Aarvin wished the day would just pass quietly.
No eyes.
No attention.
No tension.
But Oakridge didn't grant peace that easily.
The moment he entered the classroom, he felt it—
the shift in the air.
Not loud.
Not chaotic.
Just… focused.
On him.
Even the teacher paused slightly when Aarvin walked in, as if instinctively careful with the Hale name.
He sat down, trying to become invisible.
But today, silence wasn't his shield.
It was the thing that made him stand out even more.
Elena Returns
When Aarvin opened his notebook, someone quietly
slipped into the seat beside him
He looked up-
Elena Cross
Soft smile.
Warm eyes.
The only person who talked to him on the first day like he was normal.
She rested her arms on her desk and whispered:
"Hey... survived yesterday?"
Aarvin blinked
"You heard?"
Elena grinned. "Aarvin, everyone heard."
He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed.
"I didn'.. mean for any of it to happen."
"I know," she said gently
IThat's probably why peope are even more curious."
Aarvin frowned. "Curious? About me? Why?"
Elena studied him.
"You're not like the others. You don't try to impress people. You don't fake confidence. You don't pretend to be strong."
She paused.
"And sometimes… the quiet ones end up being the loudest without realizing."
Her words hit deeper than she knew.
Aarvin looked away.
Elena leaned slightly closer.
Don't let Oakridge decide who you are.
He turned back toward her.
For a moment... her eyes softened
Like she saw the version of him no one else cared to notice.
And for the first time in days-
Aarvin felt something other ulan fear
He felt seen.
but peace never lasts here
Before he could say anything else, the classroom door opened again.
Aarvin felt his stomach tighten.
Adrien walked in.
The silent shadow of Oakridge.
He scanned the class—slow, unreadable—until his eyes landed on Aarvin.
Then on Elena.
Something flickered in his gaze.
Not jealousy.
Not anger.
Something more complicated... and dangerous.Adrien didn't approach.
He simply took a seat at the back, watching everything
quietly
But Elena noticed
"Why is he staring at you?" she whispered.
Aarvin swallowed
"No idea"
But he did know.
Riyan called him "family"
Zane called him "interesting.
Naomi called him "dangerous without realizing."Adrie...?
Adrien was still figuring out what Aarvin was becoming
Tension Builds Again
As the class began, students whispered:
Elena's sitting with him again?"
"Is she crazy?"
"What if Rivan thinks-'
Aarvin hunched lower
Elena narrowed her eyes at
? whispers.
"People act like you're radioactive, " she muttered.
Aarvin sighed.
"Maybe I am."
"No," she said firmly.
"They're just scared of who stands behind you."
He looked at her, surprised.
Elena shrugged.
"But that doesn't mean I have to be."
Aarvin's chest tightened.
For the first time…
someone wasn't scared of the Hale name.
Someone saw him, not his brother's shadow.
And that frightened him more than anything.
Because suddenly—
he cared what she thought.
A New Kind of Fear
When class ended, Elena stood and smiled at him.
"See you tomorrow, okay?"
Aarvin nodded slowly.
As she walked away, he felt his heartbeat trip over itself.
Not fear.
Something else.
Something warm.
Something confusing.
Something he'd never felt in Oakridge.
Aarvin Hale—
the boy who feared fights, crowds, and chaos—
was afraid of something new now:
Liking someone in a school where even friendships were dangerous.
He looked toward the back of the class.
Adrien was still staring at him.
Not hostile.
But with that same expression Oakridge had been giving him lately:
Curiosity.
As if everyone was waiting for what Aarvin would do next.
As if his story was no longer just about surviving—
but about changing.