FLASHBACK
MELINA'S POV
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"Melina!!"
Oh my god, my ears. Who was screaming like that? I snapped my head to the left and found the culprit—Zara, standing there with her hands on her hips, glaring at me like I had just committed some serious crime.
"You could have just called me, Zara! No need to shout like you're announcing my funeral."
"Called?" Dove chimed in from beside her, smirking. "We've been calling you for a whole minute now, but you were lost in your dreamland." She nudged Zara's elbow, making Zara snicker.
I tried to hold my composure, lifting my chin like nothing was wrong. "I was just… thinking about studies," I declared confidently.
God, why did my voice have to break right then? It stuttered, betraying me completely.
The only response I got was laughter—Zara's and Dove's.
"What's up, Miss Good Girl?" Dove leaned close to my face, grinning mischievously. "Detention? Spacing out? Or maybe something juicier?"
"She looks sad," Zara said, raising an eyebrow. "But I think it's more because of Angela than because of detention." She smirked knowingly, pouring fuel on Dove's teasing fire.
My eyes widened. "Girls, stop it! It's not like that. Why would I be sad because of Angela?" I crossed my arms and frowned at both of them.
"Theo."
I didn't even catch whether it was Dove or Zara who whispered his name, because the moment I heard it, my reflexes betrayed me.
"Where?!" I spun around too quickly, frantically fixing my hair.
It took me a full second to realize what I had just done.
"I–it's not l-like that!" I tried to backtrack, but my cheeks were already burning. My stupid heart had exposed me.
"Yeah, yeah." Dove rolled her eyes lazily and bumped my shoulder with hers.
And of course, because the universe has the most twisted sense of humor, that's exactly when Theo walked past us.
Dove, being Dove, wasn't about to let him escape unscathed. "MELINA, MELINA, MELINA!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice echoing across the hallway.
"Stop it!" I tugged at her arm, panicking, but she only laughed louder.
Theo was still far enough that he might not have heard her, but knowing Dove, she wasn't going to stop until she got his attention. Desperate, I slapped my hand across her mouth to shut her up.
Zara, of course, was doubled over laughing, enjoying every second of my humiliation.
Redness crept up my neck, flooding my ears. I watched Theo continue walking, thankfully without glancing back. Finally, I released Dove's mouth.
"You almost killed me, Mel!" Dove gasped dramatically.
"You deserved it!" I shot back, laughing despite myself.
Without warning, she lunged at me and started tickling me. "AHH! HELP!" I shrieked, laughing until my stomach hurt.
"Hey."
The voice made Dove pause instantly. She let go of me, and both she and Zara turned toward the source.
I followed their gaze—and instantly regretted it.
"Melina."
Damon.
Oh, for the love of everything holy, why him?
"Can you come with me? I need to talk to you alone." His words were directed at me, but his eyes lingered far too long on Zara.
Zara noticed. And she was not having it. Her eyes narrowed into daggers.
She stood abruptly and grabbed my hand, pulling me closer to her side. "You have no business with her. You can't hurt her too." Her voice was steady, strong, but I caught the faintest quiver beneath it.
I glanced between them, confused. Zara's protective grip on my hand tightened, her eyes locked with Damon's in some silent battle I couldn't understand.
Was Damon really a demon? Because that's how it felt.
He stepped toward Zara. She didn't move, didn't flinch, didn't let go of me. Her glare never wavered, but I caught a fleeting softness in her expression when her eyes fell on the bruise marring his face. For a moment, she looked almost… concerned. But just as quickly, the softness vanished, hidden behind an unreadable mask.
"I need you," Damon muttered gaze shifting between Zara's eye to eye.
I froze. Wait—what?
Scandal. Inner gasp.
But then his gaze shifted to me.
Oh. He meant me. Excuse me, But why???
"Come. I need to talk to you."
What?! No! My stomach dropped, and I instinctively clutched Zara's hand tighter.
Damon reached out and pried my grip from hers, his touch unyielding. He caught my hand firmly and pulled, forcing me to follow.
"Wait—!" I stumbled forward, trying to resist. My eyes darted back to Zara. She stood rooted in place, Dove's hand rubbing her back gently as if she knew something I didn't.
Where was Damon even taking me?
He tugged me a little too forcefully, and my face collided with his back.
"Ow!" I muttered, scowling.
He didn't apologize. Instead, he casually slung an arm over my shoulders. Excuse me, sir. Uncomfortable much?!
He tilted his head down at me, smiling faintly. My heart skipped a beat—not because it was cute, but because it was infuriating.
I wanted to scream: Leave me alone, bro!
Something tugged at me, though—an odd instinct. My eyes drifted toward Theo's usual spot across the hall.
And there he was.
Theo sat hunched forward, elbows on his knees, palms pressed together, his gaze sharp as blades locked directly on Damon. His eyes burned with something I couldn't name, but it felt like fire.
My chest tightened. Were they going to fight again?
Where was Angela when I needed her? Gurl, come and do something!
Theo stood. Every muscle in his body screamed tension as he strode straight toward us.
Amazing. Just what I needed—another showdown.
He stopped Damon in his tracks, their faces mere inches apart. The air around us crackled with hostility.
Now kiss, I thought wryly, though my pulse hammered in my ears.
Theo tilted his head slightly, his eyes flicking to me. "Stick to your two little girlfriends, Melina."
EXCUSE ME?! Did he just—?
"How dare he?!" I opened my mouth to retort, but Damon stepped in first.
"She'll stick to whoever she likes." He shoved Theo back, shielding me behind him.
"Yes! Tell him, boy!" I cheered in my head, then immediately regretted it. Careful, jerk—I'm a human.
"Who are you to decide what she does, asshole?" Theo snapped. Their voices were rising, clashing like storm clouds.
And then—crack.
My slipper broke. Perfect timing, thank you universe. I bent down to pick it up when—whoosh—something flew past me.
I looked up in horror. Damon.
He was already charging back at Theo, eyes blazing, fists clenched.
"Oh no, no, no." I scrambled out of the way. I had no desire to die between these two psychos.
Damon's fist connected with Theo's jaw. Winced. That had to hurt.
Punch after punch flew. Theo retaliated with a knee strike, but Damon dodged narrowly. Theo landed a solid hit to Damon's ribs.
Two–two. Tie. My brain, of course, decided to treat this like a WWE match.
Was I heartless for thinking this was entertaining? Maybe. But Zara once told me they fought almost daily and made up the next. So… whatever.
But then Theo reeled back, ready to land a brutal punch to Damon's nose. Damon staggered, and I thought, Okay, Theo's won.
"STOP IT!!!"
The voice cut through everything.
I turned, expecting Angela. But instead—
Zara.
Her face was streaked with tears, her voice trembling yet loud enough to silence them both.
I froze. My stomach twisted.
Two–two. Still a tie.
But this wasn't about wins or losses anymore.
Zara was crying.
And that… that was serious.
Something had happened—something big enough to break Zara in a way I had never seen before.
And suddenly, I wasn't sure I wanted to know the truth.
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