The water hits you before the fear does.

One shove—hard, sharp, unexpected—and suddenly the world tilts, splintering into cold blue as you plunge beneath the surface of the school’s pool. Your lungs seize immediately. The icy water clamps around your ribs like a fist, dragging you down, swallowing you whole. Your hands reach for something, anything, but there’s only empty water and the panicked burn in your chest.

You can’t swim. Silver knows that.

Above the surface, the ripples distort her voice—sweet, venomous, triumphant.

“That’s what you get,” she says, bitterness dripping from every word. “Let’s see if Aiden still wants you after this.”

The sound warps, then disappears entirely as your head slips under again. You kick, claw, choke on a mouthful of chlorine. Your lungs scream. The world tunnels into darkness edged with white sparks.

Then—impact.

A splash far louder than yours shattered the silence. Strong arms wrap around your waist before you can register anything else. Warm hands, steady grip. Aiden.

He drags you up, hauling you against his chest as you break the surface with a violent gasp. You cough, sputtering, fingers clutching at him instinctively. He’s already pulling you to the pool’s edge, one hand supporting your back, the other cradling the back of your head like you’re made of glass.

“Breathe,” Aiden orders, voice a low, deadly growl. “I’ve got you. Look at me.”

Your vision blurs, but his face is right there—wet hair stuck to his forehead, jaw clenched so hard it looks carved from stone. His eyes burn. Not with fear.

With murder.

He lifts you out of the water effortlessly, wrapping his jacket around your trembling body before settling you in his lap at the pool’s edge. His hands never stop touching you—your cheek, your arm, your back—reassuring himself you’re alive, that he wasn’t too late.

“Are you okay?” he murmurs, softer now, wiping water from under your eyes with his thumb. “Tell me you’re okay.”

You nod, still shaking. It’s all he needs.

Because when he looks up again, Silver isn’t smirking anymore.

Aiden stands with you still wrapped in his arms, his soaked clothes clinging to his body, water dripping from his hair onto your shoulder. But his attention is entirely on her.

And he’s terrifying.

“You pushed her,” he says, voice ice-cold, lethal in its calm. “Into a pool. Knowing she couldn’t swim.”

Silver opens her mouth, but only a weak, stuttering sound comes out. Aiden steps forward, shielding you with his body, every inch of him radiating fury so controlled it feels like a knife blade.

“You think because you used to warm my bed, you have any claim on my life?” His voice drops lower. “She’s my girlfriend. Public or not, she was always mine, long before you ever realized it.”

Silver pales. Aiden takes another step, his grip tightening around you as he towers over her.

“You touch her again,” he murmurs, quiet enough to be far more frightening than a shout, “and I’ll make sure you never step foot in this school again. Do you understand me?”

Silver stumbles back, nodding shakily before turning and fleeing down the hall.

Aiden exhales slowly, his jaw still ticking as he lowers his forehead to yours.

“Don’t scare me like that again,” he whispers, voice breaking at the edges. “I thought—I thought I was going to lose you.”

You cup his jaw, your fingers brushing the stubble there. His eyes soften instantly, that razor-sharp anger melting into something rawer, deeper.

He gathers you closer, pressing a slow kiss to your forehead.

“You’re safe,” he murmurs. “I won’t let anyone touch you. Not even her.”