was never late. Even after everything that had happened yesterday, I couldn't picture her skipping practice. If anything, she'd force herself to show up. That was who she was.
She carried pain like it was another class she had to pass.
I slung my duffel bag over my shoulder and headed toward the academic building.
Halfway down the corridor, I slowed.
Something was off.
Students crowded the hallway instead of heading to their classrooms. Groups huddled together, whispering with barely concealed excitement. Others hurried toward the east wing, weaving through the crowd as though they didn't want to miss whatever was happening.
Two first-year boys nearly barreled into me.
"Move," one of them barked without looking up.
"I heard she finally snapped," the other said, unable to hide the grin stretching across his face.
"Aurelia is screwed."
My heart lurched.
"What did you say?" I called after them.
Neither of them stopped. They disappeared into the growing crowd.
A knot tightened in my stomach, and before I realized it, I was already running.
The closer I got to the classroom wing, the louder the noise became. Voices overlapped until I couldn't make out individual conversations.
A phone camera flashed above the sea of heads when I got there, and the sight sent a chill racing down my spine.
"What happened?" I demanded, catching the arm of a student standing near the back.
He shrugged me off without taking his eyes off the classroom.
"I don't know. People said Aurelia finally lost it." He grinned.
I didn't wait to hear another word.
"Move," I snapped, forcing my way through the crowd. Several students stumbled aside with annoyed looks, but I ignored every one of them.
The moment I reached the doorway, the room fell into sharp focus.
Kenzie stood only a few feet away from the exit, her posture graceful as ever. She looked composed, almost serene.
Aurelia stood behind her. Her chest rose and fell with ragged breaths.
Her hands trembled.
There was something in her expression that stopped me cold.
She wasn't seeing the dozens of students staring at her. She looked trapped inside her own mind.
My gaze dropped to her hand.
A broken pen.
One jagged piece rested tightly in her grip.
"No..."
My heart rose quickly.
She took another step, and Kenzie glanced over her shoulder. For the briefest moment, I caught the faint curve of a smile on her lips.
It's a trap.
She wanted Aurelia to make one irreversible mistake.
"Aurelia!" I shouted, but she didn't react. Instead, she raised her hand, her face twisted with madness.
I ran past the crowd, everything disappearing from my vision. There was only the distance between us, and it was closing far too slowly.
I reached her just as her arm moved. Without thinking, I grabbed her wrist.
The sharp edge of the broken pen dug straight into my palm.
"Ugh!"
A hot sting shot through my hand. I sucked in a sharp breath as blood immediately trickled between my fingers.
Aurelia froze, her eyes moving toward me.
The broken pen slipped from her grasp and hit the floor with a hollow clatter.
Her eyes slowly lifted to my hand. Confusion replaced the anger that had consumed her.
"Zane...?"
She stared at my bleeding hand as though she couldn't understand how it had gotten there.
Her face drained of color.
"I..." Her lips trembled. "I did that?"
I loosened my grip on her wrist but didn't let go completely.
"You need to breathe," I said quietly.
She shook her head over and over.
"I wasn't..."
The words caught in her throat, her body trembling.
"I know," I replied, keeping my voice steady despite the pain pulsing through my hand.
She looked around the room for the first time and noticed the crowd. That was when humiliation washed over her face.
Her shoulders caved inward as though the weight of the room had finally settled on them.
She took one unsteady step back.
"I..." she whispered. "I'm sorry.”
- Writer
