Flora sat by the window, fingers brushing over the familiar texture of her bracelet. The night outside was calm, moonlight spilling softly over her desk. Yet her mind wasn't at peace.
That call from last night the silence that breathed on the other end and this bracelet returning to her through an anonymous parcel… none of it made sense. The thought of it still unsettled her.
Somewhere deep down, a tiny fear stirred, whispering that whoever was behind all this hadn't stepped away they were still watching.
She sighed, resting her chin on her palm.
Little did she know, while she sat in her quiet room, her name was spreading through every corner of the school twisted, mocked, and dragged through the mud.
---
The Next Morning
By the time morning arrived, the school forum was burning.
A post titled "Flirt Queen of Class B Exposed Playing Hard to Get with the School Heartthrob!" had already crossed a thousand views.
Attached below was a blurry photo, Flora standing near Section A, talking to Austin and Grace. The image was cropped cruelly to fit a false story.
She's pretending to act innocent, but we all know her type, total slut I'd say."
"Flirting with her ex's boyfriend? How pathetic."
"Grace deserves better than dealing with a girl like that."
"She thinks if she cries enough, she can get attention again."
More comments followed. Another post soon appeared "Jealous Girl Tries to Replace Grace as Student Union President."
The forum filled with accusations: that she spread lies, that she tried to embarrass Grace publicly, that she was jealous and desperate for attention.
No one defended her.
Not a single voice asked if it was true.
And while her classmates laughed behind their screens, Flora prepared for another ordinary day unaware of the storm that was waiting for her.
---
The moment she stepped through the school gates, the air felt different. Eyes turned toward her some sharp, some pitying, some full of mockery.
She tried to ignore it. Maybe it was just her imagination. But when someone brushed past her shoulder and muttered, "Watch where you're going, drama queen," her steps faltered.
In class, the whispers grew louder. She could feel them every gaze, every half-hidden smirk. Then she noticed the scribbles on her desk.
"Desperate much?"
"Stop pretending."
"No shame, huh?"
Her chest tightened.
She left the classroom quietly, heading toward the bathroom only to freeze inside when she heard laughter echo from the stalls.
"Did you see her face in that photo?"
"She's acting like she doesn't care, but she must be dying inside."
"Poor Grace, having to deal with someone like that."
"She probably started all this for attention."
Their laughter was cruel, echoing off the tiled walls.
When the group finally left, Flora stepped out, her reflection in the mirror pale and distant.
She went out found empty classroom, picked up her phone with trembling hands and opened the school forum.
And there it was her name everywhere, each post worse than the last.
Her photo. Her words twisted. Hundreds of comments stabbing through her like tiny knives.
"Attention seeker."
"Fake tears, fake smile."
"She disgusts me."
" if she need a man she should go to places like 'that'."
"I bet they won't be able to satisfy her, how can people their compare to the one she is aiming here"
" bitch like her should leave school, so won't dirty the place"
" man I felt ashamed to be in same class as her"
"Bro she is desperate, beware she doesn't come after you"
"Aghhh I got goosebumps thinking about that"
Her vision blurred as tears slipped down her cheeks. She covered her mouth, trying not to sob out loud. Her chest felt heavy, her throat burning.
She didn't even know what she'd done to deserve this.
Her phone buzzed suddenly, breaking the silence.
Unknown Number:
Don't cry.
I'll take care of it.
They'll regret hurting you.
She froze. Her breath hitched.
The same number. The one that had once scared her.
And then, almost as if the world obeyed his command the school forum began to glitch.
One by one, the posts about her disappeared. The users who had mocked her tried to log back in, only to find their accounts suspended.
Some couldn't even make new ones. The entire forum went offline for maintenance, and panic spread among the students.
Flora stared at her screen in disbelief.
It was all… gone.
Another message appeared.
Unknown Number:
It's over now. Sleep well tonight .
Her tears hadn't fully dried, but now they carried a different weight confusion, gratitude, and something else she couldn't name.
That fear she once had for this faceless sender had melted into something softer.
Whoever they were… they had protected her.
She whispered under her breath,
"Thank you… whoever you are."
---
Flora stepped back into her classroom, trying to steady her breathing, when Jennifer suddenly rushed toward her.
“Flora__are you okay?” Jen asked, grabbing her shoulders. “I didn’t check the forum last night. The rumors were spreading since yesterday afternoon. I was going to post a clarification but… thankfully everything got wiped.”
