Author's Preface
Lia, are you serious? Bryan asked, disbelief clear in his voice
You like him? pointing his fingers towards him
Lia kept her eyes tightly shut, her heart pounding so loudly it felt like everyone could hear it
She nodded
Then, gathering every ounce of courage she had left, she spoke her voice trembling yet loud enough for everyone to hear
“Y–yes"
Slowly, almost fearfully, she tilted her head and opened her eyes to finally see the person she had just confessed to
The one holding the letter was none other than Raven
The school bully
Her breath caught in her throat
Raven smirked, clearly amused
Lia, what did you dooooooooooooo?! her mind screamed in pure panic
Lia, stop talking nonsense, Bryan snapped angrily
Why would you even like a shi
Hey, mind your language, Ray interrupted sharply
He glanced at the letter in Raven’s hand
Let’s check the letter and see who she actually wrote it for
They unfolded the paper carefully. The words written on it echoed loudly in the tense silence:
From kindergarten to high school you have been the reason I came to school
and I wish we could continue this for the rest of our lives....
See? Ray said, pointing at the lines. “It says from kindergarten to high school, mate”
Bryan froze
Raven raised an eyebrow, his expression calm and unreadable
Bryan, he said evenly, you didn’t forget
did you?
I was your classmate from kindergarten to high school too
Murmurs spread through the crowd instantly.
Yeah, I heard the three of them studied together since kindergarten…
So it could be anyone…
No… something’s wrong
Bryan began, but stopped himself
Lia stood frozen in the center of it all, her face burning with humiliation
Every second felt heavier than the last
There’s only one way out of this, she thought desperately.
Taking a deep breath, she blurted out the words before fear could stop her
Raven… will you be my boyfriend?
Bryan’s eyes widened in complete shock
“LIA!!” he shouted
He’s going to reject me anyway, Lia thought bitterly
Let this embarrassment end here
Let this be the full stop
Raven’s friends scoffed
Do you really think just because she proposed here, our boss is going to ac-cept
“I accept.”
The words fell like thunder
What?! voices echoed all around.
The rooftop fell silent
Even Raven’s friends stood frozen, their expressions filled with disbelief
And Lia…
Lia couldn’t believe her ears
Raven turned toward the stunned crowd, his voice firm and completely unbothered.
From now on, Lia and I are a couple
His gaze hardened as he continued, I hope no one here tries to get close to her
As he said that, he slowly raised an eyebrow, his eyes locking directly onto Bryan.
The warning was unmistakable
Before anyone could react, Raven slipped an arm around Lia’s shoulders and pulled her close
Without another word, he dragged her away from the rooftop, leaving behind shocked whispers, gasps, and frozen expressions
Lia didn’t resist
She couldn’t
Her mind was blank, her heart racing uncontrollably as her feet moved on their own
What just happened…?
Still trapped in shock, she let Raven lead her away completely unaware that everything she thought she knew had just changed forever