Tyler's alarm exploded from the other side of the room.
Dorian groaned and forced his eyes open. Everything was a blur at first. He blinked several times until his vision slowly settled into focus—the dorm room, Tyler's empty bed, Kyle's motionless shape in the corner.
The ring was cold on his finger.
He sat up slowly.
The high was gone.
Yesterday came back to him in fragments.
Priya.
The kiss.
The way she'd looked at him afterward.
Dan. The look on his face after being humiliated in front of everyone.
He searched for guilt.
Nothing.
He waited.
Still nothing.
His fingers tightened around the bedsheet.
Why couldn't he feel anything?
His eyes drifted to the ring.
Emotion Leak.
The passive skill.
It hadn't appeared until after the second payment.
After the Voice.
The timing couldn't be a coincidence.
Had the system rewarded him...
or had something inside it changed him?
He couldn't answer the question.
Twenty minutes later, Dorian walked into a busy campus gym. The usual clank of weights. The hum of treadmills. Someone grunting near the squat rack.
---
Danielle's eyes found his as he entered. Not romantic. Just familiar.
She gave the smallest nod.
Almost unconscious.
Mark saw it.
Dorian didn't acknowledge either of them. He walked past them to the free weights. He started his set. The bar was heavier than usual. His focus slipped. He caught himself looking in her direction—then realized he wasn't the one who had looked first.
Danielle finished her set. She picked up her water bottle without drinking.
She started walking toward him. Her body moving before her mind caught up.
Halfway there, she stopped.
Her jaw tightened. She turned around. Walked back to Mark.
Mark watched the whole thing. He didn't need to say anything.
Dorian racked the bar. He wiped his face with his towel. He walked to the water fountain.
Mark pressed the weight upward. His attention drifted toward Danielle. The bar stalled halfway. His spotter grabbed it. Mark shoved it back onto the rack harder than necessary.
Danielle stopped stretching. Her gaze slid toward Mark. Then she finished the stretch without looking at Dorian again.
Dorian didn't stay long. He grabbed his bag and walked out.
Behind him, the bottle slipped from Danielle's fingers. It rolled to her shoe. She didn't notice. She was staring at the door where he had left.
Mark saw that too.
---
Outside the gym, the campus was waking up.
Students hurried between buildings with coffee in one hand and notes in the other. Conversations about weekend plans had been replaced by last-minute revision, practice questions, and complaints about Monday's exams.
A group near the library stopped talking as he passed. One of them glanced at him, then whispered to her friend. Another looked at him, then quickly looked away.
He walked faster. A guy he recognized from the dining hall did a double take, then pulled out his phone, scrolling through something before looking back at Dorian.
He passed the fountain where it had happened.
He kept walking.
---
His phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
"Hello?"
Silence.
Then:
"How many people looked at you differently today?"
The voice crackled through a digital filter. Flat. Distorted. Impossible to place.
He stopped walking.
"Who is this?"
A small chuckle.
"Twenty-three."
"...What?"
"I counted."
Dorian's gaze swept across the walkway almost on instinct. Students drifted past without looking at him. A cyclist rolled by. Somewhere behind him, someone laughed.
"What do you want?"
"During winter break," the voice said, "there's someone who wants to meet you."
"Who?"
"Someone from your past."
Dorian frowned.
"I don't keep in touch with anyone from my past."
A small chuckle crackled through the speaker.
"I know."
The line went dead.
Dorian stood there, phone pressed to his ear, the dial tone buzzing in the silence.
Someone from my past.
Who?
He pocketed the phone and kept walking.
---
The dining hall was loud.
Dorian grabbed a tray and moved through the serving line, grabbing food without really seeing it. He scanned the room as he walked toward the seating area.
Tyler was near the window, mid-pitch, holding a BLIMP can. Dorian nodded once. Tyler raised a hand in return, then went back to his audience.
Then Dorian's gaze drifted further into the room.
Priya.
She was sitting alone at a table near the back, pushing food around her tray. She looked like she hadn't slept. Her green jacket was zipped up, her hair pulled back. Her phone was face-down on the table.
