Noah's POV
The post wasn't surprising.
Leo sent it first.
Kai reacted second.
I didn't react at all.
I watched the video once, expression blank, thumb hovering lazily over the screen. The cafeteria scene looked almost boring when stripped of sound. Just another girl. Just another moment people would twist into entertainment.
The caption made me smirk.
"Looks like Noah has found his next victim."
Dramatic.
I locked my phone and tossed it onto the desk.
People always needed a story.
---
We met later that evening at my father's private lounge the kind of place built for quiet power and expensive silence. Dim lights. Leather seating. Glass walls overlooking the city. No staff unless called.
Leo dropped into a seat like it was his living room. Kai leaned against the bar, arms crossed, calm as ever.
Leo laughed first. "She's trending already."
Kai nodded. "Kingsford moves fast."
I shrugged. "That's not my problem."
Leo grinned. "First day too. That's rough."
"She'll survive," I said easily. "They always do."
Kai studied me for a moment longer than necessary. "You're unfazed."
"Why wouldn't I be?" I replied. "I sat down. I spoke. That's it."
Leo leaned forward. "You didn't even touch her and people lost their minds. That's efficiency."
I smirked. "Not my fault the school's bored."
The truth was simple: this wasn't new.
Girls came. Girls panicked. Girls became topics. Then the noise moved on.
Kingsford Academy thrived on drama it needed someone to watch.
---
Kai finally spoke. "She didn't look like the usual type."
I raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"She wasn't trying," he said. "Didn't smile too much. Didn't lean in."
"So?" I replied. "That doesn't make her special."
Leo shrugged. "Different packaging. Same outcome."
I took a seat, stretching my legs out, completely relaxed. "This will blow over by Friday."
"And the bet?" Leo asked casually.
I smiled. "Still on."
Kai tilted his head. "Careful. You lose focus when things get loud."
I laughed softly. "Noise doesn't distract me."
---
My father's name carried weight everywhere especially at Kingsford. Buildings didn't get approved without his signature. Problems didn't escalate without his consent.
I grew up watching influence silence consequences.
This?
This was nothing.
Leo picked up his drink. "She'll either enjoy the attention or disappear."
"Either way," Kai added, "not our concern."
I nodded. "Exactly."
Yet somewhere in the back of my mind, an image flickered Aria sitting stiffly at that table, like she didn't know where to put her hands.
I pushed it away immediately.
Overthinking was weakness.
People talked. People recorded. People exaggerated.
By tomorrow, someone else would be trending.
I stood up. "You guys staying?"
Leo grinned. "Always."
Kai nodded once.
As I walked toward the glass doors, my phone buzzed again.
Another notification. Another repost.
I didn't check it.
I already knew how this story went.
---
Aria's POV
I didn't sleep.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the same thing screens lighting up, people laughing, whispers curling around my name like smoke.
Noah's next victim.
The word pressed against my chest until breathing felt hard.
When the doorbell rang later that afternoon, I almost ignored it. My room was dark, curtains drawn, phone facedown on the bed like it might attack me if I looked at it again.
"Aria," my mom called, "Mia's here."
I sat up slowly.
Mia.
I opened the door to my room just as she stepped inside, her face tight with concern.
"Oh my God," she said softly. "You look exhausted."
"I feel worse than that," I admitted.
She dropped her bag and sat beside me. "I should've warned you better. I didn't think it would blow up this fast."
I hugged my knees to my chest. "I don't know how I'm supposed to go back tomorrow."
Mia didn't answer right away.
"I can already imagine it," I continued, my voice shaking. "The stares. The whispers. People thinking things that never happened."
She reached for my hand. "Kingsford feeds on gossip. But it moves on quickly."
"Not when it involves them," I whispered.
She sighed. "You're right."
The silence stretched.
"I don't want to be seen as some girl chasing attention," I said. "I didn't ask for this."
"I know," she said firmly. "And that's why you don't give it energy. You act normal. You don't react."
Normal.
I nodded, even though the word felt impossible.
---
Later that evening, after Mia left, I sat at the dining table pretending to scroll through my phone. My mom watched me quietly from across the room.
