Ava stretched her arms, rolling her shoulders after the fight. She barely had a moment to catch her breath before someone approached her from behind.

“Ava.”

She turned to see Ethan, one of her classmates, standing there with an unreadable expression. His hands were shoved in his pockets, but there was something in his eyes—something intense.

“I need to ask you something.”

Ava raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

Ethan exhaled slowly, his gaze locking onto hers. “Can I court you?”

For the first time in a while, Ava was speechless. She opened her mouth, but before she could answer—

“Yo, Ava!”

Kai.

A strong arm hooked around her shoulder, dragging her away before she could say anything. She barely had time to register what had happened before she found herself being kidnapped by her own friend.

“Wait—Kai, what the hell?” she snapped, struggling to keep up with his pace.

Kai only grinned down at her. “Oh, don’t mind me. I just saved you from making a horrible decision.”

Ava scowled. “And what exactly makes you think it was a horrible decision?”

Kai chuckled darkly. “Because Ethan and I? Worst enemies.”