I left Selene's penthoutheat 5 AM, before the sun came up.
She was still asleep on the couch, curled into the space where I'd been. I'd left a note on the coffee table. Just two words: Thank you.
I didn't know what else to say.
The Uber ride back to campus was quiet. The driveMsidn't try to make conversation, which I was grateful for. I watched the city wake up through the windodownrly moninstomachs. Coffee shops turning on their lights. People stang their normal, uncomplicated days.
I envied them.
By the time I got back to my dorm, Jake was already awake, doing push-ups in the middle of our tiny room.
"Dude," he said between reps. "Where the hell were you? I woke up at 2 AM and your bed was empty."
"Couldn't sleep. Went for a walk."
"A five-hour walk?"
"I needed to think."
Jake stopped mid-push-up and looked at me. Really looked at me. "Are you in some kind of trouble? Because you've been acting weird for weeks. Disappearing. Coming back with envelopes of cash. Wearing designer tuxedos. If you're mixed up in something illegal..."
"I'm not. I promise." I dropped my backpack on my bed. "It's just complicated."
"Complicated how?"
"The kind I can't talk about."
Jake stood up and gr a towel, wiping sweat from his face. "Okay. But if you need help, if things go sideways, you tell me. Got it?"
"Got it."
He didn't push further. That was one thing I appreciated about Jake. He knew when to let things go.
I showered, changed, and headed to my morning classes with three hours of sleep and a conscience that felt like it was being crushed under a boulder.
The Maybach picked me up at 2:45 PM.
I climbed into the back seat, and this time, Marcus spoke.
"Ms. Aurelia asked me to tell you she's looking forward to your session today," he said. "She seemed in better spirits this morning on me on me."
"That's good."
"She also asked me to tell you that she's sorry for being difficult yesterday."
I looked up at the rearview mirror. Marcus's eyes met mine briefly.
"She's not difficult," I said. "She's just figuring things out."
"Indeed." Marcus pulled onto the main road. "Ms. Selene also asked me to inform you that she won't be home until late this evening. Business dinner downt,own."
My ,stomach tightened. "Okay."
"She said to tell yoon u..." He paused, like he was choosing his words carefully. "She said to tell you that she appreciates your discretion."
So Marcus knew. Or at least suspected.
Of course he did. He drove us everywhere. He saw everything.
"I understand," I said quietly.
We didn't speak for the rest of the drive.
Aurelia was waiting in the library, but she wasn't sitting in her usual chair.
She was standing by the window, looking out at the grounds. When she heard me enter, she turned around, and I could see she'd been crying. Her eyes were red. Her face was puffy.
"Aurelia," I said, dropping my backpack. "What's wrong?"
"My mother and I had a fight this morning." Her voice was shaky. "About you."
My heart stopped. "What about me?"
"She told me I was being inappropriate. That I was developing feelings that were inappropriate for a student-tutor relationship. She said if I couldn't maintain professional boundaries, she'd have to find me a new tutor." Aurelia wrapped her arms around herself. "I told her she was projecting. That she's the one with boundary issues, not me."
"What did she say?"
"She didn't deny it. She just got very quiet and very cold and told me to drop it." Aurelia walked over to me. "Elias, what's going on? Why is my mother so threatened by me having feelings for you? Is there something you're not telling me?"
I could feel the walls closing in.
"There's nothing going on," I lied. "Your mother is just protective."
"It's more than that. I know her. I know when she's hiding something." Aurelia's eyes searched mine. "Please be honest with me. Are you afraid of her? Is she threatening you?"
"Aurelia, stop."
"No. I won't stop. Because something doesn't add up. You were fine on Friday. We kissed. It was real. I know it was. And then suddenly you're sick on Monday, and when you come back Tuesday, you're distant. You're telling me we can't be together. And my mother is acting like she's won some kind of battle I didn't even know we were fighting."
She was too smart. Too perceptive.
I needed to redirect. Fast.
"Your mother wants what's best for you," I said carefully. "She sees me as a distraction. And maybe she's right. You're about to launch Haven. You're about to start your freshman year at university. You don't need the complication of dating your tutor."
"Stop talking about what I need. I know what I need." She stepped closer. "I need honesty. I need someone who doesn't treat me like I'm made of glass. I need you."
"Aurelia..."
"Tell me you don't feel anything for me. Look me in the eyes and tell me that kiss meant nothing. That I'm just some naive girl with a crush on the first guy who was nice to her. Tell me that, and I'll drop it. I'll move on."
I looked at her. At her red-rimmed eyes and the hope flickering there despite everything. At the vulnerability she was showing me, the trust.
And I couldn't do it.
I couldn't lie to her face.
"I can't tell you that," I said quietly. "Because it would be a lie."
Her breath hitched. "Then why are you pushing me away?"
"Because it's the right thing to do."
"For who? For my mother? For you? Because it's not the right thing for me." She reached out and took my hand. "I'm eighteen. I'm an adult. I get to decide what I want. And I want you."
"It's not that simple."
"Why not?"
Because I'm sleeping with your mother for money. Because I'm trapped in an arrangement that's destroying me from the inside. Because I'm the worst person you could possibly have feelings for.
"Because I'm twenty-one and broke and drowning in responsibility, and you deserve someone who has their life together. Someone who can give you the world instead of dragging you down into chaos."
"I don't want the world. I want you."
She kissed me.
And God help me, I kissed her back.
It was different from the garden kiss.
