On the muddy riverbank, Rowan held Lucian tight against his chest, shielding him from the dozens of stunned eyes. Lucian coughed, the icy water draining from his lungs.
"Lucian! Lucian! Are you okay?" Rowan's voice was a ragged crack of sheer panic and worry.
A murmur of relief swept through the students. "Oh, thank God, Lucian got up!"
Aerin, her face pale with shock, pushed through the crowd. "Luciaaa! Are you fine? Oh, God, why did you come here at this hour?"
Lucian was confused, his mind still fuzzy. Aerin is here?
Lele quickly took charge, waving her hands. "Everyone, please stop asking questions! We need to get him inside the resort!"
Before Sima or anyone else could organize, Rowan stood, lifting Lucian into his arms—a move that was both protective and profoundly possessive. He ignored the murmurs, his gaze fixed straight ahead.
Lucian saw it then: the pure, unfiltered love and pain in Rowan's eyes, a look he had never seen and never received from Kai.
As Rowan carried Lucian toward the resort, a figure detached itself from the shadows outside the building. Kai. His eyes weren't worried; they were furious, fixed only on Rowan.
Kai strode forward, rage radiating off him. He yanked Lucian's wet, trembling body out of Rowan's arms.
"Kai!" Rowan's voice exploded, fueled by protective rage. "Did you have any idea what you're doing right now?!"
"You don't need to know what I'm doing. That's none of your business!" Kai spat back, gripping Lucian's hand hard enough to hurt.
"You can do whatever you want, but not with Lucian!" Rowan snapped, stepping between them. "Lucian needs rest! Don't you even care? He's literally shivering. At least let him change his clothes!"
The campus students murmured their agreement with Rowan.
"I said, this is none of your business!" Kai screamed, his sanity snapping. He launched a vicious punch that slammed into Rowan's jaw.
Rowan stumbled back, touching his lip, his eyes blazing. "Kai," he warned, his voice dangerously low. "I never did anything hurtful to you. If I ever did something like you just did to me, I hope your face gets vanished from this earth until your last breath!"
Lucian, seeing the blood of Rowan's, stumbled between them, grabbing Kai's sleeve. "Please, please, stop fighting! Kai, let's go. Where do you want to go?"
"Lucian!" Rowan pleaded, worried sick.
"Please, Rowan, and thanks for the care," Lucian whispered, his eyes apologetic.
Kai, triumphant, dragged Lucian away, his expression screaming one thing to Rowan and the entire campus: Lucian always chooses me.
Kai dragged Lucian to a secluded, foggy spot behind the resort. Lucian yanked his hand away, shivering uncontrollably.
"Where are you taking me?" Lucian demanded. "If you wanted to argue, argue here. Is this about Rowan picking me up? If it is, I have nothing to say. I have to go. I don't have the energy to talk!"
Kai suddenly froze. "Why is Aerin here?" he asked, his voice shaking.
"Aerin?" Lucian turned to him, confused.
Kai's voice cracked with sudden, sharp frustration. "Why is she here? Every time I see her face, my mind goes crazy! My heart pounds! I intended something bad to happen to her, and she will never love me again! Why, why!" he screamed, hands clawing at his hair.
Lucian let out a painful, fake laugh, clapping slowly. "See? See here." He held out his wet, scraped hands and neck. "Look, my hands are shivering. My dress is wet. I'm in this situation, and you're asking me about Aerin?!"
"Why should I need to care? You're my just friend!" Kai spat out the words, his eyes widening. "Don't you be the hero of your own life, Lucian. Rowan saw his advantage and kissed you! It wasn't about saving you!" Kai was losing his sense of consciousness, his eyes turning dark and wide.
Lucian's heart shattered. Just a friend. But seeing Kai's unraveling mind, he fought the pain. He's unhealthy. Whatever he's saying is his illness, not him.
Kai grabbed Lucian's shoulder, screaming into his face. "Did you also enjoy it?! Was he a good kisser?! Now you're going to leave me! No one is with me! Mamma! Mamma! Please come and take me with you!" Kai was fully lost in his trauma.
"Kai! Kai! Please control yourself! I'm with you!" Lucian tried to hold him, but Kai shoved him back with startling force.
Lucian fell hard onto the ground, crying out in pain.
The sound of Lucian's pain jolted Kai back. He dropped to his knees, his sanity returning, fear replacing rage. Lucian flinched, pulling his body away, scrambling to get out.
It was afternoon. Everyone gathered outside, waiting for the journey to resume, but Sima announced: "Today, we stay here. Tomorrow, we continue. Aerin is joining us because her online academic scores were low, and she needs this field project."
Lucian, having rested briefly, sneaked out.
"Luciaaaaa!" Aerin ran toward him. "Are you fine? I was so worried!"
"Yeah, not bad," Lucian mumbled. Aerin grabbed his hand. "Come on, everyone is dancing! Let's join them!"
Kai saw Lucian and tried to intercept. Just as Aerin and Lucian hurried past, Aerin slipped, stumbling forward. She slammed right into Kai. They both fell, and their lips accidentally connected in a brief, accidental kiss—right in front of the whole campus.
"OHHHHHHHH!" The campus roared, cheering the sudden, dramatic intimacy.
Lucian saw the accidental kiss, heard the cheers, and something inside him snapped. His heart crumbled into pieces. Kai loves her. She loves Kai. Kai told me I was 'just a friend.'
He turned and ran, bolting toward the back of the resort where a rustic treehouse stood. Tears flooded his eyes as the memories crashed: Kai saying, "I loved her, but she didn't." Aerin saying, "I have a crush on Kai." Kai saying, "Why should I care? You're just a friend!"
His body stumbled, his lungs burning.
Suddenly, a hand caught his arm. It was Rowan.
"Why are you running, Luci—" Rowan stopped, seeing the raw tears streaming down Lucian's face. "Lucian, what happened?" he asked, worried sick.
Lucian didn't answer with words. Driven by a searing need to silence the pain, to feel something real that wasn't guilt or sacrifice, Lucian lunged forward and pressed his mouth desperately against Rowan's.
Rowan, shocked, parted their faces for a second. Their eyes met—Lucian's full of anguish, Rowan's full of immediate, insistent desire. Rowan closed the distance, insisting on the kiss, supporting Lucian with an embrace.
Lucian let himself fall into the intensity, trying to use the kiss to erase the devastation of his broken heart.