Maya didn't remember standing up.
One moment, she was sitting in the empty library with Ethan across from her, the photograph lying between them like an accusation. The next, she was on her feet, chair scraping loudly against the floor, her heart hammering so violently she thought she might be sick.
"Say it again," she whispered.
Ethan looked up slowly. His face was calm, but his eyes weren't. There was something raw in them now, something unguarded.
"I said the danger isn't me," he replied. "It's what follows me."
Maya laughed weakly. "That's not comforting."
"I know."
She picked up the photograph again, forcing herself to really look at it. The boy in the image looked like Ethan, but harder. Older. There was dried blood at his temple, his knuckles bruised, his clothes torn. The car behind him was half crushed, metal twisted like paper.
"This doesn't just happen," she said. "This isn't a fall or an accident."
"No," Ethan agreed quietly.
Her throat tightened. "So what was it?"
For a long moment, he didn't answer.
Outside the library windows, the sky darkened, clouds rolling in fast, heavy with rain. The world felt like it was holding its breath.
"I was in the wrong place," Ethan said finally. "With the wrong people. I learned too late that walking away isn't always allowed."
Maya's chest ached. "You're still not telling me everything."
He met her eyes. "Because telling you everything would put you in more danger than you already are."
"That's not your decision," she snapped.
"I know." His voice softened. "But it's still my responsibility."
She shook her head, anger and fear tangling inside her. "You don't get to decide what I can handle."
Ethan stood slowly, closing the distance between them just enough for her to feel his presence. He stopped an arm's length away, like he was afraid to come closer.
"I don't want you involved in this," he said. "I never did."
"Then why didn't you stay away from me?" she asked.
The question slipped out before she could stop it.
For a moment, something broke in his expression.
"Because when I tried," he said quietly, "you kept getting closer."
Her breath caught.
Neither of them moved.
The silence stretched, thick and dangerous.
Then Maya stepped back.
"I need air," she said.
"I'll walk you—"
"No." She shook her head. "I need to be alone."
Ethan hesitated, then nodded. "Text me when you get home."
She almost laughed. "That's funny."
"I'm serious."
"So was the person who sent me those messages," she replied bitterly. "And they're clearly closer than you think."
Ethan's jaw tightened. "That's what worries me."
---
The rain started before Maya reached the gate.
By the time she stepped onto the sidewalk, it was pouring, heavy drops soaking through her sweater, blurring the world into streaks of gray and silver. She didn't care. She welcomed it. Anything to quiet the storm inside her head.
Her phone buzzed.
She stopped walking.
Slowly, she pulled it out.
Unknown Number:
You shouldn't have left alone.
Her stomach dropped.
She typed with shaking fingers.
Maya: Are you following me?
The reply came instantly.
Unknown Number:
I'm watching out for you.
Her chest tightened with anger. Fear. Exhaustion.
Maya: You don't get to decide that.
Unknown Number:
Neither does he.
She swallowed hard.
Maya: What do you want?
The dots appeared… paused… then continued.
Unknown Number:
I want you to listen. Before it's too late.
Lightning flashed overhead, illuminating the street for a split second.
And in that flash—
She saw him.
Across the road.
Standing beneath a broken streetlight.
Not Ethan.
Someone else.
Her heart slammed into her ribs.
She turned sharply, scanning the darkness, but the rain swallowed everything. The street was empty. Silent.
Her phone vibrated again.
Unknown Number:
Don't turn around.
She froze.
Every instinct screamed at her to run.
Instead, she forced herself to keep walking, her steps quickening, breath coming fast. She didn't look back again until she reached her house and slammed the door behind her, locking it with shaking hands.
She leaned against the door, gasping.
Her phone buzzed one last time.
Unknown Number:
You're safer inside.
For now.
---
Sleep didn't come easily.
Every sound felt too loud. Every shadow felt alive.
When morning finally arrived, Maya felt like she'd aged years overnight.
At school, the tension followed her.
She avoided Ethan's gaze, even though she could feel it on her. Lina noticed immediately.
"You're fighting with him," Lina said under her breath as they walked down the hallway.
"I'm not," Maya replied.
"That was not convincing."
Maya stopped. "Lina… if someone warned you to stay away from someone you cared about, what would you do?"
Lina frowned. "Depends. Who's warning me?"
"What if you don't know?"
"Then I'd want proof," Lina said simply. "Fear without facts just controls you."
The words settled uncomfortably in Maya's chest.
Proof.
That was what she needed.
And deep down, she knew exactly who might have it.
---
She found Ethan on the rooftop after school.
He stood near the edge, hands resting on the railing, the city spread out beneath him. He didn't turn when she approached.
"I knew you'd come," he said quietly.
She stopped a few feet behind him. "How?"
"Because you don't run from questions," he replied. "You run toward them."
She crossed her arms, bracing herself. "Then start talking."
Ethan turned to face her.
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything you can tell me," she said. "No riddles. No half-truths."
He studied her for a long moment.
Then he nodded.
"Okay," he said. "But once I start, there's no going back."
Her heart raced.
"Good," she replied. "I'm tired of standing still."
Ethan exhaled slowly.
"Then you need to understand this," he said. "The person messaging you isn't trying to scare you. They're trying to control the situation."
"By terrifying me?"
"By keeping you alive," he said. "Even if it means turning you against me."
Maya swallowed. "Why would anyone do that?"
His gaze darkened.
"Because if you trust me," he said quietly, "you become leverage."
The word hit her like a blow.
Leverage.
"Against who?" she whispered.
Ethan stepped closer, his voice barely audible.
"Against me."
---
And somewhere, not far away, a man with a familiar smile watched the school rooftop and made a call.
"She's starting to ask questions," he said.
A pause.
Then—
"Good," came the reply. "That means we're right on time."
---