Chapter 1
A BEAUTIFUL KIND OF RUIN
Chapter One: The Scholarship Room
An original dark-academia romance mystery
12:07 A.M. — Corer University
The first rule of Corer University was simple: never enter the east wing after midnight.
The second rule, apparently, was that if you did enter the east wing, you should at least have the decency to look guilty about it.
Unfortunately for Corer University, Jasmine Blackwood had never been particularly good at following rules.
Especially rules written by people who believed money could buy them the right to control everyone else's lives.
Rain tapped against the tall windows of the administration building as Jasmine slipped through a half-open door. The old hinges groaned, and she froze with one hand still wrapped around the handle.
Silence.
She glanced over her shoulder.
The courtyard behind her was empty, washed silver beneath the moonlight. Beyond the iron gates, the university's clock tower rose against a sky heavy with clouds. Its four faces gleamed above the rooftops, counting down the minutes as if time itself belonged to the institution.
Jasmine exhaled.
“Very welcoming,” she whispered. “Five stars. Would definitely commit another disciplinary offence.”
She stepped inside and eased the door shut.
Her phone flashlight illuminated a corridor lined with portraits of former university chancellors. Every single one looked deeply disa
