Chapter 5
1567 Words
Keira POV
It took exactly seven minutes for the rumors to start.
I counted.
Seven minutes from the bell ending third period to the first whisper I caught behind me.
Seven minutes from “nobody knows” to “everyone knows.”
Lila worked fast.
“Hey, Keira,” someone said behind me.
I didn’t turn.
“Did you and Kaden have a fun study session?”
I kept walking.
Eyes forward.
Back straight.
Act normal.
That’s what Kaden said.
Act normal and maybe they’ll get bored.
It wasn’t working.
“Don’t be like that,” another voice said.
“Just tell us. Is it true?”
I picked up my pace.
The lockers blurred past me.
“True about what?” I said, trying to sound bored.
Trying to sound like I didn’t care.
“You know what,” the girl said.
I recognized her voice.
Mia.
Lila’s right hand.
“Don’t act innocent. We saw you two in the library.”
I stopped.
Turned.
Mia stood there with two other girls, arms crossed, waiting for me to crack.
“There’s nothing to tell,” I said.
“Get out of my way.”
Mia stepped closer.
“Listen, new girl. This is St. Claire. We don’t let people come in and act like they own the place.”
“I don’t want the place,” I said.
“I just want to get through the day.”
“Too late for that,” Mia said.
She smiled.
It wasn’t nice.
“Lila said you’re already getting close to Kaden. You think you can just waltz in and take what’s hers?”
I felt my chest tighten.
“Lila can have him,” I said.
“I don’t want him.”
“Then why were you hiding with him?” Mia asked.
“Why’s he always around you?”
Because he won’t leave me alone.
Because he thinks he’s protecting me.
Because I don’t know what to do with him.
I didn’t say any of that.
Instead, I said, “Move.”
Mia didn’t move.
She stepped closer.
“You know what happens to girls who try to mess with Lila, right?”
I stared at her.
“I’m not trying to mess with anyone.”
“Good,” Mia said.
“Then stay away from Kaden.”
She stepped back, letting me pass.
But as I walked away, I heard her say,
“She’s done. One week, max.”
I didn’t look back.
If I looked back, I’d lose it.
I made it to fourth period with thirty seconds to spare.
Sat down.
Stared at the desk.
Tried not to shake.
It didn’t work.
My hands were trembling.
My chest felt tight.
And the worst part was, I didn’t know who to be mad at.
Lila, for starting it.
Kaden, for making it worse.
Or myself, for letting it get to me.
The teacher started talking about the Civil War.
I didn’t hear a word.
All I heard was Mia’s voice.
She’s done. One week, max.
One week.
That’s all I had before Lila tore me apart.
I wanted to run.
To grab my bag and walk out of St. Claire and never come back.
But where would I go?
Home wasn’t safe anymore either.
Not with Kaden there.
Not with Mom and Mr. West watching us like we were a problem to solve.
The bell rang and I was out of my seat before the teacher finished.
“Keira!”
Kaden again.
Of course it was Kaden.
I didn’t stop.
I couldn’t stop.
He caught up to me by the stairwell, grabbing my arm.
Not hard, but enough to stop me.
“Talk to me,” he said.
“Let go,” I said.
“Not until you listen.”
I yanked my arm back.
“About what? About how you’re making this worse?”
His jaw tightened.
“I’m trying to fix it.”
“Fix it?” I laughed, and it sounded bitter even to me.
“By telling me to act normal? By telling me to trust you?”
“Yes,” he said simply.
“Because I’m the only one here who knows what Lila’s going to do next.”
“And what’s that?” I asked.
“Tell everyone we’re dating? She already started.”
“She’s going to escalate,” he said quietly.
“She’ll say we were alone. She’ll say it was more than talking. She’ll make it s****l if she has to.”
My stomach dropped.
“She wouldn’t.”
“She would,” he said.
“I’ve seen her do it before.”
I looked at him, really looked at him.
He wasn’t lying.
He wasn’t joking.
He was scared.
For me.
“What do we do?” I asked.
My voice was small.
“We fight back,” he said.
“But not how she expects.”
“How, then?” I asked.
“By giving them nothing,” he said.
“No fight. No tears. No drama. If you don’t react, she has nothing to use.”
I wanted to believe that.
I really did.
But ignoring Lila had never worked before.
And Kaden didn’t know what she was capable of.
Not yet.
“I can’t ignore this,” I said.
“It’s already everywhere.”
“Then let me handle it,” he said.
His voice was low, steady.
“Trust me on this.”
I looked at him.
Really looked at him.
He wasn’t smirking.
He wasn’t playing.
He looked scared.
For me.
“I don’t know if I can trust you,” I said quietly.
“You don’t have to,” he said.
“Just don’t face her alone.”
Footsteps echoed down the hall.
Lila’s voice followed.
“Well, well,” she said.
“If it isn’t the two of you.”
Kaden stepped in front of me, blocking her view.
“Lila. Not now.”
“Oh, but now’s perfect,” she said.
She smiled at me over his shoulder.
“Hi, Keira. Heard you had an interesting lunch.”
I didn’t answer.
Lila’s smile widened.
“Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone.”
She paused.
“Yet.”
She walked away, laughing softly.
Kaden didn’t move until she was gone.
When he turned back to me, his face was hard.
“She’s going to make a move,” he said.
“So we need to make one first.”
“What move?” I asked.
He didn’t answer.
Not right away.
Instead, he said, “Meet me after school. Front gates. We talk.”
I stared at him.
“Why?”
“Because I have a plan,” he said.
“And you’re part of it.”
I wanted to say no.
I wanted to walk away and pretend none of this was happening.
But I knew I couldn’t.
Not anymore.
“Fine,” I said.
“But if this blows up in my face, it’s on you.”
Kaden nodded.
“It’s on me.”
He walked away, leaving me standing in the hallway with Lila’s words ringing in my ears.
Yet.
The rumors had started.
And I had no idea how to stop them.
I made it to my next class on autopilot.
Sat down.
Opened my notebook.
Wrote nothing.
Mia’s words kept replaying in my head.
She’s done. One week, max.
I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction.
I wasn’t going to break.
Not yet.
But as the day dragged on, I felt it.
The walls closing in.
The stares getting sharper.
The whispers getting louder.
By the time last period ended, I was exhausted.
Exhausted from pretending I didn’t care.
Exhausted from pretending I wasn’t scared.
I grabbed my bag and headed for the front gates.
Kaden was already there.
Leaning against the fence, hands in his pockets, watching the crowd.
He saw me and pushed off the fence.
“You came,” he said.
“I said I would,” I said.
He nodded.
“Good.”
He glanced around, making sure no one was listening.
“Here’s the plan.”
I waited.
“We tell them the truth,” he said.
“Before Lila does.”
I stopped.
“What truth?”
“That nothing happened,” he said.
“That you and I are just step-siblings who hate each other.”
I stared at him.
“That’s not going to work. Nobody believes that.”
“They will if we sell it,” he said.
“If we act like it. If we argue in public. If we make it look real.”
I shook my head.
“I’m not putting on a show for them.”
“You already are,” he said quietly.
“Every time you walk away from me, every time you avoid me, you’re giving them something to talk about.”
He stepped closer.
“This way, we control it.”
I wanted to argue.
I wanted to tell him he was crazy.
But the truth was, I didn’t have a better idea.
“Fine,” I said.
“But if this backfires, I’m blaming you.”
Kaden smiled.
Just a little.
“Deal.”
He started walking, and I followed.
We didn’t talk the whole way home.
Because the real fight hadn’t started yet.
And I had a feeling it was coming fast.
- Writer
