The Messenger( Iva) novel Chapter 155

Hello, Iva-2

“I know…” she admitted quietly.

Because she did, more than anyone.

Lori, sensing the heaviness settling again, clapped her hands lightly once, forcing a change in tone, trying to distract her friend.

“Okay,” she said, more briskly now. “Enough spiralling for today. Let’s go collect our schedules and badges before the line becomes unbearable.”

Iva nodded faintly, grateful for the distraction.

“Yes… okay…”

They walked together toward the registration hall, the earlier chaos replaced now with organized lines, staff members handing out documents and identification badges with practiced efficiency.

Iva moved through it all mechanically, barely registering the details as she received her schedule, her Academy ID, her assigned classes.

Everything felt distant.

Muted.

Like she was watching herself from the outside.

Once they finished, Lori turned toward her again, studying her carefully.

“Iva… are you sure you’re okay? Do you want to talk somewhere private?” she asked, her voice softer again, concern returning.

Iva forced a small smile.

“I’m just… tired,” she said, though the truth was far more complicated than that. “I think I just need to lie down for a bit.”

Lori hesitated.

“Are you sure?” she pressed gently.

Iva nodded.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured her quietly. “Really. I just need some time alone.”

Lori sighed, clearly not fully convinced, but she nodded anyway.

“Alright… but if you need anything-anything-you call me, okay?”

“I will,” Iva promised.

They parted ways.

r

Hello Iva-2

And Iva made her way back to her room.

Each step slower than the last.

Claim

The moment the door clicked shut behind her, Iva let out a shaky breath that she did not even realize she had been holding, her back pressing against the cold wood as if she needed something solid to keep her grounded, to remind her that she was here, that she was real, that she was not about to crumble into nothing under the overwhelming storm raging inside her chest.

Her heart was beating too fast, her lungs struggling to draw in enough air, and her fingers trembled slightly at her sides as she squeezed her eyes shut for a brief second, trying to steady herself, trying to push away the image that had burned itself into her mind just minutes ago.

Caleb.

So close.

So real.

So impossibly… hers.

And yet not.

A shiver ran down her spine, sudden and sharp, slicing through her thoughts like a blade, and her eyes snapped open instantly, her instincts screaming at her, her body going rigid as every sense sharpened in an instant.

She was not alone.

Her breath caught in her throat as her gaze slowly lifted, almost afraid of what she would see, almost hoping that her mind was playing tricks on her, that exhaustion and emotional turmoil had finally broken something inside her.

But no.

He was there.

Sitting on the chair near her small desk as if he owned the very space, as if the room itself bent around his presence, Caleb lounged with one leg crossed over the other, his posture relaxed yet radiating an undeniable dominance that filled every corner of the room, suffocating, overwhelming, inescapable.

His dark eyes were locked on her.

Watching.

Assessing.

Burning.

“Hello, Iva.”

His voice was low, controlled, yet carrying an edge that made her stomach twist, a dangerous calm that spoke of something barely contained beneath the surface, and she could feel his suffocating aura.

For a moment, she could not move.

23

Hello iva-2

Gould not breathe.

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