Poison Rose of Avalon

After a long day of touring the school and familiarizing themselves with their new surroundings, Donovan, Kai, and Logan sprawled on the lush, inviting grass field, looking up at the rapidly changing sky.

The atmosphere took a sudden change, as if it air itself was waiting for something to happen.

Kai, restless and eager to probe, broke the silence. "Don, did you know about this place before? Is that why we are here?"

The frustration in his voice was apparent, tinged with genuine concern as he took in the striking inequality in the cafeteria.

They had been compelled to leave France because of a similar situation back home, and now, here they were, pulled back once again in a similar environment more maddening than the previous one.

Donovan chuckled before he let out a quiet sigh. He is aware of what Kai fears the most, and although Logan remains silent, he understands the implications of that silence as well.

"I didn't know. Father suggested it."

Logan, typically the quiet one, added in his usual deadpan tone,

"Maybe it's fate. It's best to stay out of it. It's none of our business. This is not our city, nor the people. Let's finish our school by following simple Buddha rules: peace, harmony, and non-violence."

Their laughter came and went in a rush.

The sky opened up, and raindrops danced from the clouds, painting the field in vibrant shades of deep green. Logan and Kai stood, moving toward the shelter of the spectator seats to avoid getting soaked.

But Donovan remained where he was, his body stiff and unmoving, his heart restless. The weight of the memories from France clung to him like a suffocating fog.

He wanted the rain. Needed it. He wanted the cold droplets to wash over him, to drown out the burning ache inside his chest. Laying back on the grass, he spread his arms wide as if to embrace the storm itself, hoping it would offer him some semblance of relief.

Meanwhile, behind the school, a very different storm brewed.

Kevin knelt in front of Liora, a cruel smirk twisting his face as he grabbed her ankle, ignoring her flinch of pain. He placed her injured leg just above his knee, and Liora, caught off-guard, stumbled precariously as if teetering on the edge of a fall to the ground.

Before she could tumble onto the ground, another figure, Hanuel, appeared behind her, steadying her with his unsettling snake-like hand wrapping around her waist. His touch felt more possessive than helpful.

"Sprained ankle, huh?" Kevin grinned, it wasn't a casual smile, more like a predator assessing its prey, glancing at his friends before breaking into laughter.

Kevin deliberately traced his fingers over her foot, a twisted game that sent a shiver down Liora's spine and made her skin crawl with unease.

His touch burned her with humiliation, and her heart pounded like a warning drum. She felt trapped, like the invisible walls of the universe squeezing tighter around her, leaving no escape in sight.

When Kevin pressed cruelly on the tender spot of her injury, pain erupted through her body, and a scream tore from her throat. In a split second, Hanuel's hand slapped over her mouth, muffling her cries just in time to escape into the open air.

Terror gripped her. Her mind raced, recalling Officer Park's words: Run. Never hesitate, Liora.

Just as the first torrents of rain began to fall, soaking everyone, the guys' attention was momentarily diverted by the way Liora's wet shirt clung to her skin, revealing her silhouette through the delicate, thin fabric of the white shirt.

She caught the shift in their attention, their eyes lingering on her soaked figure, and shame flooded her.

Summoning every ounce of strength, Liora shoved Kevin with her injured leg, the force sending him sprawling backwards. Desperate, she pushed Haneul aside and broke into a limping run.

Her torn shirt flapped in the wind, her bare feet slapping against the muddy ground. The sharp sting in her ankle screamed, but she ignored it.

Those four ravenous souls were hot on her heels, laughing like animals hunting their prey.

"She's ravishing. How'd we miss her before?" Andreas sneered, his eyes gleaming with indecent intent.

"I'm thinking the cabin," Hanuel suggested, his grin widening into something darker.

Kevin nodded with a smirk. "She's fast. But we'll catch her."

Liora's legs burned with exhaustion, but she refused to slow down. Her shirt ripped at the side during the struggle, but she didn't care. She could feel their footsteps gaining on her, their voices laughing at her misery.

"Beasts," she hissed, her voice thick with disgust as she stole another glance back at them. Was this what it felt like to be hunted? To be nothing more than prey for these rich, entitled monsters?