"You've been distant," she said gently.
"I'm just tired," I replied quickly.
She frowned slightly. "School stress?"
"A little," I said, forcing a smile. "I'm okay."
She studied me for another moment, then nodded. "If you say so."
I hated lying to her.
But I didn't know how to explain that a single moment had turned me into a topic overnight.
---
Morning came too fast.
I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my reflection. Same face. Same clothes. Same girl.
Different situation.
I'll avoid anything that causes misunderstanding, I promised myself.
No lingering. No conversations. No eye contact.
I left early, hoping to slip into Kingsford Academy unnoticed.
I failed.
The moment I walked through the gates, I felt it.
Eyes.
Whispers.
Phones tilted just enough to pretend they weren't recording.
My shoulders tightened, but I kept walking, head high, pretending I didn't hear my name float past me like a rumor with legs.
I found Mia near our lockers.
"You okay?" she whispered.
"I will be," I said. "I just want this to stop."
---
It almost worked.
Until I heard my name again.
"Aria."
I stopped walking.
Noah stood a few steps behind me, hands in his pockets, expression unreadable as ever.
"I saw the post," he began.
"I don't want to hear it," I said quickly, my voice steadier than I felt.
He blinked, clearly not expecting that.
"I don't want explanations," I continued, finally turning to face him. "I don't want attention. I don't want misunderstandings."
People nearby had started slowing down. Watching.
"I'm just trying to get through school without being talked about," I said. "So please don't talk to me again."
For the first time, something flickered across his face.
Surprise.
I didn't wait to see what came next.
I turned and walked away, my heart pounding, my hands shaking but my steps firm.
I didn't look back.
I couldn't afford to.
Because whatever this was, I was done being part of it.
---
Noah's POV
Leo laughed first.
The sound echoed louder than it should have in the hallway, sharp and amused.
"She shut you down," he said, clapping his hands once like he'd just watched something entertaining. "Cold."
Kai didn't laugh immediately. He watched me instead, eyes calm, calculating. Then a slow smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"She's tougher than she looks."
I rolled my shoulders, unfazed. "She panicked."
Leo snorted. "They all do. But this one?" He shook his head. "She didn't hesitate. Didn't wait for you to finish. Just boom." He mimicked walking away. "Respect."
Kai nodded slightly. "Most girls would've stayed. Tried to hear you out."
"She didn't want explanations," Leo added. "That's new."
I scoffed lightly. "It doesn't mean anything."
Leo raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
I glanced at him. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Kai leaned against the locker beside us. "Because usually by now, you're bored."
That earned my attention.
"And yet," Kai continued calmly, "you're not."
Leo grinned. "So? Are you out?"
I didn't answer right away.
Out?
This wasn't about chasing or quitting. It wasn't a game I needed to win immediately. It was just… unexpected resistance.
"I'm not in," I said finally. "That's different."
Leo laughed again. "Wow. Kingsford miracle."
Kai smirked. "Let's see how long that lasts."
---
Later, in class, I sat back in my chair, textbook open, pen moving across the page like I was focused.
I wasn't.
Aria sat two rows ahead.
She hadn't turned around once.
Not when she entered.
Not when the whispers followed her.
Not even when the teacher paused to quiet the room.
Her back was straight. Her movements controlled. Too controlled.
She took notes carefully, like the world outside her notebook didn't exist. Like if she stayed still enough, everything would leave her alone.
Interesting.
Most people cracked under attention. They leaned into it or fought it.
She did neither.
She ignored it.
I tilted my pen between my fingers, eyes lingering just long enough to notice the small things the way she pressed her lips together when someone laughed too loudly behind her, the way her shoulders tensed then relaxed like she was forcing herself to breathe.
She didn't look scared.
She looked determined.
Leo glanced back at me from the other side of the room, caught my gaze, and smirked.
I looked away.
This wasn't fascination.
This wasn't interest.
This was curiosity.
And curiosity, I knew from experience, was dangerous.
Because Aria wasn't reacting the way the story expected her to.
And Kingsford Academy hated unpredictability.