Evadne paused for a brief moment at the classroom door.
Not because she was nervous. But because she felt the full force of a dozen dagger-sharp stares from the girls inside, each one burning with judgment.
The reason?
Cieryl was sitting near the front, shoulders trembling, silent tears sliding down her cheeks.
Her friends were gathered around her like a tragic scene in a high school drama. And Hades… he was beside her, whispering something that clearly wasn't helping, because instead of calming down, Cieryl began to cry harder.
Evadne heard it all.
Not the whispers. Not the sobs. But the thoughts, every loud, messy, self-righteous accusation flying through the minds of the girls glaring at her.
Still, she didn't care.
And if they thought she'd be intimidated just because she was the transfer student walking into their perfect, polished world, they were sorely mistaken.
She met every stare. Every hateful look. Held their gazes one by one, then smirked, raising an eyebrow like a silent dare, If you've got a problem, bring it. I won't flinch.
Then, without another glance, she walked to the back and took her seat by the window.
"Vee, they're saying you're the reason Hades didn't let Cieryl in the car this morning," Amanda's voice rang out loud and clear across the classroom.
Deliberate. Challenging.
Her tone dared Evadne to respond, while her thoughts revealed her true intention, she was itching to start a war with Cieryl, and hoped Evadne would play her part.
Of course, Evadne caught it all.
"Me?" she replied, voice cool and unbothered. "Who said that?"
"Cieryl," Bea answered before anyone else could speak, eyes twinkling as she winked at Evadne. "She arrived crying, saying you and Hades passed her house without stopping. She asked him if it was your idea."
Evadne raised an eyebrow again, then stood up slowly, her heels clicking with quiet menace as she walked toward the front.
All eyes followed her.
Cieryl looked up, startled. The perfect mask of a good girl, cracking at the edges.
Evadne's expression was unreadable. Her voice was calm, but there was a dangerous stillness to it.
"Cieryl," she said, tone almost polite, "is it true you're blaming me for Hades not stopping the car this morning?"
Cieryl's lips parted, but she didn't speak.
"I'll admit," Evadne continued, not giving her a chance, "I did tell Hades not to pick you up. But that's because his father had him followed, and you showing up would've complicated everything. Still, I told him it was his choice. I never forced him."
She tilted her head slightly, gaze sharp. "I thought you knew about our agreement, Cieryl. So why are you painting me as the villain?"
Gasps and murmurs began to ripple through the room.
Evadne turned toward Hades next. His face was pale, stunned by her bluntness.
"Hades," she said flatly. "Didn't you tell Cieryl about our deal?"
He didn't answer.
So she continued.
"I'm the one who offered it to you. That until the day you can finally choose her, we would pretend to be a couple in front of our parents. You and Cieryl could be together at school, freely, without pressure. I have no romantic interest in you."
Whispers flared louder.
"I even cried in front of our parents during dinner," Evadne said bitterly. "I gave them a whole performance just so they'd postpone the engagement they're planning, until my twenty-fifth birthday. I bought you time. I made myself look pathetic… for the two of you."
Her eyes flicked to Cieryl. "And now you're both turning me into the third party in your romance? Really?"
Silence fell like a hammer.
And then, the whispers exploded.
"Wait… she said it was Hades' call?"
"So Hades didn't stop even though he could have?"
"She's not the third party?"
"She's helping them?"
"She doesn't even like Hades?"
"Wow… how ungrateful are Cieryl and Hades?"
When neither Cieryl, Hades, nor any of their friends could answer the questions thrown in the air, Evadne let out an exaggerated sigh, just loud enough for everyone to hear.
And to the surprise of Hades' entire group, she turned around to face the rest of the students in the classroom.
Her voice rang out, clear, unapologetic, and laced with ice-cold control.
"Hi," she began. "I believe I haven't introduced myself yet."
She swept her gaze across the room, meeting every eye without flinching.
