Adira's POV
"Hi, Jayden... you good?" I asked, my voice smaller than I wanted it to sound.
"Yeah, I'm fine, Ad," he said, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. "I'm just... really gonna miss you." His gaze dropped, then rose again with an honesty that made my chest tighten. "You know I've had a crush on you since we were kids. I've never been able to get you out of my head. You're the reason I enrolled in Monamore High.
"And now" He shook his head, frustrated. "You're leaving before you even get to know me. I really like you, Adira. But I guess fate isn't on my side. I'll find you again one day. When the time's right."
The words hit me like both a gift and a burden.
"Jayden..." I took a shaky breath. "Honestly, I'm still confused. I'm fifteen. You're sixteen. We're still just figuring life out. It wouldn't be fair for me to ask you to wait, or for you to expect me not to date anyone abroad. I don't even know if I'll ever come back to Nigeria."
His jaw tightened, but I pressed on.
"So please... don't put your life on hold for me. Be the best version of yourself. Make your parents proud. Chase your dreams. So if we do meet again one day if fate really brings us back together we can both look at each other and say we became something. Someone."
Silence stretched between us. He stared at me for a long moment, like he wanted to argue, then finally nodded.
"Bye, Jayden," I whispered.
"Bye, Adira."
We hugged, clinging tighter than I thought we would, both pretending it was a casual goodbye when it felt like a promise sealed in heartbreak. Then I turned and walked away, leaving him in the lobby, his eyes following me until the elevator doors closed.
England.
Two weeks in, and life had shifted into something new.
Ashley had wasted no time carving out her throne. Within days she was the most popular senior in our boarding school — loud, bossy, and cruel. Her rudeness came so naturally it was almost like she'd been born for it. Teachers sighed. Students admired her or feared her. Ashley thrived.
Me? I was invisible. Just another girl in uniform. And maybe that was okay. After the chaos of Monamore High, being unknown felt almost like peace.
But I wasn't completely alone.
Her name was Tiana. Beautiful inside and out. She sat beside me in class, smiled like we'd known each other forever, and didn't care about my last name or who my parents were. For the first time since arriving in England, I felt the faint stirrings of hope.