The dean's office was cold. Neutral. Too silent.
Michelle sat stiffly beside Steve as the dean scrolled through his tablet, pausing on the image that had taken the school by storm — them, wrapped in each other, peaceful by the fire. A moment that had meant the world to her… now tainted.
"I don't believe this picture alone proves misconduct," the dean finally said, looking over his glasses. "But it's caused… disruption. Rumors. Division. That's not something we can ignore."
Steve leaned forward. "So what now? We're being punished for being together?"
"No," the dean said evenly. "But I need to know who took it. And why."
Michelle spoke up. "We didn't share that location with anyone. The only people who knew were Lila and Jordan."
"Then someone followed you," the dean said. "And I intend to find out who."
Later that day, Lila stormed into Michelle's dorm, holding her phone tightly.
"I found it," she snapped. "The photo was posted from a dummy account, but I tracked the original image. It was synced to a school laptop."
Michelle's breath caught. "Whose?"
Lila looked at her, fury in her eyes. "Avery's."
Michelle felt the ground tilt beneath her.
Of course. Avery — the queen bee. One of the girls who had locked her in the bathroom weeks ago. One of the girls who hated that Steve chose Michelle.
"She's not just jealous," Lila whispered. "She's obsessed."
The confrontation wasn't subtle.
Michelle found Avery later that night in the common room, surrounded by her usual group. But this time, Michelle didn't back down.
"You followed us," Michelle said flatly. "Took that photo. Shared it anonymously like a coward."
Avery tilted her head. "Prove it."
"We already did," Steve's voice came from behind her. "The file was synced to your device."
Avery's smug expression faltered.
"Why?" Michelle asked, voice trembling. "What did I ever do to you?"
Avery stood slowly. "You walked in here like you belonged. Like you could just take him. Like people would just like you."
"So you tried to destroy me?"
"No," Avery said coldly. "I wanted you to see how quickly they'd turn on you. And they did."
"You turned on yourself," Michelle said. "Because you think love is something you earn by power or fear. But it isn't."
She took Steve's hand.
"It's something you give. And no amount of your bitterness can take that away from us."
That night, Michelle received a message from a blocked number:
This isn't over.You should've stayed quiet.
Michelle stared at the screen, pulse racing.
Avery might've been exposed……but someone else was still watching.
Plotting.
Waiting.
And this time, the next move might cut even deeper.