Amara's heart skipped a beat as she looked up.
Standing in front of her was Crown Prince Adrian Alexander.
Up close, he looked even more intimidating. His sharp eyes stared down at her, calm but unreadable. For a moment, the noisy hallway around them seemed to disappear.
Amara quickly snapped out of her shock.
"I'm so sorry," she said quickly, gathering her books from the floor.
A few students nearby gasped softly.
No one usually bumped into the crown prince.
No one spoke to him so casually either.
Amara finished picking up her books and stood up, brushing her uniform nervously.
"I didn't see you," she added politely.
The prince didn't say anything.
He simply looked at her.
The silence made Amara uncomfortable.
Why is he staring at me like that?
Finally, Adrian bent down and picked up the last notebook lying on the floor. It was Amara's small brown notebook—the one she always carried everywhere.
He looked at the cover for a second before handing it to her.
"Thank you," Amara said quickly as she took it.
Their fingers brushed for a split second.
Another round of whispers spread through the hallway.
"That's the scholarship girl."
"She touched the prince!"
"Oh my God…"
Amara's cheeks flushed slightly.
She hated attention.
Adrian's expression didn't change, but his eyes studied her carefully.
"New student," he said.
It wasn't a question. It sounded more like a quiet observation.
Amara nodded.
"Yes."
Another silence fell between them.
Then Adrian straightened his posture and stepped aside, allowing her to pass.
The hallway slowly started moving again.
Amara hurried away, trying to ignore the curious stares from the other students.
That was embarrassing, she thought.
She didn't look back.
But behind her, Adrian hadn't moved.
His gaze followed her as she disappeared into the crowd.
One of his friends walked up beside him with an amused grin.
"Well," the boy said, crossing his arms. "That's new."
Adrian glanced at him.
"What?"
"You're staring."
"I'm not."
His friend chuckled.
"Come on. You never look at girls like that."
Adrian's expression returned to its usual calm indifference.
"She bumped into me."
"Sure," his friend replied teasingly. "And somehow the entire school just watched it happen."
Across the hallway, Vanessa Cole stood near the cheerleaders, watching everything with narrowed eyes.
Her perfect smile had completely disappeared.
She had seen the whole thing.
The crown prince had picked up that girl's notebook.
And he had spoken to her.
Vanessa crossed her arms slowly.
"Who is she?" she asked coldly.
One of the cheerleaders leaned closer.
"I heard she's one of the scholarship students."
Vanessa scoffed.
"A scholarship girl?"
Her eyes followed the direction where Amara had gone.
"That won't last long."
Meanwhile, Amara finally reached her classroom and sat down quietly at a desk near the window.
She placed her notebook on the table and tried to calm her racing heart.
First day… and I already bumped into a prince.
She sighed softly.
What a start.
What Amara didn't know…
Was that the crown prince had just walked into the same classroom.
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