She stand there listen stunned can't believe what she heard, without another Word she walked pass him walking
Her hands trembled.
Not because she was flustered.
Because she was furious.
Confused.
Shaken.
Her lips still burned with the memory of what had just happened, and that only made her angrier.
At the end of the hallway, she stopped.
Slowly, she turned.
Qin Jingze hadn't moved.
He stood exactly where she left him, hands at his sides now, expression unreadable for the first time since arriving.
The confidence was still there but quieter.
Watching.
Waiting.
Ivy swallowed hard.
"You don't get to do that," she said, voice unsteady but sharp.
Silence.
"You don't get to investigate me, decide what I like, chase me around, kiss me without asking, and then say I remind you of someone else like that explains anything."
Her chest tightened.
"Hana," she said carefully.
Something shifted in Qin's face.
Fast.was still there but quieter.
Watching.
Waiting.
Ivy swallowed hard.
"You don't get to do that," she said, voice unsteady but sharp.
Silence.
"You don't get to investigate me, decide what I like, chase me around, kiss me without asking, and then say I remind you of someone else like that explains anything."
Her chest tightened.
When Ivy finally made it to school, her legs ached from the long walk and her mind felt even worse. Every step replayed the morning over and over again Qin Jingze's voice through the megaphone, the gifts, the kiss, and those final words about Hana.
By the time she reached the school gates, exhaustion clung to her like a shadow.
The halls were louder than usual.
Students whispered in clusters the second they saw her.
"That's her."
"Did you hear what happened this morning?"
"He brought a limousine…"
"I heard he kissed her in front of everyone."
Ivy lowered her head immediately, gripping the strap of her bag tighter. Her stomach twisted. She hated attention. Hated the way people stared like they were watching some drama unfold instead of a real person trying not to fall apart.
She moved quickly through the hallway, hoping to disappear before anyone stopped her.
Too late.
"Well," a familiar voice drawled smoothly, "looks like the main character finally arrived."
Zoey leaned against the classroom doorway, arms crossed, expression unreadable except for the faint amusement in her eyes.
Behind her, several classmates instantly went quiet.
Ivy stiffened. "I'm not in the mood today."
Zoey studied her carefully the slightly swollen lips, the tired eyes, the way her hands trembled almost imperceptibly.
Interesting.
"So it's true," Zoey murmured softly.
Ivy's jaw tightened. "What do you want?"
For once, Zoey didn't answer immediately.
Because this was different from the rumors.
Different from gossip.
There was something unsettled about Ivy now fragile, confused, cornered and for the first time, Zoey wondered if maybe Liam had been right to sound concerned.
But the thought vanished as quickly as it came.
"You look exhausted," Zoey said instead, tilting her head. "Rough morning?"
Ivy stared at her.
Then, quietly: "You already know the answer to that." with that lvy walked to class
Zoey's eyes followed Ivy until she disappeared into the classroom, her fingers tapping lightly against her arm like she was replaying every detail in her head.
The slightly swollen lips.
The guarded shoulders.
The way Ivy didn't look back once.
A faint smile curved Zoey's mouth again, but it didn't reach her eyes.
"Interesting," she whispered to herself.
From behind her, a chair scraped softly.
"Are you enjoying this?" a voice asked.
Zoey didn't even turn around. "Depends on your definition of 'enjoying.'"
Zoey's smile lingered for a moment longer, thin and unreadable, as she finally turned her head slightly toward the voice behind her.
Liam stood a few steps away, hands in his pockets, his expression tight in a way that didn't match his usual calm. His eyes flicked briefly toward Ivy's classroom door, then back to Zoey.
"You're not answering the question," he said quietly.
Zoey hummed under her breath, almost like she was amused by how serious he sounded. "And you're asking the wrong one."
Liam exhaled sharply. "You told me to observe Ivy. Not" he paused, searching for the right word, "not push her into whatever this is becoming."
Zoey tilted her head. "I didn't push anyone. I simply… opened doors. People decide whether to walk through them."
"That's not how it looks from here," Liam replied, voice lower now. "Qin Jingze is escalating. And Ivy" His jaw tightened. "She's overwhelmed. Anyone can see that."
For the first time, Zoey's expression shifted slightly. Not softness. Not guilt. Something more like calculation adjusting itself.
"Ivy is adapting," Zoey said. "That's all."
Liam stared at her. "You're enjoying this."
A beat of silence.
Zoey finally looked at him properly then, her eyes sharp enough to cut through doubt. "If I were enjoying it," she said lightly, "you'd know."
That answer didn't reassure him. If anything, it made his expression darker.
Inside the classroom, Ivy slid into her seat, avoiding every glance that flickered her way. Her bag felt heavier than usual, like it was filled with things she couldn't name—rumors, stares, the memory of lips that still made her stomach twist in anger more than confusion.
She kept her eyes on the desk.
But she could feel it.
The entire room watching her without watching her.
Liam entered a few seconds later, unhurried. The chatter dipped instantly. He didn't look at Ivy right away just closed the door softly behind him and walked to her seat like nothing had changed.
Like nothing had happened.
That, somehow, made it worse.
When he finally sat down,he glanced sideways.
Ivy was already staring at the board, rigid, silent, refusing to break.