More desperate. More urgent. Like we were both trying to hold onto something that was slipping away.
Her hands fisted in my shirt. My hands went to her waist, pulling her closer. She made a small sound against my mouth, and it nearly broke me.
We pulled apart, both breathing hard.
"We can't do this," I whispered.
"I don't care."
"Your mother will find out."
"Let her." Aurelia's eyes were fierce. "I'm tired of living my life according to her rules. I'm tired of being afraid."
"Aurelia, listen to me. If we do this, if we cross this line, there will be consequences. For both of us."
"I know. And I'm choosing it anyway." She took my face in her hands. "I'm choosing you."
I wanted to tell her the truth. Wanted to confess everything. Wanted to explain why this was impossible.
But I was a coward.
So instead, I kissed her again.
We spent the rest of the session pretending to work.
Laptops open. Notebooks out. But neither of us could focus.
Every few minutes, our eyes would meet. And the air between us would crackle with everything we weren't saying.
At 6 PM, Aurelia closed her laptop.
"Stay for dinner," she said. "Please. The chef left food, and my mother won't be back until after 10."
I should've said no. Should've left while I still could.
But I was already in too deep.
"Okay," I said. "Dinner."
We ate in the kitchen again.
Pasta. Salad. Garlic bread that was probably made from scratch by someone who went to culinary school in France.
We talked about everything except the elephant in the room.
Aurelia told me about her plans for Haven's launch. About the marketing strategy she'd developed. About the first wave of beta testers who were already signing up.
I told her about my classes. About the TA position I'd been offered for next semester. About Jake and his endless supply of terrible jokes.
It felt normal. Easy. Like we were just two people having dinner.
But we weren't.
We were playing with fire.
And eventually, we were going to get burned.
At 8 PM, we were washing dishes together.
Aurelia was at the sink, scrubbing a plate. I was drying with a towel that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe.
"Can I ask you something?" she said without looking at me.
"Sure."
"Do you think about the future? Like, where you'll be in five years? Ten years?"
"Sometimes. Why?"
"Because I think about it constantly. And I can never picture it clearly. It's just this vague outline of what my mother wants me to be. CEO. Businesswoman. The next generation of Rowan Industries." She rinsed the plate and handed it to me. "But I don't know if that's what I want."
"What do you want?"
"I want to build things that matter. Like Haven. I want to help people. I want to make a difference that isn't measured in profit margins and stock prices." She looked at me. "And I want to be with someone who sees me. Really sees me. Not my mother's daughter. Not the heir to a fortune. Just... me."
"Aurelia..."
"I know. I know it's naive. I know the world doesn't work that way. But can't I at least want it?"
"You can want whatever you want."
"Then I want you." She turned off the water and dried her hands. "Is that allowed?"
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed.
A text from Selene.
Selene: Dinner running late. Won't be home until midnight. Make sure Aurelia eats. And Elias? Be careful.
I stared at the message.
Be careful.
What did that mean? Was she warning me? Testing me? Giving me permission?
"Is everything okay?" Aurelia asked.
"Yeah. Just my roommate asking when I'll be back."
Another lie to add to the pile.
At 9 PM, Aurelia asked if I wanted to watch a movie.
We ended up in a home theater I didn't even know existed. A room with plush recliners, a screen that took up an entire wall, and sound system that probably cost more than a year of my tuition.
Aurelia picked some sci-fi film I'd never heard of. We sat next to each other, and halfway through, she leaned her head on my shoulder.
I didn't pull away.
By the end of the movie, her hand had found mine.
And when the credits rolled, neither of us moved.
"Elias," she whispered.
"Yeah?"
"Can I tell you something I've never told anyone?"
"Of course."
"I'm scared. All the time. I'm scared of disappointing my mother. I'm scared of failing. I'm scared of being alone for the rest of my life." She squeezed my hand. "But when I'm with you, I'm not scared. And I don't know what that means, but I don't want to lose it."
My throat was tight. "You won't lose it."
"Promise?"
I couldn't promise that. I couldn't promise anything.
But I said it anyway. "I promise."
She lifted her head and looked at me. "Can I kiss you again?"
"Aurelia, we shouldn't..."
"I know. But I'm going to anyway."
She kissed me. Slow and sweet and full of trust I didn't deserve.
And I kissed her back, hating myself with every second that passed.
At 10:30 PM, I called an Uber.
Aurelia walked me to the front door, her hand still in mine.
"Thank you for tonight," she said. "For staying. For being here."
"Anytime."
"Same time tomorrow?"
"Yeah. Same time."
She hesitated, then stood on her toes and kissed my cheek. "Goodnight, Elias."
"Goodnight, Aurelia."
I walked to the Uber and didn't look back.
Because if I did, I might not leave.
And staying would only make everything worse.
When I got back to my dorm, there was an envelope taped to my door.
Inside was $1,000 in cash and a note in Selene's handwriting.
This week's payment. You're doing well. Keep it up. And remember our arrangement. No complications. - S
I stared at the money.
Blood money. That's what it felt like.
I'd kissed Aurelia tonight. Multiple times. Let her believe we had a future.
All while her mother paid me to stay away from her.
I was living a double life. And it was only a matter of time before both lives collided and destroyed everything.
I hid the money under my mattress, lay down fully clothed, and stared at the ceiling until Jake came home at midnight and asked if I was okay.
I told him I was fine.
Another lie.
I was drowning.
And I didn't know how to stop.