"My name is Evadne Persephone Monteverde. Yes, that Monteverde. And yes, Hades and I have been betrothed since we were five years old."
A collective gasp rippled through the room.
"But no," she continued, smile curving faintly, "I don't have any romantic feelings for him. And yes, I know all about him and Cieryl."
The room fell eerily quiet.
"But what some of you don't know is this, Hades is under pressure. Not from me. From his parents. The Falcon family. And because I pitied him, I offered him a deal, to pretend we're together in front of our parents so he wouldn't be forced into a marriage he doesn't want."
She looked directly at the girls who had been glaring at her earlier. "Let's get something straight. My parents aren't forcing me to marry anyone. I can choose whoever I want. I offered this agreement with Hades not for love, not for status, not to steal anyone's boyfriend, but because I didn't want to be the reason he collapsed under the weight of his family's expectations."
More whispers. More stunned looks.
"I don't expect any of you to understand what that feels like, being adopted into power, expected to carry a legacy that wasn't even meant to be yours. Most of you already know Hades was adopted after the Falcon couple's biological son died. What you may not know is that they wanted me to be their daughter. But since I have parents, they settled for making me their daughter-in-law."
"And so, my godparents adopted a boy from the orphanage to make him my husband. A boy I used to play with when I was younger. That boy… is Hades."
She turned to glance at Hades for a fleeting moment.
"I'm not in love with him. He's not my type. I'm doing this because I know how hard it is for him to carry the name Falcon. So I gave him a choice, let's pretend. I'll give you time. I even told him that if he and Cieryl wanted to date, I'd cover for them. Be their alibi. Let them be free here at school."
More gasps. Even a few guilty faces.
"And yes. I told Hades not to pick Cieryl up this morning. Why? Because I noticed his father's men following us. I didn't want him getting in trouble again."
She folded her arms, standing tall and still at the front of the class.
"I offered all of this without asking for anything in return. So if any of you think I'm the villain in this little love triangle… you're wrong."
Evadne's smile dropped.
"And if helping them is going to cost me my peace of mind, because everyone here is so eager to brand me the third party, then let's end the damn deal."
She turned to Hades.
"Starting today, I won't ride in your car. I won't act like your girlfriend. And I sure as hell won't lie for you anymore."
Now, she addressed the class once more.
"I understand your protectiveness toward Cieryl. You've known her longer. You care about her. That's fine. But I am not the kind of woman who builds happiness from someone else's pain."
She paused again, then added, her voice colder now,
"I'm also not the type to beg for friendship. If you don't want me here, that's fine. But I do ask you for one thing, if you have a problem with me, say it to my face."
Her eyes narrowed, her voice now icy calm.
"I'll always prefer someone who curses me to my face… than someone who smiles in front of me, only to stab me in the back."
Whispers erupted again. Shock. Guilt. Shame. Admiration. Confusion.
"Evadne!" Hades suddenly snapped, unable to hold it anymore. "What the hell are you doing?"
Evadne turned to him calmly, her voice even and unapologetic.
"Like I said, I'm setting the record straight. I won't be accused of sins I didn't commit."
Cieryl, suddenly soft, tried to salvage the situation. "Vee," she said, voice light and trembling. She had stopped crying the moment she noticed the shifting atmosphere, when the other students began looking at her and Hades with growing skepticism. "I didn't mean to accuse you. I never said it was your fault."
"You didn't mean to accuse me?" Evadne's voice rang out, sharp and unforgiving. "And yet you asked that question knowing that anyone who heard it would misunderstand. You asked it at a time when I wasn't even here to defend myself."
Her eyes were locked on Cieryl's, cold and unyielding.
"And above all," she continued, voice calm but slicing, "you asked the question to the wrong person. If you really thought I was the reason Hades didn't stop this morning… and if you truly didn't want to cause a scene, then you should've waited. You could've asked me directly when I got back."
She delivered each word without a hint of hesitation. No dramatics. No theatrics. Just raw, blunt truth.
