Mia stood outside Adrian’s apartment door for a long moment, suitcases at her feet, the weight of the day crushing her shoulders. Expelled. Disowned. Publicly humiliated in front of the entire campus. The videos were still trending. Her name was ruined. Her future — the one her parents had meticulously planned — lay in ashes.
Yet here she was.
She knocked softly.
The door opened almost immediately. Adrian pulled her inside without a word, slamming the door shut and locking it. He cupped her face with both hands, thumbs wiping away the fresh tears on her cheeks, his grey-blue eyes burning with a mixture of pain, relief, and fierce possession.
“You came,” he whispered, voice rough.
“I had nowhere else to go,” she admitted, voice cracking. “And even if I did… I’d still choose you.”
Adri
