EIRA POV
"I'm so happy for you, Tessy."
"Peter is so caring, kind, and handsome."
"You're so lucky to have a boyfriend like him."
I'd been hearing those words all morning.
The entire college seemed to be celebrating Tessy and Peter. Everywhere I looked, there were smiles, congratulations, and whispers about how perfect they were together.
No one knew the truth.
No one knew the man standing beside Tessy wasn't the person they believed him to be.
I'd tried to talk to Tessy again and again, but she wouldn't even look at me.
Then Peter's voice cut through the room.
"I don't know how some people can sink so low out of jealousy."
His eyes locked onto mine.
Cold. Accusing. Almost triumphant.
My hands curled into fists beneath the desk.
Before I could say anything, Tessy slipped her arm through his.
"Can we leave now?"
Peter's expression softened instantly.
"Why are you sad?" he asked gently, taking her hand in his. "You don't need anyone else as long as I'm with you. No one can separate us. You're my everything."
He lifted her hand to his lips.
"You're mine. I love you."
I couldn't watch anymore.
My chest burned with helpless rage.
Tessy… why won't you believe me?
Why can't you see who he really is?
I pushed back from the desk and stormed out of the classroom, my fists clenched, every nerve in my body screaming for me to expose him.
Then I heard it.
"Please! Don't do this! Please, leave me alone!"
A girl's desperate cries echoed through the corridor.
I froze.
"Please! You can't do this! I'll die! Just let me go, please!"
My heart lurched.
I ran toward the sound.
The cries grew louder with every step.
And then I saw her.
A girl was on her knees, sobbing uncontrollably, her hands trembling as she begged someone standing behind a pillar.
"Please… I won't tell anyone. I swear."
A voice answered.
Cold.
Ruthless.
Completely devoid of emotion.
"You're coming with me."
Adrian.
My stomach dropped.
"Please, don't do this, Adrian!" the girl cried. "Please! I… I'm pregnant. At least think of the child!"
My breath caught.
Pregnant?
What?
Why was she saying that to Adrian?
What was he to her?
What kind of relationship did they have?
"Stop crying."
His voice remained frighteningly calm.
"You're coming with me. Right now."
He reached for her and dragged her to her feet.
"No! Please! Don't, Adrian!"
She screamed.
I took a step forward.
Then everything happened at once.
Footsteps thundered through the corridor.
A sharp movement.
A loud thud.
The girl collapsed.
My heart stopped.
I rushed to her side.
"What happened to you?" I cried, shaking her shoulders. "What did you do to her?"
Her eyes remained closed.
"Get up! Open your eyes!"
I looked around desperately.
"Somebody help!"
"What is going on here?"
The principal's voice boomed behind me.
He hurried toward us, his expression turning grim when he saw the unconscious girl.
"Call the doctor. Now!"
A peon immediately ran toward the medical room.
Adrian didn't move.
He simply stood there.
Calm.
Relaxed.
His arms folded across his chest as though nothing had happened.
As though the girl's screams hadn't filled the corridor.
As though everyone staring at him in horror didn't matter.
That calmness unsettled me more than anything.
How could he look so unaffected?
How could he stand there as if this were nothing?
Half an hour later, we were all waiting outside the medical room.
Tessy.
Peter.
Half of our class.
The principal.
Everyone.
Everyone except Adrian.
I couldn't stop thinking about the girl.
Her terrified face.
Her trembling voice.
The tears streaming down her cheeks.
Please, don't do this.
She had begged him.
And he hadn't even flinched.
He never listens.
Finally, the doctor stepped outside.
"Is it serious, doctor?" the principal asked anxiously.
The doctor shook his head.
"She fainted because of extreme stress. There's nothing serious otherwise."
The principal's shoulders eased slightly.
Then the doctor added,
"Did you know she's pregnant?"
"What?"
The principal's face darkened.
I felt my stomach twist.
Pregnant.
The word kept echoing inside my head.
We followed the doctor into the room.
The girl lay pale against the bed, her eyes swollen from crying.
So this was Claira.
"Ms. Claira, how are you feeling?" the principal asked gently.
"I'm… okay, sir," she whispered.
"Do you know that you're pregnant?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
She nodded.
