Chaos at Bellview University: His Perfect Secret.

The first thing Irina noticed was the cold biting through her skin. It was sharp… sinking into her bones like hard metal. Her wrists burned. Her head felt heavy and drowsy, like her mind was wrapped in a thick linen. She didn’t open her eyes right away… something deep inside her warned her not to. There was no sound… not even a slight whisper. Just a heavy, suffocating silence. Then she finally forced her eyes open, and darkness stared back at her like a cruel slap. The darkness was so thick she could barely register anything. Her breath caught. She turned to move, but rope dug into her skin before she could even try. Her arms were tied behind her back… her ankles bound to the legs of a chair Panic coursed through her veins. Then the memories came flashing back in broken pieces. She had attended a gala earlier. Then there was music, Dashiel’s steady hand on her back. A message on her phone. The hallway she never should have walked through. And a cloth pressed over her mouth, forcing her down to this isolated dark room. She had woken up here once before, unbound. But then someone had hit her from behind while she was staring at the door, and everything went blank again. Her chest tightened. She pulled against the ropes, and the chair creaked under her. A muffled sound tore from her throat as she struggled to loosen herself. But there was something in her mouth that made it difficult to release any sound… a gag. Her heart pounded wildly in her chest. “No. No, no, no…” she breathed in desperation, trying one more time to get herself loose from the ropes. But before she could try any further,footsteps echoed outside the door. She went still, her eyes glued to the door like it might swallow her any minute. The lock clicked loudly, and a harsh light flashed into the room, burning right through her eyes. She flinched, her eyes stinging. The light turned to another direction, away from her eyes now. the figure appeared closer… and there he was. Jake leaned against the doorframe like this was completely normal. Like she was nothing but a piece of game he could play at anytime. “You look surprised,” he said, his voice light and casual. Her stomach dropped. Anger burned through her faster than fear. Bastard! “How does it feel,” he continued, stepping closer, “to be the one with no control?” He closed the door behind him. He crouched in front of her, studying her face like she was an object he had just bought. “I’ve been waiting for the right moment,” he said quietly. She glared at him over the gag in her mouth. He smiled. “What? You want an apology?” He quizzed and tilted his head. “Not… an opportunity.” She managed to push the gag aside just enough to speak, the fabric scraping her lips. “You’re pathetic,” she said clearly. Something flashed between his eyes… wounded pride, or maybe something worse. “Careful,” he warned softly. “Or what?” she snapped. “You’ll throw another tantrum because someone finally saw the real you?” She had barely even finished speaking when a slap landed across her face. It came fast and hard… when she least expected it. Her head swung to the side. Pain exploded across her cheek, and for a minute… she tasted blood. Jake straightened up slowly, flexing his hand. “You always mistook kindness for weakness,” he said, his voice cold now. She turned back to face him, her cheek burning. “You were never kind.” “You should have stayed calm, Irina.” he said. “You should have stayed grateful.” A weak, amused laugh escaped from her lips. “You were never powerful, Jake. You were just… unnecessarily loud!” His expression darkened. But he didn't say a word. He reached forward and grabbed the gag and shoved it back into her mouth, hard enough to make her choke. “Let’s see how brave you are in the dark.” He walked to the wall and flipped the switch, and the room plunged into total darkness. The door slammed shut before she could get a chance to say another word. And once again, silence swallowed the whole place. Irina’s breathing swirled out of control. The gag made it even harder to breathe. Her lungs burned, and this time, the darkness pressed in on her from all sides. She squeezed her eyes shut, but it didn’t help. The darkness was still there. She wanted to cry. Wanted to scream for help. But there was literally no one else around to help her… just that monster who had sworn to make her life miserable, no matter the cost. She had tried to avoid him completely. But now she was completely at his mercy… and her fate rested entirely in his hands.