LILY My ass hits the floor as my back rests against the sink. Why did I do it? Why did I admit my guilt? I push a stray blonde lock to the back of my ears so that I can see my face clearly through the long mirror. I wonder how long it will take the cops to get me. I had never checked the punishment for disclosing confidential information. I wipe my wet eyes with the front of my dress. I wondered what my chances are. If I run away now that they know my father is innocent, will they let him go? Or will they hold him on my behalf? My lips turn into a frown. If I runaway, will I be missed? Will anyone care? "Damn! I'm a mess. Why didn't I think this through before doing revenge?" I drag my hair roughly and throw my leg in the air, kicking furiously. "Knock. Knock. Lily... Are you in there?" I hear Tiffany's voice outside the door. I squeeze my lips tightly so that a sob won't slip out. I need a hug right now more than anything else in the world, but I'm scared—scared that
LILY "Need help?" I turn around to find some random stranger stretching out his hands. I nod and take them. He helps me over the fence. "My car is over there." Hmmmm. I look at him and back. I look at his car and back. People are still jumping over the fence and into vehicles and driving off. There's no Uber in sight. I can't even book a ride. Can I trust him? I jump into the car. It's not until we are in the car, and half way close to my house, that I start to feel the body pain where broken pieces of bottle tore into my skin. "Jason." He stretched out his hands. I turn around and lean in to get a clearer view. He looks 22, 23. He has decent features—not the typical good-looking seductive face but the kind that can still grab a girl's attention. "Lily."I shake his hands. "Thanks." I jump out of the car and wait for his car to drive off before turning the doorknob and entering in. I'm greeted by a heavy slap across my face. I see literal stars. I'm blind for a moment
LILYWe sit together in a cafe. I'm not mean right, chatting with Luca whilst on a date with another man. Well, technically, it's not a date. Jason just said we should get to know ourselves better, and Jason is not a man. He's a guy.Luca: I am not pressuring you. I believe you did not intentionally do it. I hope you're not mad at me."Noo.""What, I shouldn't put it like these?" Jason looks at me."What?" I arch a brow."You said no; I was about to put the sugar into the coffee." Jason lifts the packet of sugar in his left hand and the cup of coffee in his right hand; he raises his brow at me.I look at my phone again; there's a new text from Luca.Luca: ???Luca: I'm sorry. Are you good, darling?I start typing when Jason interrupts my train of thoughts."So, should I add it?""Uhm... whatever."Jason face falls. He may suspect I'm texting someone.Luca: Don't ghost me; I know you're still active.I look up at Jason. "If you like your coffee with sugar, then you should probably add
LILYThe only noise in the room is the faint whirring of my laptop's fan, and the glow it emits is a soft blue color, which reflects off the pile of clothes, dance shoes, and text books that are thrown on my bed. My brain is a mess, my thoughts are jumbled, and all that I went to court and testified about last night is closing in on me. It feels like I’m suffocating in a room that was supposed to be my sanctuary, but now it feels like prison of my own making.And I read what's right in front of my face. The crime of divulging confidences in American law. My stomach is all floppy simply reading the words, the lawyer jibber jabber in my head. I keep seeing my dad’s face when I told the court what I had done; the betrayal in his eyes is sharper than I could ever have imagined. He’s a lawyer—the top of his game—and I—his only daughter—had screwed everything up. The thing is, I don’t even know how. Not entirely.It's crazy how I can still remember that day, the day I removed all those pape
LILY'S POVI’m standing outside Luca’s mansion, trying not to shake. It’s late—too late—but there’s no turning back now. I look at Mira. She’s already moving, and I scramble to keep up.“You sure you know what you're doing?" I stand here trying to stay composed, my chest simply does not permit it.Mira looks at me, and a smile tugs at her lips. “It’s just a house. Stay quiet, stay fast. We’ll be in and out.”I swallow hard, nodding. I trust her, but this feels like we are doing too much.We walk into his yard since there's no fence separating the two mansions. We go behind the house. I can feel the pressure on my chest, like I'm running a marathon. His yard smells like fresh, cut grass, but with something else, something not so pleasant.“Shh,” Mira mutters, holding up a hand. She’s already at the back door, checking the lock. “Stay close.”I nod, my throat dry. I finally get a chance to blink, and Mira whips out her tools, and her fingers move at a speed that is simply inhuman. The l
LILYI sit at the base of the hall and play. I tap my fingers on the chair; it is so cold, so smooth. I've just rounded the corner, and there they are, Tiffany, my best friend, and Tyler Brook, the hottest guy in the entire senior class tongue locked. My stomach kind of flips because its like I can feel the disbelief and some jealousy, but yet I can't stop looking.What about West?Tiffany's lips are literally welded to his mouth, and her fingers are all jam packed in his hair, as she's forcing his head to sink even lower. The hall is eerily empty except for the buzzing of the fluorescent lights overhead, and I can’t stop moving, inching down the corridor, as if somehow I can escape the scene before me. I should turn away and act like I never saw any of this, but I can't.Finally, Tiffany pulls back when she hears me approach. Her eyes widen with panic, like she’s been caught doing something forbidden. Her lips are swollen, but she forces a smile. She says, "Hey Lily," as if nothing
