The Golden Boy

The first thing people noticed about Denzel Alexander was his smile.

It was the kind of smile that made teachers forgive late assignments, the kind of smile that convinced strangers to trust him.

The kind of smile that made half of the girls at Westbridge Academy forget what they were saying halfway through a conversation.

The second thing people noticed was his money Not because he talked about it , He has never talked about it.

The black luxury SUV that dropped him off every morning spoke for him itself.

The designer wrist watch on his hand, The expensive clothes, The effortless confidence Everything about Denzel Alexander screamed wealth.

And the third thing people noticed?

The trail of broken hearts he left behind immediately he stepped outside from the SUV, heads turned, Whispers spread through the courtyard.

"That's him."

"Denzel's here."

"Did you see his game on Friday?"

Several girls standing at the entrance immediately straightened their posture.

A few boys nodded respectfully as he passed Others raised up their hands.

"Morning, Denzel."

"What's up, man?"

Denzel answered with his usual easy grin.

"Try not to miss me too much."

Laughter followed him, It always did None of this was new Being noticed had become as normal as breathing.

Sometimes he wondered what it felt like to walk through a crowd without everyone watching Then again, maybe he didn't want to know.

"Denzel!"

A voice cut through the noise, He barely had time to turn before a blonde girl rushed toward him.

Rachel Monroe, One of many mistakes She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I texted you last night."She said to him.

Denzel winced Danger.

"And?"

"And you didn't reply."

"Ah."

Rachel narrowed her eyes.

"That's all you have to say?"

Denzel flashed a charming smile.

"The same reason I didn't reply the night before."

"And what's that?"

"I was busy."

"Busy doing what?"

He shrugged.

"Being me."

Students nearby burst into laughter and start whispering to each other ear, Rachel groaned.

"You're impossible."

"And yet, here you are."

She pointed at him.

"One day, somebody is going to break your heart."

Denzel chuckled.

"That would require having one."

Rachel rolled her eyes and walked away His best friend Marcus appeared beside him immediately.

"Dude."

"What?"

"One day you're going to run out of excuses."

Denzel draped an arm over Marcus's shoulder.

"Not likely."

Marcus laughed.

"You know she actually likes you, right?"

"That's unfortunate."

"You are a terrible human being."

"So I've been told."

The smile remained on Denzel face But inside, something shifted Because Marcus wasn't entirely wrong.

The truth was Denzel wasn't afraid of commitment, He was very afraid of believing in something that didn't exist.

Love, Relationships, Happy endings, He had seen too much.

His parents had cured him of those fantasies years ago, From the outside, the Alexander family looked perfectly fine.

“But Inside?

It was a war zone hidden behind expensive walls.

His father lived for business, His mother lived on airplanes, Every conversation became an argument in their family, Every family dinner became a battlefield.

The older Denzel got, the more obvious it became to him that, Love wasn't forever, Love was temporary.

And temporary things weren't worth trusting So he smiled, Flirted Kept everyone at arm's length It was safer that way Much safer.

By lunchtime, Denzel was already sitting down at the center of the cafeteria surrounded by teammates, cheerleaders, and his friends.

The table buzzed with different conversation, Everyone wanted his attention, Everyone wanted a piece of his world.

Marcus move forward.

"I still don't get it."

"Get what?"

"How people automatically like you."

Denzel grabbed a fry.

"Simple."

Marcus waited.

"I tell people exactly what they want to hear."

Several students laughed, a girl throw a napkin at him suddenly.

"You're terrible."

Denzel pressed a hand dramatically against his chest.

"And yet you all keep showing up."

More laughter erupted For a few minutes everything felt normal, Easy.

Then his phone vibrated, His smile vanished instantly, it was a text message notification.

“Dad.”

The message contained only four words, Dinner tonight. Don't be late.

No greeting, No question, No affection, Just another command, Marcus noticed immediately.

"Is everything okay?"

"Of course."

"You sure?"

Denzel throw the phone away.

"Never better."

The lie tasted bitter.

That evening, the Alexander mansion looked as beautiful as ever, Huge gates, Perfect gardens, Sparkling windows.

The kind of house people dreamed about yet every time Denzel came home after school, it felt colder than school.

A maid greeted him at the door entrance.

"Good evening, sir."

"Hey."He said.

"Your father is waiting."

Of course he was.

Denzel entered the dining room, His father was sitting down on the couch reviewing his business reports, His mother was staring at her phone screen.

Neither looked happy to be there, Neither looked happy to see each other Or him.

"You're late," his father said.

"It was five minutes."

"Five minutes is still late."

Denzel clenched his jaw, His mother sighed.

"Can we please not do this tonight?"

His father ignored her.

"How are your grades?"

"They're fine."

"Fine isn't good enough."

"There it is."

His father looked up.

"There what is?"

"The real reason you wanted dinner."

The room grew tense.

"You only call family dinners when there's something to criticize."

"Denzel."

"No, Mom."

Years of frustration boiled to the surface.

"I'm tired of pretending this is normal."

His father's expression hardened.

"As long as you live under my roof—"

"Then maybe I shouldn't."

Silence, Complete silence, His mother eyes widened, His father slowly set down his fork For a moment, nobody moved.

Then Denzel turned and walked away before anyone could see the anger in him, his eyes Or the hurt.

Later that night he was sitting alone on the balcony outside his room staring at the city light.

The city lights glittered below, His phone buzzed nonstop, different message notification, Party invitations, Group chats.

Girls asking where he was He ignored every single one For once, popularity felt meaningless to him, A call from Marcus appeared Denzel answered.

"What's up?"

"Dude, are you alive?"

"Barely."

Marcus laughed.

"Bad family night?"

"The usual."

A pause followed Then Marcus spoke quietly.

"You know, one day you're going to have to let people in."

Denzel stared at the stars.

"No thanks."

"Not everyone leaves."

"Everyone leaves eventually."

Marcus didn't argue Maybe because he knew Denzel believed it, Maybe because a part of him believed it too.

After the call ended, Denzel opened the school website and start scrolling through the Student profiles, Upcoming events, Class lists.

He scrolled absentmindedly Then stopped, A photo caught his attention.

A girl sitting alone inside the library, Dark hair, Serious eyes, No fake smile, No carefully crafted image Just real.

Her name appeared beneath the picture.

“Amara Collins.”

Denzel frowned.

Why did she look familiar?

And why couldn't he stop looking at her profile?

For the first time in months, curiosity stirred inside him.

The next morning, Denzel arrived at school expecting another ordinary day.

Instead, he took a shortcut behind the science building And froze.

Someone was there, A girl Standing alone, Her shoulders were shaking She was crying Denzel immediately recognized her.

“Amara Collins.”

She had a phone pressed against her ear.

"I understand," she whispered.

Silence Then her voice cracked.

"My mother is dying."

Denzel stopped breathing The pain in her voice was so raw that it hit him like a punch.

He should leave, He knew he should But he couldn't move.

Then Amara said something else, Something that made every hair on his neck stand up.

"They found me."

Denzel frowned.

Found her?

What did that mean?

A black SUV suddenly rolled and stop outside the school fence, Three people stepped out.

They were all wearing dark suits, All staring directly at Amara, One of them slowly raised a photograph.

A photograph of her, Amara saw them And went completely pale, The phone slipped from her fingers.

One of the strangers spoke into an earpiece Then pointed directly at her And Denzel heard the chilling words carried by the wind.

“Targeted confirmed.”