Joan’s POV“I love you,” I said. If I were drunk, I would have tagged my words as an effect of liquor or being overly sad from a hangover that I just wanted to say something, but I haven’t felt any more alive and free than I did. Just saying that word was the first time telling him boldly about this weird feeling that makes me think of him every day.I expected him to move away or, worse, push me off, but he pulled me in with a warm smile on his face, his bulky hands wrapped around me, and he kissed me.“I love you so much," he said, kissing my bare neck. Shivers coursed through me, and a feeling so tender eluded my heart as he looked back at me while holding me at arms length. My cheeks reddened to blush, followed by the nausea.“We have an hour before the first lectures; I can’t have you going late,” he said, pulling me closer. He unbuttoned my clothes till I was fully naked, then lit me up, placing me in the bath. I was smitten by the care and tenderness, making me feel meek, while

Fredericks POVI wasn’t expecting Sophia in school, but she was like a leach and had her arms wrapped around my neck. With Joan beside me, my heart weighed a tonne. I didn’t know how to react to her presence, and my newly found cause of happiness was suspended.I had wanted to share the greatest news with Joan, but not until Sophia came. She didn’t tell me she was coming; otherwise, I would have avoided the charade. I had hoped she wouldn’t be much of a pest now that she couldn’t just drive all the way to me, but I guess I was wrong.“Why aren’t you smiling? I tracked you down here, and you chose to frown instead. You should be surprised, not sad.” Holding me at arm's length, she pulled me close and kissed me. My heart skipped a beat. At that instant, I knew Joan would be pissed. I wasn’t given the opportunity to look at her, and I dreaded the expression on her face already. She was going to chew me up and spit me out any time she saw me.“You don’t look too cheerful to see me; you ne

Joan’s POV'Beep, beep, beep’I heard noises in the room; it was familiar, and with the scent that made my belly purge, I could already tell I was in a hospital, and Fred was going to be by my side, like he always was.He held my hands, then bent his head. "Fred,” I called to gain access to my fingers, and then he woke up. A sad smile played on his lips as he looked at me.“You were so stressed out; the doctor said it’s as a result of shock, and your blood pressure is high too,” he said, then kissed my knuckles. From his chin down, I saw the mark of Sophia's palm on his face, and it brought back memories.“What are we going to do now?" I asked.“I haven’t heard a single threat from her, so we might be cool to some point, but I can't trust her silence. I know her too well to know she doesn’t stay quiet, so she’s definitely plotting something; we just have to know what it is so we can avoid it."With that being said, the doctor came in, and I was given some medications. Fred took me bac

Fredericks POVWaking up close to her was divine; she had the face of a beauty goddess, and her slow snore teased my senses as I patted my head resting on my chest. All this while, I couldn’t tell her how scared I was about all this happening.Mom was going offline, so she and Max, Sophia, were quiet with the news. From the news that had been spreading, there were just mere blog pictures of our photos taken, and I hoped it was the same pictures Mom had seen that made her question Joan.She should have called me, but she didn't. I suspected something was wrong, but I couldn’t put my fingers on it, and staring down at Joan, she looked so peaceful, compared to when we had arrived, when we feared almost the same thing.‘Losing each other’Aside from that, we were immune to other threats we had faced; it was always about how we were fighting from the surface or trying to stay disclosed to the eyes of everyone, but now I would finally summon the courage to say it and own it. What if we were

Joan’s POVI knew mom wouldn’t talk to me after all this. I shouldn’t have lied to her; then I would have avoided all this before now; she wouldn’t be so embarrassed of me. Everything paralysed me; it was just mind-wrecking, and I couldn’t look her in the eye and tell her that I was sorry.It would have been better if she had seen it through her phone rather than catching both of us in the act. I felt filthy and too embarrassed to follow her, and thank goodness Fred did that on my behalf.He had already left the room. When I came out of the bathroom, I dressed and wrapped myself up in the corner, waiting for the final judgement, but it never rrived. Instead, J Jones walked into my room, his hands wrapped around his chest. He just stood at the door, looking at me.I had expected he would say something, but he didn't; he just sat down there. Like some statue, I hated his face; it made me nauseous, and the memories made me weak and bitter."It seems it came to light now, and everyone kno