Chapter 2 Two

Sleep does not come easy. It is not that I am restless or haunted or anything poetic like that. It is just that her face keeps showing up when I close my eyes. Those steady eyes, that quiet confidence, the way she walked away like she already knew she had gotten under my skin.

By morning, I convince myself it is nothing. I have had crushes before. I have had entire fan clubs. I am good at moving on.

Still, when I step through Westbrook's front gates, my eyes move on their own.

The courtyard is a glossy blur of blazers and laughter. Students drift in small circles like planets with their own gravity. And me? I am the sun they orbit. Or that is what they think.

Ryan catches up beside me, phone in hand, hair still damp from an early run. "You missed the group chat last night. Tessa was fishing for you again."

I shrug. "Let her fish. I am not biting."

"Shocking," he says. "You never skip an opportunity to charm."

"I was tired."

He gives me a look like he knows that is a lie. Maybe it is. But he drops it and we keep walking.

In the hallway, posters for the fall dance are everywhere. Red and gold streamers, promises of magic under the stars. I have never cared about dances. They are just another performance. But Ryan loves them, mostly for the after-party.

"You bringing anyone?" he asks.

"Probably not."

"Liar. You always bring someone."

I grin. "Maybe I am evolving."

Before he can reply, a ripple of whispers moves through the hall. I follow the sound until I see her.

She is standing by the main office, holding a folder, clearly lost but pretending not to be. Same messy bun, same calm posture. Her uniform still does not fit the Westbrook mold. She looks like she belongs somewhere else but refuses to apologize for being here.

"New girl," Ryan says. "Transfer, I heard. She has Mason's crowd already circling."

Of course they are. Tyler Mason leans against the lockers near her, smirk ready, voice smooth. I cannot hear what he is saying, but I know the tone. The kind that expects interest just because he is the one speaking.

She listens for a second, then says something that makes his smile falter. His friends laugh uncertainly, and she walks away, leaving him standing there like someone just unplugged his confidence.

Ryan whistles. "Well damn. She did not even flinch."

"Yeah," I say quietly, watching her disappear into the crowd.

By second period, everyone is talking about her. The new girl who shut Mason down. The one who might actually be immune to charm. Half the guys are curious, half the girls are already annoyed. Westbrook runs on attention, and she has stolen some of it without even trying.

I see her again at lunch. She is sitting at that same empty table near the window, the one no one ever uses. The sunlight still finds it, like it was waiting for her. She has a notebook open, pen moving fast.

Ryan spots my gaze. "You are staring, man."

"I am not."

"You are. It is weirdly intense."

"Eat your food."

He laughs and turns back to the conversation at our table. I take another bite of my sandwich, pretending not to notice that my eyes keep drifting back to her.

A few tables over, Mason is watching her too, only his stare is different. Sharper. He whispers something to his friends and they start laughing, the cruel kind of laughter that always means trouble.

When one of them gets up and "accidentally" knocks her bag to the floor on his way past, I feel my jaw tighten. She pauses, looks down at the spilled pens and papers, then looks up at the guy. Her expression does not change. No embarrassment, no anger. Just calm.

She bends down, collects her things, and goes back to writing as if nothing happened.

The guy hesitates, thrown off. He expected a reaction. Everyone did. When she gives him none, he looks small. He walks back to his seat without another word.

Ryan mutters, "That was cold."

"Or smart," I say.

He glances at me. "You really are interested."

"I am not."

"Right."

But maybe I am.

The rest of the day drags. Every class feels slower, like the air itself is thick. When the final bell rings, I find myself walking toward the library instead of the field. I tell myself it is because I need to finish an assignment. It is not.

The library at Westbrook is huge, two stories of polished wood and silence. Hardly anyone comes here after hours except the serious students or those hiding from something. I guess I fall into the second category today.

And there she is, sitting by the window again, the light fading around her.

I do not think before speaking. "You always take the best seats."

She looks up, unsurprised. "You always sneak up on people?"

"Only the interesting ones."

She closes her notebook. "You should try being original."

"Ouch." I grin, pulling out a chair across from her. "Mind if I sit?"

"I do, actually."

I sit anyway. "Noted."

She sighs but does not tell me to leave.

For a minute, the only sound is the faint hum of the air conditioner and the soft scratch of her pen. I lean back, studying her face. She has the kind of focus most people fake. Every movement is deliberate, controlled.

"So," I say. "You like Westbrook yet?"

She does not look up. "Is that what this place is called?"

"You sound impressed."

"I sound bored."

I chuckle. "That can change."

She raises her eyes, finally meeting mine. "Does that line actually work on people?"

"Usually."

"Then maybe they set the bar too low."

I laugh again, not offended. She is the first person in a long time who talks to me like I am not special. It is refreshing, maybe even dangerous.

After a while, I ask, "You read a lot?"

"Only when I want to forget where I am."

"Then you must read all the time here."

She smirks. "You catch on fast."

The conversation settles into a comfortable silence. I find myself wanting to know more - her name, her story, why she looks at the world like it has already disappointed her. But I do not ask. Not yet.

When she finally starts packing up, I glance at the clock. We have been sitting there for nearly an hour.

"You done escaping?" I ask.

"For today."

She slings her bag over her shoulder, stands, and looks down at me. "You should try it sometime."

"Escaping?"

"Being real."

That one hits harder than I expect. Before I can think of a response, she turns and walks out, leaving me staring at the empty chair across from me.

For a while, I just sit there, trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

The next day, it starts again.

I see her everywhere now - in the courtyard, in the halls, even in class, though she sits near the back and barely speaks. People are curious about her, but she keeps her distance. Some call it arrogance. I call it survival.

Mason's crew does not like being ignored. They start small - whispers, small comments, fake smiles. I notice her brushing them off, the same calm mask in place. But the looks get meaner. The laughter sharper.

During gym, one of Mason's friends "accidentally" spills water on her bag. She does not react, just takes it, walks out without a word. The teacher barely notices.

I do.

Later, I find her sitting outside near the back steps, cleaning the soaked pages of her notebook with slow, patient movements.

I lean against the wall beside her. "They are idiots."

She does not look up. "I have met worse."

"You could tell someone."

"And give them what they want? No thanks."

Her tone is light, but I can hear something underneath it. Not fear. Not even anger. Just exhaustion.

"You should not let them get away with it."

She glances at me, eyes unreadable. "Why do you care?"

The question catches me off guard. I do not have a good answer. Maybe because I see too much of myself in that quiet defiance. Maybe because no one ever stepped in for me either.

"I don't know," I admit. "Maybe I am just bored."

She gives a small smile, not buying it but not pushing either. "Then find a new hobby, Aiden Cole."

"You remembered my name."

"It is hard to forget when people keep whispering it."

I laugh softly. "What do they whisper about me?"

"The usual. That you can get anyone you want. That you do not care about anyone. That you are a player."

"And what do you think?"

She tilts her head. "I think you care a lot more than you pretend to."

That makes me go quiet.

A breeze moves through the courtyard, carrying the faint smell of rain. She closes her notebook, stands, and looks at me again with that steady gaze that sees too much.

"See you around," she says.

She walks away before I can ask her name, leaving me standing there with the same question looping in my head.

Who is she?

And why does it feel like I have been waiting for her without knowing it?

That night, I lie in bed staring at the ceiling, the sound of her voice replaying in my mind. For the first time, the thought of tomorrow feels different. Unpredictable.

Maybe it is curiosity. Maybe it is something more.

Either way, I know one thing.

Whatever this is, it is not ending soon.