A group of students at the next table glanced at her, then whispered to each other. One of them laughed. Another looked at Dorian, then back at Priya, connecting dots.
Priya lifted her eyes. Their gazes met briefly. She broke eye contact first, stood up, and walked away without looking back.
Dorian turned to find a seat.
And almost walked into Marcus.
Marcus was standing near the entrance, tray in hand, watching him. He didn't say anything at first. He just looked at Dorian—the same look he'd had since the art show.
Then he spoke.
"I wanted to believe you'd changed."
Dorian said nothing.
"Turns out I was wrong."
He started walking away.
Then he paused.
"I told Priya you were just using her, but she didn't listen."
He walked away.
---
Dorian found an empty table and sat down.
The Voice returned, soft and seductive.
We expected resistance.
There was none.
Next time...
There will be less.
She was already yours.
You just made it public.
---
His phone buzzed.
Unknown: Hey, Dorian. Save my number.
He stared at the message.
The memory surfaced before he could stop it.
---
The night before. Just after Dorian left the game lounge.
He was walking toward the exit when he noticed Chloe standing near the door, her friends already gone.
"Hey."
She looked up.
"Oh. Hey."
"Can I ask you something?"
She tilted her head.
"Depends."
"Can I have your number?"
She looked at him for a second, then folded her arms.
"No."
There wasn't any bite behind it. If anything, she looked amused.
Dorian nodded once.
"Fair enough."
He smiled.
"Have a good night, Chloe."
He turned and started walking away.
She watched him take a few steps.
"...Seriously?"
He glanced back.
"You already said no."
She laughed.
"I didn't think you'd actually leave."
"I wasn't going to argue with you."
She shook her head, smiling now.
"Come back."
He walked over again.
She reached into her bag, pulled out her phone, and unlocked it before holding it out to him.
"I changed my mind."
He took the phone and typed in his number.
As he handed it back, she looked at the new contact on the screen.
"I still don't know why I did that."
"I guess we'll find out."
A quiet smile crossed her face as she slipped the phone into her pocket.
"Goodnight, Dorian."
"Goodnight, Chloe."
---
He saved her contact.
His phone buzzed again before he could put it down.
Elise: Come to my apartment Saturday. We're leaving together.
Dorian: Where are we going?
Elise: Bikini party.
Elise: Don't argue.
Dorian: What time?
Elise: 2 PM.
Dorian: Fine.
Elise: Good. Wear something that doesn't make me look bad.
He almost smiled.
---
He walked to his dorm. The room was empty. Tyler was still at the dining hall. Kyle was gone.
He sat on his bed.
He pulled up the system interface. It flickered into his vision.
LEVEL 5
PASSIVE SKILL
Emotion Leak
DEBT
Halted
SUB-QUEST FIVE
Unlocked
His eyes were already moving away when another line flickered into existence beneath the others.
SYSTEM STABILITY
UNKNOWN
Dorian frowned.
System stability...?
What does that mean?
The interface vanished before he could inspect it any further.
---
His phone buzzed.
Unknown: Check Eastbridge Confessions. Left a little gift for you 😉
Unknown: Hope you like it.
Unknown: [link]
Dorian's brow furrowed. His thumb hovered over the screen for a moment. Then he tapped the link.
The video loaded.
Him and Priya. Kissing. The angle was close. Close enough to capture both of them without zooming in.
Commenter1: Wait isn't that the guy from the picnic photo??
Commenter2: She has a boyfriend lmaooo
Commenter3: He kissed her in front of her man bro is INSANE 💀
Commenter4: Who is he?
Commenter5: The jawline guy. He's everywhere.
His brow creased. He replayed the video.
Once.
Then again.
His eyes narrowed.
Something about the angle felt wrong.
Whoever filmed it hadn't been far away. They'd been close. Only a few feet away, off to one side.
He never noticed them.
Dorian held the phone a moment longer, his thumb resting against the edge of the screen.
Knock.
Knock.
Knock.
His head turned toward the door.
Tyler wouldn't knock.
Another knock.
Click.
The doorknob slowly turned.
---
END OF CHAPTER 54