Chapter 10

Nadia had the feeling that people were watching her. They whispered to each other, looking at something on their phones.

The sixteen-year-old felt like she was the only one who didn't know what was going on.

At some point, she couldn't stand the stares anymore and walked up to a group of girls who were pointing at her. Without asking, she snatched a phone from one of them and, frowning, looked at a photo showing her and Leon by the pond.

Caught in the wrong moment, they looked rather romantic, gazing into each other's eyes.

"Who sent you this photo?" she asked in an angry voice, piercing them with her gaze. The girls remained silent and turned their faces away.

"Seriously… no privacy at all. Mind your own business," she added, handing the phone back.

The teenager headed to the cafeteria, ignoring all the looks. If this brought them joy, then let them gossip about what was going on between her and Leon. People loved to stick their noses into others' lives, and unfortunately, nothing would change that.

For a moment, she wondered whether it was a good idea to sit at the same table as the boys, but the more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that she would spite them all and fuel the gossip even more — until everyone got bored of it.

"Who would've thought you two would be the first popular couple?" Natan said when the girl sat down next to him. "You've outpaced Sebastian, who's been trying to hit on Roksana for two years now."

Nadia glanced at Leon, who didn't seem bothered by the rumors. He was eating breakfast, looking completely indifferent to the situation.

"Aren't you mad?" the sixteen-year-old asked.

"Why would I be mad? We're friends, they took a pretty nice photo of us — let people think whatever they want."

The girl smiled at his words.

"I feel the same. But I was afraid you'd feel awkward around me." She widened her eyes in surprise when Leon took her hand, which was resting on the table, and gave her a charming smile.

"Let them take more pictures. If they want drama, we'll give them drama."

Natan furrowed his brow, starting to question what was really going on between them.

"Are you not telling me something? I think I should know first, since I'm supposed to be the fifth wheel here."

"You're the fifth wheel even without them being a couple. You don't fit in our group because you have no connection to the General," said Alicja, who had just sat down next to Leon. Natan shot her an irritated look.

"What? It's the truth, you bore."

"You don't fit either, you crazy freak. You should be friends with ghosts," he snapped. "Go sit at an empty table and invite some dead souls to have breakfast with you."

Alicja gave him a sour smile.

"I don't have to. The ghosts love standing next to you. They say being around all of us makes them feel less alone."

Leon burst out laughing.

"Oh-ho, there's an old saying — those who bicker, like each other," he said in an amused voice.

Natan blushed bright red, making him look unexpectedly adorable.

"I hate ghosts. She attracts them, so she's my enemy," he said, averting his eyes.

"Roommate, I didn't know you could be so shy. You're kinda sweet," Leon declared playfully, leaning over the table and touching his chin.

"You two are the center of attention, so why are you focusing on me?" Natan muttered under his breath.

Alicja looked like an angry puppy as she stared at him, nose wrinkled.

"That's exactly why I like living in isolation, far away from people."

***

That day, lessons dragged on endlessly. It was almost three o'clock, and the students were still in math class — their last lesson before they could finally return to their rooms to rest or spend time with friends.

Leon absentmindedly scribbled something with his pen in his notebook, waiting for the other students to finish the individual assignments given by the teacher. These equations were laughably easy for him.

He smiled to himself when he looked at Natan, who was slowly and carefully approaching the end of the task.

The silent waiting was getting on his nerves. Boredom was making him sleepy. His eyelids began to close on their own. He looked around the classroom and noticed that Nadia was clearly struggling with the equations. She definitely wasn't a math whiz. Leon wanted to help her, but he couldn't — the teacher was watching them closely.

From across the room, a know-it-all classmate was resting her cheek on her hand and staring at him intensely. Her gaze was so strong that Leon began to feel uneasy.

He blinked in disbelief when the girl suddenly blew him a kiss. He grimaced slightly and quickly looked away, glancing over his shoulder… straight at Nadia.

The girl looked displeased.

Was she jealous? The thought popped into his head instinctively.

"Leon, if you've finished solving the equations, stop flashing your eyes at the girls and distracting them," the teacher said in a firm tone.

A murmur of excited whispers passed through the classroom.

"That's our popular couple! They're in love, let it go, ma'am!" one of the boys called out.

"Pfff," muttered Karolina with a grim expression.

"You don't have much time left, so I suggest you finish the assignment instead of admiring the lovebirds," the teacher added, slightly irritated.

Leon turned his gaze to Natan, who was watching him closely.

"What?" he whispered.

"This is suspicious..." Natan replied enigmatically, then went back to his work.

Leon sighed softly, rested his chin on his hands, and closed his eyes halfway. He still felt drowsy, as if something was draining his energy. His body was becoming heavy, and his thoughts began to drift.

Then he heard it.

"We'll soon join forces," a non-human voice whispered in his ear.

He felt a cold touch on his shoulder.

He jerked upright, as if burned, and turned toward Alicja, who was sitting in the last row. The girl stared at him wide-eyed, pale as a sheet.

Leon silently mouthed:

"Is he next to me?"

Alicja didn't answer. She just nodded.

A cold shiver ran down his spine.

