That day in the anatomy lab, Alana toyed with the scalpel, planning to slice her palm for attention. But in the end, she couldn’t follow through. Her plan failed, but her envy only grew sharper.
At night, back in the Whitmore estate, Zaylee and Zayden had dinner together. Afterward, he teased her with that knowing grin.
Zayden: “So… Hawke visited today, huh?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSC6BGcfki
Zaylee: blushing “Brother, stop it.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0B4O6jF3Q
Zayden: “What do you mean stop? You look like a princess caught in the act!”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡddPnQkJk6G
They laughed, chasing each other around the hall like when they were kids.
Later, alone in her room, Zaylee pulled up @AHRaphael on socials. Heart racing, she pressed follow. Within seconds, Alaric followed back.
Scrolling, she accidentally double-tapped a photo — him shirtless by the pool, water dripping down his shoulders. Realizing, she panicked and unliked it.
Almost instantly, a message buzzed in:
Alaric: “Oh my goodness, Ayle. I didn’t know that’s your type, babes.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdm88H0JMRu
Zaylee: “Ally! That was a mistake.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhIjJ9gu0I
Alaric: “Why’d you unlike it? Don’t you like it?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡakTkTwOK1C
Zaylee: flustered “SHUT UP.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsunfSNPttQ
Alaric: “Fine. Here’s a task then.” sends his number “Text me.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBUGwLsJSby
Zaylee: “Nope. You find my number, babes. That’s your job.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMsY2payZSb
Alaric: “Seriously?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAYNJcEVfH5
A few minutes later, her phone lit up.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GzN1wujmw
Alaric: “Is this ************?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIz0B4FR3TG
Zaylee: “You hacked it, didn’t you?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3njhkaIyMe
Alaric: “You told me to find it. I found it. Problem?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqUIsDiLZgB
And just like that, they were calling, voices soft, teasing each other into the night.
But by morning, poison had spread.
Across IVYL, HU, HMS, HBS, HLS forums and feeds, an anonymous blog post was trending:
“Don’t be fooled by Ms. Z’s angel face. Rich, yes. Innocent? Not at all. Everyone knows she buys her grades — or worse, sleeps with professors for them. HMS boys, careful. The ‘snow princess’ is nothing but a porcelain doll cracked underneath. Spread the word before she spreads her legs.”
Zaylee saw it first, her chest tightening. She closed the screen.
At HBS, in the middle of a presentation prep, Alaric’s phone lit up. Zayden.
Alaric: mutters “What the hell… BIL calling before HEL?”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpkIc7fSz9e
Zayden (shouting): “YOU BRAT! DID YOU SEE THAT BLOG? SOME FUCKER IS TARNISHING MY SISTER. IT MIGHT BE SOMEONE FROM YOUR PAST. CLEAN IT. NOW.”28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNphSVgSe2m
The line went dead.
Alaric clenched his jaw, barked a command, and within hours the blog was erased. The hired hand only shrugged: “A man gave me money, said post it and vanish. Didn’t say who.”
The problem was gone, but the scar remained.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcY8UCcYNa5
Zaylee never told Alaric what she’d read.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡziQ7FwXC6B
And Alaric — though burning to ask — waited.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUupty7UDsj
She never said a word.
That night, Zaylee had an unusually quiet dinner. She barely touched her plate, offered her brother only a faint smile, and disappeared upstairs to bed. Zayden noticed—he always did—but for once he didn’t stop her. He knew his little girl needed space.
The next morning, instead of dropping her off straight at HMS, Zayden diverted to a quiet restaurant.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC9u4eatFSU
“Wait here a minute, little one. I’ll be right back,” he said casually and slipped out.
Zaylee sat at the table, her head lowered, tracing circles on the edge of her napkin. When the food was finally served, she lifted her eyes—expecting Zayden. But across from her sat Alaric, grinning like a devil and winking.
Her lips curved into a soft, uncontrollable smile.
From outside, Zayden caught sight of that smile—the kind she hadn’t shown in days—and he exhaled with relief. Good. She needs this more than she knows. With that, he left them alone.
Alaric leaned forward, resting his chin on his palm, eyes never leaving her.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYlXnrmeUau
“I heard you like pottery, Ayle,” he began, his tone deliberately casual.
She blinked. “Yeah… did brother tell you, Ally?”
“Maybe,” he teased. “If you’re free today, let’s go somewhere.”
And he did. He took her to a small pottery studio hidden in the arts district. The scent of wet clay filled the air, and soft music played in the background. At first, Zaylee looked shy, but Alaric rolled up his sleeves and nudged her forward.
Soon enough, they were sitting close, clay smeared across their fingers. Alaric slid behind her, his arms guiding hers as they shaped a lump of clay into a vessel. His voice was low against her ear.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTRTti970Ed
“Slowly, Ayle. Now press here… give it space to breathe.”
His hands folded over hers, guiding her fingers to hollow the pot, and she felt his warmth surrounding her.
“Like this?” she asked softly.
“Perfect,” he whispered.
But the playfulness soon returned—Zaylee flicked a streak of clay across his cheek. Alaric froze, then smirked.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEDgvE9ttns
“Oh, you think you’re funny?”
Before he could retaliate, the pottery instructor came over.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3wOTayl8ko
“Well, well, Zaylee, how are you? Haven’t seen you in a while.”
Alaric’s head whipped toward her. “You already know this?”
The instructor chuckled. “She’s one of my brightest students. Hands steady, eyes sharper than most adults I’ve taught.”
Zaylee flushed and bit her lip. Alaric just stared at her, as if discovering another secret jewel inside her.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZQdNSyGEDU
“You amaze me, Ayle,” he murmured, shaking his head.
To ease his surprise, she quietly reached for his hand, pressing it back against the clay wheel. “Then let’s make something together.”
And for the first time in days, she wasn’t the girl with heavy eyes from cruel whispers—she was simply Zaylee, laughing with clay on her hands, with her Ally beside her.
ns216.73.216.14da2
and then Add to home screen.