Her grip was a little too tight. Flora’s already spinning head felt worse, but she just forced a small smile. “It’s fine. Someone handled it.”
Jen didn’t buy it. Her eyes went straight to the redness around Flora’s eyes.
“Come with me.” Jennifer didn’t wait for an answer. She pulled Flora all the way to the art room and shut the door.
“Alright,” Jen said, arms crossed. “Explain who this 'someone' is.”
Flora hesitated, then told her everything — the unknown messages, the sudden forum wipe, all of it.
Jennifer stared at her for a long second.
“So,” she said slowly, “you’re telling me… you got random texts from someone you don’t know. You didn’t tell anyone about it. That person ‘warned you’ before. And now—this same person magically cleaned the forum for you.”
Flora blinked. “…Yes.”
“And this doesn’t sound suspicious to you?”
Flora opened her mouth, but Jen continued before she could speak.
“What makes you think this person isn’t the one who started the rumors in the first place?”
Flora froze.
“H-how is that possible? The thread was posted by that girl from Section D. She didn’t even hide her name.” Flora said it like she was trying to convince herself.
Jennifer shook her head. “That’s exactly why it’s weird.”
“What do you mean?”
“If someone wanted to frame you, would they be stupid enough to post openly. No, they’d need a scapegoat instead. Someone they can throw under the bus later.”
Her tone rushed. “Flora, think. If this person really wanted to help you… why hide? Why not come out and defend you openly?”
Flora couldn’t answer. Her breath caught in her throat.
Jennifer’s voice softened, but her words didn’t. "There's no such thing as free lunch."
Flora’s palms felt cold.
“But… why would they do all this?”
“Your trust,” Jen said simply. “That’s what they’d gain.”
Flora’s heart sank.
“They make you scared… then they make you grateful. And when you finally trust them, they’ll have access to whatever they want — your secrets, your weaknesses… anything.”
Jennifer looked at her seriously. “And someone with that kind of skill? Flora, they could do much worse.”
Flora stared at the floor, her pulse loud in her ears.
It sounded crazy. Dramatic.
Like something out of a crime novel.
But a part of her knew Jennifer wasn’t completely wrong.
Something about all of this didn’t feel simple.
And the thought of trusting the wrong person made her stomach twist.
She whispered, almost too quietly,
"…I didn't think all of this "
Jennifer didn’t answer.
She just said, "Whoever they are… they’re not doing this for free."
---
In another part of the city, a faint hum filled a hotel room.
Liam sat by the window, sleeves rolled up, the blue light of his laptop washing over the edge of his face. His phone lay beside him, screen dim but pulsing every few seconds with new notification.
his focus was buried in lines of code running endlessly across the monitor.
The cursor blinked once, then the command line cleared. A new string appeared on the screen:
"Process Terminated: Threads Cleared."
Another bug fixed. Another night gone.
Liam leaned back, rubbing his neck. "Finally," he murmured, half relieved. He glanced at his phone and frowned. One of the missed notifications caught his eye
The monitor light flickered once before steadying again, reflecting in his calm gray eyes like a ripple of glass. He took his phone and went out.
Outside, the night was still. Somewhere between cause and coincidence, truth curved, just slightly, and the world believed what it wanted to see.
---
That night, Flora lay beneath the dim glow of her lamp, scrolling through her phone one last time. The forum remained silent. Not a single new post.
For the first time in days, she felt a fragile sense of peace.
Her fingers hovered over the message window before she finally typed,
"Thank you… for helping me today."
She hesitated a moment, then hit send.
Minutes passed. Then her phone buzzed again.
Unknown Number:
You don't need to thank me, Flora.
You're mine to protect.
The message made her heart skip. She stared at it unsure whether to feel warmth or fear.
Outside, under the faint glow of the streetlight by her mansion gate, a tall figure stood still, phone in hand, eyes fixed on the lit window upstairs.
The corner of his lips curved just slightly. Not in cruelty. Not in joy. Something darker.
Something patient.
The streetlight flickered once, and he was gone swallowed by the night.
And Flora… had no idea that by simply thanking him, she had tied herself to something far deeper than she could yet imagine.
Note:
Every time I post, I wonder if anyone is still walking beside this story.
If you read quietly, thank you, you’re the reason it keeps moving.
But sometimes Silence makes it hard to keep going.
If you feel like leaving a small sign, even a single emoji or word, I’ll see it and know this chapter reached someone.
Thats why if you’re reading, even silently, let me know sometimes.
It really keeps the world of Flora alive.
Comments (0)
See all