Elena sat on the campus steps, her knees hugged to her chest, watching the clouds move slowly across the sky. It had been two weeks since her tuition was mysteriously paid. Two weeks of silence. Two weeks of absence.
No notes.
No flowers.
No...him.
Luca was gone.
Not physically—she didn't know that for certain. But it felt like he had disappeared from her life. Vanished into the same shadows he always emerged from.
She didn't understand why the distance hurt so much. Why her chest tightened every time she walked home alone, hoping—praying—she might catch a glimpse of that hoodie. Those eyes. That stillness.
But there was nothing. No stalking presence. No watchful gaze.
Just loneliness.
And confusion.
"Maybe he's done with you," she muttered to herself, ashamed of the disappointment in her voice.
She hated herself for missing him.
She hated that she wanted to thank him—if it was him. She wanted to ask why. Why would someone like him care?
But she couldn't ask. And worse, she couldn't find him.
Not anymore.
---
Across the city, in the Romano estate's underground chamber, Luca's knuckles were split open. Blood coated the wrappings like worn paint on old leather.
"You're slipping," his cousin snarled, pacing in front of the punching bag. "You're weak, Luca. I saw it in the alley. The girl—you hesitated."
Luca didn't answer. He couldn't.
"You wanna protect her?" The man laughed, cruel and bitter. "Then disappear. If Father finds out about her—"
Luca slammed his fist into the bag, cutting the words off with raw violence.
"I am disappearing," he said through clenched teeth. "Isn't that what he wants?"
His cousin smirked, folding his arms. "You're bleeding over a girl who doesn't even know your name."
Luca lowered his head.
She did know it. Just not what it meant.
---
Elena stared at the empty seat beside her in the library. Her fingers gripped the edge of her notebook, distracted as usual. She thought of all the nights she used to feel watched. That strange comfort in being seen, even in silence.
Now the silence just felt like rejection.
Was she a burden?
Was she never enough?
Or had he realized—like everyone else eventually did—that she wasn't worth staying for?
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and stood up, slinging her bag over her shoulder.
She needed answers. But all she had were ghosts.
---
Meanwhile, Luca stood atop an abandoned parking structure overlooking her school. Far enough not to be seen. Close enough to still feel her.
He watched her walk away from the building, head down, alone.
He wanted to run to her. To tell her everything.
But his father's warning rang in his ears.
"The next time you let love make you weak, we'll bury her instead of you."
So Luca closed his eyes and took a step backward into the shadows.
It was safer this way.
For now