Maria.

Everything blurred together, moving far too quickly for my mind to catch up. One moment Darren’s lips were on mine, warm, familiar, devastating and the next, the door was opening and Patricia was there, slipping into the room like she belonged, her eyes widening with perfectly rehearsed shock. She rushed forward immediately, all fake concern and possessive touches, as if she had every right to stand there, as if what had just happened between Darren and me hadn’t even mattered.

I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came. What was I supposed to say? My thoughts were tangled, my heart racing too fast, my chest tight with emotions I couldn’t sort through. The silence pressed down on me, heavy and humiliating. So instead of forcing out something meaningless, I turned and left.

I hurried out of the room, my steps uneven, my pulse loud in my ears. The hallway felt suffocating, the walls too close, the air too thin. I needed space. I needed to breathe. I pushed through until I found a quiet spot and finally stopped, bracing my hands on my knees as I sucked in a shaky breath.

But no matter how hard I tried to focus on the present, my mind kept dragging me back to that single moment. The kiss. The way it had caught me off guard. The way my body had responded before my brain could stop it. I pressed my lips together, almost angry at myself.

Why did it still feel like I needed him?

I straightened slowly, closing my eyes as I scolded myself. Come on, Maria. Get a grip. You know better than this. He has never chosen you. Not once. No matter how many stolen moments, no matter how intense they felt, you were never the one he stood beside when it mattered.

You were just a release. A way for him to ease the pressure, nothing more.

The image of Patricia stepping in afterward, claiming him so easily, touching him like he was hers, burned in my chest. That kiss between them hadn’t been accidental, it was a confirmation. Proof of what I already knew but somehow kept refusing to accept.

I let out a long, weary sigh, my shoulders sagging as the ache in my heart finally spilled over. It hurt in a way that felt deep and sharp, like something inside me had cracked open. I pressed a hand to my chest, willing the pain to settle, but it only pulsed harder.

"Maria, wait!" Patricia’s voice echoed down the hallway, shrill and insistent.

My jaw tightened instantly.

I didn’t turn around. That bitch actually followed me? Couldn’t she just let me be? What does she want now? I clenched my fists at my sides, irritation mixing with the raw hurt already churning inside me. I was not in the mood for her fake sympathy or whatever tantrum she was about to throw.

All I wanted was to be left alone, to keep a low profile, to disappear, to pull myself together before I completely fell apart.

With the help of her wolf, she caught up to me far too quickly. One second I was storming down the hallway, my thoughts still tangled and raw, and the next, a sharp presence slammed into my senses. I barely had time to react before she was there, too close, too fast, her fury rolling off her in suffocating waves.

Her hand connected with my face before I even saw it coming.

The sound echoed sharply, loud and humiliating. Pain exploded across my cheek, icy and burning at the same time, shooting straight through my body and settling deep in my bones. My head snapped to the side as the force sent me stumbling a step back, my ears ringing, my skin buzzing where she had struck me. For a heartbeat, the world tilted.

"What the hell did you think you were doing with Darren?" she screamed, her voice tearing through the hallway, loud enough to draw attention, loud enough to hurt. There was no restraint in her tone, only rage, jealousy, and entitlement.

Slowly, I turned my head back to face her. I didn’t rush it. I wanted her to see my eyes. The disgust there was raw, unfiltered, and burning. My cheek throbbed, my pulse pounding beneath my skin, but I refused to let her see weakness.

"Who the hell gave you the right to hit me?" I asked, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me.

The shock on her face was immediate and almost satisfying. Her eyes widened slightly, her mouth parting as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. In all our years, I had never spoken back to her. Never challenged her. Never dared to stand my ground.

Until now.

I took a step closer, closing the distance between us. I could feel my wolf stirring beneath my skin, not afraid, not submissive, rather too angry. I lifted my chin and met her gaze head-on.

"You have no right to lay a finger on me, bitch," I said coldly.

A slow smile crept onto my face, a deliberate one. It wasn’t joy, it was satisfaction. The kind that came from finally snapping a chain you hadn’t realized was choking you.

Her expression twisted instantly, outrage replacing surprise. "Who the hell do you think you are talking to?" she snapped back. Her voice dripped with venom as she leaned forward. "You whore. Don’t think I didn’t know you were trying to seduce Darren!"

That word—whore—hit me harder than the slap ever could.

It echoed loudly in my head, bouncing around my thoughts, sinking deep into places I didn’t know were still tender. Something inside me snapped completely. There was no hesitation, no second thought, no fear.

In one swift motion, my hand flew across her face.

The impact was solid and satisfying, the sound sharp as her head jerked to the side. She staggered backward, clearly not expecting it, her balance faltering as shock flashed across her features. For a moment, she looked stunned, like the world had tilted beneath her feet the same way mine had seconds earlier.

The hallway fell into a stunned silence.

"Maria!"

The voice cut through the tension.

I froze mid-breath and turned around slowly. Adrien stood there, his expression unreadable at first, until my eyes met his. Then I saw it clearly. The disappointment etched across his face and it hurt more than anything else that had happened.

And in that moment, all the strength I had gathered faltered under his gaze.