***

Nadia entered the boys' room, immediately sensing that it was much colder than the other rooms. Maybe it was just her imagination playing tricks on her, but she could clearly feel a disturbing chill on her skin.

"Why is it so cold in here?" she asked, sitting down on Leon's bed and rubbing her arms.

"Maybe because a demon hungry for my roommate's body lives with us," Natan replied, casting Leon a fleeting glance.

"He's with me everywhere," Leon said, sitting beside the girl. "In class, I felt his icy touch and a whisper in my ear. Alicja saw him near me. Isn't that strange? I don't have abilities like hers, and yet I'm starting to feel him. Maybe it's because he's getting stronger every day?"

"I'm fucking terrified. I was sent here as a punishment, and now I have to take part in some goddamn horror movie," said Natan, sitting across from them.

"And I never thought that by coming here, I'd experience firsthand what my parents went through twenty years ago," Nadia said uneasily.

"Don't exaggerate. Back then he was alive. Now he's dead," Leon said flatly.

"If Alicja's right and he possesses you, that's when the real horror will begin. In your young body, we'll all end up corpses," Nadia said in a cold tone.

"You'll be the first..." she heard an inhuman whisper right in her ear. Terrified, she looked at Leon, who raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"What happened?"

"He's here. I heard him. He said I'll be the first to die."

"Maybe it's just paranoia? Maybe fear is making us hear things that don't exist?" he tried to reassure her.

"You said yourself that Alicja saw him next to you. This definitely isn't just in our heads," she replied seriously.

At that moment, the door flew open with a bang, and all three jumped. Sebastian walked in, alarmed by their expressions.

"What's going on? Why do you look like you've seen a ghost?"

"I think that joke is out of place," Natan scolded him. "Thanks to Leon, we live in fear every day. Especially at night."

Sebastian jumped onto his bed and sat cross-legged.

"If Leon gets possessed by the General, we'll become famous. The old tragedy will come back to life," he said with a spark in his eye.

"You know that if that happens, you might never go back home?" Leon said, something unsettling flickering in his eyes.

"Okay, now you really sounded scary," Sebastian admitted. "Don't ever say something like that to me again."

"So you are scared?" Natan narrowed his eyes. "Remember, we'll be the first to die. After all, we're his roommates."

"Then I'll become famous, even if it's posthumously," Sebastian declared, crossing his arms and glancing at Leon and Nadia sitting together on the bed. "And you two? The famous lovebirds? The whole school is talking. You've got quite the love scandal going."

Natan smirked.

"At least it's obvious there was something between them from the start. Not like you and Roksana. You've been trying for two years, and she still keeps you in the friendzone."

"Sounds like someone wants to get punched, puppy," Sebastian grumbled, then looked back at Nadia. "Anyway, about you two... All the girls already hate you. Karolina's been riling them up."

"Jealous. Because her heart's wide open for Leon," Nadia muttered, glancing at the boy.

"I don't want to worry you, but a group of girls is standing on our floor. I heard them saying you're in his room."

"This is too much. They're stalking us now?" Nadia grumbled, rising from the bed with a combative stance.

She flung the door open and slammed it behind her, drawing the attention of the group of teenage girls standing by the railing.

"Can someone explain what your problem is? Is it all because of jealous Karolina, who can't stand that Leon didn't notice her? Do you really want to live someone else's life that badly instead of focusing on your own?" she snapped, glaring at them. "I don't think any of you would want to be in my shoes."

"You signed your own death sentence the moment you went after the hottest guy in school," one of the girls replied. "You act like a tomboy. You don't suit him at all. Karolina is delicate and beautiful. He should've picked her."

"Excuse me, are you in some kind of Karolina cult? Did she brainwash you?"

"Got a problem with me?" Karolina suddenly growled, walking up and yanking Nadia by the arm. "These are my friends. Maybe you don't get it, since you don't know how to be friends with other girls."

The boys stepped out of the room. Leon immediately came forward, while Natan and Sebastian stayed at the doorway, watching.

"Leave Nadia alone. I was the one who liked her first. I was the one who confessed my feelings to her by the pond," he said firmly, intertwining his fingers with hers.

Shocked, Nadia looked up at him, eyes wide. She wondered if he was saying it just to protect her… or if there was a grain of truth in it.

Karolina fell silent.

"Leon, what do you see in her?" one of her friends asked.

The boy looked straight into Nadia's eyes and smiled warmly at her.

"She's beautiful. But more importantly, we get along really well. And most importantly, we share secrets that brought us closer together."

For the first time in her life, Nadia's brave face turned red. She was burning with a vivid blush.

A question began to form in her mind, one she wanted to ask him in private. But before she could open her mouth, something happened that no one expected.

Karolina snapped and shoved Nadia with all her strength.

The girl lost her balance. Leon, still holding her hand, tried to pull her toward him, as if to shield her with his body — but it was already too late. They both tumbled down the stairs.

They fell together.

And both lay unconscious at the bottom.

The girls froze. Stunned, they stared down, paralyzed. Karolina brought her trembling hands to her mouth, her face filled with horror.

Natan and Sebastian immediately rushed down.

"Someone get the nurse and a teacher!" Natan shouted, kneeling beside Leon.

This accident was about to change everything.

Especially Leon.