Cieryl, humiliated, couldn't look away. She had never been called out like this. No one ever dared, not when Hades was around. She always had the perfect image, the perfect smile, the perfect defense. But not today.
She cast a helpless look at Hades, hoping he would say something, do something to stop the public unraveling of her carefully built image.
But it was too late.
Whispers started rippling across the room.
"She did say it loud enough for everyone to hear…"
"Evadne was actually helping them, and they made her look like the villain?"
"Typical Cieryl move. Always playing the victim."
"I never liked how she cries her way out of everything."
"Evadne, that's enough," Hades finally warned, voice tight.
"Enough?" Evadne echoed, turning to face him with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
She stepped forward, closer.
"Our deal was that we'd be free to be with whoever we wanted while at school, Hades. But the moment I stepped through that door, people were already whispering that I was ruining your relationship with Cieryl. That I was the third party."
Her smile faded.
"And you said nothing to correct them. So what exactly was your plan? Play house with Cieryl while letting everyone believe I'm the villain in your love story?"
Her voice dropped low. Dangerous.
"I assumed you ruled this school. That you could control narratives with a word. So forgive me for thinking that maybe you let those rumors spread… on purpose. Maybe this is your way of putting me in my place."
She gave a bitter laugh.
"But Hades, I know my place. The question is, do you?"
She didn't give him a chance to answer.
"Was it my fault that you were too blind to notice your father's people following us? That I had to point it out when you insisted on picking up Cieryl despite the risk? I said it was your call. I've told you since last week we were being followed. But you were careless."
Her voice sharpened further.
"So now it's my fault you broke your promise to her?"
Hades looked around, saw the shifting stares, the judgment creeping onto every face in the room.
He opened his mouth to respond, but he never got the chance.
Someone moved behind Evadne, sliding in close and casually draping an arm over her shoulder like it belonged there.
"What's the problem, Princess?" said the newly arrived Casadin, voice dripping with mockery and menace in equal measure.
Evadne didn't look at him, only reached up to rest her hand on his arm for support. His presence dulled the storm of voices in her head that had started to spike into pain.
"Cieryl and her friends accused me of making her cry," Evadne said plainly. "Because Hades didn't stop to pick her up this morning. I told him not to because his Dad's people were following us. And he didn't correct her."
Casadin's jaw clenched. His eyes scanned the room with thinly veiled contempt.
"Didn't I warn you about helping these mutts?" he muttered, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Told you they bite. See? Barely a week and they're already tearing into you."
He leaned in, voice rich with sarcasm and disgust. "You keep feeding stray dogs, Princess, one day they'll eat your whole damn arm."
Gasps echoed around them.
"Did he just call Hades and Cieryl strays?"
"Oh my God. Did he call her Princess?"
"Are they… together?"
"What is happening right now?!"
"You were right," Evadne said softly, finally looking up at him, and promptly bursting into laughter.
Her eyes widened.
"What the hell happened to your face?" she giggled. "Your eyebags could have their own postal code. Was the turbulence that bad you couldn't sleep?"
Casadin scowled.
"Sleep? What sleep?" he snapped, feigning outrage. "After the torture you inflicted on me with that photo? You thought I could actually rest on the plane after that?!"
He crossed his arms dramatically. "There was no turbulence. Just me. Dying. Slowly. Silently. With a boner and a prayer."
That sent Amanda and Bea into a fit of giggles at the back.
The class went still again.
Torture?
Evadne smirked, eyes narrowing with playful malice.
"Ah. The picture?"
Casadin groaned and rolled his eyes like a man wronged by the heavens themselves. "You sent me the gates of hell wrapped in temptation and captioned it a bribe. You think I could just sleep after that?!"
The tension in the room cracked, caught between shock and awe.
Whatever was happening between these two, it was nothing like the pretty, pitiful drama between Hades and Cieryl.
This?
This was chaos. Heat. And power.
And everyone could feel the shift.