Chapter 5: The Rumour Mill
- BeWellAdmin
- Nov 30, 2025
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Image Credit: pexels.com
Chapter 4 Recap
Jamie and Alex grow closer, but trust becomes harder to hold onto as strange moments keep pulling at the edges of their connection. A run-in with Mara at the ARC raises new questions, and an overheard argument in Hawthorne Hall reveals Alex is hiding something bigger than he admits. Jamie wants to believe him, yet every clue suggests she should be afraid of what comes next.
Chapter 5: The Rumour Mill: What the Vial Reveals
By midweek, Queen’s carried a strange tension. Not the usual midterm stress. Something sharper. Conversations dipped when Jamie walked past, as if her presence pressed an invisible mute button.
Outside The Brew, two students huddled over a phone. One glanced up when Jamie passed, her expression tightening. Jamie felt her chest constrict. She quickened her pace, pretending she had not noticed.
Her phone vibrated nonstop.
When she finally checked it, the first thing she saw was a TikTok rapidly climbing in views.
“Closer look at Trinity Social.”
The clip stitched together scenes she recognized all too well. Strobe lights. Dancing. The chaotic moment the student collapsed. Paramedics pushing through the doorway.
Then the video froze.
Zoomed in.
Alex.
Facing the collapsed student.
Expression sharp.
Eyes wide.
A red circle appeared around him, followed by a caption.
“Check the background.”
Jamie leaned in.
Behind Alex, half-hidden between cups and a stack of plastic plates, sat a tiny glass vial. Clear. Half full. Unlabeled.
Her stomach dropped.
She replayed the clip. The vial remained. A silent, damning object with no explanation.
Comments blurred across the screen.
“Looks like something he brought.”
“Why did he leave early?”
“Ask the girl he was with.”
“Drug Awareness Week hits too close.”
Jamie shut the app. Her hands trembled slightly.
Even the campus posters felt louder now. Naloxone demos. Harm reduction workshops. Tables along University Avenue reminding students to check their drinks, stay with friends, seek help without shame. After Trinity Social, everyone was on edge. The vial photo only intensified it.
Her phone buzzed again.
A private message.
No profile picture.
“He was not honest with you at Trinity Social. Stay away.”
Jamie exhaled shakily.
Another warning.
Another shadow.
She found Riley outside Mac-Corry Hall, sitting cross-legged on the low stone ledge.
“You saw everything online, right?” Riley asked quietly.
Jamie nodded. “People think Alex brought something. They think the vial is his.”
Riley sighed. “Campus loves building villains during Drug Awareness Week. Suddenly everyone thinks they know everything about drugs and emergencies.”
Jamie’s voice dropped. “What if there is something I do not know?”
Riley hesitated. “Then be careful. But do not let TikTok replace the truth.”
Jamie nodded, though unease clung to her.
She needed answers. Ones that did not come from strangers online.
Her mind returned to the earlier anonymous message.
Ask him about Hawthorne.
She had never been inside Hawthorne Hall. Never even thought about it.
Which is exactly why she found herself walking there.
Hawthorne was busier than she expected. Students lugged laundry baskets through the lobby. A don scanned sign-in sheets at the desk. Wellness flyers covered the bulletin board behind him.
Jamie lingered near the posters, pretending to read. Her ears drifted toward the desk.
A boy approached. “Can Alex Chen sign me in later? He is meeting me here.”
The don stiffened. “Alex Chen is not permitted in this building.”
Jamie froze.
The boy frowned. “Since when?”
“It is an old restriction,” the don said carefully. “I cannot share details.”
He walked away, unconcerned.
Jamie did not move.
Alex.
Banned.
From Hawthorne.
The don noticed her stare. “Can I help you?”
Jamie forced a small smile. “I am just waiting for someone.”
He nodded and returned to his clipboard. Jamie’s eyes drifted down the sign-in sheet.
Rows of names.
Check marks.
Neat handwriting.
Then she saw it.
A name crossed out with a thick, dark line.
Alex Chen.
Her breath caught.
The don lowered his voice slightly. “He is not allowed here for safety reasons. Please do not repeat that.”
Safety.
The word hit her like a physical blow.
She thanked him quietly and stepped outside, her heart pounding.
She found Alex behind Kingston Hall, sitting alone on a stone bench. His shoulders were hunched, eyes distant. When he saw her, a flicker of relief crossed his face.
“Jamie,” he said. “I was going to text you.”
She did not sit. “Why are you banned from Hawthorne?”
He went still.
Truly still.
The wind brushed leaves across the pavement.
“I was hoping you would never hear about that,” he said.
“You did not tell me,” she replied softly. “Not about the rumours. Not about the vial. Not about this.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Hawthorne is complicated.”
“Explain it.”
“I cannot.”
Jamie swallowed the sting in her chest. “Did something happen last year?”
He shut his eyes briefly. When he looked at her again, there was fear in them. And guilt.
“Yes,” he said quietly.
She stepped closer. “Then tell me.”
He hesitated. “You have to trust me.”
“How can I, when everyone else seems to know more than I do?”
He exhaled shakily. “I was trying to protect you.”
“From what?”
Before he could answer, her phone buzzed violently.
A new message.
“Ask him about the vial. Ask him why Hawthorne banned him.”
Jamie looked up slowly.
Alex stared at the screen.
His face drained of color.
Not confusion.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
The kind that confirmed everything was worse than she imagined.
Cliffhanger
Why is Alex banned from Hawthorne Hall, and what truth is he terrified Jamie will uncover?
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