The principal's expression softened.
"Who is the father of this child, Ms. Claira?"
Silence.
Claira lowered her gaze.
Her shoulders trembled.
No one spoke.
"Claira," the principal said patiently, "you don't need to be afraid. Just tell us the truth."
I moved closer to her and gently took her hand.
"No one will hurt you," I whispered. "Not you. Not your child. Just tell the truth."
Her fingers tightened around mine.
Still, she couldn't speak.
The principal's patience began to wear thin.
"If you refuse to tell us, I'm sorry, but I'll have no choice but to rusticate you from this college."
Claira's eyes widened.
Her lips parted—
But before she could say a word, a voice cut through the room.
"I am the father of her child."
Everything stopped.
My blood ran cold.
I knew that voice.
I slowly turned.
Adrian stood in the doorway.
Calm.
Composed.
His arms folded loosely across his chest.
His face was unreadable.
Not a trace of guilt.
Not a flicker of fear.
Not even the slightest hint of concern about what everyone thought of him.
My mind went blank.
Adrian?
Him?
The room seemed to tilt beneath my feet.
"No…"
The word barely escaped my lips.
He couldn't be.
He wouldn't—
He isn't like this.
But the girl's cries came rushing back.
Her terror.
Her pleading.
His cold refusal.
My heart began pounding violently against my ribs.
The principal's expression hardened.
"I didn't expect this from you, Adrian."
His voice was filled with anger.
"You should be ashamed of yourself."
Adrian didn't react.
Not even slightly.
He simply remained where he was, arms folded, his expression as calm as ever.
"Adrian, wha—"
Claira's trembling voice broke.
He looked at her.
"I'll take responsibility for the child," he said evenly.
No hesitation.
No emotion.
"This is my matter. We're both of legal age. You can leave now."
The principal stared at him in disbelief.
"This isn't simply a matter of responsibility, Adrian. You brought a pregnant student to the brink of collapse."
Adrian's expression remained unchanged.
Tessy suddenly stepped forward.
"I knew it from the start."
Her voice trembled with anger.
"Only you could sink this low."
She glared at him with disgust before turning away.
"I don't even want to look at you."
She stormed out.
Peter followed.
One by one, the others left as well, their whispers following them into the corridor.
"Unbelievable."
"How could he do that?"
"She was begging him."
"I always thought there was something wrong with him."
"Disgusting."
Their voices faded.
But Adrian didn't move.
He stood there as though none of it mattered.
As though every accusation simply passed through him.
And somehow, that calmness hurt more than anger would have.
Soon, only a few people remained.
And then—
It was just us.
I couldn't breathe.
I couldn't think.
My mind kept searching for another explanation.
No.
He can't.
He wouldn't.
He's not like this.
But every excuse shattered against the memory of Claira's desperate cries.
My chest tightened painfully.
"Adrian…"
The name left my lips like a broken whisper.
He looked at me.
His eyes were blank.
Unreadable.
I hated that I couldn't find the answer I desperately needed in them.
"Why?"
My voice trembled.
"Why would you do this?"
He said nothing.
My knees suddenly weakened.
The floor seemed to disappear beneath me.
I stumbled.
Before I could fall, strong arms caught me.
His arms.
I froze.
His grip was firm, steadying me effortlessly.
For one terrible second, I was pressed against him.
I could feel his strength.
His warmth.
And somehow, that made everything worse.
My eyes filled with tears as I looked up at him.
His face remained completely calm.
No guilt.
No panic.
Nothing.
"Adrian…"
His name broke inside my throat.
Then—
"Adrian!"
Claira's weak voice shattered the silence.
I jerked my gaze toward her.
And suddenly, I realized he was still holding me.
Still touching me.
Still too close.
Panic surged through my chest.
I shoved him away.
"Don't."
The word came out broken.
I couldn't look at him anymore.
I couldn't stand another second inside that room.
So I ran.
I ran from his arms.
From his unreadable eyes.
From the whispers.
From the truth everyone else seemed willing to accept.
And most of all—
I ran from the truth I wasn't ready to face.
Because somewhere deep inside me, one question refused to die.
If Adrian really was the father of Claira's child…
then who was the man I'd believed he was?