The university buzzed with its usual weekday rhythm — footsteps echoing in long corridors, chatter spilling from open classroom doors, the faint smell of coffee drifting in from the campus café. Students hurried with books clutched to their chests, while others lounged lazily on benches, scrolling their phones as if time didn't exist. For Maya, Lila, Ethan, and Noah, this was supposed to be just another normal day. But sometimes, normal was just the calm before the storm.
MAYA: (adjusting her bag strap) We've got econ first, right?ETHAN: (checking his phone) Yeah. Then lab. Which means twice the boredom in half the time.LILA: (mock gasp) Excuse you, Ethan, econ is thrilling. Numbers are my love language.NOAH: (flat) That explains a lot.
They laughed — easy, natural, the way it always was. But whispers have a way of creeping into the cracks of normality.
By mid-morning, the first whisper had reached them.
Two girls by the fountain eyed Lila as the group passed.
GIRL 1: (not-so-quiet whisper) She really thinks she runs this place.GIRL 2: (snorting) Yeah. Queen of Chaos. Can't believe they actually hang out with her.
Lila tossed her hair, unbothered. But Noah's jaw tightened. Ethan glanced at him, saying nothing.
Later in the cafeteria.
STUDENT 1: (leaning across the table to Ethan) Hey… don't wanna stir things up, but—ETHAN: (frowning) Then don't.STUDENT 1: (insisting) No, you should know. Lila was telling people you're basically her guard dog. Said you only tag along because you've got nothing better to do.
Ethan's fork froze in midair.
ETHAN: (flat) Who told you that?STUDENT 1: Heard it myself outside the library yesterday. She thinks she's untouchable, man. Just… watch your back.
The student left with a shrug, like he'd done Ethan a favor. Ethan stayed quiet, but his eyes darkened.
That same afternoon, outside the lab.
A guy from their class tapped Noah's shoulder.
STUDENT 2: Hey. Don't take this the wrong way, but… you know Lila's been saying you're basically invisible, right? That you're just tagging along for attention?NOAH: (expression unreadable) …Is that so.STUDENT 2: (shrugging) Just thought you should hear it before it blows up in your face.
The words lodged like stones in Noah's chest. He gave nothing away, but the seed was planted.
By the end of the day, even Maya wasn't spared.
Two girls cornered her outside the library.
GIRL 3: (smiling sweetly) Maya, you're so nice. Honestly, you don't deserve how Lila talks about you.MAYA: (blinking) …Excuse me?GIRL 4: She said you're easy to manipulate. That you'll always side with her no matter what. Like—her little safety net.MAYA: (voice tight) When did she say that?GIRL 3: (shrugging) People talk. Just thought you should know.
Maya walked away with her head spinning, clutching her books tighter. It didn't sound like Lila. It didn't sound like her at all. But… what if?
By evening, the laughter between the four wasn't the same. It stuttered, cracked, faltered. Noah was quieter. Ethan colder. Even Maya found herself hesitating before replying. Lila, oblivious, kept teasing, kept smiling, unaware of the storm gathering at her back.
Evening bled into the campus like spilled ink. The quad, once alive with chatter, now hummed with the quieter rhythm of students heading to dorms or huddling in the library. The four usually walked together, loud enough to draw looks. Tonight, the silence between them stretched too long, too heavy.
LILA: (swinging her bag strap, oblivious) So—are we doing movie night? I'm voting horror. Nothing says bonding like collective trauma.
She grinned, expecting groans, a sarcastic jab, Noah's dry comment. Nothing. Ethan checked his phone. Noah stared ahead. Maya forced a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
LILA: (slowing her steps) …Okay. Rude. Did the horror suggestion kill you guys or what?ETHAN: (flat) Not in the mood.LILA: (blinking) Since when are you ever in the mood?
Normally, that would've gotten a laugh. Tonight? Just silence. Noah's hands shoved deeper in his pockets. Maya bit her lip and looked away.
In the cafeteria, the shift grew clearer.
Lila dropped her tray onto their usual table with a dramatic thud.
LILA: (grinning) Fear not, peasants, I have acquired fries. Which means—sharing time.
She slid the plate forward. No one reached for it. Ethan tapped his fork against his plate, eyes elsewhere. Maya stirred her soup without eating. Noah pulled out his notebook, head bent like the conversation didn't exist.
LILA: (trying to joke) Wow. Okay. Guess I'll just get fat alone.
She popped a fry in her mouth, the crunch echoing louder than it should have. Something inside her twisted. This wasn't right. She could feel it. But she kept the mask on — the grin, the sarcasm — because she didn't know what else to do.
Later, outside the dorms.
LILA: (linking her arm with Maya's) Walk me back? I'll serenade you with a ballad about econ homework.MAYA: (gently pulling away) I've got stuff to finish. Sorry.
Maya walked off without looking back. Ethan muttered something about meeting a classmate. Noah just nodded once and left, hands in his pockets, fading into the shadows of the path. And for the first time in a long time, Lila was standing alone.
She laughed to herself, sharp and brittle.
LILA: (to no one) Huh. Guess even legends get boring sometimes.
But her chest ached. For once, her smile didn't feel like armor. It felt like cracks spreading, thin but dangerous, across glass that was about to shatter.