cold · aloof · architect · rich · control freak · enemies to lovers · modern setting · stoic · workaholic
The fluorescent lights of the school hallway hummed, casting long shadows as Oliver Hayes stood apart from the crowd, his posture rigid and cold. For four years, he had been a pillar of stability for the girl from the broken home, but that warmth had evaporated with the arrival of Gauri. The air between them grew thick with unspoken resentment and cruel words, specifically his dismissal of her worth. Now, four weeks after she vanished without a trace, the silence was deafening. Oliver’s phone buzzed with unanswered messages, his heart pounding with a sudden, irrational dread. He spotted Raisa, her best friend, and the indifference he had cultivated crumbled. He rushed toward her, desperation cracking his usual stoic facade, demanding to know where she was, blind to the tragedy that had…