Damien.

I watched Daniel carefully, my fists clenched tightly by my side as he kept throwing one provoking word after another at us.

Every single sentence leaving his mouth was clearly meant to push us over the edge.

And honestly, it was working.

The tension in the hallway had already become unbearable long ago, and Daniel only kept making it worse with that arrogant look on his face.

But the moment he hit Aidan back after being punched, something inside me snapped instantly.

We had tried to tolerate his nonsense enough already, besides, we were not the ones who went looking for trouble.

He was the one who came over here and started provoking us while we sat quietly outside Maria’s room.

Without thinking twice, I stepped forward and shoved him hard from behind.

The force sent him stumbling forward immediately, causing him to lose his balance for a moment.

And honestly?

I couldn’t care less, not even a little bit, If anything, the sight of him staggering only made my anger burn hotter.

My fists tightened harder as Daniel slowly turned toward my direction.

The expression on his face looked completely dark and unstable, almost like he was losing himself to his emotions.

His eyes were filled with rage, yet at the same time he looked strangely distracted, as though he was trapped inside his own thoughts.

It was unsettling.

For a second, the entire hallway fell silent except for the heavy sound of our breathing.

Adrien stood up fully from where he had been sitting while Davian moved closer beside Aidan. Damien also straightened immediately, his gaze fixed warily on Daniel like he was prepared for another attack.

And honestly, another fight was only seconds away from breaking out.

I could already feel it, as the air itself felt heavy with hostility.

Daniel’s chest rose and fell sharply as he glared at all of us with undisguised hatred.

Meanwhile, Aidan wiped the corner of his lips slowly, his face dark with fury after the earlier punch.

Everything was spiraling out of control so quickly but just before things could get any worse, Maria’s door suddenly opened.

The sound instantly pulled all our attention toward her. Every single one of us turned immediately.

Maria stood by the doorway looking absolutely furious. Her expression was cold, irritated, and exhausted all at once.

Even Daniel, who had looked moments away from attacking again, suddenly became calm the instant his eyes landed on her.

The change in his expression was immediate and obvious.

"You all should go elsewhere to fight and argue," Maria snapped angrily, glaring at each of us one after another. "You are disturbing me!"

Her voice echoed sharply through the hallway.

I swallowed hard immediately.

"Maria, we—" I tried speaking quickly, hoping to explain what really happened before she misunderstood things further.

But Maria didn’t even allow me to finish, before I could say another word, she slammed the door shut hard against our faces.

The loud bang echoed through the hallway instantly.

Silence followed afterward.

A very awkward silence.

I gritted my teeth tightly in frustration and anger, as everything had gone wrong again.

And it was all because of Daniel.

If he had not shown up here provoking us, Maria would not have gotten angry again.

I exhaled heavily, trying to suppress the irritation boiling within me.

Beside me, Adrien suddenly stepped forward slightly, his expression dark and hostile as he stared directly at Daniel.

"Shouldn’t you get going?" Adrien asked coldly, his voice dripping with anger.

The glare he gave Daniel was enough to make the hostility between them obvious to anyone watching.

"She said you all..." Daniel replied slowly, a smug smile spreading across his face as though he had just won some sort of victory. "...and that’s not my name." He added mockingly.

The arrogance in his voice instantly made my blood boil.

Before any of us could say another word, Daniel turned and started walking toward Maria’s door.

It was obvious what he intended to do.

He was going to disturb her again.

Davian reacted immediately and without hesitation, he stepped forward and shoved Daniel away from the door.

"Don’t you dare disturb her!" Davian barked furiously, his voice echoing through the hallway.

But something about Daniel suddenly felt wrong.

Very wrong.

The moment he turned back toward Davian, his eyes were bloodshot and terrifying, almost as though he had completely lost his sanity.

Everything happened so fast afterward, and before any of us could even process what was going on, Daniel moved abruptly.

A sharp sound sliced through the tense air, and then, Davian collapsed to the ground.

My heart skipped violently.

For a second, my entire mind went blank.

I stared in disbelief as Davian’s hands wrapped tightly around his stomach, blood seeping through his fingers almost instantly.

So much blood.

My breathing stopped.

Daniel, on the other hand, stood there calmly like nothing had happened.

In his hand was a knife.

A bloody knife.

And what terrified me most was the wild smile plastered across his face. He slowly brought out a handkerchief and wiped the blood from the blade with horrifying calmness.

As though stabbing someone meant absolutely nothing to him.

"Davian!" Adrien and Aidan yelled in unison, panic filling their voices immediately as they rushed toward him.

But I remained rooted to my spot.

Frozen.

Daniel had just stabbed Davian. The realization echoed repeatedly in my head, refusing to fully settle.

No.

No, this couldn’t be happening.

Only then did Maria’s door suddenly open again. She stepped out looking annoyed and disgusted.

"If you plan on dying, die somewhere else not in—" she stopped abruptly the instant her eyes landed on Davian.

The irritation on her face disappeared immediately, as her expression turned pale with shock.

Davian was no longer conscious.

And the blood...The blood kept pouring heavily from the wound in his stomach.

The sight alone was enough to make panic spread through the hallway instantly.

"Someone call the healer!" I shouted frantically, my voice shaking with panic and fear.

My legs finally moved again as I rushed toward Davian immediately.

Aidan and Adrien were already beside him trying desperately to keep him awake.

"Davian!" Adrien called again, his voice cracking slightly. "Open your eyes!"

But Davian didn’t respond, as his face had already gone pale.

The sight made my chest tighten painfully.

Just then, heavy footsteps echoed from down the hallway, approaching quickly toward us.

But honestly, I was too panicked to even care who it was. Nothing else mattered at that moment except Davian.

I dropped beside him instantly, my hands trembling uncontrollably as I tried to stop the bleeding.

Blood stained my palms immediately.

Too much blood.

"Davian, you better open your eyes!" I yelled desperately, half expecting him to suddenly smirk arrogantly and insult me for panicking.

That was what Davian always did, he always found a way to act strong, and to act untouchable.

So why wasn’t he speaking now?

Why wasn’t he getting up?

Adrien’s breathing had become uneven while Aidan looked completely shaken beside us.

Even Maria stood frozen nearby, staring at the horrifying scene in disbelief.

And Daniel?

Daniel simply stood there silently, still holding the knife.

My chest tightened painfully as fear consumed me completely.

No. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

This couldn’t be happening.

"You aren’t permitted to leave us," I muttered shakily under my breath, my voice barely audible as I stared at his unconscious body, my hands clenching tighter around him desperately. "No... you can’t leave us."