Chapter 1
Edgar Bennett tossed my thesis into the trash without even looking up.
"Your logic is all over the place, and your data is fake. Grace Evans, you're not graduating on time," he said coldly.
The whole class went dead silent, except for my roommate, Olivia Lane, who was trying to stifle her giggles.
My eyes were red as I reached for the crumpled, dusty papers, my fingers trembling.
I'd rewritten this thesis eighteen times, and last night, I drank so much for the data that I ended up with a bleeding stomach.
He knew my family was bankrupt. If I didn't get my diploma, I'd have to work in a nightclub to pay off the debt.
"Why are you crying? Do you think tears could make your thesis better?" Edgar said coldly.
His voice was icy as he tore my proposal in half right in front of everyone.
I wiped away my tears, pulled out my phone right in front of him, and sent a voice message to my online boyfriend, a so-called broke student I'd been dating for three months.
"Babe, my advisor failed me. I'm done with school. Let's elope tonight. We can sell some stuff on the street," I said.
On the podium, Edgar's hand paused mid-flip as he went through his notes.
*****
That voice message went out like a bomb dropped into a still pond.
All eyes in the class shifted from me to Edgar at the podium in an instant.
My roommate, Olivia Lane's giggles got stuck in her throat, turning into a stunned gasp.
The air felt frozen.
Time seemed to stretch, every second grating on my nerves like sandpaper.
On the podium, Edgar's personal phone, sitting right next to the microphone, suddenly started vibrating like crazy.
In the dead silence of the lecture hall, the sound was deafening.
He hadn't put it on silent. Or maybe he forgot.
The next second, my voice message blared out from his phone for everyone to hear.
My voice was delicate and tearful, laced with a reckless sweetness that made it sound like I was ready to throw everything away for love.
"Babe, my advisor failed me. I'm done with school. Let's elope tonight. We can sell some stuff on the street," I said.
The word "babe" reverberated through the classroom, ricocheting off the walls like an echo.
The whole class erupted.
Everyone went wild, their eyes darting between Edgar and me like they were watching some bizarre reality show.
"Holy shit, what the hell is going on?" someone blurted out.
"Wait, her online boyfriend is... Mr. Bennett?" another person gasped.
"No way! This is insane!" someone else shouted.
Olivia's face alternated between pale and livid, her eyes burning with jealousy and resentment as she glared at me.
I stared daggers at Edgar up on the podium.
Edgar looked so furious. Grim didn't even begin to cover it.
It was the kind of silence right before a volcano blew.
He slowly lifted his gaze. His eyes, usually icy and dripping with sarcasm, were now sharp as poisoned blades, fixing me in place with a deadly glare.
It felt like he was about to tear me apart.
I met his gaze without flinching, but my heart was pounding like a drum.
It was him.
It really was him.
It was the same man who used to gently remind me to have some water whenever my stomach hurt.
He was the broke student who would patiently stay up all night with me whenever I was stressed about my data.
He was the boyfriend who promised to go to Dalias with me and open a flower shop.
And now, it turned out he was the devil professor who had pushed me to the brink and shredded every last bit of my dignity.
How ridiculous.
What a sick joke.
Edgar finally made a move.
He picked up his phone, his knuckles turning white from how hard he was gripping it, and hit the power button.
Then, with a voice cold enough to chill the air, he addressed the whole class.
"Class dismissed."
Those two words hit like a sledgehammer, leaving the classroom dead silent.
The students looked like they'd been pardoned, grabbing their bags and bolting out of the room without hesitation.
As they passed by me, everyone shot me a complicated look—some pity, some contempt, but mostly the excitement of watching the drama unfold.
Olivia was the last to leave. As she walked past me, she leaned in and lowered her voice so only I could hear. "Grace, you're disgusting."
I ignored her.
Every bit of me was focused on Edgar as he stepped down from the podium.
The classroom emptied out in no time.
He locked the door.
Edgar's tall figure loomed over me, radiating a suffocating intensity that made it hard to breathe.
He strode right up to me and stopped.
He looked down at me from above. His eyes were a storm about to break, threatening to tear me apart.
"Grace Evans," Edgar said, his voice rough and chilling. "Say it again. Who are you planning to elope with?"