The first thing Nina noticed that morning wasn't the rain. It was the silence. Not peaceful silence — but the heavy, suffocating kind that wraps around you like a hoodie pulled too tight.
She tugged her pink hoodie lower, tucking her curls underneath as if she could disappear into it. Headphones on. Volume up. Eyes down. Same routine. Same mission: Don't be seen. Don't be touched. Don't be known.
Eden Crest High was a jungle. And she? She was the invisible shadow between lockers.
Until he slammed into her world.
"Yo, Jayden!"
Laughter exploded near her locker.
She flinched.
There he was — Jayden Carter. The boy every girl wanted and every guy hated for how easy he made life look. Hair tousled like a movie star. Smile carved by Greek gods. Trouble wrapped in a lavender hoodie.
And unfortunately, he was walking straight toward her.
"Oh hell no," Nina muttered under her breath, fumbling with her locker. Maybe if she ignored him—
"Hey," he said, leaning on the locker beside hers. "You're Nina, right?"
She froze. Nobody ever said her name.
"Sorry. I forgot ghosts don't talk," he grinned.
Her eyes flicked up, calm and cold. "And clowns shouldn't speak unless they're funny."
Jayden blinked. Then laughed — genuinely, loudly. "Okay. That was good."
She turned away, slamming her locker. "Leave me alone."
He followed. "I will. After you say hi."
"No."
"Fine. Then I'll follow you all day till you do."
"Are you a stalker?"
"Nope. Just a guy trying to win a dare."
She stopped walking.
There it was.
The truth.
"You're what?" she asked, voice flat.
Jayden smiled, unfazed. "It's a game. My friends dared me to make you smile in seven days. Seems fun."
The hallway blurred around her.
Voices faded.
Heat crawled up her spine.
So it was a joke. She was a dare. A game.
She leaned in slightly, voice low and sharp. "You've got five seconds to walk away before I embarrass you in front of your fan club."
Jayden smirked, intrigued. "You're spicy."
She stepped closer. "I'm fire. Touch me wrong, and you'll burn."
Then she turned — and disappeared into the crowd.
He watched her go, the smirk fading into something… deeper.
Challenge accepted.
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