CHAPTER 1: NEW BEGINNINGS
The first thing I learned about university was that everybody was pretending to have their lives together.
Girls walked around campus with perfectly styled hair, boys wore expensive sneakers, and everybody seemed to know exactly where they were going.
Meanwhile, I stood in front of my hostel with two bags, a bottle of water, and a prayer that I wouldn't embarrass myself before the end of my first week.
My name is Zara Bennett, and I had one plan for university: focus on my studies, make my family proud, and graduate without unnecessary drama.
Romance was not part of the plan.
I had seen what happened when people gave their hearts to the wrong person. I had watched friends cry over boys who couldn't even remember their birthdays. I had listened to late-night phone calls filled with promises that disappeared by morning.
I wasn't interested.
I wanted peace.
Unfortunately, peace had other plans for me.
"Zara!"
I turned just in time to see my best friend, Nia, running toward me. She threw her arms around me so enthusiastically that I nearly dropped my bag.
"You finally arrived!" she shouted.
"I've been here for ten minutes."
"Ten minutes too long."
I laughed as she dragged me toward the hostel entrance.
Nia had been my best friend since secondary school. She was beautiful, loud, stubborn, and incapable of minding her own business. She also had an older brother who, according to her, was the most annoying person on earth.
"You'll meet my brother later," she said while helping me carry my things upstairs.
"Your brother? The one you complain about every day?"
"That one."
"Please, I don't want trouble."
"He's not trouble." She paused. "Well, sometimes he is. But he's harmless."
I raised an eyebrow.
"You're making him sound worse."
"Just don't let him annoy you."
By evening, I had unpacked my clothes, arranged my books, and promised myself that I would spend the next few weeks getting familiar with the campus.
Then Nia called.
"Come downstairs. Someone wants to see you."
"Who?"
"My brother."
I sighed. "Tell him I'm busy."
"He says he brought food."
I was downstairs in less than thirty seconds.
When I stepped outside, I saw him leaning against a black car, wearing a dark shirt and a smile that suggested he knew exactly why I had come so quickly.
He was taller than I expected, with neat hair, warm brown skin, and the kind of confidence that made it seem as though the entire world was his friend.
He held up a takeaway pack.
"So you're Zara?"
"Depends on who's asking."
He laughed.
"I'm Adrian. Nia's unfortunate older brother."
"At least you know."
His smile widened.
I took the food from him, determined not to be impressed.
"So," he said, "you're the famous best friend."
"Famous?"
"Nia talks about you like you're the only sensible person she knows."
"Then your family must be going through a difficult time."
He laughed again, and I hated how easily I found myself smiling.
We talked for a few minutes before Nia came outside and complained that we were getting along too well.
Adrian left soon afterward, promising to bring Nia something she'd forgotten at home.
As I returned to my room, my phone buzzed.
It was an unknown number.
Unknown: Hope you enjoyed the food, Miss Independent.
I stared at the message.
Me: Who is this?
Unknown: The guy who saved you from starving on your first day.
Me: You didn't save me. I was perfectly capable of finding food.
Adrian: Of course. That's why you nearly ran downstairs when you heard I brought some.
I burst out laughing.
I should have blocked him.
Instead, I saved his number.
I didn't know it then, but some of life's biggest complications begin with the smallest decisions.
And mine had just saved her homeboy's number.
