📖 CHAPTER THREE
Avery's POV
The library after midnight felt like a secret.
Half the lights were off. The air smelled like old books and burnt coffee. Everyone left was either desperate, brilliant, or avoiding something.
I was avoiding graduation.
Ethan was avoiding… everything.
He sat across from me again, hoodie pushed back, dark circles under his eyes like sleep was optional.
"You're staring," he said without looking up.
"You look like someone who doesn't believe in rest."
"I don't."
"That's unhealthy."
"So is talking to strangers," he replied.
I smiled. "And yet here we are."
Ethan's POV
I hadn't planned to meet her that late.
But she texted Still alive? Project emergency and I came.
That was the problem.
I kept coming.
She slid her laptop closer. "Okay. Tell me if this sounds dumb."
"It won't."
She paused. "You don't know that."
"I do."
She looked at me then — really looked — like my opinion mattered.
That was dangerous.
Avery
We worked quietly.
Comfortably.
The silence didn't feel sharp anymore.
"Why did you transfer?" I asked softly.
His fingers stilled.
I raised my hands. "You don't have to—"
"I failed," he said.
I blinked. "Failed what?"
"Everything," he replied flatly.
Ethan
I hadn't told anyone here.
Not Lena. Not professors. Not even myself, most days.
"Last year," I continued, "I was top of my class. Scholarships. Expectations."
I swallowed.
"My brother died. Car accident."
Avery didn't interrupt.
"My grades crashed. I stopped showing up. They put me on academic probation."
Silence.
"I left before they could kick me out."
Her voice was barely a whisper. "I'm sorry."
"I don't need sympathy."
"I know," she said. "But you get it anyway."
Something in me cracked.
Avery
Before I could say more, heels clicked behind us.
Lena.
Perfect hair. Perfect posture. Perfect timing to ruin a moment.
"Well," she said lightly, "this looks cozy."
Ethan stiffened instantly.
"Lena," he said.
So they knew each other.
Oh.
She smiled at me. "Did you know he transferred because he couldn't handle the pressure?"
My chest tightened.
Ethan stood. "That's enough."
She tilted her head. "Just warning her. You don't stay."
The words landed like glass.
Then she walked away.
Ethan
I felt exposed.
Angry.
Ashamed.
"I should go," I muttered.
Avery grabbed my wrist.
"Don't."
I froze.
Her touch was warm. Steady.
"She doesn't get to tell your story," she said.
I met her eyes.
Too close.
Avery
He smelled like coffee and rain.
His breath hitched.
For once, he wasn't guarded.
"I'm not fragile," he said quietly.
"I know," I replied. "You're just human."
The space between us disappeared.
His hand hovered at my waist.
My heart slammed.
This was it.
Ethan
I leaned in.
I shouldn't have.
But she tilted her face up.
Then—
"I can't," I whispered.
I pulled back.
"I ruin things."
Avery
He stepped away.
The moment shattered.
I forced a smile. "Good call. I bite."
He almost laughed.
Almost.