The Secret Behind His Eyes

The first rule of being rich was simple: never let anyone see you struggle. The second rule was even simpler: never trust anyone who knew how much you were worth. I had spent nineteen years following both rules. Until the morning I decided to break them. Standing outside the enormous gates of Blackwood University, I looked down at my faded sneakers and old backpack. Around me, students stepped out of luxury cars, laughing as their drivers unloaded designer suitcases. I took a deep breath. For the first time in my life, nobody knew who I was. Nobody knew that my father, Richard Bennett, owned one of the largest business empires in the country. Nobody knew that the watch I had left at home cost more than some people's cars. And nobody knew that I could buy half the buildings surrounding this university without asking my father for permission. Here, I was Elena Miller. An ordinary girl from an ordinary family. At least, that was the plan. "Are you going to stand there all day?" I turned towards the voice. A girl in an expensive white jacket was staring at me impatiently. Her sunglasses rested on her head, and she carried a handbag I recognised from a luxury collection my mother loved. "Sorry," I said, stepping aside. She looked me up and down. "First day?" "Is it that obvious?" She laughed. "Your face is practically screaming, 'I'm lost.'" Before I could answer, she walked away with her friends. I watched them disappear through the gates. Wonderful. I had been at Blackwood for less than two minutes, and I had already been judged by someone who didn't know my name. Maybe this was what ordinary life felt like. I wasn't sure whether I liked it. At the security desk, a woman in a navy-blue suit asked for my student information. I handed her my admission documents, praying she wouldn't notice that my temporary identification card carried a surname that wasn't mine. "Elena Rose Miller," she read. "Business Administration." "Yes, ma'am." She checked the list, stamped my form, and handed everything back. "Welcome to Blackwood University. Orientation starts in twenty minutes. The main auditorium is on your left." "Thank you." I walked away before she could ask anything else. My heart was beating ridiculously fast. I had lied about my surname. It was a small lie, technically. But it was also the beginning of a life built on secrets. And I had no idea how difficult those secrets would become to protect. --- My decision to hide my identity hadn't happened overnight. For years, I had watched people change the moment they discovered who my father was. People who barely noticed me suddenly wanted to be my closest friends. Boys who had never spoken to me became interested in taking me on expensive dates. Even some of my classmates seemed more interested in my family's money than in anything I had to say. Eventually, I stopped knowing who genuinely liked me. My father believed money solved every problem. My mother believed the world was full of people who wanted something from us. I had started to believe them both. That was why I had chosen Blackwood University. I wanted to make friends without my surname opening doors for me. I wanted to discover whether someone could care about me without knowing my family owned private jets and luxury apartments. Most importantly, I wanted to fall in love without wondering whether the person standing before me was interested in Elena Bennett or her bank account. My parents had strongly opposed the idea. My father had called it unnecessary. My mother had called it dangerous. I had called it my decision. Eventually, they agreed to let me try, provided I remained careful and kept in regular contact with them. I promised I would. Now, standing in the middle of Blackwood's beautiful courtyard, I hoped I hadn't made the biggest mistake of my life. Then I saw him. He stood beneath a large tree near the library, dressed in a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He was speaking to nobody, looking at nothing in particular, and somehow attracting more attention than the students laughing around him. He had dark hair, a sharp jawline, and eyes that seemed to notice everything without revealing anything about himself. Two girls walked past him, whispering. He ignored them. A group of boys greeted him. He barely nodded. He looked like someone who had deliberately built a wall around himself and had no intention of letting anyone through. I looked away. Not my business. I checked the campus map on my phone and started walking towards the auditorium. That was when I collided with someone. My phone slipped from my fingers. A hand caught it before it reached the ground. "Watch where you're going." I looked up. Of course. The mysterious boy beneath the tree. Up close, his eyes were even more unsettling. I reached for my phone. "You walked into me." "And you were looking at your screen." "I was checking the map." "Then stop walking while checking it." I stared at him. "Do you always talk to people like that?" "Like what?" "Like everyone around you is an inconvenience." He looked at me for a moment. "Only when they make themselves one." I couldn't believe him. I had met rude people before, but this boy spoke as though politeness were an expensive luxury he couldn't afford. "Your parents must be very proud," I said sarcastically. Something shifted in his expression. It was small, but I noticed it. For a second, the coldness in his eyes disappeared, replaced by something darker. Pain, perhaps. Then it was gone. "You don't know anything about my parents," he replied. His voice had changed. I should have apologised. Instead, I folded my