LILY'S POVThe streets here looks like they keep secrets in every shadow, aged and jagged around the edges. Tiffany is right beside me, hugging her arms across her chest like she’s trying to keep herself from snapping. Even her usual calm seems frayed.She looks over at me, eyebrows knitted with concern. “Lily, are you sure about this? Her voice is soft, but there’s an edge to it. “It just… doesn’t feel right. What if this was all for nothing?”Now I'm pulling my sleeves down over my hands to hide the goose pimples that are starting to show. “I know. I just—this is the only lead we have. However, if this guy has the potential to do something for us, then we have to give it a shot."Tiffany lets out a deep sigh and surveys the scene, the boarded-up windows, the rusty fire escapes hanging off the sides of the buildings like the bones of some colossal skeleton. “I get it,” she murmurs. “But it’s so…sketchy yeah?"My stomach twists. “Yeah. I guess I wanted to believe it would lead somewh
LILY'S POV I push the door of the guest room wide open, my hand already shaking, feeling the weight of the glass partition in my grip. Luca is sitting to my right, slumped, his wavy brown hair, his usual, shiny, brown eyes now looking... bland. "Lily," he says, a little more husky than usual. "I've missed you." I put my hand to the glass and dreamed it would really have been him. "I couldn’t stay away. Luca, I know you didn't do this." There is one voice crack. I immediately force a deep breath, and the second I do, I clamp my lips as tight as I can to hide my trembling. "I’m here for you." He pushes forward, eyeballs fixed, as if he wants me to jump onboard. "You really think I’d betray you? Or your family, for that matter?" "No, of course not." I shake my head, biting my lip hard. "But... this is bad, Luca. The evidence points to you. The IP address they traced—" I swallow, my mind flashing back to Mira, her enthusiasm as she dragged me into that dark, stuffy tech shop. I t
LUCA'S POV"Welcome back, kiddo." Smith pulls me in first for a tight hug, squashing me in his big belly before patting my back. "How are you?""Luca!" Shareholders and executives shout my name from different corners of the party, all trying to get a hold of me."Ignore them." Smith whispers loud enough over the blasting music in the hall for me to hear but not loud enough for the others to hear. Why the hell are they fucking pretending to care now? They all left me to rot except... my Lily. I strain my eyes to search the congested hall for that blonde hair, blue eyes, tall form, and plump tits... I just had to. Smith is still pulling at my arms, probably trying to direct my attention to something; I'm not sure. I turn around to follow Smith but bump into a giant-sized banner that reads, Welcome home, Luca.' I push it aside with a grunt.Smith drags me out of the noisy hall into the more quiet part, where we sit on the sofa. "I'm sorry." He clasps his meaty palms around his face and
LILY'S POV I push the door of the guest room wide open, my hand already shaking, feeling the weight of the glass partition in my grip. Luca is sitting to my right, slumped, his wavy brown hair, his usual, shiny, brown eyes now looking... bland. "Lily," he says, a little more husky than usual. "I've missed you." I put my hand to the glass and dreamed it would really have been him. "I couldn’t stay away. Luca, I know you didn't do this." There is one voice crack. I immediately force a deep breath, and the second I do, I clamp my lips as tight as I can to hide my trembling. "I’m here for you." He pushes forward, eyeballs fixed, as if he wants me to jump onboard. "You really think I’d betray you? Or your family, for that matter?" "No, of course not." I shake my head, biting my lip hard. "But... this is bad, Luca. The evidence points to you. The IP address they traced—" I swallow, my mind flashing back to Mira, her enthusiasm as she dragged me into that dark, stuffy tech shop. I t
LILY'S POVThe streets here looks like they keep secrets in every shadow, aged and jagged around the edges. Tiffany is right beside me, hugging her arms across her chest like she’s trying to keep herself from snapping. Even her usual calm seems frayed.She looks over at me, eyebrows knitted with concern. “Lily, are you sure about this? Her voice is soft, but there’s an edge to it. “It just… doesn’t feel right. What if this was all for nothing?”Now I'm pulling my sleeves down over my hands to hide the goose pimples that are starting to show. “I know. I just—this is the only lead we have. However, if this guy has the potential to do something for us, then we have to give it a shot."Tiffany lets out a deep sigh and surveys the scene, the boarded-up windows, the rusty fire escapes hanging off the sides of the buildings like the bones of some colossal skeleton. “I get it,” she murmurs. “But it’s so…sketchy yeah?"My stomach twists. “Yeah. I guess I wanted to believe it would lead somewh
