Falling for Forbidden

d on glass. Amara's fingers glided over the worn-out keys, playing a melody no one had eve

An old friend. Some nights, she got by with nothing but a cup of water. Other nights, if she was luck

ngle bulb flickering above her. Rent was due next week, and she was still short. Tuition? She didn't even think about that anymore. She was beh

ping her from comp

swood Un

r was everything. Money decided your worth. Influenc

g her books close. Eyes followed her, whispers trailed behind her l

sn't bel

ng for a rich guy

bly doanythi

ll before. The rum

go? Easy prey. They'd flash their expensive watches, lean against their

could take

, Amara. How ha

hen you could h

cted. That cold, unreadable mask w

fferently-some with pity, some with

e walked into his class. "Amara, have you eaten today?" he asked once,

his eyes lingered, the way he offered "extra help" after cl

students laugh, eat, and live the life she had lost. He

pride and drank water

al. That was her rout

s. In a place where everyone was chasing power and wealth, a girl

alked in and out, laughing, ordering drinks she could never afford, talking about vacations

ndering hands of businessmen who thought a waitress was easy to touch.

on the table. His suit was expensive, his wedding ring hid

ping her expression bla

p of his drink. "I'll pa

grabbed another order. It was always the same. Some men assumed poverty made her easy. Som

b, her stomach empty. The city lights blurred in her vision,

w the war w

small desk, and a piano she refused to sell, no matter how desperate she became. It w

e. When she played, she wasn't the poor girl struggling to survive. She wasn't the gir

ara. Just a gir

and haunting. A song of loss. A song of

hunger, the exhaustion, the lo

never

the university office. Her tuition deadline

. She had fought too hard to get here.

ould she keep