"Iv, rise and shine!" I yelled, startling Ivy awake. She sighed and drew the blankets back over her head.

"C'mon, you don't want to skip class today, do you?"

"I can't believe it's already been a week, Soph. It's crazy how quickly time passes. "

"All right, cranky ass, you have ten minutes, or I'll be on my way." She eventually got out of bed after some grumbling and frowning, and I got ready for my lectures.

"Wow, someone's dressed to impress today." Ivy commented, coming out of the bathroom. I gave her a sidelong glance while inspecting my attire. It was a modest one-piece black dress with full puffed sleeves that ended just below my knees. Black stockings and ankle-length boots completed the look. I let my hair down and secured it with a cute hairclip.

"Sweetheart, dress to the nines." I retorted while organizing my books and supplies.

"Darling, whatever you say! He'd be blown away, I'm positive. " She winked at me, giggling.

"Are you done? We have lessons to attend, after all. "

"Yeah, yeah, go on! Ms. Mood spoiler—highly torturous—Soph. "

We strolled through the corridors, oblivious to the stares we were receiving, especially me. Gossip travels at a breakneck speed! I let out a sigh and kept going. I went through my messages, responding to some and deleting the ones that were scams. I was startled when I felt Ivy nudging my sides. I gave her a quizzical look, and she indicated our opposite direction.

I noticed Senior Aria and her gang were approaching us. Was she going to say anything along the lines of, 'Don't go near Aylwin. He's mine.' or a variation thereof. Instead of a clichéd scene, she strolled right by me, our eyes interlocked. My gaze was drawn to the smirk that grazed her lips. Something wasn't quite right about her. She emanated a vibe that screamed, 'Watch out for danger with me being the one.'

That expression she gave me was incomprehensible to me. It wasn't just a leer or a taunt, though. Underneath her stillness, a raging storm was brewing, and I couldn't help but wonder what was going on in her head. As we approached our classes, I permitted the whirling ideas in my head to settle down.

"Soph! Soph! Stop! " I was stopped in my tracks by the sound of someone shouting. I spun around to find myself face-to-face with Winter.

"Yes?"

"You need to see this," she said as she handed me her phone.

I stiffened as soon as my eyes landed on the screen. "Wow, only this is left in my life!" I muttered under my breath.

On the Uni forum, there was a picture collage that included Senior Aylwin's photo with me and Senior Aria. So basically, there was an argument about who would be the best match as his girlfriend. Things were going crazy for me when he personally posted the photo, and I couldn't figure out whether I should be elated or enraged. That explained Senior Aria's look, but was that it? Or was there more to it? My life felt like a daily soap opera that I had no control over.

"Yes, and I'm pregnant!" As I plopped down in my chair, that was the first thing I heard. Their voices became muffled as soon as they became aware of my presence.

"WTF! Who's pregnant? " I exclaimed, giving them an astonished and baffled look.

"No one yet, but perhaps in the near future." Saphy replied, her tone dripping with mischief. The others chortled and smirked at me.

"What? Why are you staring at me like that? " Austin was nowhere to be found. He'd been acting strangely recently. Less interaction, less time spent together, and so forth. What was the matter with him?

"Ah, the viral gal is here!" Felix had me roll my eyes at him as he mocked me.

"Gal, you're in high demand!"

"Yeah, and what's the price?"

"A sizzling, irresistible, and striking..." "Sheesh, shameless people!" I interjected, cutting Damy off.

"Look who's bringing up the subject of shame!" Ivy gave me a sickly smile that made me squint at her.

"I'm in my limits." Only I knew how much truth was conveyed in my words. Phew! They certainly didn't need to know that.

"Ah, darling, is that so? Because these pics tell a whole different dark tale. " They teased me about my flushed face.

Yeah, there goes my pride!

I needed to change the subject before they irritated me any further. I took a mouthful of my nuggets and cleared my throat a little. "So, you all know they both had a past together?" The table was deafeningly quiet when I asked. They shared a few glances before Saphy nodded.

"Yeah, we're kind of... hmm, aware of that."

"It went viral on the forum a year ago, and they were the talk of the university for weeks, if not months. They never talked about it publicly, and the photo was finally taken down after a few days. No one dared to bring it up. "

"For starters, they were terrified of Senior Aylwin, who had an Oh-Stay-Away-From-Me vibe that said, 'You don't want to meddle with your worst nightmares.'"

"Dude, you guys are exaggerating!" The way they portrayed him made me laugh out loud. All devil-devil!

"Ah-ha, someone's defensive!"

"It's known as truth-telling."

"Well, in the dictionary of Cupid, we call it defending. Couple goals—never mind! How can I forget that you both aren't normal human couples with Cupid knowledge? " I gave him a small chuckle and rolled my eyes.

"I'm a witch with witchcraft, and he's a bloodsucking vampire."

"Vampires are bloodsucking only! Ever heard of a water-sucking vampire? Or juice-sucking vampire? " All heads turned to Ivy as she continued to go on about her vampire ideology. She stopped quickly, realizing the murderous look she was receiving from everyone.

"What?"

