After Death, Love Unveiled (Elara and Lysander)
Unveiled 22

Chapter 22

The whole school was buzzing with gossip: Elara had gotten involved with some older guy

But just when everyone thought they had it figured out, Lysander threw a curveball and declared he was going after her too.

Nobody ever imagined lysander would have to chase anyone. Normally, a tilt of his head was all it took to have people scrambling to get his attention.

When Crispin shot him a look of disbeliel, Lysander raised an eyebrow. "What's your deal? Got something to say?"

"Me? No way!" Crispin replied, scrambling to sound casual. No way in hell he was about to voice his real opinion.

He was just stunned that it was Elara who'd caught Lysander's eye. It hit him like a ton of bricks-everything he'd done today was aimed at someone Lysander was interested in.

Suddenly remembering the snarky comments he'd tossed around earlier, Crispin wished the ground would just swallow himm

"Lysander, man, I had no ideal" he blurted out, sounding almost panicked. "If I'd known. I wouldn't have said all that crap to

hert

Lysander just gave a lazy shrug. "Doesn't matter. She's not into you, anyway."

Crispin blinked, taken aback. "Well, shit. That was straight to the point, he thought.

But then he noticed how serious Lysander looked, and his curiosity got the better of him. "So, uh... how's it going with her! Making any headway?"

Lysander let out a frustrated sigh. "She hasn't fallen for me, if that's what you're asking. He was being blunt. Even though he was her tutor now, he believed Elara clearly hadn't developed any feelings for him.

In his eyes, it was obvious her heart was still hung up on Asher. Lysander knew well he might just be a pawn in her little game to get a rise out of Asher,

1

But as long as he could be of some use to her, he wasn't going to complain. Being close to her was enough for him, at least for

HOW.

Crispin followed Lysander's gaze over to where Elara stood gracefully in the crowd, her eyes locked in their direction.

The way she'd been calling out earlier, he'd almost believed she was one of Lysander's biggest fans. Now, though, it was clear Lysander was the one doing the admiring

The people around them were buzzing like they'd just uncovered some scandalous secret, while the ones involved were keeping their cool.

The group chat was on fire with speculation: [Could it be true? Was Lysander actually into Elara?]

Back in the day, Elara was head over heels for Asher, practically throwing herself at him, and he didn't even give a damn. He couldn't be bothered to look her way.

But now, it was Lysander-better than Asher in every imaginable way-who'd somehow ended up entangled with Elara.

After changing out of his gym clothes, Asher stormed out, frustration written all over his face.

Losing the match was one thing, but being so thoroughly upstaged by someone he'd never considered a threat? That was a whole different kind of humiliation.

Daphine and Lizzie followed close behind, wanting to say something to make him feel better, but they were just as stunned as Minutes ago, they would've sworn that Lysander would never give Elara the time of day But there he was, making his interest Cupter 22

Lizzie was fuming Has Lysander lost his damn mind? Is he seriously into Elara' How could he even look at her twic he know who she really is?"

Daphne's face was a mix of shock and something else-jealousy, maybe. She'id always figured that no matter what Elara Asher would never waver. He was supposed to be a sure thing.

But now, with Lysander suddenly stepping in, it was like the rug had been yanked out from under her.

Deest

It grated on her nerves-Elara, with her pampered lifestyle, somehow.catching Lysander's eye. Daphine muttered under he breath. Maybe we just didn't try hard enough. If we'd cheered him on today, then who knows. As Elara stepped out of the gym, her friends pounced on her with curious stares. "Elara, did you know Lysander before the

She gave a slight nod. "Yeah"

"So... are you guys, like, dating? They'd seen the way Lysander had looked at her, with something more than just casual interest, and now their imaginations were running wild

Elara shook her head, a small, knowing smile on her lips. "No, we're not

The truth was, they were engaged. But her pursuit of Lysander had everything to do with stuff that happened before she traveled back in time.

As for his feelings now, she had no clue. After everything with Asher, she wasn't about to make any assumptions. The last thing she wanted was to be the butt of everyone's jokes again.

Seeing their curious faces, Elara shrugged. "Relax, it's just that our families know each other, so we've stayed in touch. That's all.

"Oh, right!" They all nodded, acting like it suddenly made sense, but one of them couldn't resist asking. "So, is it true your family's, like, seriously rich? We kind of thought-

"You thought I was some sugar baby being kept by a rich old guy, huh?" Elara cut in, deadpan, not even flinching as she faced the gossip head-on.

The group looked a bit sheepish, probably thinking about the rumors they'd heard-how she'd been seen getting picked up from school in a fancy car.

Elara chuckled softly. "You can think whatever the hell you want. It doesn't change anything for me."

Honestly, the whole thing was ridiculous. Like I need some guy to take care of me! Please, she thought to herself.

After chatting with some girls from other classes, Elara headed back to her own classroom.

As she walked in, she felt all eyes on her, but she was used to that by now. She casually took her seat..

A guy sitting in front of her turned around with a sarcastic grin. "We lost the game, and you're still in such a damn good mood.

It was one of Asher's teammates, clearly trying to get a rise out of her.

Elara's lips curved into a lazy smile. "Well, you lost the game, not me. Why shouldn't I be in a good mood!"

"Oh, I see. You think you're special just because Lysander gave you some attention, he sneered

She let out a soft laugh. "Aw, don't tell me you're pissed he didn't notice you instead."

The guy's face tightened with frustration, and he snapped his mouth shut, unable to come up with a comeback

A few minutes later, Asher came back into the classroom with Daphne and Lizzie trailing behind him.

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