JEALOUSY HAS TEETH
Elliana didn't sleep.
The kiss replayed in her mind over and over—how it had felt less like a mistake and more like a confession. By morning, her heart was still racing, caught between guilt and longing.
At school, the tension was thicker than the whispers.
She felt it in the way Austen watched her now—no longer gentle, no longer open. His eyes followed her through the hallway, sharp with questions she wasn't ready to answer.
During lunch, he sat across from her without asking.
"You've changed," he said.
Elliana stiffened. "People change."
"Not like this," Austen replied. "Not overnight."
She met his gaze. "Why does it bother you?"
His jaw tightened. "Because you're letting him pull you into something dangerous."
"You don't get to decide that," she said quietly.
A flash of anger crossed his face—gone as quickly as it appeared. "I'm trying to protect you."
Elliana pushed her tray away. "I didn't ask you to."
She stood to leave, but his voice followed her.
"He'll ruin you."
The words lingered long after she walked away.
That evening, Elliana met Samantha at a café, hoping normal conversation would quiet the storm inside her. Instead, Samantha leaned forward, eyes wide.
"Rhea was asking about you."
Elliana's stomach dropped. "Rhea?"
"Leon's ex," Samantha said. "She wasn't smiling."
Elliana's phone buzzed almost immediately.
Rhea: You don't know what you're playing with.
Elliana stared at the message, pulse pounding.
Elliana: I'm not playing.
Three dots appeared, then vanished.
Later that night, Leon called her.
"Rhea's angry," he said. "I'm sorry."
Elliana closed her eyes. "She warned me."
"She doesn't scare me," Leon said. "But she should scare you."
Elliana swallowed. "Why?"
Leon hesitated. "Because jealousy doesn't just hurt feelings."
It bites.
As the call ended, Elliana felt it then—a shift in the air, a sense that something was coiling tighter around her.
Jealousy had teeth.
And it was starting to sink them in.