Alistair was never one to believe in soul mates or, frankly, any of that corny stuff about arrows and some god called Cupid. His past relationships had always ended in heartbreak and loss—sweet moments that seemed to vanish faster than the speed of light. It left him wondering if he was just a bad partner, maybe not even worthy of love. He was torn by the thought. After all, he didn’t look that bad. In fact, most compliments he ever received were about his appearance.

Yes, he was good-looking, but a complete idiot when it came to everything else. His grades were shockingly terrible. He only showed up for exams, passed them somehow, but never improved. That was one of the reasons his ex had dumped him.

“I can’t be with a total loser!” he remembered her saying. That definitely wasn’t his problem, he thought bitterly. They should have loved him for who he was instead of throwing insults like that. Needless to say, romance wasn’t exactly at the top of his priority list right now.

But Cupid—or whatever cosmic force—decided to ignore his scepticism and fired an arrow straight into his heart. The metaphorical dart sliced through every layer of skin, muscle, and bone until it found the fragile core of his heart.

His eyes locked onto a jaw-dropping stranger passing by. Their gazes met for a brief moment before the stranger quickly looked away.

The footsteps that had matched the rapid beat of his heart suddenly started to fade, walking away and leaving the bittersweet rhythm behind.

Woah... who was that? Alistair thought, stunned that someone like that could exist at the university.

He tore his gaze away from the stranger’s retreating back, only to notice something left behind on the floor. Bending down, he picked up the object—a notebook. Clearing his throat nervously, he called out,

“Hey! You dropped something.” He held the notebook up, hoping the stranger would turn back.