Just then, as she thought she couldn't run any longer, her foot caught on something. A rock, a jagged edge—her body went crashing to the ground.

From a distance, Logan and Kai, under the shelter of the stands, caught sight of the chase, their eyes widening as they watched the girl's desperate flight.

"Did you see that?" Logan asked, squinting his eyes.

"Yeah... I see four guys chasing a wounded runner," Kai answered without revealing any emotion.

They exchanged a look, concern flashing between them. Unaware of their surroundings, Donovan remained lying there, waiting for whatever the storm would throw his way.

Like a fruit plummeting from its branch to the ground below, she was there, landing squarely on top of Donovan.

Liora stumbled, falling directly into Donovan's arms, her face pressed against his chest. The impact shocked him. Without thinking, he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, even before opening his eyes.

Startled, he opened his eyes to find a girl collapsed against his chest, trembling like a leaf in a storm. Her head pressed into his vest, her fists gripping it tight as if it were her lifeline.

Thunder boomed overhead, and the girl flinched violently, burrowing deeper into his embrace.

"What the hell?" Donovan muttered, his confusion mounting as he tried to pull back slightly. But the girl still clung to him, her shaking body refusing to let go.

He glanced down and noticed her torn shirt, muddy, bare feet, and the raw fear in every movement she made. It didn't take long for him to grasp the situation as his gaze shifted to the figures making their way toward him through the rain.

Those bullies stood before him with smug expressions. However, they started to wave them off when they met his stormy glare.

Logan and Kai stayed where they were, arms crossed and face calm. They knew Donovan could handle these losers with nothing more than a flick of his wrist if it came to that.

With an air of bravado and an undeniable sense of entitlement, the self-proclaimed leader of the group, Kevin, boldly stepped forward, ready to prove his captainship to everyone around him. His smirk was filled with mockery.

"Thanks for keeping her warm, buddy. We'll take it from here."

Donovan's coked up one brow, and his voice was deceptively smooth, but the steel beneath it cut through the rain.

"Shouldn't you be sticking to the campus rules?" he remarked smoothly, his tone almost civilized, as if extending an olive branch to those morally bankrupt individuals to reconsider their misguided stance.

"Rules?" Andreas chuckled. "Come on, man. There's always room for exceptions."

Donovan didn't respond. His icy gaze stayed fixed on them, unblinking. The rain continued to pour harder, soaking everyone to the bone. Despite the rumbling thunder, Donovan did not flinch, showing no sign of fear. The storm wasn't just in the sky, it raged in his eyes, warning them - take another step and see what happens.

Donovan shifted his hold on Liora, shielding her in his arms as though protecting something fragile from the bunch of hyenas.

"We don't mind sharing," Haneul added, although not an ounce he meant it, trying to mask his desperation with a veneer of friendliness.

"Share?" Donovan's jaw tightened, and his eyes darkened dangerously. He narrowed his gaze, and a menacing shift swept through his energy. The fierce intensity of his fiery glare promised impending doom, sending chills racing down their spines.

Kevin's smirk faltered, and Andreas swallowed, his confidence eroding. Haneul's attempt at negotiation crumbled, replaced by the fear.

They weren't stupid ofcourse, they recognised the apex predator that Donovan was, and there was no comparison to his dominance.

They decided to back away for now. Haneul shot a last lingering look at Liora. That sickening, hungry for her, and vile look for this trembling girl made Donovan's blood boil.

The disgust twisted in his gut, but he pushed it down. The trembling girl in his arms needed his focus more than his anger.

"You're safe now," he said, his voice nowhere closer to calm. "You can let go of me."

But Liora didn't budge. Her fingers dug into his vest as if it were her only strength, her body trembling uncontrollably against him.

'Did she not hear me,' Donovan thought with a resigned sigh.

Her trembling reminded him of a bird caught in a storm, too fragile to stand on its own. He fought the urge to comfort her, and his cousins' sarcastic stares from the sidelines only added to his discomfort. He refused to look at them, already envisioning the sly smirks etched onto their face.

The storm raged on, thunder roaring across the sky. Liora tightened each crack with her grip, her terror evident in every shiver.

