Chapter 9: Noel (2): Leaving was never an option

"Noel!"

The voice sliced through the hallway.

Noel turned, brows furrowed, to see a girl standing at the far end of the corridor—staring straight at him.

'What the hell?' he thought, the frown deepening.

A strange weight pressed down on his shoulders—the eyes of dozens zeroing in on him from every corner. Whispers fluttered like insects.

"Um… is she talking to you?" the group leader beside him asked, half-turning from the conversation they'd just been having.

They had been discussing a class project the lecturer had shuffled students into. Being the most financial.... 'troubled' among them, Noel had offered what help he could—handling the paperwork, the research, and stepping up as the de facto vice leader. Somewhere along the line, their topic had derailed into a conversation about how broke he was.

He swallowed.

"I think… yeah," Noel muttered.

Tch.

He clicked his tongue.

She's making me a target again.

For a month, he'd avoided Emilia like the plague. But it hadn't been enough. Three weeks ago, some tugs cornered him in the alley behind the campus and beat him until he couldn't see straight. A message. A warning. One he gladly obeyed. He wasn't stupid. No matter how pretty she was, no matter how drawn he'd been to her—this wasn't some bollywood movie. This was real life, and in real life, a guy like him messing with a girl like her meant one thing.

Danger.

Now she was in front of him—close, too close—and the innocent smile he remembered was nowhere in sight. She grabbed his wrist.

Firmly.

"Hey—let go," he hissed, yanking back, but she was already pulling him with her.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Mason watching. Not angry. Not amused. Just… indifferent. Indifferent in a way that reeked of menace.

He was screwed.

Luke had warned him.

He'd listened, tried to steer clear—but maybe it was already too late.

Then—

"Let go of him, Emilia," Jane snapped, grabbing Emilia's hand. "We have something important to go over. He clearly doesn't want to go with you."

Emilia turned slowly. "Jane…"

And just like that, Jane froze.

Her grip slackened, her defiance dissolving in an instant.

"Let go of him," Emilia said calmly, almost kindly, "or I swear, I'll do something you won't ever forget."

Silence.

The whole class held its breath.

No one had seen this side of Emilia before. Not even Noel.

He wasn't just shocked. He was terrified. It wasn't what she said—it was how she said it. Like she could end Jane's entire life with a single thought.

And maybe she could.

Jane stepped back, whispering, "Sorry…"

Emilia's eyes returned to Noel. "Now. Will you come quietly? Or do I need to drag you?"

He didn't answer.

He couldn't.

His legs moved on their own. He followed her.

No one stopped them.

No one could.

Once inside the sleek, black car—something he never imagined touching in his lifetime—Noel sat stiff, his heart hammering.

"Why…" she began, her voice soft, "why have you been avoiding me?"

He couldn't take it anymore. "Please… I'm begging you… just let me go. I'm nobody. I'm just a scholarship kid. I have nothing. Please… I just want to live," he sobbed, tears spilling as panic drowned his thoughts.

Everything screamed DANGER.

She was danger. Her world was a minefield. The people surrounding her—sons of politicians, CEOs, heirs to old money—were wolves. He wasn't even a lamb. He was the dirt beneath their shoes.

Then…

Drip.

A tear—not his—splashed onto his lap.

Emilia was crying.

"Are you… that afraid of me?" she asked, her voice cracking. "Why? What did I do? Just… please help me understand."

The girl he once knew seemed to return in that moment. But it didn't matter.

"I can't be close to you," he said flatly. "Just being near you is a risk. I can't afford to take that chance."

"But I can protect you!" she insisted, wiping her tears. "Nothing has to change. We used to get along…"

"You lied to me," he said. "You hid who you were. You knew from the start that I couldn't stand next to you. We're not equals, Emilia."

"I knew you'd act this way," she whispered. "Just like you did with Lisa…"

He blinked. "Lisa? What does she have to do with anything? We weren't even friends."

"Exactly," she snapped. "You never gave her a chance—because her dad's a minister. You think I didn't notice how you act around people from power?"

He stared. "Wait… why do you sound like you've known me longer than I've known you?"

She looked down. "You don't remember. It's okay."

He didn't press. Didn't care anymore.

"You have everything. Family. Wealth. A future. I only have one thing—my life. And if I stay close to you, I'll lose even that," he whispered, reaching for the door.

She grabbed his wrist again.

"No! You can't leave me—I need you," her voice dropped, lower, darker.

"WE WERE JUST FRIENDS!" he shouted, trembling. "What the hell is this?!"

"I love you…" she whispered. "Too much. I won't let you go. I can't."

His blood ran cold.

The others—the rich kids, the warnings, the threats—they were nothing.

She was the real danger.

"I don't love you," he said, yanking his wrist free. "I don't even love myself."

He opened the door. Men in suits standing outside barely acknowledged him.

Her father's men.

This was bigger than him. And far more dangerous.

"Noel…" she said behind him.

He paused.

"I swear—on my mother's grave—if you walk out that door, I'll make sure you regret it."

He turned back, her face hidden in shadow. Her eyes—black, empty.

"Emilia…" he exhaled. "I'm sorry."

And then he ran.

Straight to his apartment. Threw everything he could into a bag. Grabbed what savings he had. Got a bus ticket.

By sunset, he was gone.

But deep down, he knew—

He hadn't escaped.

Not really.

Not from her.

Not from fate.