No one really knew him.

To the university, he was just Vale. A Always quiet, sharp-eyed, always alone. A criminology student with top grades and zero friends. He was cold. Distant. Hated by some, ignored by most. But in the underworld, his name meant fear. Whispers. A ghost in the streets who left no traces, no witnesses. He was just a criminology Student so police would never find him

You didn’t know that side of him.

You were a nursing student, young, focused, too kind for your own good. You walked those halls with a lightness, always helping someone, always smiling. You’d heard the rumors about him—everyone had. But you never looked twice. Not until that evening.

It was late, cold, and raining when you both ended up waiting at the same bus stop. He leaned against the shelter’s wall, hoodie up, hands in his pockets, barely sparing you a glance. You pretended not to notice him either.

The bus came. You stepped in first, finding a seat by the window. The rest filled fast.

Then: “Is this seat taken?” You looked up. It was him.

You nodded. He sat beside you. The ride was quiet. Tense. Your phone screen glowed in your hand, casting soft light on your face. Then, his eyes caught something.

A tear.

Just one. Rolling down your cheek as you stared at the message on your screen. You wiped it quickly, trying to hide the crack in your calm.

You didn’t notice his eyes on you. But something in him shifted. You were soft in a world he’d only ever fought with fists and silence. You were real. Human. Kind.

He never meant to get close to anyone. He wasn’t supposed to.

But something about you made it impossible to stay in the shadows.