LILYI sit at the base of the hall and play. I tap my fingers on the chair; it is so cold, so smooth. I've just rounded the corner, and there they are, Tiffany, my best friend, and Tyler Brook, the hottest guy in the entire senior class tongue locked. My stomach kind of flips because its like I can feel the disbelief and some jealousy, but yet I can't stop looking.What about West?Tiffany's lips are literally welded to his mouth, and her fingers are all jam packed in his hair, as she's forcing his head to sink even lower. The hall is eerily empty except for the buzzing of the fluorescent lights overhead, and I can’t stop moving, inching down the corridor, as if somehow I can escape the scene before me. I should turn away and act like I never saw any of this, but I can't.Finally, Tiffany pulls back when she hears me approach. Her eyes widen with panic, like she’s been caught doing something forbidden. Her lips are swollen, but she forces a smile. She says, "Hey Lily," as if nothing
LILY'S POVI’m standing outside Luca’s mansion, trying not to shake. It’s late—too late—but there’s no turning back now. I look at Mira. She’s already moving, and I scramble to keep up.“You sure you know what you're doing?" I stand here trying to stay composed, my chest simply does not permit it.Mira looks at me, and a smile tugs at her lips. “It’s just a house. Stay quiet, stay fast. We’ll be in and out.”I swallow hard, nodding. I trust her, but this feels like we are doing too much.We walk into his yard since there's no fence separating the two mansions. We go behind the house. I can feel the pressure on my chest, like I'm running a marathon. His yard smells like fresh, cut grass, but with something else, something not so pleasant.“Shh,” Mira mutters, holding up a hand. She’s already at the back door, checking the lock. “Stay close.”I nod, my throat dry. I finally get a chance to blink, and Mira whips out her tools, and her fingers move at a speed that is simply inhuman. The l
LILYThe only noise in the room is the faint whirring of my laptop's fan, and the glow it emits is a soft blue color, which reflects off the pile of clothes, dance shoes, and text books that are thrown on my bed. My brain is a mess, my thoughts are jumbled, and all that I went to court and testified about last night is closing in on me. It feels like I’m suffocating in a room that was supposed to be my sanctuary, but now it feels like prison of my own making.And I read what's right in front of my face. The crime of divulging confidences in American law. My stomach is all floppy simply reading the words, the lawyer jibber jabber in my head. I keep seeing my dad’s face when I told the court what I had done; the betrayal in his eyes is sharper than I could ever have imagined. He’s a lawyer—the top of his game—and I—his only daughter—had screwed everything up. The thing is, I don’t even know how. Not entirely.It's crazy how I can still remember that day, the day I removed all those pape
LILYWe sit together in a cafe. I'm not mean right, chatting with Luca whilst on a date with another man. Well, technically, it's not a date. Jason just said we should get to know ourselves better, and Jason is not a man. He's a guy.Luca: I am not pressuring you. I believe you did not intentionally do it. I hope you're not mad at me."Noo.""What, I shouldn't put it like these?" Jason looks at me."What?" I arch a brow."You said no; I was about to put the sugar into the coffee." Jason lifts the packet of sugar in his left hand and the cup of coffee in his right hand; he raises his brow at me.I look at my phone again; there's a new text from Luca.Luca: ???Luca: I'm sorry. Are you good, darling?I start typing when Jason interrupts my train of thoughts."So, should I add it?""Uhm... whatever."Jason face falls. He may suspect I'm texting someone.Luca: Don't ghost me; I know you're still active.I look up at Jason. "If you like your coffee with sugar, then you should probably add
LILY "Need help?" I turn around to find some random stranger stretching out his hands. I nod and take them. He helps me over the fence. "My car is over there." Hmmmm. I look at him and back. I look at his car and back. People are still jumping over the fence and into vehicles and driving off. There's no Uber in sight. I can't even book a ride. Can I trust him? I jump into the car. It's not until we are in the car, and half way close to my house, that I start to feel the body pain where broken pieces of bottle tore into my skin. "Jason." He stretched out his hands. I turn around and lean in to get a clearer view. He looks 22, 23. He has decent features—not the typical good-looking seductive face but the kind that can still grab a girl's attention. "Lily."I shake his hands. "Thanks." I jump out of the car and wait for his car to drive off before turning the doorknob and entering in. I'm greeted by a heavy slap across my face. I see literal stars. I'm blind for a moment
LILY My ass hits the floor as my back rests against the sink. Why did I do it? Why did I admit my guilt? I push a stray blonde lock to the back of my ears so that I can see my face clearly through the long mirror. I wonder how long it will take the cops to get me. I had never checked the punishment for disclosing confidential information. I wipe my wet eyes with the front of my dress. I wondered what my chances are. If I run away now that they know my father is innocent, will they let him go? Or will they hold him on my behalf? My lips turn into a frown. If I runaway, will I be missed? Will anyone care? "Damn! I'm a mess. Why didn't I think this through before doing revenge?" I drag my hair roughly and throw my leg in the air, kicking furiously. "Knock. Knock. Lily... Are you in there?" I hear Tiffany's voice outside the door. I squeeze my lips tightly so that a sob won't slip out. I need a hug right now more than anything else in the world, but I'm scared—scared that