Liam, rested his chin on her hand. Listening to the teacher talking nonstop, after hour the bell finally rang everyone rush out. When lvy pack her books, at her corner of her eyes Liam was reading one piece manga, her eyes wide for a bit.Ivy blinked again, convinced she was hallucinating from exhaustion.
"…One Piece?" she repeated under her breath.Liam finally glanced up, still holding the manga slightly open like there was nothing unusual about this moment at all.
"Yes," he said simply. "It's popular for a reason."
Ivy stared at him longer.
"You don't strike me as the anime adventure chosen-one destiny friendship speech' type."
"That's because you don't know me I love animess," he replied, turning another page.
Ivy stared at him for a few seconds longer, then let out a tired breath that sounded almost like disbelief. So who is your favourite character
Liam paused mid-page turn.
His eyes flicked up calm, but with a hint of amusement like he'd been waiting for her to ask something normal for once.
"Favourite character?" he repeated.
Ivy nodded, still watching him like she couldn't decide if this was real or her brain short-circuiting from stress.
Liam closed the manga slowly, resting it on the desk. "Luffy."
Ivy blinked at him.
"Luffy?" she repeated, like the word itself didn't belong in this conversation.
Liam nodded once, as if that settled everything.
"Yeah," he said. "He's stupid sometimes. Loud. Gets himself into situations he shouldn't survive." A pause. "But he never backs down from what he believes in."
Lvy stare at him for a hour NO WAY Luffy is my favourite character too he is very funny wow we got more in common than we expected!!! she said it with a huge smile on her face
Liam stared at her for a moment
Not in the way people usually did quick, distracted, already thinking of something else.
He was actually looking at her.
Like he was trying to figure out whether this version of Ivy was real… or just a side people want to see
.
Liam stared at her for a second.
Then, very quietly, he said, "That's… actually accurate."
Ivy froze mid-smile.
"…Wait. You agree with me?"
Liam shrugged one shoulder. "Mostly."
That did it.
Ivy leaned forward like she'd just discovered a hidden treasure. "Okay, wait. So who's your second favourite? Don't say Zoro, everyone says Zoro just to look cool."
"I wasn't going to say Zoro."
"Good."
"I was going to say Zoro."
Ivy gasped. "LIAM."
He finally let out a real laugh this time short, quiet, but unmistakably genuine.
Lvy lean in her chair and said fair point zoro is funny sometimes when he can't pay Yami money back
Liam's laugh faded into a small smirk as he leaned back in his chair.
"Zoro is funny… in a painful way. Like watching someone get lost in a straight hallway."
Liam tilted his head. "That's… accurate."
A brief silence settled between them not awkward this time. Just quieter. Less sharp.
Ivy glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "So you actually watch anime properly, or is this just a one-time personality reveal?"
"I watch it," Liam replied. "Not as much as I used to."
"Used to?" Ivy repeated immediately, catching onto the phrasing.
Liam hesitated for half a beat. "Yeah."
That was all he said.
But something in his tone shifted subtle, but noticeable. Like the conversation had brushed too close to something he didn't feel like opening.
Ivy picked up on it, but didn't push. Instead, she leaned back in her chair again, stretching her arms.
"Okay," she said lightly, changing direction on purpose. "Then I'm judging your taste later. Properly."
"I'll survive," Liam said.
"Debatable."
For the first time that day, Ivy felt something loosen in her chest. Not gone. Just… lighter.
The bell outside the classroom corridor rang again, echoing through the halls. Chairs scraped, voices rose, and the room slowly came alive with movement.
Ivy started packing her bag, slower this time.
Liam closed his manga and slipped it into his backpack.
He handed her a piece of paper with his phone number on it "if you ever want to talk I am here"
Ivy froze for a second.
The piece of paper sat between them like it weighed more than it should.
Her fingers didn't move to take it right away.
"…Is this your way of being dramatic?" she asked, trying for sarcasm, but it came out quieter than she intended.
Liam didn't react to the question. He just held it there, steady.
"No," he said simply. "It's my way of making it easy."
That made her look up at him properly.
Easy.
Like anything about the last twenty-four hours had been easy.
Ivy finally reached out and took the paper. Her fingertips brushed his for the briefest moment before she pulled back like it had burned.
She stared at the number.
Then at him.
"You realize I could lose this," she said.
"You could," Liam agreed.
"That I could ignore it."
"You could do that too."
Ivy narrowed her eyes. "You're not exactly persuasive."
A faint hint of a smile tugged at his mouth. "I'm not trying to persuade you."
That threw her off more than anything else.
For a moment, she didn't respond. The classroom noise around them felt distant again, like it belonged to another world entirely.
Finally, she folded the paper carefully not too neat, not too messy and slid it into her pocket.
"I'm not promising anything," she said.
"I didn't ask you to."
That silence between them returned, but it wasn't heavy this time. Just… present.
Ivy slung her bag over her shoulder and stood.
At the door, she hesitated.
Without turning around, she said, "Liam?"
"Yeah?"
"…Don't make it weird."
There was a pause.
Then, very quietly behind her: "Too late."
Ivy huffed a small laugh despite herself and walked out into the hallway, disappearing into the noise of the school.
Liam stayed seated for a moment longer, watching the empty doorway.
Then he leaned back slightly, exhaling under his breath.
And for once, his expression wasn't unreadable.
Just thoughtful