The university campus was alive with its usual activities. Students rushed between classes, their hurried footsteps echoing off the cobblestone paths. The air smelled faintly of freshly cut grass and coffee from the nearby café. Lucy sat alone on a bench, her laptop perched on her knees, her fingers flying across the keyboard. She was working on a biochemistry paper that was due in less than two hours, but the pressure didn't faze her. Deadlines were just another hurdle to overcome—one of many she had faced in her life.
Lucy wasn't like most of her classmates. She didn't come from wealth or privilege. Her scholarship was hard-earned, and every achievement came from relentless effort. While others partied late into the night, she worked part-time jobs to pay for books and food. She didn't care that she was often mocked for not fitting in or isolated for being "too serious." Her focus was singular: to graduate at the top of her class and carve out a future far removed from the struggles of her past.
Then there was Enzo Rinaldi, simply called Enzo.
Enzo was everything Lucy despised. He was a playboy who seemed to glide through life without care. His family name carried weight—Rinaldi was synonymous with power and wealth, though whispers hinted at darker connections. Enzo's days were spent charming professors into extending deadlines and flirting with women who fell for his effortless charisma. He had a reputation for breaking hearts as easily as he aced exams he barely studied for.
They couldn't have been more different, and Lucy liked it that way.
One rainy afternoon, Lucy's carefully constructed world collided with Enzo's chaotic one. She had been rushing across campus, balancing an armful of books and an umbrella that refused to stay open against the wind. Enzo, as usual, wasn't paying attention to where he was going, his phone pressed to his ear as he laughed at something someone said on the other end of the line.
The collision was inevitable.
Lucy's books tumbled to the ground, papers scattering across the wet pavement like fallen leaves. "Watch where you're going!" she snapped, crouching down to gather her things before they were ruined by the rain.
Enzo crouched down beside her, his grin disarming despite her irritation. "I could say the same to you," he replied smoothly, handing her a soaked notebook with an exaggerated flourish. "But I'll take the blame if it makes you feel better."
Lucy glared at him, unimpressed by his charm. "It's not about blame, it's about paying attention," she said curtly, snatching the notebook from his hand and shoving it into her bag.
Enzo didn't leave right away, though she wished he would. Instead, he stayed, watching her with an amused expression as though she were some fascinating puzzle he couldn't quite figure out. "You're Lucy Moretti," he said suddenly as if realizing something important.
She froze mid-motion, narrowing her eyes at him suspiciously. "How do you know my name?"
"You're in my organic chemistry class," he said casually, standing up and offering her a hand she didn't take. "You asked about stereoisomers during last week's lecture."
Lucy stood on her own and adjusted her bag over her shoulder without acknowledging him further. "Congratulations on paying attention for once," she muttered before leaving. But Enzo wasn't done yet. "You know," he called after her, "you should let me buy you coffee sometime as an apology."
Lucy didn't bother looking back as she walked away in the rain, but her sharp response carried over her shoulder: "I don't drink coffee with people like you."
---
Despite herself, Lucy found it hard to ignore Enzo after that day. He seemed to pop up everywhere—at the library when she was studying late into the night or in line at the cafeteria where he always managed to cut ahead of someone without anyone complaining. His persistence was infuriating but oddly flattering in a way she refused to admit even to herself.
It all came to a head one fateful night at a party she hadn't even wanted to attend but had been dragged to by a friend who insisted she needed to "loosen up." The house was packed with students dancing under dim lights while music blasted through speakers loud enough to make conversation nearly impossible.
Lucy had been nursing a drink in a corner when Enzo appeared out of nowhere like he always did—like trouble waiting to happen.
"You look miserable," he said without preamble.
"I am miserable," she shot back before taking another sip of whatever watered-down concoction someone had handed her earlier.
"Then why are you here?" he asked curiously.
"Good question," Lucy replied dryly.
For reasons she couldn't explain either—not even to herself. Moments later, she let him pull her onto the dance floor where they moved together under flickering lights that made everything feel surreal.
One thing led to another until they found themselves alone in his dorm room hours later—a whirlwind of stolen kisses and whispered confessions leading them somewhere neither had expected nor planned for. This was the night she would never forget. The day she lost her innocence.
When it was over and they lay tangled together in silence broken only by their breathing, Enzo turned toward her with an intensity that made her heart skip uncomfortably. "Mate! You're mine," he said softly but firmly, as though stating some undeniable truth rather than making a declaration.
Lucy stared at him incredulously before pushing herself upright despite how weak her limbs felt from exhaustion mixed with adrenaline.
"What kind of sick joke is this?" she demanded angrily while trying unsuccessfully not to think about how warm his skin still felt against hers a few moments ago.
Enzo's expression turned serious, his eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made her heart skip a beat. "It's not a joke," he said softly, his voice filled with conviction. "You're mine, Lucy. And I won't let you go."
The air between them was charged with tension, and the silence was thick with unspoken emotions. Lucy felt a rush of conflicting feelings—anger, fear, and a strong desire she couldn't deny. She knew she should push him away, but a part of her wanted to believe in him, to trust that he could change.