The walk back to the subway was a blur of neon reflections in puddles and the rhythmic splash of April's shoes. By the time she reached her apartment, the adrenaline had faded, leaving behind a hollow, buzzing ache in her chest.
She stepped into the cramped entryway of her home, moving quietly so as not to wake her parents. The smell of the apartment stale cooking oil and laundry detergent usually felt like a warm hug, a sanctuary from the cold prestige of St. Jude's. But tonight, it felt small. Suffocating.
April sat on the edge of her narrow bed, the springs creaking under her weight. She didn't turn on the light. She just sat there in the gray moonlight filtering through the thin curtains, her hand tracing the spot on her neck where Jaden's fingers had lingered.
"You're a dangerous distraction, April Mendoza."
His voice played on a loop in her head, a low, rough velvet that made her skin prickle all over again. She pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on her arms. This was supposed to be a business arrangement. A cold, hard exchange of secrets for grades. She had planned to treat Jaden Sterling like a math problem something to be solved, manipulated, and then set aside.
But math problems didn't have hearts that hammered against your back. Math problems didn't smell like rain and expensive wood. And math problems certainly didn't look at you with eyes that seemed to be pleading for a way out.
"It's just a contract," she whispered into the empty room, her voice sounding thin and unconvinced.
She pulled out her phone, looking at the photo of JD-Zero. She should feel powerful. She should feel like she had won. But as she stared at the grainy image of the boy in the mask, she realized she wasn't just holding a secret anymore. She was holding him. And the weight of it was starting to feel a lot like a burden she wasn't prepared to carry.
Meanwhile, five miles away, the Sterling estate sat like a silent fortress atop the hill.
Jaden didn't bother with the lights either. He stood on the balcony of his bedroom, the cold night air whipping through his damp hair. The silk sheets of his king-sized bed were turned down, perfect and inviting, but he couldn't imagine sleeping. Not when his pulse was still racing with the phantom rhythm of a girl's heartbeat against his own.
He looked down at his hands, the same hands that had dominated the most difficult tournament of his career tonight, and saw that they were still trembling.
He had spent his whole life building walls. He was the perfect son, the perfect student, the perfect heir. He had crafted a version of Jaden Sterling that was untouchable, a diamond-hard shell that nothing could penetrate. He had even kept his passion for gaming locked away in a soundproof box, a secret life that no one was allowed to touch.
And then April Mendoza had walked in with her worn-out shoes and her sharp, unforgiving eyes, and she had smashed the glass.
He closed his eyes, and all he could see was her face in the violet light of the booth. He remembered the way she didn't flinch when he stepped into her space. He remembered the way she looked at him not with the mindless adoration of the fangirls or the cold calculation of his father, but with a raw, terrifying honesty.
She saw him. Not the Sterling heir. Not the rank #1. She saw the boy who was desperate for a single moment of freedom.
"Damn it," Jaden cursed softly, his knuckles whitening as he gripped the stone railing.
He was supposed to be the one in control. He was the one with the money, the name, and the power. But in that dark booth, when he had pulled her into the shadows to hide, he had felt more alive than he had in years. And that was the most dangerous secret of all.
Tomorrow, he had to fail. He had to walk into that Physics hall and intentionally sabotage the one thing he had always used to define his worth. He had to give her his crown.
But as he stared out at the city lights, Jaden realized he wasn't just worried about his grades anymore. He was worried about the look in April's eyes when he finally handed it over. Would she still look at him the same way? Or was he only interesting to her as long as he was the king she was trying to dethrone?
He went inside, tossing his phone onto the nightstand. A notification lit up the screen a text from Marcus.
'Saw you at the cafe tonight, buddy. Strange place for a Sterling to be. We should talk tomorrow. 🐍'
Jaden's jaw set. The war was coming. But for the first time in his life, he didn't feel like he was fighting it alone.