arms. "And you don't know anything about me." He glanced at my identification card. "Elena Miller." Hearing my false name from his lips made my stomach tighten. "Adrian Cole," he added, as though introducing himself were an inconvenience. Then he walked away. Just like that. I watched him disappear into the crowd. Adrian Cole. I had a feeling that name would become a problem. I just didn't know how much of a problem yet. --- "Please tell me you didn't just argue with Adrian Cole." I turned to find a boy standing beside me with an amused smile. He was handsome, but in a completely different way from Adrian. His dark hair was neatly styled, his clothes looked expensive, and his smile made him seem as though he had never experienced an awkward moment in his life. "Should I have done something else?" I asked. He laughed. "Most people try not to annoy him on their first day." "Then most people should try being less boring." His eyebrows rose. For a second, he looked genuinely surprised. Then he grinned. "I like you already." "That's unfortunate." He laughed again. "Sebastian Blake." "Elena Miller." He shook my hand. "New student?" "No, I always carry a backpack and look completely lost for fun." "Definitely not boring." "You're very observant." "I try." Sebastian glanced in the direction Adrian had gone. "Don't mind him. Adrian isn't exactly famous for his friendly personality." "That makes two of us who have noticed." "Trust me, you've only seen the beginning." Something about the way he said it made me curious. "What do you mean?" Before he could answer, a bell rang across the courtyard. "Orientation," he said. "Come on. I'll show you where to go." I hesitated. I had promised myself I wouldn't trust people too quickly. But Sebastian seemed friendly enough, and I couldn't spend the entire semester avoiding everyone. "Fine," I said. "But if you get me lost, I'm blaming you." He placed a hand over his chest. "I would never betray a lady." "That sounds suspiciously like something a dishonest person would say." His laughter followed us towards the auditorium. For the first time that morning, I smiled without forcing it. Maybe Blackwood wouldn't be so terrible after all. --- The auditorium was packed when we arrived. Sebastian found two empty seats near the back and gestured for me to sit beside him. The orientation speaker discussed academic excellence, university traditions, and the importance of maintaining Blackwood's reputation. I tried to concentrate. I really did. But my attention kept drifting towards the entrance. Adrian never returned. I wondered why I cared. He was a stranger. An irritating stranger, at that. I had no reason to think about him. And yet, I couldn't forget the brief change in his expression when I mentioned his parents. Whatever his secret was, it wasn't a happy one. I was still thinking about it when my phone vibrated. A message from my mother appeared on the screen. MUM: How is your first day, sweetheart? I smiled. ME: It's going well. Nobody knows who I am. Her reply arrived almost immediately. MUM: Please be careful, Elena. People aren't always what they seem. I rolled my eyes. My mother could turn a simple trip to the supermarket into a warning about the dangers of the world. ME: I'll be fine. I promise. I put my phone away and returned my attention to the speaker. When orientation ended, Sebastian offered to show me around the library. I declined, explaining that I wanted to find my department first. He gave me his number before leaving. "Call me if you need anything," he said. "And try not to fight any more mysterious boys today." "No promises." He smiled and walked away. I was about to head towards the administration building when my phone vibrated again. This time, the message came from an unknown number. UNKNOWN: You shouldn't have come to Blackwood. I stopped walking. My first thought was that someone had mistaken me for another student. Then another message arrived. UNKNOWN: Your father has already destroyed one family. Don't let him destroy yours. My smile disappeared. I read the words again. My father? Who knew who I was? My hands suddenly felt cold. I typed a reply. ME: Who is this? The message was delivered. No response came. I looked around the courtyard, searching the faces of the students passing by. Nobody was paying attention to me. A group of girls laughed beside the fountain. Two boys argued about football. A lecturer hurried through the main entrance. Everything looked normal. But my world no longer felt normal. Then a final message appeared. UNKNOWN: Stay away from Adrian Cole if you want to know the truth. I forgot how to breathe for a moment. Adrian. Why was his name connected to my father? And what truth was I supposed to discover? I looked towards the library. Adrian stood behind one of the glass doors, his phone in his hand. He was staring directly at me. When our eyes met, he lowered his phone. His expression wasn't cold this time. It was almost as if he had been expecting something to happen. Then he turned and disappeared into the corridor. I stood there, unable to move. My first day at Blackwood University wasn't even over, and someone had already discovered that my family was hiding something. Worse, they seemed to believe Adrian Cole was part of it. I had come to Blackwood to discover whether people could love me without knowing my name. Now I was beginning to wonder whether my real name was the very thing that had brought me here. And somewhere inside that university, Adrian Cole knew a truth that someone desperately wanted me to ignore. I had a terrible feeling that discovering it would change everything. End of Chapter One.