"Way to ruin the moment!" She huffed in annoyance, "Fine, go on talking! I'll not say anything! "

"Well, that's new, Ivy!" Damy chuckled, ruffling her hair.

"You're mean!"

"At least I'm not pregnant!" That made us laugh.

"So... where was I?" Saphy inquired, her forefinger tapping on her chin.

"Oh yeah! As I previously stated, no one cared to inquire about it, and he didn't give two fucks what other people thought of him. Senior Aria, on the other hand, was very upset by all of it, or so we believed." She shook her head and wiped her mouth with a tissue.

"And why would you think that?" The more they spoke up, the more intrigued I became by the scenario. There was so much I didn't know about them, and I was desperate to find out all I could.

"We don't call her the 'Itchy witch' for no reason. Perhaps she staged the act to gain attention and all that horseshit. After all, who wouldn't want to be with Senior Aylwin in their right mind? Of course, expect me! " I laughed as she gave Felix a sheepish grin.

"Guys, it's time to bid our Princess Sophronia goodbye." He spoke up, his gaze set on my left.

"Umm... are you guys going somewhere?" They smirked at me.

"No, sweetie, not us, but you! Your Prince Charming is on the way. "

My breath hitched as I followed their gaze. He was striding towards me, clad all in black, from head to toe, in a black sleeveless tee, black casual pants, and matching shoes. With a black jacket dangling in his hand, he wore the bar pendant hanging loosely on his chest. His hair was tousled to perfection. Everything about him screamed sin and beauty. But it was the tattoos that popped out of his arms, intricately carved and embellished on his right arm, that piqued my interest. Dark crimson shades with a tinge of royal blue and intense ebony colors were used in the tattoo. Until that man happened to me, I had no idea such eye-catching things existed in the world.

Things the guy did to me!

As he approached our table, I found myself standing up with wobbly feet. He acted as if nothing had transpired in the previous two or three days. As if he hadn't heard about the hot topic brewing on the Uni forum. I so badly wanted him to react, or at the very least, show something, anything, but he didn't!

Insecurity was the last thing on my mind at the time. It was all about his views and opinions, and guess what? He wasn't the one to articulate what he was feeling, was he?

"Wanna grab a coke?" I could almost hear the 'oohs' and 'ahs' surrounding me when he asked, which just added to my nervousness.

Normal people might say, 'Hey, wanna grab a coffee with me?' But we were anything but normal.

"Sure." I grinned as I followed him out of the cafeteria, conscious of the stares we were receiving.

Huh, for all I know, you can keep gazing! You're not going to get him!

"Are you genuinely unaware of the Uni mess, or are you just too skilled at playing cool?" As we sipped our cokes, I blurted out. We were seated under a huge shaded tree, enjoying the pleasant breezes and each other's company. We decided to take a break after a bit of walking. It was quiet and satisfying.

"Stupid college bullshit isn't my cup of tea." With a shrug, he replied. Sitting that close to him allowed me to get a clear view of his arm tattoo. It began beneath his clothing and progressed up his arms, finishing at his elbow. It was a lion inked in crimson and black with a royal blue highlight across the curves. I wondered what else was there beneath his clothing. I felt a surge of heat sweep over my body, prompting me to shake off my not-so-holy thoughts.

"And here I thought you loved your privacy." I was dying to know why he had posted those photos. To him, what did they even mean? Why did he suddenly jeopardize his privacy for me? He was the most anti-social guy I'd ever encountered, so what happened? His stare was fixated on me, making me fidget uneasily with my fingers. At the same time, his intensity, charisma, scent, and hotness were all too much for me to endure.

"You know very well than me. Dust away some nights."

"You make me commit sins I never fucking thought I'd ever come across."

"You fucking make me feel things that I no longer ever thought of. Something I haven't felt in a long time. You evoke emotions in me, and goddammit, I so fucking hate this! "

I was blushing profusely. How could I ever forget those nights? The nights when we teased, verbally and emotionally molded one another, where we poured out the majority of ourselves without reluctance, where we took risks that should never have been taken, where we entangled ourselves with sins and imperfection. The nights when we committed perfect sins. The night we became— Sinners.

"Memories are vivid, words are etched, and the tingling touch and taste endure." Mr. Not-So-Holy-Talks began all over again. While letting my thoughts out with him, alone with him, I relished and felt confident.

"They were meant to, weren't they?" How wicked was his retort? The agonizing flames draped themselves around me, blowing away the shards of pessimistic thoughts, the fogginess in my head, and the yearnings of my soul crawled through my veins. But the finest thing was how much I savored it, how much I devoured it, how much I let it flow through and inside me.

"Aren't you a player?" I remarked, chuckling. He'd always been the player. He loved playing with his life, and then he began to play with mine... No! He was fueling me with things I'd never experienced before.

"Playing with the Praiser?" Praiser? Did he honestly believe I was a praiser? Perhaps it was because I was... I didn't know, and I'd never attempted to figure it out, but at the moment, I wished I did. I simply saw things in my life as gifts or presents that enabled me to live a better life. After all, I couldn't allow my tumultuous past to consume me. Never, ever, ever!

"Imperfect player."

"Sinful praiser."