Outside my dorm stood Zayden.
I didn't need to be told it was him, broad shoulders, heavy silence, the weight of guilt clinging to him like a second skin.
He moved the moment our car stopped. I stepped out, bracing myself for anger, accusations, anything.
Instead, he pulled me into a hug.
It wasn't gentle or planned, it was desperate.
And for a heartbeat, all my thoughts went quiet. Every reason I had to rebel against the safety he'd built for me disappeared in that embrace.
When he finally pulled back, I met his tired eyes.
"I don't want to hide anymore," I whispered.
He nodded in understanding, but Andrew cut in before he could speak.
"You should both leave. You're out in the open," he said, glancing around. His tone carried something more,something only Zayden seemed to understand.
"Go. Take care of yourselves."
I didn't go into my dorm. We went to his instead.
My suitcase sat by the door, untouched.
Zayden stood beside it, looking at the floor.
"Zayden?" I called softly.
He shook his head, then gave a short, humorless laugh. "You shouldn't have been dragged this deep."
"Zayden, I...."
"I brought you here to make amends," he said, voice cracking. "To at least ease my guilt."
"You tried..."
"I don't think...."
"Stop interrupting me!" I yelled before I could stop myself.
His head snapped up, startled. I exhaled and softened. "I'm sorry," I whispered.
He said nothing, just kept staring, waiting, maybe bracing.
"What happened?" I asked quietly.
He frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I want to know," I said, stepping closer. "All of it. How this started. Why it even began. You talk about making amends, but have you ever tried starting with yourself?"
He looked confused, and I continued before I lost courage. "My brother was killed..."
Zayden flinched.
"Died for you," I corrected softly. "He kept quiet about the truth and died for you. He must've seen something worth saving in you. Maybe fate played a part and I've started to believe in that. But tell me, Zayden…" I paused. "…why did you start the fire?"
He hesitated. "I was angry," he said simply.
I shook my head. "You were ten..."
"Eleven," he corrected quietly.
"I don't believe a child can burn down a home out of anger."
"I can," he said under his breath. He walked away from me before staring out the window.
"Why?" I asked, the word trembling out of me.
He exhaled hard. "Because I'm not a good person, Aria. I was a kid with too much rage, and I killed my family. That's the truth."
"Don't," I whispered.
"It's who I am," he said, eyes still on the window. "A bad person trying to rewrite the ending."
I sighed. "Then maybe we're just at different stages. Because I forgive you, Zayden. Kairo was too good to be taken by anger and cruelty,but I'm starting to believe his death meant something. I'll fight beside you if that's what it takes."
He turned then, slow and uncertain, and came to me. His hand rose to my face, gentle, reverent.
"Just live," he murmured. "Let me handle the rest."
He smiled faintly, and I nodded.
"Was New Zealand good?" he asked after a moment, almost shyly.
"It could've been," I said honestly. "If I wasn't alone. Or running."
He looked away.
"Do they still watch you?" I asked, my voice smaller now, wondering if there's still hidden cameras here.
"Yeah," he admitted. "But I'm not afraid of it anymore."
He sat beside me, took my hand in his, and for a long time we sat in silence, two people lost in the noise of our own thoughts.
"I don't know how to escape this," he whispered finally. "I've done too much. I'm in the center of it all."
"You'll get out somehow," I said, though I wasn't sure I believed it.
"Not until I confess," he said softly. "If not for anyone, for Kairo and Kayden."
"Tell me about your family," I offered.
He shook his head.
"Andrew told me," he said instead. "Your parents didn't look for you."
His thumb brushed over my knuckles. I forced a small shrug and looked away, hiding the sting of that truth.
"When all this is over," he said quietly, "with me or without me, live the life you wished for."
I met his eyes. "We'll work it out," I promised, though uncertainty sat heavy between us.
Morning met us curled together on the couch, the light spilling through the blinds. I needed to go back to my dorm for my things and Zayden followed.
He stood by the window, still and alert, watching every shadow that passed, i finished up fast and as we stepped out, I spotted Nova walking toward us.
She stopped when she saw him. Her eyes flicked between us, sharp and cold.
"Sleeping with the devil, are you?" she said, voice dripping with disdain.
I froze. Zayden said nothing, just stared at the ground.
"Your brother must be rolling in his grave," she added.
"Don't talk about my brother," I said quietly, my voice shaking.
She scoffed. "I hope you come to your senses before he leads you to your own grave too." Then she turned and walked away.
I looked at Zayden again,he was still staring at the floor, fists clenched.
"We should go," I murmured.
He blinked and nodded, the spell broken.
Later, in his dorm, he told me about the deal. Two months given to him, to me. One already gone.
"That leaves a month and four days," he said grimly.
"Then let's pretend time doesn't exist," I said, forcing a smile.
He didn't return it. "You do," he murmured. "I'll find a way."
"Can you forgive yourself?" I asked.
He shook his head. "Your forgiveness is enough."
Classes started again. I went back to pretending life was normal, bumping into Andrew between lectures, smiling at people who didn't know the ghosts I carried.
Zayden was busier than ever, always planning something he wouldn't tell me about. But the dorm had become our sanctuary.
In that small, quiet space, we existed beyond the world's reach, just two broken souls pretending the ruin outside couldn't touch us. And in those moments, I saw him not as the sinner the world painted, but as the boy who wanted to make the little time we had left feel like forever.