At Luxford Academy, the elite boarding school for the ultra-rich, Adriana and Nicholas have been bitter rivals since childhood. Forced to live in the same dorm, their once-friendly pranks have escalated into daily clashes-sharp insults, constant bic...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The ride to the hospital was agonizing. Adri sat beside me in the car, wringing her hands as she stared out of the window, her leg bouncing nervously. Dio was in the back, eerily silent for once, her usual mischievous smirk replaced by a haunted expression. Matteo had his arm around her shoulders, whispering reassurances I wasn't sure any of us believed.
I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my knuckles turning white. My jaw was clenched so hard it felt like it might shatter. My heart was racing, but my face remained stoic. I had to stay calm—for Adri, for the group—but inside, I was a mess.
Theo. Out of all of us, he was the one who never seemed to run out of energy. Always moving, always laughing. The thought of him being hooked up to machines, pale and lifeless, made my chest tighten painfully.
"We'll be there soon," I muttered, mostly to myself.
Adri's hand reached over, resting lightly on my arm. "He's strong, Nick. He'll be okay."
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
When we finally arrived at the hospital, we practically sprinted inside. Lia was already there, her eyes red from crying, clutching a tissue like it was her lifeline. Drew stood behind her, his hand on her back, his calm presence grounding her. Rora was pacing, her phone in hand, trying to keep herself together.
"Any news?" Adri asked immediately, her voice trembling.
"They haven't told us anything yet," Lia whispered, her voice breaking. "He's been in there for over an hour."
We all sat—or, in some cases, paced—through the excruciating wait. Every second felt like an eternity. I couldn't sit still, my mind running through every worst-case scenario despite my best efforts to shut it down. Adri tried to comfort Lia, but I could see the strain in her eyes. Dio was biting her nails, Matteo sitting beside her, rubbing her back. Rora kept muttering to herself, and Drew stood silently, his expression unreadable.
Time dragged on. An hour passed, then another thirty minutes. Every time a doctor walked out into the waiting room, we all jumped, only to sink back into our seats when they weren't coming for us.
Finally, the door opened, and a man in a white coat stepped out.
"Theodore Kingsley?" he called.
We all shot to our feet at once.
The doctor held up a hand to calm us. "He's stable. He passed out due to low blood pressure, likely from exhaustion or dehydration. We've given him fluids, and he's awake now. You can see him, but try not to overwhelm him."
The stupid idiot
Relief washed over me, though the tension didn't completely leave my body. Adri leaned into my side for a moment, and I wrapped an arm around her instinctively, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
