He Didn’t Kidnap Me. Not Exactly novel Chapter 44

Chapter 44

(Daisy’s POV)

I stood there longer than I should have.

Right at the edge of campus, like there was some invisible line drawn on the ground that I wasn’t entirely sure I was allowed to cross anymore.

Which was ridiculous.

It was a school. My school. I paid fees. I suffered through lectures and I owned at least nine pens that had died mid-exam in this exact place.

So yes. I was allowed to be here. But that didn’t stop my chest from tightening. Because walking in meant facing it.

All of it.

I exhaled slowly, adjusted the strap of my bag on my shoulder, and stepped forward.

One step.

Then another, and just like that, I was in.

Nothing happened.

There was no dramatic gasp. No crowd turning in unison. No background music announcing my arrival like I had just entered a horror movie.

People were walking. Talking. Laughing. Arguing about something that sounded like group work and trend gossip. Someone was running because they were late. Someone else was eating while walking like that wasn’t a choking hazard waiting to happen.

Normal.

Everything was painfully, confusingly normal. I kept walking, slower now, my eyes moving around cautiously.

No one pointed.

No one stared.

No one even looked twice, so that a small part of me loosened.

Okay.

Okay, maybe… Maybe it wasn’t as bad as I thought. Maybe it didn’t spread that far. Maybe it stayed within a circle. Maybe people had better things to do than obsess over one embarrassing moment that wasn’t even-

I made eye contact with someone then.

I didn’t know him, but he knew me. And I saw it happen in real time. The flicker of confusion, then recognition, then something else that I didn’t like at all.

His brows lifted slightly, then his hand went into his pocket. Phone out.

He pointed. “Yo- It’s Crack-me Girl!”

And just like that, everything broke.

It started small. One person turning. Then two. Then a group.

“Yeah!”

“Wait, where?”

“That’s her-”

Another phone came up.

Someone laughed.

“Bro, no way. That’s actually her!”

My stomach dropped. I had rejoinder too soon.

I stood there, frozen, as more heads turned. It spread like something alive, moving through people faster than I could process.

“That’s the girl from the video.”

“The one who closed her eyes pleading- oh my God!”

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