When He Started Watching Me

The Man in Black

Rain tapped softly against the tall glass windows of Blackthorne University, turning the entire campus gray.

Lia Valencia sat near the back of the lecture hall, half-listening to the whispers around her while organizing her notes into neat little columns. Her fingers were cold from the rain outside. She rubbed them together before pulling the sleeves of her oversized cream sweater lower over her hands.

Monday mornings always felt heavy.

Too many students. Too much noise. Too many people pretending to be richer, happier, prettier than they really were.

Lia kept her head down most days.

It was easier that way.

"Did you hear who's teaching the special lecture?"

"Monteverde."

"No way."

"They said he owns half the city."

The girls sitting two rows ahead squealed quietly.

Lia ignored them and continued highlighting a paragraph in her literature book. She only came because attendance was required for scholarship students. If she missed another event, the university would send another warning email.

And she couldn't afford that.

Not when rent was due in six days.

Not when her mother kept calling to ask for money Lia didn't have.

The lecture hall buzzed louder by the second.

Then suddenly—

Silence.

Not gradual silence.

Immediate silence.

The kind that spreads when someone important enters a room.

Lia looked up instinctively.

A man dressed entirely in black walked down the center aisle.

Tall.

Calm.

Sharp enough to make the entire room feel smaller.

His coat was dark charcoal, tailored perfectly over broad shoulders. Black gloves covered his hands, and silver cufflinks flashed briefly beneath the dim lights overhead. He looked less like a guest lecturer and more like the kind of man people crossed streets to avoid.

Adrian Monteverde.

Lia recognized the surname immediately.

Everyone did.

Monteverde Holdings owned luxury hotels, real estate, tech companies, restaurants—almost every skyscraper visible from the city skyline carried some connection to that family.

And yet none of that was what unsettled her.

It was his face.

Not because he was handsome—though he was.

It was because he looked emotionally unreachable.

Like nothing in the world could touch him.

The dean rushed nervously behind him, introducing him with far too much enthusiasm.

"Mr. Monteverde has graciously agreed to conduct our special lecture series this semester—"

Lia tuned the rest out.

Because Adrian Monteverde had stopped walking.

Right beside her row.

Her stomach tightened slightly as his gaze drifted across the students.

Cold.

Observant.

Calculating.

Girls immediately straightened in their seats.

One adjusted her lipstick using her phone camera.

Another tucked her hair behind her ear.

Lia looked back down at her notebook.

People like him belonged to another world entirely.

A world of expensive watches and private elevators and dinners where nobody checked price tags before ordering.

Not her world.

Not even close.

She heard footsteps again.

Then the soft scrape of a chair.

When she looked up—

Adrian Monteverde was sitting directly in front of her.

The entire room visibly reacted.

Whispers erupted instantly.

"Oh my god—"

"Why there?"

"Is he serious?"

Lia blinked slowly.

There were over a hundred empty seats.

Why sit there?

Adrian crossed one leg over the other casually before opening a black leather folder. His expensive watch glinted beneath the lights.

Then, without warning—

He spoke.

"You're holding your pen incorrectly."

Lia stared at him.

"...What?"

His voice was low. Smooth. Controlled.

"You'll strain your wrist eventually."

She glanced down at the way she held her pen.

Nobody had ever pointed that out before.

"That's..." she started quietly, "kind of a strange thing to notice."

A faint smile touched the corner of his mouth.

Not warm.

Not friendly.

Just enough to feel dangerous.

"I notice many things."

Something about the way he said it made goosebumps rise across her arms.

The dean finally began the lecture properly, nervously speaking about literature, media influence, and corporate sponsorships, but Lia found it difficult to focus.

Because every few minutes—

She could feel him looking at her.

Not casually.

Not accidentally.

Studying her.

Like he was memorizing details.

The shape of her handwriting.

The way she tucked loose strands of hair behind her ear.

The tiny crease between her brows whenever she concentrated.

It made her increasingly uncomfortable.

Halfway through the lecture, her phone vibrated quietly beneath the desk.

A message from her landlord.

PAY RENT THIS WEEK OR MOVE OUT.

Her chest tightened.

She quickly locked the screen before anyone noticed.

But Adrian noticed.

Of course he did.

"You seem troubled."

She stiffened slightly.

"Excuse me?"

"You've read the same sentence three times."

Lia looked at him carefully now.

"You've been watching me?"

His expression didn't change.

"Yes."

The honesty startled her more than the answer itself.

Most people lied.

Most people pretended.

But Adrian Monteverde said things like facts.

Direct. Unapologetic. Calm.

The lecture ended forty minutes later.

Students flooded instantly toward the stage, desperate for photos and introductions. Girls surrounded Adrian almost immediately, laughing too loudly at everything he said.

Lia packed her bag quietly instead.

She slipped her notebook inside, adjusted the strap over her shoulder, and headed for the exit.

Almost free.

"Ms. Valencia."

She froze.

His voice carried effortlessly through the crowd.

Slowly, she turned around.

Adrian stood several feet away now, one hand inside his pocket while the students around him watched curiously.

"How do you know my name?" she asked.

His gaze held hers steadily.

"You wrote it on your notebook."

Lia looked down immediately.

Right.

Her name was written neatly in the corner.

Heat crept into her face.

"That makes sense," she muttered.

Something unreadable flickered in his eyes.

Amusement, maybe.

"You're observant when you aren't nervous."

"I'm not nervous."

"You're twisting your ring."

Lia immediately stopped touching the silver ring on her finger.

God.

He really did notice everything.

The room suddenly felt warmer.

"You should be more careful walking home tonight," Adrian said softly.

Her brows pulled together.

"...Why?"

"It's going to rain harder."

He held her gaze for one lingering second longer before turning away completely, already surrounded again by university staff and students desperate for his attention.

Like the conversation had never happened.

Lia stood there for several moments.

Confused.

Uneasy.

And somehow—

unable to stop thinking about him.

Outside, thunder rolled across the darkening sky.

And high above the city, from the tinted windows of a black luxury car waiting near the university gates—

Adrian Monteverde watched Lia Valencia walk home alone in the rain.