Donovan exhaled sharply. This couldn't go on. He pushed her away with care, prying her hands off him.

His push was bit too forceful for the trembling Liora, causing her to fell to the ground, catching herself with her forearm. The impact seemed to jolt her, but she didn't move further. She stayed there, frozen, her fingers clawing at the wet grass beneath her as if trying to anchor herself to reality.

Donovan stood, a pang of something unfamiliar tugging at him as he looked at her crumpled figure. His gaze fell to her swollen ankle, but he forced himself to look away.

'She'll be fine. A teacher will find her,' he rationalised, clenching his fists and turning away.

But the image of her trembling, broken, and abandoned gnawed at him with every step he took.

He resisted the temptation to look back. He had made it clear that his circle was off-limits to anyone looking to trespass, even if it meant turning a blind eye to the terrible events unfolding around the school.

Liora's heart sank. She'd been abandoned once more, left to drown in her pain while he walked away without a second glance.

She felt the bitterness rise, hot and choking. ′What else could I expect from these rich, entitled bullies?′

They treated people like her as if they were less than human, unworthy of kindness or even basic decency.

In this storm, her thoughts drifted to Caspian. He wasn't like them. He was kind, gentle—a rare light in her dark world. He is warm and his reassuring voice, filled the emptiness inside her with a comforting heat.

Her trembling fingers reached for her pocket, desperate to call him, but her limbs felt like dead weight. Her voice came out as a whisper, carried away by the storm. "Caspian..."

The name wasn't just a plea; it was a lifeline. He was the only one who could pull her from this abyss. The thought of him brought tears to her eyes, mixing with the rain as it poured down her face.

Her body gave out completely, collapsing onto the wet earth. Her forehead pressed into the ground, her arms limp at her sides. She lay there, vulnerable and broken, her mind clinging to the image of Caspian. The one who had quietly, gently stolen her heart.

*********

The next morning, the internet exploded. The video of the bullying incident spread like wildfire, flooding every corner of social media. News channels picked it up, replaying the footage relentlessly.

The video left no room for interpretation—rich kids tormenting scholarship students at the prestigious Elite School. Few faces were exposed, and the public outrage was immediate.

The fallout from the bullying scandal hit the bullies' parents hard, with their company's reputation taking a nosedive. Stock prices crashed, and the once spotless images of these parents were now getting burned under every corner, reporters digging up skeletons from the past and uncovering details surrounding the bullies' families.

Scholarship parents, who once saw the school as a dream opportunity, now view it as a nightmare for their kids. The uproar forced the school to shut down temporarily.

Within days, arrest warrants were issued for Kevin, Andreas, Haneul, Ronnie, and Silvia. The school held a press conference, issued a public apology, and promised reform.

The dean was fired, replaced by a respected education reformist. A new team was brought in to ensure incidents like this would never happen again.

Parents were assured that things would change. The school reopened after just four days. Students would no longer be forced to hide behind thick glasses or conform to rigid hair rules.

Liora returned a week later, her ankle healed and a bright smile on her face. Daran walked beside her, grinning knowingly.

"It was you, wasn't it? You leaked the video."

She shrugged, a playful glint in her eyes. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

In the quiet of the dean's office, the phone's sharp ring broke the stillness.

"Hello," the dean answered.

On the other end, a strong, commanding voice spoke, demanding attention. "I trust the school is to your liking."

The dean leaned back in his chair, his gaze drifting to the overcast sky outside the window. "Yes, Sir. Thank you."

"Good. Cross Liora Valentine's name off your list."

The dean's posture stiffened slightly. His eyes flicked to the papers spread across his desk, names neatly listed in careful columns. He flipped through them methodically until he found Liora Valentine's name.

Reaching for a red pen, he drew a thick line through her name, the ink bleeding through the paper.

"It's done, Sir."

There was a brief silence before the line clicked, the call ending as abruptly as it had begun.

The dean gently placed the phone aside, taking a moment to close his eyes and breathe in the fresh, invigorating scent, surrounded by little innocent human beings before turning his attention to the list before him. A slow grin crept across his face, one that hinted at secrets yet to unravel.