Maya never liked the silence of night.
It wasn't peaceful or comforting like some believed. It was the kind of emptiness that reminded her she was alone at Blackwell.
She had perfected the smile. The one that everyone liked. It was bright, polite, easy to talk to. The one she put on so often it felt glued to her face.
Tonight, she took it off the second her dorm room closed shut behind her.
Her shoulders slumped. Her jaw eased up. She finally let herself take a deep breath.
Assignments won't finish themselves. You can't let them see you stumble.
She was halfway through another line of equations when she heard it:
A scrape. Metal against tile.
Probably dragging a suitcase or dropping a broom. Until she heard the second sound.
A thud, heave and off-balance, slamming into the wall.
"...Aiden?" It has to be him again, right? Well, I guess I can use it as an excuse to talk to him more. Lecturing him about how weird he was... A smiled etched across her face. I like talking to him.
She creaked the door open. No answer. "Aiden?"
Just a stagger followed by a low groan. The sound hollowed her chest instantly. She shoved the door open, warm light spilling out—and every breath left her in a single rush.
"Aiden?!"
He stood barely, blood soaking through his shirt, one hand on the wall, the other dragging—
A sword—?!
He didn't even lift his head. His legs buckled. Her mask fell with him.
Maya lunged forward, barely catching his full weight against her chest. His weight nearly crushed her. She gasped, bracing her heels into the tile, trying to keep them both upright.
"Oh my God—what happened? Aiden—hey—Aiden!"
The panic in her voice surprised even her. She didn't usually let anyone here her real voice— not the strained, cracking one she saved for when no one was around.
But he wasn't "people".
He was Aiden: the quiet boy who apologized too much. Who'd she'd seen hold open doors even when it wasn't necessary... And who never changed no matter what she'd thrown at him.
Right now, that same quiet boy was dying in her arms.
"Hey—hey—stay awake—Aiden, look at me! Please!"
Her arms shook from the strain, fighting to pull him toward the room. He wasn't helping, his legs and arms limp at his side. HIs head rolled against her collarbone, colder than it should have been.
"Aiden, you're bleeding—why didn't you call someone? What happened to you? Oh my God—"
She leaned over him—
—and that's when the first tear dropped.
Onto his cheek.
She inhaled sharply, wiping it away too fast, as if someone might see. But another fell. then another. Her breath turned into a silent sob.
"Hey—no—no, stop—" she whispered to herself, voice fraying, "don't cry—don't—"
Aiden stirred, a subtle flash of confusion on his face.
Barely.
And then, to her shock—
A trembling hand rose slowly from his check. It was sloppy, weak, and searching blindly. His knuckles brushed her chin first... then her cheek... finally resting there, rough and shaking, crusted with dried blood.
"Why..." His voice was no more than a short breath. "Are you... crying for me?"
His hand slipped from her cheek—
then from her fingers—
"Aiden—Aiden, stay with me! Please!"
His hand fully went limp resting on his chest, as his eyes rolled back and consciousness left him entirely. The sword slide from his grip, clattering against the carpet.
Her forehead hovered over his, her breath uneven, tears rolling down like waterfalls.
And in that moment— the rawest and most terrifying moment of her life — something inside of her broke open. Something she'd never said aloud, even to herself.
"Aiden... you can't... you're not allowed to die.
Her fingers tightened around his sleeve as she barely held him up "I... I looked up to you."
The words escaped before she could stop them.
She pressed her lips together, swallowing hard, then continued in a trembling whisper:
"You don't even know this… but every time I saw you eating lunch alone, or helping someone carry something, or apologizing when it wasn't your fault… it—it proved to me how you were able to live in your own way."
The admission was a knife to her own heart.
"Everyone thinks I'm so nice. So friendly. But that's just… something I put on." Her voice cracked again. "It's so exhausting…"
Her hands cupped his face gently, thumbs brushing away blood he couldn't feel.
"But you… you never pretended. Not once."
She laughed weakly, choked with tears.
"You just lived. Quiet, honest… like yourself. Even if you didn't fit in. Even if no one noticed."
She took a shuddering breath.
"That's why I always watched you from the corner of my eye."
Her tears slipped faster, dropping onto his shirt.
"And every time you smiled, even those tiny ones you don't think anyone notices… it made me feel like maybe I could be myself too."
She laughed again — soft, sad, embarrassed.
"That's why I was so happy when we finally talked. I thought… maybe I'd get to know you. Maybe I'd learn how someone like you exists."
Her voice softened to a trembling whisper, full of a fear she couldn't hide:
"I still want to learn more. I'm not done. I'm not done getting to know you."
Her hands trembled as she held his head against her chest.
"So, you can't die here. You can't."
Her breath caught.
"You don't get to disappear before I even get to know who you really are."
She brushed her thumb across his cold cheek one more time.
"Stay alive, Aiden. Please… stay. I'll take care of you."