Chapter 4 A price for peace

Weeks turned into months, and campus life moved with it loud, fast, and filled with dreams waiting to be chased.

But Iris Dean was never one to get carried away by the noise.

While others laughed in circles, attended parties, and argued about their favorite lecturers, she sat quietly at the front of lecture halls, scribbling down notes with intense focus. She was in her third year now, and nothing had changed still the bright girl with simple hair, neatly ironed clothes, and an invisible wall around her heart.

To many, she was untouchable. Smart. Different.

To Eden, she was the one person he couldn't get out of his head.

They first crossed paths at the campus library during a group presentation. Eden had walked in with his usual confident swagger, a small crowd of friends trailing behind. He wasn't the shy type, neither was he one to stay unnoticed especially not with his car parked right at the entrance, license plate flashing bold letters: EDEN 01.

He had paused when he saw her. The girl in the wine cardigan. Hair in a bun. Earphones plugged in. Eyes locked on her notes. She didn't even flinch when someone bumped her chair.

It was like she didn't see the world. Or maybe... she'd seen too much of it.

From that moment, Eden tried everything to get her attention.

He smiled at her in class. Left sticky notes on her table with silly quotes. Sent drinks through café attendants. Waited outside her building just to say "hi" but nothing worked. Iris was polite, but distant. Kind, but cold. It was clear she wasn't looking for a boyfriend. Not now. Maybe not ever.

But Eden didn't stop.

He asked her name, even though he already knew it. He showed up at events she was volunteering for, offered to walk her back to the hostel. Still nothing.

Until one fateful Wednesday afternoon.

Iris was on her way to submit a project when her phone rang. It was a call from a maid in the Hills Estate. She answered casually, but her whole body froze.

"Your mother collapsed," the voice said urgently. "They've taken her to General Hospital."

The project file slipped from her hand. Her chest tightened as panic kicked in."what general hospital" she screamed, as she ran out, Out of school. Into a taxi. Straight to the hospital.

By the time she arrived, her mother was unconscious. Machines beeped. Nurses moved around her, adjusting drips, checking charts. Iris stood by the door, shivering half in fear, half in disbelief.

"Her heart is failing," the doctor said later. "She's stable for now, but she'll need long term medication. Monthly injections. Pills. Lifestyle monitoring. It's going to be expensive."

"Expensive?" Iris whispered. "How much?"

The figure they mentioned made her knees buckle.

She left the room and found a bench in the reception. She didn't cry. Not yet. She just sat there still, quiet staring into the air as her mind raced through every possibility. Where would she find that kind of money? She was barely surviving on tutoring jobs and campus grants.

Meanwhile while she was running out Eden saw her He was seated on the low concrete rail outside the Engineering block that afternoon when he saw her.

She wasn't walking she was running.

Books still in hand. Her bag half zipped. She looked breathless, her brows knitted in panic. Her phone was pressed to her ear, and she looked like she might burst into tears.

Eden stood up, slowly.

Something felt off.

He watched her dart past the school gate and disappear beyond the main road. And for a moment, he hesitated.

But only for a moment.

He tucked his hands in his pockets and started walking in the same direction. He didn't even know why. Maybe it was the way she looked like the world was caving in. Or maybe because he had always wanted a reason to talk to her and this wasn't how he'd imagined it, but it was real.

He entered his car as he traced her as she rushed off after something that lasted like a fifteen minutes drive,

Eden stood in front of the General Hospital. He wasn't sure how he'd ended up there, but when he walked into the reception, there she was.

Iris. Sitting alone on a green metal bench, staring at her hands like she'd forgotten how to breathe. Her eyes were red rimmed, and her phone lay beside her, screen down. Her body looked small, curled inward, like she was bracing herself.

Eden didn't know what to say.

He took a few steps forward, cautious not to startle her.

"Iris?" he said softly.

She looked up, startled.

Their eyes met.

For a moment, she didn't say anything. Then her brows furrowed slightly. "What... What are you doing here?"

"I saw you rush out," Eden said gently. "I got worried. You looked... scared."

Her lips parted, but no words came out.

So he sat down, slowly, beside her.

She didn't pull away.

"My mum," she whispered finally. "She collapsed while working. They brought her here."

Eden felt his chest tighten. "Is she okay?"

"They said she's stable now. But..." She glanced at him. "They diagnosed something with her heart. A condition. They said it's manageable but... she'll need medication every month. And tests. And care."

He nodded slowly, his voice calm. "You're not alone, Iris."

She looked away, eyes glassy. "I don't know how we'll afford it. I'm just a student. She's a cleaner. And I" Her voice broke. "I don't want to lose her."

A pause.

Then Eden reached for her hand. She didn't resist.

"I'll help," he said. "Please let me."

Iris blinked. "Why?"

He exhaled, and his thumb gently brushed her knuckles. "Because I want to. Because I see you. And because maybe... maybe you need someone too."

It was silent for a moment. The kind of silence that said everything.

And for the first time, Iris didn't argue. She didn't overthink it. She didn't ask if there were strings attached. She was too tired. Too worried. And maybe... just maybe, she believed him.

Later that evening, Eden paid the full hospital bill.

When they handed her the receipt, Iris didn't cry. But her hands trembled.

As he walked her to the taxi that would take her home, she turned to him and whispered, "Thank you."

Eden smiled faintly. "I meant what I said. You're not alone."

And that was the beginning.

Not of love.

Not yet.

But of something deep enough to change both their lives