Rise Of The Student Pauper

CHAPTER 2

Adrian turned lazily on the bed, his face tightening in irritation as he pulled up his pants. 

“The instructions were simple - drop the condoms on the table and leave. What is going on here?” he snapped, his tone sharp and commanding, the voice of a man who was used to being in control. 

He stared at Darren like he was some pest that had wandered in uninvited.

Darren’s throat closed up. His heart pounded so hard it felt like it might burst through his ribs.

“C–Clara,” he stammered, his voice trembling. “Clara, how could you?”

Clara’s gaze met his. There was no guilt, no panic, no explanation waiting behind her eyes. Only a cold and distant stare,

It was almost like she was staring at someone she barely recognized.

“Why are you still standing here, Darren,” she said lazily, with a detached tone.

Those words sank into him like a blade. They hurt more than if she had screamed or begged.

Adrian let out a small laugh, his irritation melting into amusement. “Wait,” he said, glancing between them with raised brows. “You know this guy?” His lips twisted into a smirk. “The delivery boy?”

Clara's expression didn't change. She spoke in that same faint, almost bored tone. “Yes, I do know him. He does some small errands around campus for me sometimes.”

Darren’s chest tightened. His stomach churned. Errands? That’s all she thought he was? After everything?

He blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of it. “Clara,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “Errands? That’s what I am to you now?”

Adrian chuckled quietly. He reached for the nightstand, picked up a few bills, and tossed them toward Darren.

The notes drifted to the floor, landing just beside Darren’s torn sneakers.

“Take your money and leave, delivery boy,” Adrian said, smiling lazily. “You’ve seen enough.”

The sound of the bills hitting the carpet echoed in Darren’s head. 

He stared down at them, the money he had come here to earn doubled up into a bunch.  

He didn’t move. His legs felt rooted to the floor. “Clara, did you really just introduce me as your errand boy?” he asked in a whisper, still staring at Clara.

Clara said nothing.

“You could at least tell him the truth,” Darren said, his voice breaking as he took a shaky step forward. “Tell him who I really am to you.”

Adrian looked at Clara again, curiosity showing across his face. “Yeah,” he said, sitting up slightly, “who is he, Clara? Because from the way he’s looking at you, it doesn’t seem like he’s just some random guy.”

Clara hesitated, but only for a second. When she finally spoke, her voice was soft, but her words were cruel enough to pierce  Darren’s chest. 

“Like I already said, just used to run errands for me,” she said again. “I don’t know why he’s acting like I owe him something.”

Darren blinked, disbelief flooding his face. “Owe me?” he repeated, his voice shaking. “Clara, are you serious right now?”

But Clara had already looked away, as though even meeting his eyes was beneath her.

The room went silent.

Her lack of remorse made the silence unbearable.

Adrian broke it with a laugh. He slipped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. “There you have it,” he said mockingly. “She doesn’t owe you anything, man. Unless…” His grin widened. “You want to stand there and watch us instead?”

Clara didn’t stop him. She didn’t even look embarrassed as he kissed her in front of him.

Darren’s fists curled at his sides. His chest burned so badly it hurt to breathe.

“Was everything between us a lie?” he asked, his voice trembling. “All the nights we talked, all the times you said you believed in me… was it all just a joke to you?”

Clara sighed softly, as though she was tired of repeating herself. “Darren,” she said, “I liked you because you were always eager to run free errands for me. But let’s be honest, did you really think I saw a future with you? You don’t even have enough to take care of yourself.”

“Tell me, have you even had a meal in the past 48 hours?” She added.

Her words stabbed through him like sharp glass.

“I asked you out,” Darren said weakly. “You said yes. You told me you wanted something real. We’ve been together for a year, Clara… for a whole year.”

Clara laughed under her breath. 

“Together?” she repeated coldly. “Darren, that wasn’t dating. Be serious. Did we ever even kiss?”

His lips parted, but no words came out. Because it was true. She had always turned away, always said she wasn’t ready.

“You said we should wait until graduation,” he whispered. “You said you didn’t want to rush anything.”

Clara’s expression twisted into one of mock pity before hardening her face again. 

“Wait?” she repeated with a small, cruel laugh. “Darren, how could someone as poor and wretched as you even think about being intimate with me?” 

She shook her head as she galnced at him from head to toe. “You’ve been wearing the same two shirts since final year started. One’s already tearing at the sleeve. And you still think you can talk about love and the future?”

Her words sliced him open.

Adrian chuckled beside her, clearly entertained. “She’s got a point,” he said under his breath. “Do you even know the cost and all the money behind her glowing skin?”

Clara didn’t stop him. She just looked at Darren, her eyes sharp and merciless. “You should take a good look at yourself, Darren,” she said coldly. “You’re pitiful. Running around campus, sweating under the sun, delivering things for pocket change. Aren’t you even ashamed of yourself, laying claims over someone like me?”

Darren’s heart stopped for a moment.

Shame... The one thing he had been trying to avoid his whole life now dripped from every word she said.

For a long moment, he couldn’t move. His eyes burned, his vision blurring until the two of them faded in his side.

The woman he had loved for a year, the one he had saved for, worked for, sacrificed for, she had reduced him to nothing but a joke.

Finally, he swallowed the lump in his throat and forced his voice out, low and trembling. “Don’t worry,” he said shakily. “You’ll never have to be ashamed of me again.”

He turned about to walk out, the sound of Adrian’s laughter echoing behind him like the final nail in his humiliation.

He stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder from behind. In that instant, hope rose in his chest. He thought it was Clara, begging him to wait.

But as he turned around, it was Adrian handing him a $50 bill. 

There was silence... 

Darren's body stiffened the moment his eyes met the money.

“Don’t pretend you don’t want the money. We both know you don’t even have dinner,” Clara said to him from where she laid on the bed.