The first light of dawn painted the sea in fire.
Lila stood at the rail of the ferry, wind tugging at her hair as the horizon split in colors—crimson bleeding into gold, blue melting into silver. The waves slapped against the hull, salt spray catching the light like scattered stars. Behind her, laughter drifted from her classmates, half-asleep but buzzing with excitement for their next destination.
But Lila barely heard them.
She closed her eyes, letting the wind whip across her face, her chest swelling with something she couldn't name. The ocean. The sky. The freedom. She felt alive. Untamed.
Until a shadow fell over her shoulder.
"Don't lean so far." Ethan's voice, rough from lack of sleep, slid against her ear. He stood close—too close—his arm brushing hers as he gripped the rail. "One wrong move and you're overboard."
"I can swim."
His jaw ticked. "Not against an entire ocean."
She smirked, eyes still on the sunrise. "Maybe you just like having me where you can see me."
His hand slid down, fingers brushing hers on the railing, firm, possessive. "I need to have you where I can see you."
Her heart stuttered. She should pull away. She didn't.
By the time the ferry docked, everyone's phones buzzed with notifications. The school's media team had uploaded highlight reels of their trip so far.
"Look, Lila—you're literally everywhere!" her friend Emily squealed, shoving her phone at her.
On screen, clips played in rapid flashes:
Lila spinning midair on a flyboard.
Her flipping into the ocean from the cliff.
Her slicing across waves on a surfboard.
Her voice carrying under the moonlight, raw and powerful.
"Holy crap, you're basically famous now," another friend said. "Comments are going insane!"
And they were. Under the videos, strangers were flooding the feed:
"Who's the girl in black? She's fearless!"
"That singer—angelic voice!"
"She's gorgeous. Name?!"
"Forget the game, I want more of HER stunts."
Lila flushed, embarrassed but… strangely thrilled.
But across from her, Ethan's expression was thunder. His grip on his phone was so tight the screen might crack.
"You love this, don't you?" he muttered, eyes fixed on her.
"I didn't ask for it."
"But you like it." His jaw tightened. "All those people watching. All those eyes on you. No."
Her chest tightened. "Ethan…"
But before she could finish, her own phone rang.
Her father's name lit up the screen.
Her stomach dropped.
She stepped aside, answering quickly. "Dad?"
"Lila Hart," came her father's deep voice, calm but carrying steel. "We just saw the videos."
Her breath caught. "Oh."
Behind him, her brothers' voices filtered through, overlapping:
Tyler: "You jumped off a cliff?!"
Aiden: "Are you insane?! Do you want to kill us with stress?!"
Jordan: "That flip was reckless, Lila."
Caleb: "It was impressive. But still reckless."
And then her mother's softer voice chimed in, with a smile she could hear: "You were incredible, sweetheart. Fearless. Just like us."
Her father exhaled, long, heavy. "We are proud. Very proud."
Her heart fluttered.
"But—" His tone sharpened. "Don't you ever think your stunts don't come with consequences. You are not untouchable. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Dad," she said softly.
"And Lila?" Tyler's voice cut in, sharp with big-brother authority. "If you keep pulling things like this, we're flying out there. All of us."
Her eyes widened. "You wouldn't—"
"Try us," Aiden growled.
She laughed nervously, biting her lip. "You guys are overreacting."
"Not overreacting. Protecting," Jordan corrected.
"Possessing," Caleb added dryly. "Like always."
Her father's voice rumbled low. "We'll speak when you're back. Until then… remember who you are."
The line clicked dead.
Lila lowered the phone, her chest heavy. Pride. Possession. Warning. Always the same.
Ethan Hears Everything
She didn't realize Ethan was right behind her until he spoke.
"They don't like seeing you free either, do they?"
She turned, startled. His eyes glowed with something unreadable—jealousy, satisfaction, hunger. "You heard—?"
"Every word."
Her cheeks heated. "Eavesdropping much?"
"I don't need to eavesdrop. You're mine, Lila. I'll hear everything about you."
She scoffed, trying to cover the way her pulse spiked. "You sound ridiculous."
"Do I?" He stepped closer, caging her against the ferry wall. His voice dropped, low and raw. "You said it yourself—they warned you. They don't want you taking risks. They don't want anyone else seeing you the way I see you. They're just like me."
Her breath caught. "They're my family. That's different."
"Not to me." His hand slid to her hip, thumb brushing the fabric of her dress. "I don't care if it's your brothers or your father. They can't have you the way I do. They can't take you from me."
Her chest rose and fell, too fast. The air between them sizzled, heavy and hot.
And even though she told herself she should push him back, her body leaned into him instead.
By the time the bus pulled into their next stop—a cliffside city overlooking endless green hills and rivers—Lila had barely spoken. Her friends chattered, pointing out sights, laughing over inside jokes.
But her mind was tangled.
Her family's voices. Ethan's words. The pull in her chest that only grew stronger the more he touched her, the more he looked at her like she was the only person in the world.
She wasn't supposed to fall.
But maybe… maybe she already had.