The classroom air was heavy, almost suffocating.Chalk dust, stale perfume, and the faint hum of the AC created a strange kind of silence that made every small sound echo.Alex sat at his desk, pencil tapping a rhythm he didn't hear.His mind wasn't on the lessons. It was on lunch. On Mia. On Lina.
Across the room, Lina's eyes were fixed somewhere else, but he could feel her stare slicing through him.Her arms were crossed tight, her fingers gripping her bag strap until it whitened.She was furious. Or hurt. Or jealous. He didn't know. And that uncertainty made his chest twist.
Why can't she just trust me? he thought.Why does this feel like the end of something I didn't even know was starting?
Suddenly, the scrape of a chair cut through the tension like a knife.Lina stood.The room seemed to shrink around them.Her eyes blazed, wide and sharp, like lightning ready to strike.
"We need to talk," she said, voice low but trembling.Alex's throat went dry."Talk about what?" he muttered, barely audible.
"About Mia," Lina snapped."About the way you smile at her. About the way you laugh at her jokes. About the way… you act like she's more important than me."
Alex's chest tightened.He wanted to speak. Words came, then vanished.
"It's not what you think," he said finally."She's just a friend. That's all."
Lina's laugh was bitter.
"Just a friend?" she repeated, the words cutting through him like glass."You sit next to her. Laugh at her jokes. Smile at her like she's the only person in the world.And I'm supposed to ignore that?"
Chris leaned back in his chair across the room, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.He didn't interfere.He didn't need to.The chaos unfolding was already delicious.
Interesting, he thought.The girl's jealous. Perfect. Let's see how far this goes.
Alex ran a hand through his hair, panicked.
"Lina… listen—"
"Don't," she cut him off, trembling with anger."Don't pretend this is nothing. Don't lie to me. Don't lie to yourself. Just… don't."
Her bag slammed onto the desk, papers spilling like leaves in a storm.Her eyes met his one last time before she turned to leave.
"I'm leaving," she whispered.
Alex's mind screamed at him to stop her.
Wait… Lina… don't go…But she was already gone.
The classroom was dead silent now.Only the ticking clock remained, louder than his heartbeat.Alex's phone buzzed.
Mia:Hey… everything okay?
Alex froze.Replying could make things worse.Not replying might destroy something else.His chest ached as he stared at the screen.
He looked outside.Lina was standing under the tree, arms crossed, eyes piercing into the distance.And Alex realized—he didn't just hurt her.He had no idea how badly he might have broken her.
Mia nudged him.
"Earth to Alex! You're spacing out again."
He forced a smile.
"Yeah… yeah, I'm fine."
He glanced back at Lina. She hadn't moved.The wind blew her hair across her face.Her phone buzzed. She didn't answer.Her eyes flicked to him, sharp and unreadable.
Chris watched from his seat, leaning forward just slightly.
Oh, this is perfect, he thought.The tension… the jealousy… it's already tangled. And now we wait.
Alex's phone buzzed again.He glanced down.Another message. Unknown sender.
Some lines, once crossed… can't be uncrossed.
Alex froze.The hallway outside blurred.The chatter of students faded.And for the first time, he realized—he wasn't just in trouble with Lina.
He was trapped in something much bigger.Something he couldn't see yet.
And someone was already waiting in the shadows to pull the strings.
End of Episode 7