Chapter 4 You Don’t Get to Do That

Aleli’s POV

“SINCE WHEN do you ignore me?”

I didn’t need to look up to know it was him.

Kristoff Ricafort’s voice didn’t sound the way it used to when he spoke to me. It wasn’t flat, not completely. There was something underneath it now, something quieter but heavier, like he wasn’t used to asking questions he didn’t already know the answer to.

I kept my eyes on my notebook.

The classroom was nearly empty, the last few students filtering out in slow, distracted movements as the professor finished packing his things at the front. Chairs scraped lightly against the floor, bags zipped, conversations drifted toward the hallway.

Normal.

Everything around me felt normal.

Except for the way my chest tightened at the sound of his voice.

I flipped a page. Still didn’t answer.

“Aleli.”

He said my name again, closer this time.

I could feel him standing beside my desk now, his presence steady and impossible to ignore even if I tried. It used to make my heart race in a different way. It used to make everything feel lighter, like something good was about to happen.

Now it just made everything feel… tense. Like I had to hold myself together a little tighter.

I closed my notebook slowly, sliding my pen into the loop before finally looking up. “What?” I asked.

My voice came out even. Too even.

For a second, he didn’t respond. His brows drew together slightly, like he was trying to place something that didn’t quite match what he expected.

“You didn’t answer me,” he said.

“I heard you.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything?”

I held his gaze for a moment, steady, before shifting my attention back to my bag as I started gathering my things.

“I didn’t feel like it.”

The words landed between us quietly. But they didn’t feel small.

He exhaled through his nose, the movement subtle but noticeable. “You didn’t feel like it,” he repeated, like he was testing the weight of it.

“Yes.”

“That’s it?”

I zipped my bag and stood up, pulling the strap over my shoulder before facing him fully. “That’s it.”

For a second, neither of us moved. The space between us felt smaller than it actually was. Not physically. But in the way silence stretched when something was about to be said.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said finally, his voice lower now, more controlled, but not as detached as it used to be.

I adjusted the strap of my bag slightly, more out of habit than necessity. “I haven’t.”

He let out a short breath, almost like a quiet scoff. “You have.”

“I’ve been going to class,” I replied calmly. “Doing my work. Walking where I need to walk.” I met his eyes again. “That’s not avoiding you.”

“It is when you walk past me like I’m not there.”

There it was. The real reason. 

I tilted my head slightly, considering him for a second before answering. “I thought that was the point.”

His expression shifted, just slightly. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

I held his gaze, steady. “You told me to stop,” I said, my voice quiet but clear. “So I did.”

The words settled between us.

This time, they stayed.

For a moment, Kristoff didn’t say anything.

He just looked at me. Really looked at me. Like he was seeing something different and didn’t know what to do with it.

“That’s not what I meant,” he said after a second, his tone tightening just a little.

“It sounded pretty clear to me.”

“I didn’t mean for you to act like I don’t exist.”

I let out a small breath, not quite a laugh. “But that’s what you’ve been doing to me,” I said.

The moment the words left my mouth, something shifted. Not loudly. Not dramatically. But enough.

Enough for him to go still.

I didn’t give him time to respond. I stepped around him, moving toward the door with steady steps, my grip tightening slightly on the strap of my bag.

I made it halfway across the room before his voice stopped me again.

“Aleli.”

I paused. Just for a second. Then turned my head slightly, not fully facing him.

“What?”

There was a beat of silence before he spoke again.

“That night,” he started, his voice quieter now, less certain than before. “At the event…”

My chest tightened. I didn’t turn around.

“What about it?” I asked.

“I didn’t mean to…” He trailed off, like the words didn’t come easily to him. Like he wasn’t used to saying them. “I didn’t mean for it to turn into that.”

I looked down at the floor for a moment, watching the way the light reflected faintly against the polished surface.

Then I nodded once. “Okay.”

That was it. Just one word. Simple and final.

I started walking again. “Aleli, wait—”

I didn’t stop this time.

The hallway outside was brighter, louder, filled with people moving in different directions, conversations overlapping, footsteps echoing.

I blended into it easily. Or at least, I tried to. But I didn’t get far.

“Hey.”

A familiar voice cut through the noise, lighter, easier, like it didn’t carry the same weight as everything else.

Malcolm.

I slowed slightly as he fell into step beside me, his presence immediate and grounding in a way that didn’t demand anything from me.

“Wow,” he said, glancing back over his shoulder briefly before looking at me again. “You just walked out on him like that?”

“I had somewhere to be,” I replied.

“Sure you did.”

I didn’t respond.

He studied me for a second, his expression shifting just slightly, like he was checking for something.

“You okay?” he asked, softer now.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s not what I asked,” he said, echoing his words from yesterday, his tone gentle but knowing.

I let out a quiet breath. “I’m… better,” I admitted after a second.

He nodded once, like that was enough for now.

We walked in silence for a few steps before he spoke again.

“You know he’s going to keep trying, right?” he said, his tone casual but his eyes a little sharper now.

“Then he can try,” I replied.

Malcolm glanced at me, one brow lifting slightly. “And you’re just going to keep ignoring him?”

“Yes.”

“Consistently?”

“Yes.”

He let out a quiet huff of amusement, shaking his head slightly. “That’s new.”

“I’m trying something different.”

“Seems effective.”

I didn’t smile. But something in my chest felt a little lighter. Behind us, I could feel it. That presence and attention. I didn’t need to turn around.

Malcolm noticed it too.

He slowed slightly, then glanced back over his shoulder again, his gaze landing somewhere behind us before returning to me.

“He’s still standing there,” he said.

“I know.”

“You’re not even curious?”

“No.”

That made him look at me again, this time a little more carefully. “…Huh,” he murmured.

We reached the end of the hallway, the noise thinning out as fewer students passed by.

Malcolm adjusted the strap of his bag slightly before speaking again. “You want to grab something? Food, coffee, anything?” he asked.

“I have to finish something,” I said.

“Painting?”

I nodded. 

He smiled a little at that, softer now. “Good,” he said. “You should.”

We walked a few more steps before he added, quieter this time, “You look better when you’re doing that.”

I didn’t answer right away. But I didn’t disagree either. 

Behind us, I knew and could feel that he was still there and watching. But I didn’t look back. Not even once.

Because I already knew what I would see.

Kristoff Ricafort standing in the middle of the hallway, unmoving, his gaze fixed on something that wasn’t chasing him anymore.

And for the first time… He didn’t walk away first.

Malcolm nudged my shoulder lightly, pulling my attention forward again. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s get you out of here.”

I nodded once. And let him walk beside me without looking back.