A GOOD BOY'S PLAN
Austen Charles didn't do jealousy quietly.
From the moment he saw Leon with Elliana, something inside him snapped. The charming, good-boy façade couldn't hide the storm beneath—the storm that whispered: She's mine. I'll do whatever it takes.
He sat in his sleek car near the school parking lot, scrolling through pictures from last night. Blurry, stolen snapshots of Elliana in Leon's world, her hair catching the streetlights, her smile free—too free.
His jaw clenched. "Not on my watch," he muttered.
A plan started to form. Quiet. Calculated. Perfect.
It wasn't about confronting Leon directly. That would be reckless. Dangerous. And Austen was nothing if not precise.
He would make Leon disappear—at least from Elliana's life. Permanently.
By morning, he had enlisted a couple of trusted friends. They didn't ask questions. They didn't need to. He outlined it clearly:
Discredit Leon in front of the police.
Create evidence that made him look reckless beyond reason.
Make Elliana see him for what he really was.
Austen's lips curled into a small, cold smile. "She'll thank me later."
Meanwhile, Elliana walked through the school halls, still haunted by the night with Rhea. Her phone buzzed again—this time a text from Leon.
Leon: Be careful. Something feels off tonight.
Elliana shivered. "What does that mean?" she whispered to herself.
By lunch, whispers filled the cafeteria again. Only this time, there was a new tension. Teachers glanced at her table. Phones buzzed discreetly. Someone had leaked photos—professional-looking, staged to paint Leon as a danger.
Elliana's chest tightened. "Who—?"
Samantha shook her head. "I don't know. Someone wants trouble."
Her phone vibrated. Another message from an unknown number:
Unknown: He's trouble. Walk away while you can.
Elliana's fingers trembled.
She wanted to call Leon. Wanted to tell him everything, ask him what was happening. But something inside told her—tonight, he'd be the one in danger.
And Austen? Austen's plan had already begun.
Elliana didn't know it yet, but her world—the one she thought she was finally navigating—was about to collide in ways she could never prepare for.
Because sometimes, good intentions hide the darkest schemes.