After leaving Ibrahim's guesthouse, Elara headed straight to the university. Ava needed an official absence letter approved by the admin office. Her long disappearance—nearly three weeks—meant she had to submit a signed letter from a guardian. To cover the story, Elara had already prepared a fake medical prescription from a doctor friend.
As he stepped into the university gate, his phone started buzzing in his pocket.
Ava.
He picked it up. "Yes?"
Ava's voice came sharp and fast. "Where are you, Elara? You said five minutes!"
"I am here," he replied, adjusting his sleeves and looking around.
"Okay. We're in the cafeteria—Farah and I. Come here. Or did you forget the route?"
"No, dear sister. I've already been here enough times for two major cases. And one is still ongoing. I even know the exact spot from where students sneak out to bunk classes and go to the theatre."
"Oh my God, Elara," Ava groaned with a laugh. "Stop talking and just come here."
In less than five minutes, Elara stepped into the buzzing cafeteria. The place was packed with students, some laughing, others hunched over books or phones. His eyes scanned the room until he spotted them—Ava and Farah, sitting near the window, eating and chatting like nothing in the world had gone wrong.
As he approached, he glanced at their trays. "So, this is what you two are eating instead of something healthy?"
Ava had a half-eaten chicken burger in one hand, and Farah was digging into a slice of overloaded cheesy pizza.
Farah didn't even look up. "I only like the pizza because of the crust. It's crunchy. The rest is just... extra."
Elara raised a brow and sat down beside her. "That's like saying you like novels just for the font."
She laughed, nudging him lightly with her shoulder. "Still better than your taste in protein bars."
Without wasting time, Elara pulled out the folded letter and placed it in front of Ava. "Here. All set. Show this and you're officially excused for three weeks."
Ava took it, brushing crumbs off the table. "Perfect. You two enjoy—I'm going to submit this."
As soon as Ava disappeared, Farah leaned a little closer to Elara, "I'm guessing you're not exactly happy with my plan. Since it means she has to stay with Ibrahim again…"
Elara glanced at her, "It's not that. I'm just… guessing there's more to this than what we're seeing. But something feels… off."
Farah paused mid-stir in her milkshake. "Off how?"
"She didn't just agree to your plan because she wants to punish him," he said quietly. "She agreed… because she wants to be near him. She actually wants to give him a second chance, Farah. It happens, you know? When someone starts to believe they won't be able to stay with the person they love forever… they want to create at least some good memories. One last try. One last chapter—just to feel what it could've been like… before it all ends."
He exhaled slowly. "That's what Ava's doing. She knows exactly who Ibrahim is, how messed up he can be. But the heart doesn't always care about logic. She still wants him. Even after everything."
He looked down for a second, almost like he hated saying it out loud.
"And she can't say this out loud to us, because she knows we'd never let her. So she's hiding behind your plan, pretending it's just about exposing him."
Farah slowly set her slice of pizza down, appetite gone. She wiped her hands with a tissue, "If that's true… then it's dangerous. Because that means Ava's already too deep in. And in this way… she'll never be able to forget Ibrahim. Not even if he hurts her again. This second chance, these so-called 'happy memories'—they'll only tie her closer. And once she holds on to the good, she'll start excusing the bad. And that's how girls get ruined without even realizing it."
"That's what scares me the most," Elara said, "Ava's not stupid. She's not weak. But when she loves someone… she does it like there's no backup plan. She jumps, even when there's fire at the bottom. I thought after everything, she'd shut that part of her off. But no—she's still trying to find something good in the same man who broke her."
Farah looked at him, her eyes glinting with guilt. "You think… I gave her an excuse to go back?"
Elara shook his head. "No. She was already halfway there. You just gave her a door to walk through."
Farah's throat tightened. "I thought we were using that door to trap him, not to welcome him back into her life."
She blinked a few times, then added, "God, what if she forgives him completely before we can even do anything? What if… she falls for him again?"
