Monday morning on campus. The main courtyard was packed.
Olivia Carter was holding court by the fountain, surrounded by her inner circle, including her best friend, Jessica Thorne. Olivia was wearing a tight, baby-blue sundress that hugged her perfect, heart-shaped rear and pushed up her C-cups. She was laughing, but her eyes kept darting toward the main pathway.
She was waiting for Adrian.
In her mind, the script was already written. Adrian would show up, looking miserable and sleep-deprived. He would apologize profusely for embarrassing her with the cheap necklace, and he would offer to do her midterm paper to make up for it. She would let him suffer a bit, then agree, keeping her favorite little pet on his leash.
"Is he seriously not here yet?" Olivia muttered, checking her phone.
Jessica, standing next to her in a tight athletic top and yoga pants, crossed her arms. "Maybe he finally took the hint, Liv. You were pretty brutal."
"Please," Olivia scoffed, flipping her golden hair. "He's obsessed with me. He'll be here."
A moment later, the crowd parted slightly. Adrian Vale was walking down the path.
Olivia smirked, puffing out her chest, readying her most condescending glare.
But as Adrian got closer, the smirk slowly slid off her face. He wasn't slouching. He wasn't looking at the ground. He was walking with a slow, predatory grace, his shoulders broad, his dark eyes looking straight ahead. The [Clean Aura] made him look effortlessly handsome, and the [Dominant Aura] made the students around him subconsciously step out of his way.
He didn't look like a simp. He looked like a king walking through his courtyard.
He approached the fountain. Olivia stepped forward, ready to receive his apology.
Adrian didn't even look at her. He kept his eyes forward and walked right past her, his shoulder brushing the air inches from hers.
Olivia froze. Her brain short-circuited. Did he just ignore me?
"Adrian!" she called out, her voice sharper and louder than she intended.
Adrian stopped. He turned his head slowly, looking at her over his shoulder. His eyes were dead, completely devoid of the desperate adoration she was so used to seeing.
"What?" he asked, his voice deep and flat.
Olivia felt a strange, uncomfortable flutter in her stomach. The sheer dominance radiating from him was confusing her body. "Aren't you... aren't you going to say anything to me? About Friday?"
Adrian fully turned to face her. He let his eyes drag up and down her body, but not with lust. He looked at her like she was a boring, overpriced piece of art he had decided not to buy.
"Say what?" Adrian replied, his [Magnetic Smile] twisting into a cold smirk. "You did me a favor, Olivia. You showed me exactly what you are. I don't waste my time on cheap investments."
The courtyard went dead silent. Several people gasped.
Olivia's face flushed a violent, furious red. "Excuse me?! You're the cheap one! You're a loser, Adrian!"
Adrian didn't argue. He didn't get defensive. He just let out a low, dismissive chuckle, turned his back on her, and walked away.
Olivia stood there, her chest heaving, her hands balled into fists. She was furious, but beneath the fury, a dark, twisted seed of panic had been planted. He didn't care anymore. Her power over him was gone.
Standing a few feet away, Jessica Thorne watched Adrian walk away. Her heart was pounding against her ribs. She had spent her entire college life watching men grovel at Olivia's feet. Seeing a man completely shatter Olivia's ego, seeing him look so incredibly dominant while doing it...
Jessica bit her lip, her thighs squeezing together. For the first time, she looked at Adrian Vale and felt a deep, undeniable spark of attraction.
Adrian didn't go to class. He went to the campus library.
He knew Olivia's schedule, which meant he knew Jessica's schedule. Jessica was a kinesiology major, obsessed with fitness and maintaining her perfect, sculpted body, but she struggled heavily with the academic side of her degree. Usually, Olivia would force Adrian to help Jessica with her work just to keep her best friend happy.
Adrian found Jessica in the quiet, dimly lit archives section in the basement of the library. She was sitting at a large oak table, surrounded by textbooks, aggressively chewing on the end of her pen.
She was wearing a tight, black athletic zip-up that clung to her modest but incredibly perky B-cup chest, and gray leggings that highlighted her firm, muscular thighs and sculpted rear. She was gorgeous, but she always played second fiddle to Olivia's explosive curves.
Adrian walked over, his footsteps silent on the carpet, and pulled out the chair directly across from her.
Jessica jumped, her eyes widening as she saw him. "Adrian? What are you doing here?"
Adrian didn't answer immediately. He leaned back in his chair and activated [Emotion Scan].
[Target: Jessica Thorne] [Stress: 75%] [Jealousy (General): 80%] [Curiosity: 60%] [Arousal: 25%]
"You're doing the biomechanics paper," Adrian noted, glancing at her textbook. "The one Olivia is supposed to be helping you with."
Jessica's jaw tightened. "Liv is... busy. She had a brunch date with Victor."
"Right," Adrian said, his voice dripping with smooth, calculated sympathy. He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table, and unleashed [Eye Contact Control]. "She's busy playing the queen, while you sit in the basement doing all the heavy lifting. Just like always."
Jessica's breath hitched. The psychological pressure of his gaze pinned her to her seat. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't lie to me, Jess," Adrian murmured, his voice dropping to a hypnotic timber. He activated [Weakness Detection].
[Target Weakness Identified: Deep-seated inferiority complex regarding Olivia Carter. Desperately craves validation that she is superior in beauty and worth.]
"I see the way you look at her," Adrian continued, his dark eyes piercing right through her defenses. "I see how hard you work in the gym. Your body is flawless. Tight, sculpted, perfect. Yet every guy in the room stares at Olivia because she wears lower-cut shirts and acts like a brat. It pisses you off, doesn't it?"
Jessica's face flushed a deep crimson. Her chest heaved against her tight athletic top. No one had ever spoken to her like this. No one had ever seen through her supportive-best-friend act.
"Shut up," she whispered, but there was no venom in it. It was a plea.
"Why should I?" Adrian asked, standing up slowly. He walked around the table until he was standing right beside her chair. The [Dominant Aura] wrapped around her like a heavy blanket. "You're smarter than her. You're definitely tighter than her. You're the actual prize, Jess. But you let her treat you like her shadow."
Jessica looked up at him, her lips parted, her eyes wide and glassy. The arousal meter on the system interface was spiking rapidly.
[Target: Jessica Thorne] [Arousal: 65% (Rising rapidly)] [Submission: 40%]
Adrian reached down and gently gripped her chin, tilting her head back. His thumb brushed over her lower lip. Jessica gasped softly, her firm thighs clamping together under the table.
"There's a private study room at the end of this hall," Adrian whispered, his voice dark and commanding. "Pack up your things. Meet me in there in two minutes. I'll show you what it feels like to be treated like the main attraction."
He let go of her chin, turned, and walked down the dark aisle of bookshelves.
Jessica sat frozen for exactly ten seconds. Her heart was hammering a frantic rhythm against her ribs. Her mind screamed at her that this was Olivia's ex-simp, that this was a betrayal.
But her body was completely on fire.
With trembling hands, she shoved her textbooks into her bag, stood up, and hurried down the dark aisle after him.