The courtyard behind San Miguel Arcángel had always been quiet after mass—just stone benches, bubbling fountains, and towering palm trees stirring in the late-morning heat. Students were usually herded straight back to the academy, but Amina and Clara lagged behind just enough to avoid suspicion.
Clara tugged at her sleeve. "We should catch up with the others. Sister Beatriz will kill us if we're—"
"I'll be five minutes," Amina murmured, pretending to tie her shoe. "Just go. I'll meet you at the corner."
Clara hesitated, eyes scanning the courtyard. "Are you… meeting him?"
Amina didn't answer. Her heartbeat did.
Clara exhaled sharply, then hurried off after the group.
The moment she disappeared beyond the archway, the world fell silent—hot, still, humming.
That was when Amina felt it.
A presence.
A shadow at her back.
A soft step on the old stones.
"Your acting skills are terrible, you know."
Leo.
His voice nearly melted her right then. She straightened slowly, pulse hammering. He stepped out from behind one of the stone columns, sunlight catching the green in his eyes, hair slightly messy from the breeze. He kept his hands tucked casually into his pockets, looking as if he totally belonged there—even though he absolutely didn't.
"You're going to get me arrested," Amina whispered, glancing around. "Or worse—expelled."
Leo smirked. "Relax. You think I'd let you get caught?"
The confidence in his voice made her chest tighten.
"You weren't supposed to talk to me," she reminded him. "You didn't even look at me inside."
"I looked at you plenty," Leo said. "Just not where anyone else could tell."
Heat rushed through her.
He stepped closer. Not close enough to touch her, but enough that she could smell the faint scent of warm cologne and the remnants of incense from church.
"You shouldn't be here," she said again, though even she didn't sound convinced.
"Maybe," Leo murmured. "But I needed to give you something."
That pulled her up short. "What?"
Leo glanced around once, scanning the courtyard with a sharpness she hadn't seen before. His joking expression softened, replaced by something serious… intentional.
He reached into his pocket.
For a second, Amina's breath froze.
Then he held out something small, black, and cheap-looking.
A phone.
A tiny burner phone. The type people used when they couldn't afford to be tracked.
Amina stared at it. "What is this?"
"The only way I can talk to you," Leo said plainly. "St. Celeste's blocks almost everything, right? No social media, no messaging apps, no calls."
Amina swallowed. "Right…"
"So take it." He pushed it forward gently. "It's unregistered. Doesn't trace anywhere. You can hide the battery if you're worried about nuns sniffing it out. It's safe."
She hesitated.
He dropped his voice even lower—so soft she almost didn't hear it.
"I don't want Saturday to be our only day."
Something in her chest cracked open.
Amina reached out slowly and took the phone from his hand. Their fingers brushed. The touch was brief, but it sent heat straight up her spine.
"Why are you doing this?" she whispered.
Leo took a small step back, leaning against the stone column. "Because you're interesting. And because you make church a hundred times more entertaining."
She rolled her eyes, but she couldn't hide her smile. "You barely kept your laugh in."
"You noticed?" His lips curved, lazy and devastating. "I thought I was subtle."
"You are not subtle."
"I was subtle enough not to get you caught."
Amina opened the phone; a single contact was saved.
"L."
She looked up at him sharply. "You put your name in here?"
"Relax. Just an initial." He shrugged. "And don't worry—I'll text you from random numbers. Nothing traceable."
"You've done this before, haven't you?"
He held her gaze, eyes glinting. "Maybe. Maybe not."
Before she could press him, a distant voice echoed through the courtyard:
"Amina! Hurry up!"
Clara.
Her voice tinged with panic.
Leo straightened. "Go."
Amina hesitated. "When will you text me?"
His smirk returned—slow, confident, dangerous.
"When I know you're alone."
Her breath caught.
"And Amina?"
She paused.
Leo's expression softened for the briefest moment—no smirk, no teasing. Just sincerity.
"Don't let this place kill the part of you that climbed onto that rooftop yesterday."
Her heart stuttered.
Then he turned and slipped behind the column, disappearing into the shadows before anyone else stepped into the courtyard.
Amina stood frozen for a few seconds, clutching the tiny phone in her palm like a secret heartbeat.
Clara appeared at the archway, out of breath. "What were you doing? You scared me!"
Amina forced her expression neutral. "Nothing. Lost track of time."
Clara's eyes narrowed. "You didn't—"
"No," Amina lied too quickly.
But Clara didn't push. She just linked her arm with Amina's as they walked toward the academy gate.
Amina's fingers curled tightly around the phone hidden inside her skirt pocket.
Her pulse was still racing.
Leo had crossed a line today.
And she had let him.