MARKED BY THE ENEMY

AVOIDANCE

Chapter 14 — Avoidance

Ashley had never been more confused in her life.

For the past two days, her heart had been tangled in knots she couldn’t undo. Every time she thought about Devin — his rare smile, the way he’d draped his jacket over her when she was humiliated, the blush on his face after she kissed his cheek — she felt butterflies in her stomach so strong it made her dizzy.

But then William’s words echoed in her mind: You deserve someone who’s good for you. Not someone who’s going to break your heart.

She turned over in bed, clutching her pillow tightly. She didn’t want to admit it, but William’s jealous confession had shaken her. She had always seen him as a friend, someone safe and constant. But now? Now she wasn’t sure what to think.

What if he was right? What if Devin was just… temporary? Someone exciting, someone dangerous, someone who would leave the moment things got complicated?

Her chest ached. She didn’t want to risk losing her friendship with William, and she didn’t want to admit how much she wanted Devin at the same time.

So she did the only thing that felt safe.

She avoided Devin.

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At school, it started small. She pretended to be busy with Lia when she saw him in the hallway. She skipped their usual tutoring sessions, making up excuses about studying alone. When he sat near her in class, she kept her head down, her answers short.

But Devin wasn’t stupid.

On the third day of her cold shoulder, he caught her just as she was slipping out of the library.

“Ashley.”

Her heart jumped at the sound of his voice, deep and low behind her. She froze, then slowly turned around. He stood there, hands in his pockets, his dark eyes fixed on her like he could see straight through the walls she was trying to build.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said bluntly.

Ashley forced a small laugh. “N-no, I’ve just been… busy.”

His brow furrowed. “Busy avoiding me?”

Her throat went dry. She wanted to explain, to tell him about William, about the confusion twisting her heart in half, but the words wouldn’t come. Instead, she looked away. “It’s not like that. I just… I think it’s better if we don’t hang out so much.”

For a moment, silence stretched between them. Then Devin let out a short, sharp laugh — the kind that wasn’t funny at all.

“Better for who? You, or me?”

Ashley flinched at the edge in his voice. She hated seeing that flicker of hurt in his eyes, even though he tried to mask it with his usual cool expression.

“I don’t want you to get the wrong idea,” she whispered, clutching her books tighter to her chest. “We’re friends, Devin. That’s all.”

The words stabbed her as soon as they left her mouth, because they weren’t true. Not entirely. But they were safer.

Devin’s jaw tightened. He took a step closer, his presence overwhelming, the air around him charged with unspoken words. For a second, Ashley thought he was going to call her out, demand the truth.

Instead, he stepped back. His voice was low, unreadable. “If that’s what you want.”

And just like that, he walked away.

Ashley stood rooted to the spot, her chest aching. It was what she had told herself she wanted — distance. Safety. But watching him walk away like that, she felt like she was the one breaking.

---

Later that evening, Ashley sat with Lia in her room, trying to focus on homework but failing miserably.

“You’ve been quiet,” Lia said, peering over her notebook. “Is this about Devin again?”

Ashley sighed, dropping her pen. “I told him we should just be friends. But it hurt, Lia. It hurt so much.”

“Do you want to be just friends with him?”

Ashley hesitated. “I don’t know. William… he…” She trailed off, cheeks burning.

Lia raised a brow. “Oh. Oh. William likes you, doesn’t he?”

Ashley covered her face with her hands. “I don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m stuck between the two of them, and if I choose wrong, I’ll lose everything.”

Lia reached over and squeezed her hand. “Ash, you can’t live your life trying not to hurt people. You have to figure out what you want. Not what William wants. Not what Devin wants. You.”

Ashley looked at her best friend, her eyes stinging with tears. Deep down, she knew Lia was right. But the truth was scarier than anything else.

Because what she wanted… might destroy her friendship with William.

And yet, denying it was already destroying whatever she was building with Devin.

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The next day at school, Ashley walked into class and found Devin already there. He didn’t look at her. Didn’t greet her. Didn’t even acknowledge her presence.

And somehow, that silence hurt worse than anything Kika could have done.

For the first time, Ashley realized she might lose him. Not because of someone else. Not because of rumors or schemes.

But because of her own fear.

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