Ava told herself she was fine.
She wasn't.
Every second of the night replayed in her head—Nicholas's voice low and tense, the way he stepped close like he was fighting himself, the way he said stay away from him with more emotion than he ever intended to show.
She didn't want to admit it, but her heart had clung to every word.
By the next afternoon, she was drained. The lectures felt longer, her notes were a mess, and her chest hurt with all the things she wasn't saying. She was at her locker when Maya spotted her.
"You look like you've been hit by midterms and heartbreak combined," Maya said gently.
Ava managed a weak smile. "Something like that."
"So… Liam said you might come study with him today?"
Ava stiffened. "Yeah. Maybe."
Maya nodded slowly. "You don't look excited."
"Because I'm not," Ava admitted, surprising even herself. "I just… need to stop thinking about someone."
Maya blinked. "Someone tall, brooding, and stupidly handsome?"
Ava groaned. "Please don't say it."
"I won't," Maya said, but her grin said everything.
Ava slammed her locker shut, gathering her books. "I'm going to the courtyard. I need fresh air before my brain melts."
She walked out before Maya could say more.
The courtyard was lively—voices, laughter, the warm afternoon sun—but Ava barely noticed it. She sat under a tree, pulling out her notes but not really reading them.
A shadow fell over her.
She looked up quickly—too quickly—because for a split second she hoped it was Nicholas.
It wasn't.
It was Liam.
"Hey," he said with his usual soft smile. "I looked everywhere. Maya said you were here."
Ava forced a small smile. "Yeah. Needed some quiet."
He sat beside her, not too close, not too far. "Then you won't want to hear about the study group I wanted to add you to."
Ava laughed slightly. "Maybe not."
He tilted his head. "You seem… distracted."
"I'm fine," she said automatically.
Liam looked unconvinced. "If someone hurt you, you can tell me."
Ava froze.
Nicholas's face flashed in her mind. His eyes. His voice. His distance.
"No one hurt me," she said softly. "I'm just… figuring things out."
Liam nodded. "Well, if you ever need a distraction, I'm around."
Ava looked at him then, really looked.
He was sweet. Kind. Everything she should want.
But her heart wasn't stupid.
It didn't react to kindness.
It reacted to tension.
To the spark she could never control.
To Nicholas Wolfe.
Before she could respond, Liam leaned a little closer. Not too close—just enough to make Ava instinctively shift back.
And that tiny movement changed everything.
Someone else had been watching.
She saw him before she felt him—Nicholas standing across the courtyard, half in the shade, hands in his pockets.
His eyes were locked on her.
Not on the book in her lap.
Not on the tree behind her.
On her.
And on Liam sitting next to her.
His jaw clenched once.
His chest rose sharply.
A storm gathered behind his eyes, dark and dangerously quiet.
Ava's breath caught.
"Is that… Nicholas?" Liam asked, frowning.
Ava didn't answer.
Nicholas didn't move at first. He just stood there, watching them with a look that made her insides twist.
Then, slowly, he started walking toward them.
Each step calm.
Controlled.
Lethal.
Liam shifted awkwardly but didn't stand.
Nicholas stopped right in front of them, looking down at Ava with an expression she couldn't read.
"Ava," he said quietly.
She swallowed. "Nicholas."
His eyes flicked to Liam, then back to her. "Can I talk to you?"
Liam looked between them. "She's actually—"
"I wasn't asking you," Nicholas said, voice calm but sharp enough to cut glass.
Ava's breath hitched. Liam shifted uncomfortably.
Nicholas held Ava's gaze.
"Come here," he said softly.
Not rude.
Not aggressive.
But the kind of tone that made her whole body react before her mind did.
Ava stood up slowly.
Liam blinked. "Ava… you don't have to go if you don't want—"
"I want to," she said quietly.
Liam's face fell a little, but Ava barely noticed.
Nicholas walked a few steps away, and she followed, her pulse racing uncontrollably. When they were far enough that no one could hear them, he stopped and turned.
"Are you using him?" he asked quietly.
Ava's eyes widened. "Nicholas—"
"Are you?" His voice was lower now. "Because that's not you."
Her throat tightened. "I'm not… using him. I just—"
"Just what?" His eyes softened painfully. "Trying to forget me?"
Her lips parted but no sound came out.
Nicholas stepped closer. Not touching her. Not breathing too close. But close enough that her chest fluttered and her knees felt weak.
"Ava." He said her name like a warning, like a plea. "Don't do that."
"You told me to stay away," she whispered. "You said you needed distance."
"And you listened?" he said quietly, almost hurt.
Ava's breath shook. "You said you didn't want complications."
Nicholas's jaw tensed. "I didn't… but you're not a complication."
Her heart stopped.
"You're a problem," he said softly, voice breaking in the smallest way, "because I can't ignore you."
Ava felt her pulse hammering against her ribs.
Nicholas looked down, running a hand through his hair as if fighting himself. "I see you with him and—" He stopped, frustrated. "It gets to me."
Ava's voice trembled. "Why?"
Nicholas lifted his eyes to hers, and for the first time, he didn't hide anything.
"Because I don't want anyone else touching what I—"
He cut himself off, sucking in a breath.
Ava took a tiny step closer, her voice barely a whisper. "What you what?"
Nicholas stared at her for a long moment.
Then his voice came out low, raw, defeated:
"What I keep trying not to want."
Ava's breath stilled.
The world went quiet.
And Nicholas stared at her like wanting her was destroying him.