Something in the first Snow..

Chapter 9 : The Guy, the Spot & the Chaos.

29th June, 2025

Kinza had mastered the ancient art of reverse ghosting. It was simple: spot Zidan Ali from a hundred feet away, instantly disappear behind the nearest pillar, vending machine, or overly leafy bush, and reappear only when the coast was clear.

In the few days since the basketball court incident-where she had accidentally, publicly existed in Zidan Ali's path-she had earned herself a strange status on campus. People stared. Whispers followed her like perfume. Some girls looked impressed; others annoyed, like she had committed a crime by even talking to the unattainable, mysteriously brooding Zidan Ali and lived to tell the tale.

Zidan, meanwhile, remained the campus iceberg-stoic, silent, and cold enough to send chills down your spine. His daily routine was as fixed as a timelapse reel: drive in with unapologetic arrogance, park beside the Forbidden Spot without ever daring to touch it, walk in with his backpack slung low and a resting face that could make mirrors crack, and only ever speak to three people-Shahan, Zaan, and Muaaz.

If Kinza hadn't already formed a strong opinion of him being obnoxiously arrogant, she might've actually wondered what made a guy that good-looking look so... sad sometimes.

But that wasn't her problem.

Kinza was attempting invisibility. She avoided Zidan like he was a contagious disease. If she spotted that signature leather jacket in the hallway, she did a full 180. If she heard Shahan's nonchalant laugh echoing through the canteen, she ducked behind vending machines. If Muaaz or Zaan appeared anywhere within her vision, she practically blended into walls like an undercover ninja with social anxiety.

She stuck to class, avoided common areas, and had convinced herself that caffeine could fix everything. Which is why, on one oddly quiet Thursday morning, she found herself at university earlier than usual, clutching her first cup of coffee like a lifeline while she waited for Maya and Noor.

The campus was unusually still. The usual chorus of honking, chattering, and someone badly playing a guitar hadn't started yet. Kinza strolled slowly, enjoying the silence, her eyes sleepy but her mind already narrating things like she was in a drama serial.

She plopped down on her favorite bench-the one with the least amount of bird poop-and took a sip of her coffee. Just as she was scrolling through memes on her phone, she heard the low purr of an engine.

Her eyes wandered lazily toward the campus gates, which opened to reveal-

A car.

But not just any car.

No, this was the car. The kind that didn't belong in a student parking lot. Midnight black. Chrome trim. Matte finish. Low hum of the engine that practically purred money. It glided across the pavement like it owned every square inch of it.

Kinza stared at it, unimpressed.

"Oh yes," she muttered. "Dubai called. It wants its show-off back."

She chuckled at her own sarcasm, took another sip, and scrolled lazily through her phone, tapping aimlessly at reels she didn't even care about.

Until-

The car rolled past a few lots, straight toward that spot.

The Forbidden Spot.

Her thumb froze mid-scroll.

No. No, no, no, no-not again.

She looked up. Watched.

The car came to a halt, tires kissing the pavement of the infamous parking space. The very space that remained sacred to a mystery member of Zidan's clan. The one no one parked in. Ever.