Chapter Fifteen: Silent Lines
The days after the afterparty moved differently.
Nothing was said openly. No labels were given. No promises were made. Yet something invisible now existed between Rose and Lucas—something quiet but powerful. They spoke more often, exchanged longer glances, and walked side by side on campus in a way that felt natural but undefined.
To everyone else, it looked harmless.
To Victor, it looked dangerous.
---
Rose sat alone in the reading area outside the faculty building, flipping through her notes for the upcoming semester guidance review. The harmattan breeze brushed lightly against her skin as she underlined a sentence. She was so focused that she didn't notice someone approaching until a shadow fell across her page.
"Hard at work as always."
She looked up to see Victor standing there with an easy smile.
"Oh. Hi, Victor," she said politely.
He gestured to the empty seat beside her. "May I?"
"Yes, of course."
He sat, crossing his legs casually. "You don't rest, do you? Defense is over, yet here you are still studying."
She smiled faintly. "It's a habit."
"A dangerous one," he said lightly. "You might forget how to enjoy life."
She chuckled shyly. "I don't think I know how to enjoy it yet."
Victor watched her closely. "Lucas is very good at that."
Her hand paused on the notebook.
"I mean," he added smoothly, "he seems to enjoy life more than most people here."
"Yes," she replied carefully. "He does."
There was a small silence between them.
"Tell me," Victor asked gently, "do you trust him?"
Rose was surprised by the question. "Trust… Lucas?"
Victor shrugged. "People like him are charming. But charm is not always the same as sincerity."
She frowned slightly. "He hasn't given me any reason not to trust him."
Victor smiled. "Not yet."
The words lingered.
Rose looked down at her notes again, suddenly uneasy. "Why are you asking me this?"
"Curiosity," Victor replied calmly. "And concern. You're… different from the people he usually keeps around."
She shifted in her seat. "People can change."
Victor studied her face. "Yes. Sometimes. But not without consequences."
Before she could respond, footsteps approached.
Lucas.
He stopped when he noticed Victor sitting beside her.
"Am I interrupting?" Lucas asked, his voice neutral.
Victor looked up slowly. "We were just talking."
Lucas turned to Rose. "About what?"
Rose hesitated for a split second. "Just school… and life."
Lucas nodded but his gaze didn't leave Victor.
Victor stood up casually. "I should get to class. Don't let me disturb you two."
As he walked away, his eyes flicked briefly toward Lucas—calm, calculating.
Lucas exhaled slowly and took Victor's empty seat.
"You okay?" he asked Rose.
"Yes," she said, though her tone lacked conviction.
"You look tense."
She hesitated but chose honesty. "He asked me if I trust you."
Lucas stiffened slightly. "And what did you say?"
Rose met his eyes. "That you haven't given me a reason not to."
Something warm passed through Lucas' gaze—but it was quickly chased by something darker.
"He shouldn't be putting doubts in your head."
"I don't think he meant harm," Rose said quietly.
Lucas leaned closer. "Victor never says things for no reason."
She studied his face. "Is there something about him I should know?"
Lucas held her gaze for a long moment, then looked away. "Just… be careful around him."
---
Later that evening, Bella burst into the hostel room, dropping her bag dramatically on the bed.
"Girl! Guess what I heard today?"
Rose looked up from her desk. "What?"
"Victor has been asking questions about you."
Rose stiffened. "Questions like what?"
Bella lowered her voice. "Your routine. Who you sit with. When you're alone. That kind of thing."
Rose felt a chill. "That's strange."
"I don't like it," Bella said seriously. "There's something off about him."
"He's always been polite to me."
"Exactly. Too polite," Bella replied. "Like he's collecting information."
Rose hugged her notebook closer. "Why would he be interested in me like that?"
Bella hesitated. "Maybe because Lucas is."
The weight of that statement settled heavily in the room.
---
Meanwhile, Lucas sat alone on the bleachers behind the faculty of social sciences, watching the evening sky burn into shades of orange and purple. His phone buzzed in his hand.
A message from Victor.
Victor: Interesting girl you're getting close to.
Lucas clenched his jaw.
Lucas: Stay out of my business.
Victor: Your business became mine the moment you made it public.
Lucas: You're reading into things.
Victor: You always underestimate how carefully I read people.
Lucas locked his phone and leaned back, frustration tightening his chest. For the first time, he felt unsettled not by an opponent, but by the fear of losing control over a situation involving someone he had never intended to care about this deeply.
---
That night, Rose dreamt restlessly.
She saw herself standing between two paths. One was bright and familiar. The other was dark and unknown. Lucas stood at the bright one, reaching for her. Victor stood at the darker one, watching silently.
She woke with a sharp breath.
Her heart told her one thing.
Her instinct whispered another.
---
By morning, the quiet tension had grown.
Lucas became more protective—walking her to class, checking in on her more often. Rose noticed the change, though she didn't fully understand it.
Victor became more present—appearing in corridors, in study halls, in group spaces where she happened to be. Always respectful. Always calm. Always watching.
And Rose remained in the middle—still innocent, still believing that everyone meant well, still unaware of how deep the silent rivalry around her was becoming.
The lines had been drawn.
But no one had declared war.
Yet.