LOGIN"Good morning," I continued, forcing an awkward, gentle smile to form on my lips despite the knot twisting in my stomach."Morning," he responded. The word was entirely flat, devoid of any warmth.The silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating.I lifted my hand to my hair, nervously scratching the back of my neck as my gaze dropped to the floor, my voice lowering significantly."I... I tried using the card you gave me yesterday at a restaurant, but the payment declined due to insufficient funds. I'm just really confused about what happened. Because I know there's supposed to be thousands in that account.""You shouldn’t be," Tony’s response came almost instantly.His voice wasn't loud, but the sheer coldness of his words made me freeze.His face remained locked onto mine, his features hardening."I removed all the money in it.""Why?" the word slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it, my lips parting slightly in shock."Why?" Tony responded, a mocking tone bleeding into
I rose back up to my feet, walking the short distance back to the crib. His rhythmic, warm breaths felt incredibly gentle against the skin of my neck. I lowered him carefully onto the mattress, laying him flat on his back, my movements painfully slow to ensure I didn't wake him. Once he settled, I turned to my own bed. I slid the heavy tote bag off my shoulders, letting it drop onto the surface of the nightstand with a dull thud before I finally settled onto the edge of the mattress. The moment the room fell perfectly still, the memory from the restaurant flooded back into my mind like a tidal wave. My card getting declined. The sharp, negative beeps of the payment terminal. The cashier looking at me across the counter and telling me there were insufficient funds. How is that even possible? The question hit me with a physical force, making my chest tighten. The card has a daily limit of five hundred dollars, and I know for a fact there were thousands left in the account. So how?
Hours LaterThe dull thud of the cab door closing behind me echoed through the quiet street. I pulled my canvas tote bag tighter against my shoulder, turning on my heel to cross the paved road toward the glass penthouse. The early evening air was starting to cool, but my skin still felt flushed from the stress of the day.I navigated the sleek driveway, my boots clicking softly against the concrete as I ascended the short steps onto the front porch. Reaching the heavy steel door, I extended a finger and pressed the doorbell. The muted chime reverberated inside, and I stood there, shifting my weight from one foot to the other, waiting.In less than a minute, the sharp mechanical click of the deadbolt releasing cut through the quiet. The door swung inward.Maggie stood in the threshold, a professional smile resting on her face. “Hey. Welcome back.” she greeted warmly."Hey," I replied, forcing a weary smile onto my face as the absolute exhaustion of the past few hours threatened to pull
Mary looked at me for a long, silent second. She took another bite of her food, her sharp eyes never leaving mine as she chewed. The moment she swallowed, she spoke again, her words slow and etched with heavy skepticism. "I don't want what has happened to weigh you too far down." "I'm fine," I repeated, my voice steady. But she didn't stop watching me, her eyes searching the micro-expressions on my face for the truth. I smiled again, giving her a firm, reassuring nod. "I'm fine." The words were meant to convince her, but deep down, they were a desperate attempt to reassure myself that I would be. After a few more tense seconds, Mary finally lowered her gaze and continued eating. I did the same. With the tension broken, the conversation slowly drifted away from the stolen vehicle, shifting into lighter topics about schoolwork and upcoming projects. Shortly after, we finished our meals. I rose from my seat first, and Mary followed, both of us carrying our bags back toward the
Professor Wilson paced slowly back and forth across the elevated podium, his voice projecting clearly as he dived into the complexities of the day's topic. Soon, the rhythmic scratching of pens over paper and the muted clatter of laptop keys filled the air.Rows of eyes moved back and forth from their computer screens to the brightly projected diagrams on the white wall above the professor's head.An hour passed in what felt like a blink.I only realized the time had evaporated when the professor stepped toward the console, resting his hand on the projector controls before clicking it off."See you in the next class," he announced, gathering his notes."Thank you!" a chorus of students echoed in unison.The entire hall erupted into a cacophony of noise. People stood up, the folding tablet arms of the chairs snapping back into place with a collective, rattling clatter.Professor Wilson packed his briefcase and walked out, blending seamlessly into the dense crowd of students exiting thr
Moments later, the sedan glided smoothly through the busier roads of the main campus. Outside my window, the university was teeming with life— staff members in sharp blazers and students with backpacks slung over their shoulders and backs hurrying along the concrete walkways, entirely absorbed in their own daily routines. The driver made a crisp right turn, the tires humming against the asphalt. A minute later, the familiar modern glass-and-brick facade of my faculty buildings materialized in the distance. The car slowed to a halt directly in front of the main entrance where my lecture was scheduled. My phone rested in my palms, which were locked over my lap. My thumbs danced across the screen, pulling up the ride-share app to settle the fare. Within seconds, a satisfying green verification checkmark flashed across the display, confirming that Apple Pay had successfully processed the transaction. "I’ve made the payment," I said, raising my eyes from the screen to address the driver
Three Day Later.AVA.My eyes slowly parted open to the white ceiling above me.I blinked once.Then twice.The faint smell of antiseptics filled my lungs almost immediately.What’s going on? Where am I?The thought hit me instantly.My eyes drifted slowly toward the window to my left.An IV pole
That Same Hour.NOAH.A Multimillion-dollar Condo Apartment Off Campus.Noah sat comfortably against the backrest of the long cream-colored couch in his living room, one arm stretched lazily along the cushion beside him while the other held the TV remote loosely against his thigh. The massive flat-
That Same Hour. LILY.A Luxurious Studio Apartment Off Campus Grounds.Lily sat upright on her bed, her back resting lightly against the headboard, phone in hand as her thumb scrolled absently across the screen. The soft midday light filtered into the studio apartment, casting a warm glow over the
“Yes… yes, I am. The shooter’s… they’re gone,” the girl took a shaky breath. “But a girl’s been shot. We’re behind the Department of Economics. I think… I think she’s dying.” Mary’s hands pressed harder unconsciously at those words. “Alright. Help is on the way. They’ll be there shortly. Stay on t







