This was his world. A world where everyone either feared him or wanted something from him.
And now, apparently, I lived in it too.
His car was parked in the senior lot a sleek black Audi that probably cost more than my aunt's yearly salary. He opened the passenger door for me, and I caught the scent of expensive leather interior.
"Get in," he said quietly.
I did.
The door closed with a solid thunk, sealing me inside. A moment later, Kai slid into the driver's seat, and suddenly the spacious car felt impossibly small.
He started the engine a low, powerful purr and pulled out of the parking lot without a word. I watched Blackwood Academy disappear in the side mirror, feeling like I was leaving my normal life behind.
"You need to work on your acting," Kai said finally, breaking the silence.
"Excuse me?"
"In the cafeteria. In the hallway. You look like I'm holding you hostage." He glanced at me, one eyebrow raised. "Which, technically I am, but nobody else is supposed to know that."
Heat flooded my cheeks. "Maybe I'd be better at acting if you'd given me more than five seconds' notice that you were picking me up."
"Consider this notice for the rest of the week. I'll drive you to and from school every day." He turned onto the main road, handling the car with practiced ease. "We'll be seen together at lunch. You'll come to my basketball game Friday night. Saturday, there's a party at Marcus's place we're going to that too."
My stomach dropped. "Marcus is throwing a party?"
"Yeah. And we need to make an appearance, show everyone we're the real deal." His jaw tightened. "Plus, I want him to see that you're completely off-limits."
"I can't go to Marcus's party. He hates me now because of" I gestured between us. "This."
"He hated you before this. Trust me." Kai's voice went cold. "Marcus Chen has had his eye on you since sophomore year. Why do you think he never bothered you directly until today?"
I blinked. "What are you talking about?"
"You really don't pay attention, do you?" He shook his head. "Marcus has been circling you for two years, waiting for the right moment to make his move. Today, when you witnessed him assaulting that kid, he saw an opportunity to leverage your scholarship against you."
My blood ran cold. "How do you know that?"
"Because I pay attention." He took a turn onto a street I recognized the road that led to my neighborhood. "And because Marcus is predictable. He's been trying to get close to you for months. Following you to your classes. Showing up at the library when you study. Always just… there."
I thought back, and with horrifying clarity, I realized he was right. Marcus had been everywhere lately. I'd assumed it was coincidence.
"Oh my God," I whispered.
"Yeah." Kai's knuckles whitened on the steering wheel. "So when I say you're coming to that party with me, it's not a request. You need protection, whether you want to admit it or not."
We pulled into my neighborhood a stark contrast to the manicured lawns and mansions near Blackwood Academy. Here, the houses were small and close together, paint peeling, chain-link fences rusted. My aunt's place was at the end of the block, distinguished only by the flower boxes she'd installed on the porch.
Kai parked in front and killed the engine.
The silence stretched between us.
"This is where you live," he said. Not a question.
"Yes." I lifted my chin, daring him to comment.
But he didn't mock me. Didn't look disgusted or pitying. He just nodded slowly, taking it in.
"Your aunt works two jobs," he said. "Night shift at the hospital, and she cleans houses on weekends."
"You really did research me."
"I told you. I know everything about you, Aria Sullivan." He turned to face me fully, and his expression was unreadable. "Born in Bridgeport General Hospital. Parents died in a car accident when you were fourteen.
You've been living with your aunt ever since. You got a full scholarship to Blackwood based on your test scores top one percent nationally. You want to go to Stanford and become a doctor."
Each fact felt like a small invasion of privacy.
"You plan to save the world," he continued, softer now. "Or at least the small part of it you can reach. Because nobody saved your parents, and you can't live with that."
Tears stung my eyes. "Stop."
"Why? It's the truth." He reached out, and I flinched, but he only tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. The gesture was gentle, almost tender. "You're a good person, Aria. That's why this is going to work."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that Marcus wants to corrupt you. Break you. Own you." His hand dropped away. "But me? I'm going to make sure that never happens. For three months, you're under my protection. Nobody touches you. Nobody threatens you. And in return, all you have to do is smile at me a few times a day."
"There has to be more to it than that," I said. "Why do you need a fake girlfriend? Why me specifically?"
For a moment, I thought he might actually answer. Something flickered in his eyes pain, maybe, or regret.
Then his mask slammed back into place.
"Rules," he said instead. "First rule: Don't ask questions about my life. Second rule: We're affectionate in public but keep our distance in private. Third rule: This ends in exactly three months, no matter what. We walk away clean."
"And if I break the rules?"
His smile was sharp. "Then I stop protecting you, and you deal with Marcus on your own. Think you can manage that?"
I thought about Marcus cornering me in the parking lot. The threats. The way he'd looked at me like I was something to be possessed.
"No," I admitted quietly.
"Smart girl." Kai pulled out his phone and typed something. A second later, my phone buzzed. "That's my number. You text me if anything happens. Anything. I don't care if it's three in the morning."
I stared at his contact info on my screen. Just the letter K.
"Why are you doing this?" I asked. "Really?"
He was quiet for a long moment, staring out the windshield at my aunt's modest house.
"Let's just say I have my reasons," he finally said. "And leave it at that."