Chapter Nine: Unread Messages
Athena
The message sat on her screen like a trap.
> It's been a long time, Athena.
Those six words felt heavier than they should.
She had tried to ignore them — turned her phone over, distracted herself with homework, even listened to Clara's endless playlist just to drown the echo in her mind. But it was useless.
She'd read the message once. She didn't need to read it again.
She knew who it was.
Still, a small, dangerous part of her whispered, What if it's not him?
What if it's just coincidence? A joke? Someone else entirely?
Athena chewed her bottom lip, pacing the narrow dorm floor. Her mind flickered between memories — his deep voice, his calm stare, the sharp scent of his cologne that still clung to her thoughts like smoke.
"Stop it," she whispered to herself. "Don't make it more than it is."
But her heart betrayed her. It beat faster at the mere thought of him.
She sat on the edge of her bed, phone in hand, thumb hovering above the screen.
Should she reply? Should she ask why?
But what would she even say? Why are you texting me after eight months? Why do I still feel something I shouldn't?
Instead, she locked her phone and placed it on her desk — out of sight, but not out of reach.
For hours, she tried to study, but her eyes kept wandering to that silent screen.
Outside, the city lights flickered against the night sky. And deep down, she already knew this was only the beginning.
---
Damon
Across town, Damon DeVille sat in his penthouse office, the city sprawling beneath him like a map he owned. The only light came from the laptop on his desk and the faint amber glow of his whiskey glass.
He had told himself not to text her. He had promised himself he wouldn't.
But promises meant little when it came to Athena.
The moment he saw her last night, everything he'd built — the discipline, the walls, the cold distance — had cracked. He had spent eight months convincing himself that cutting ties was the right decision. That keeping her out of his world was mercy, not cowardice.
And yet… he'd reached for his phone anyway.
His fingers had typed before his logic could stop them:
> It's been a long time, Athena.
Simple. Harmless on the surface. But he knew what it meant.
He'd broken his silence. He'd opened a door that should've stayed closed.
He leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on the faint reflection of the city lights on the window.
Ace's voice echoed in his mind from earlier that evening:
> "You look distracted, Damon. Something on your mind?"
"Nothing," he had lied.
Now, alone, he couldn't lie to himself.
She had grown — beautiful, composed, and untouchably young. And yet, seeing her again had felt like fate mocking him.
He set down his glass and exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair.
He shouldn't have reached out.
He shouldn't want to see her again.
He shouldn't be thinking about the way she looked at him like he was both a memory and a danger.
But he did.
And as much as he tried to bury that truth under logic and restraint, one part of him already knew — the moment Athena Brown reentered his life, everything he'd kept in control was destined to unravel.
---
Later That Night
Athena's phone buzzed again — a single vibration against the quiet of her dorm. She froze.
This time, there was no name.
Just another message.
> Unknown: You shouldn't stay up so late. It's bad for your heart.
Her fingers went cold.
Because only one person had ever said those exact words to her before.
Damon DeVille.