The next day, I didn't think about him.
Or at least—
I tried not to.
Classes went on like usual, teachers explaining things I barely listened to, students talking, laughing, complaining about assignments. Everything felt normal again. Too normal. Like nothing had ever happened.
Like I hadn't walked away from something I didn't understand.
By the time the free period came, I needed space.
I slipped out to the balcony at the far end of the corridor, the one almost no one used. The noise from inside faded as I leaned against the railing, letting the air calm my thoughts.
For a moment—
it worked.
"Still pretending everything's normal?"
I froze.
I turned slowly.
She was there.
The same girl.
Standing a few steps away, like she had been there the whole time.
No shadows. No strange shift.
Just calm.
Watching me.
"You," I said quietly.
She smiled slightly. "Me."
I straightened. "What do you want?"
"I was curious," she said, her voice light. "How long you'd keep this up."
"Keep what up?"
"This," she gestured vaguely around me. "The normal life act."
My jaw tightened. "I'm living my life."
"Yes," she said. "For now."
That didn't sit right.
"What do you mean?"
She stepped a little closer, her gaze steady. "He's been doing a good job."
"Who?"
She raised a brow.
"…Lucien."
Of course.
"Protecting you," she continued. "Standing where you don't see. Keeping things away."
My chest tightened slightly.
So I was right.
"You figured it out," she said softly, watching my expression.
I didn't answer.
"You really thought it stopped?" she added.
I looked away for a second.
"No," I said.
A pause.
"I didn't."
She smiled faintly, like that was the answer she expected.
"Then why walk away?" she asked.
"Because I don't want this."
"That's not how this works."
"I know."
Silence stretched.
Then she tilted her head slightly.
"You think the shadows were the problem," she said.
"They weren't," I replied.
"Good."
A pause.
"Then what is?" I asked.
She didn't answer immediately.
Instead—
she looked at me.
Like she was deciding something.
Then—
"Something that doesn't step back when he tells it to."
A chill ran down my spine.
Before I could ask anything else, she stepped back slightly, like the moment had passed.
"Oh," she added casually, "and for the record—"
I frowned.
"I'm not his girlfriend."
A small smile.
"But you were thinking it."
My face heated instantly. "I wasn't—"
She laughed softly.
And then—
she was gone.
Not suddenly.
Not dramatically.
Just…
not there anymore.
I stood there for a second, staring at the empty space.
My thoughts didn't feel clear anymore.
Protecting me.
Watching me.
Something stronger coming.
"…This isn't over," I muttered under my breath.
And for the first time since I walked away—
I wasn't sure if I had actually escaped anything at all.