Elara rubbed his jaw, looking tired. "You can't fight a woman's heart with logic. And you can't protect someone who doesn't want saving. You can drag someone out of a fire—but if they want to run back in just to feel the warmth again, what do you do? I can't put her in a cage to protect her. All I can do… is wait nearby with the key. And hope to God she calls out before it's too late."
....
Ava reached Professor Siti's cabin, clutching the absence letter in her hand. But the door was locked.
She sighed, frustrated. "Oh no… where did ma'am go during lunch?"
She glanced around the corridor, then started walking—hoping to find a staff member who could help.
Just as she turned the corner, she heard a voice from behind, "Mrs. Lim."
She turned slowly.
There stood Professor Usama.
Wearing a neatly ironed shirt tucked into dark pants, glasses resting perfectly on the bridge of his nose, and a thick book held casually in one hand. He looked like he had just finished a lecture.
She mumbled under her breath, "Was it really necessary to run into him on my first day back?"
Her fingers tightened around the letter in her hand. The weight of insecurity pulled hard at her chest. Because in this entire university… only Prof. Usama knew about her escape to Thailand.
And right now, she had no idea what to say to him.
Prof. Usama stopped in front of her, "When did you come back? I thought you weren't going to return anytime soon."
Ava swallowed, forcing a small nod. "The day before yesterday…"
"Ohhh," he adjusted the book under his arm and tilted his head slightly, "Are you looking for someone?"
Ava gave a quick nod. "Yes, Prof. Siti. I wanted to submit my absence letter, but her cabin is locked."
"She went to pick her son from school," he replied. "She'll be back soon. You can wait in my cabin till then."
Ava forced a polite smile, her heart starting to tap a little faster. "No, it's okay. I'll come back later—"
But he interrupted, "Come. There's something to discuss."
He didn't wait for her reply. He started walking down the hallway. Ava hesitated for a second. His cabin was at the very end of the corridor —secluded, quiet. The kind of place where words didn't escape easily.
He reached the cabin door and unlocked it. He stepped in first, pushing it open wider for her.
As Ava entered, her shoulder brushed against a tall bookshelf placed near the door. It wobbled slightly, and the books stacked on the top shelf shifted dangerously. A few leaned forward, threatening to fall—but didn't.
She gasped softly and glanced up, half-expecting a mini avalanche.
Prof. Usama turned around at the noise. "Ah," he said casually, glancing at the shelf, "Maybe I've stacked too many books on that one. I keep telling myself to stop collecting, but somehow I end up with another pile every week."
He motioned to the seat across his desk. "Go ahead, sit."
Ava walked over to the chair, "I should've looked before walking in," she said, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Actually, when I last came here… there weren't so many shelves. Or books."
Prof. Usama settled into his chair, crossing one leg over the other as he set the book aside. He glanced briefly at the bookshelf Ava had brushed against and said, "Whenever I finish a book, I bring it here. Thought it might be useful for students—some take them home, some read them here in the library."
Ava gave a polite nod. Of course, he'd say that. He's a professor. Nothing new, "You mentioned something to discuss?"
Prof. Usama smiled—small, quiet. His fingers tapped gently against the edge of the desk. "Yes. I just… wanted to ask what you plan to do now."
Ava raised an eyebrow, unsure where this was heading.
He continued, "I mean… once, you left everything behind. You ran away, even changed countries, after finding out the truth about your husband."
He folded his hands together, not accusatory—just curious. "And now… you're back. So I'm wondering—have you thought about it? What next? Of course, it's your personal life. I have no right to intrude. But still, as your professor… someone who's seen you as a bright, promising student… I can't help but be a little concerned."
Ava looked at Prof. Usama for a second longer, debating silently in her mind whether she should even ask, "I actually wanted to ask you something else first."
"Ofcourse"
"That day… when you told me everything about Ibrahim… my mind was so all over the place, I didn't really process how you knew it all. But later… I started thinking."
She met his gaze carefully. "It felt like you didn't just hear about him… it felt like you knew him. Personally. Like for a long time."
"You guessed right. I've known Ibrahim for more than ten years."
Ava blinked. "And how?"
Prof. Usama offered her a small smile, "Before that why don't you answer the question I asked you first?"