Back to the present time...
Veron stared at the shivering lady standing before him. He wondered why she was avoiding his eyes and looking at the door instead. Was she thinking of escaping?
Seeing how she was clutching the front of her torn dress, trying to cover up her body, his curiosity was piqued as to how she found herself there.
He pushed his body away from the wall, and took a step toward her, forcing her to peel her eyes from the door, setting them on him.
When he continued to approach her, she instinctively took a step back as confusion and fear swirled in her eyes. He could hear her heart beating twice as fast, and she took another step back when he was standing right before her.
Karina flinched and shut her eyes when he lifted his hand, thinking he wanted to touch her. She normally wouldn't be this scared, especially in the presence of this person, knowing he was her coursemate.
But she was no fool to pretend not to notice he just singlehandedly took out four hefty men, and the last one, she didn't know what happened to him.
She was not new to the rumor that Veron Silver was the most dangerous student in school, and all who got into a fight with him usually ends up in the hospital, in critical condition.
However, despite hearing such news almost every day, this was the first time she was seeing it with her own eyes. Who wouldn't be scared in such a situation?
She opened her eyes after a while when she didn't feel the touch she was expecting, only to see him taking off his jacket while peering down at her with a bored expression.
"Wear this." His deep voice caressed her ears as he stretched the jacket toward her. Her brows creased for a moment as she looked from him to the jacket, then back to him.
His white shirt had specks of blood on it, which the jacket would conceal perfectly. However, she also needed it, as she didn't know how she would leave this room looking the way she currently was.
Veron furrowed his brows, wondering what was stopping her from accepting the jacket when she so much wanted to cover herself.
Before he could ask, she snatched the jacket from him, fearing he would change his mind since she had taken quite some time contemplating.
"Thank y—"
"Let's go." He cut her off, then turned around without wasting another second, and started moving toward the exit.
Karina swallowed, then hurriedly put on the jacket. She breathed out in relief as the jacket covered her perfectly and extends a little past her knees.
Noticing from the corner of her eyes that Veron was about to step out of the room, she hurriedly ran after him, scared that he would leave without her.
A part of her brain was telling her to be wary of him as he was dangerous, but another part reminded her that he just saved her, and she will be stuck there since she had no money on her. Everything was inside Chloe's bag, and she had no idea where Chloe was at the moment. So unless she wanted to walk back to school, she had no choice but to stick with him, at least for now.
As soon as she stepped outside the room, her breath hitched, and she instinctively moved to hide behind Veron. There was another set of heavily built men standing outside, in a battle-ready position.
"Leave. I'll take care of this." Skye said to Veron via mind-link, and the latter nodded. He turned around, already knowing that Karina was behind him, then grabbed her hand to lead her away.
But he suddenly paused the moment their skin made contact, feeling a strange tingling sensation spread across his palm. Before he could stop himself, he moved his gaze to their connected hands, then up to her face.
She wasn't looking at him, instead, her widened, confused eyes were set on their hands, letting him know she could also feel what he was feeling.
As soon as he noticed she was about to look up at him, he snapped out of his surprise and pulled her away as he walked toward another exit out of the club.
Karina followed him wordlessly, confused about what was going on with their hands. Or was it just his hand? It must be. She had touched other people's hands and never felt this way. So what was this? Did he do something to his hand to make it feel that way when he touched someone?
"Get in." His voice echoed, snapping her out of her thoughts. She suddenly realized that she had zoned out all through the journey from the room to the garage.
He immediately let go of her hand and walked to the other side of the car. Karina didn't move to get in as he instructed. She stood there, looking at the car door which had swung up vertically, as different thoughts ran through her mind.
"What are you waiting for?" Veron lifted a brow. He was already seated but she was still standing outside, looking like a lost puppy.
"I... My friend is still inside." Karina revealed, biting the inside of her lower lip. She shouldn't be worrying about Chloe right now, since the latter was the one who brought her here, but she couldn't help it. The fear that something bad might have happened to her was strong in Karina's heart.
"You want to go back and look for her?" Veron queried with a dead expression and Karina shook her head before getting into the car. There was no way she was going back in there for any reason. Since she had no phone, she would just wait until she reached the hostel, then find a way to call Chloe.
Veron started the car and sped off the building. He said nothing to her throughout the journey, but his mind was busy with a lot of things.
He slowed down and brought the car to a halt right in front of her hostel, then leaned back against the headrest.
"Thank you so much. How do I repay your kindness?" Karina adjusted in her seat, glad that the awkward ride had come to an end and she was safely away from that godforsaken place.
"Get out."