OLIVIA'S POV
I was still shaken up as I read the latest letter from Linda. The threats were escalating, and this one was the most menacing yet. "Cut ties with Dante, or suffer a fate worse than death." It was ridiculous, of course - Dante was my stepbrother, and I had done nothing wrong. But the letter was meant to intimidate me, and sure enough, it was working.
I made sure to always show the letters to Dante, "I know you said you didn't want to, but I believe the police can handle this better than we can. We need to go to the police," he said, his voice firm. "It really is getting out of hand."
I sighed and nodded in agreement. We had tried to handle it on our own, but it was clear that Linda was not going to stop. We needed help.
DANTE'S POVI sat still in my baseball locker room, staring at the space in front of me. I was trying to come up with a plan to stop Linda once and for all. She had been terrorizing Olivia for weeks now, and I was determined to put an end to it.I had not been able to pay attention much with all that had been going on. Olivia in the hospital, quarter finals coming up and the thread of lies I had to keep telling our parents when they couldn't reach Olivia.Then, an idea came to me. I would send Linda a message, agreeing to date her, but only if she left Olivia alone. It was a ruse, of course. I had no intention of actually dating her, but I hoped it would be enough to lure her out of hiding. I knew Olivia would be against the idea of me sacrificing myself, so she wouldn't be hurt but I had no choice. Landon had been in touch an
OLIVIA'S POV“Is this seat taken?” Mark asked, then without waiting for a response, sat beside me.“Uh…sure.” I replied a few seconds too late.Things had been going well at my club and even though I was now officially the nerd flock, I couldn't care less. We had auditioned a few recruits last week and one of them in particular, had stood out from the rest. Mark Styles. He had charmed the socks off Mrs Shelly and the entire club. He didn't seem like the kind you would find in a college glee club, yet there he was. He didn't seem like the kind who would be remotely interested in me, but surprisingly, he was.He smiled at me as we watched Sophia and Diana sing a deconstructed version of “The boy is mine”. I blushed under his gaze and averted my eyes. “Have you gone through the set list?” He asked looking through some papers.“What?”He stared at me meaningfully and repeated, “The set list?”“Oh…yeah! I have…”He smiled brightly, “Isn’t it amazing that we were both paired to take two d
DANTE'S POVI woke up this morning feeling a sense of loss like something I cherished was taken away from me. That was how much I loved baseball. I had been too consumed by my love for the game for as long as I could remember, that every day I woke up, was spent perfecting my pitch, trying to be better at my skills, and trying to think up ways to strategize or ideas for the team. But as the tournament drew near, my intensity only grew stronger. I was determined to lead my team to victory, no matter the cost, but this suspension wanted to ruin everything.I walked into the cafeteria with my baseball guys, who were sympathizing with me about my suspension. I was looking forward to a hearty lunch, to bury myself in cholesterol and lick my wounds. I had become accustomed to sitting with them that when they left me there to go to th
Olivia's POVRegionals was this Saturday and I was feeling pumped. Mrs Shelly was drilling us so much that I felt that she would combust one day due to her pregnancy. I wanted to make her proud, I wanted to make my club and everyone proud.I know it was a lot of pressure but much needed. I had been on a no-talk routine to preserve my voice for the big day, but it was never going to work, with a roommate like mine. Thankfully, I would be moving out to better lodgings. I was moving in with Sophia at her dorm. It was super exciting for me.It also looked like my no-talking rule wouldn't work there either because Sophia liked to have a roommate she could talk to and I wouldn't make it easier with my ‘load of nonsense'. She didn't believe that not talking was a way I could stay to preserve
OLIVIA'S POVI was yet to get over the feeling of being Mark's girlfriend when Mom had called about Alex's health. Mom had called crying, “I thought I was going to lose him… I mean we just got to start a life together after so long.”I had felt sad that my mom was crying. I had only ever seen her cry when my grandma passed. I sighed, not knowing how to encourage or even share the news that she had been waiting to hear, that I now had a boyfriend.I was supposed to go on my first date with Mark the day after his proposal, but I couldn't help but feel so bad that I was venturing into a relationship with Mark at this critical time. My thoughts shifted to Dante, as it usually did. But this time, it was justified. His was suspended, then there was the tournament, and now his dad's h
OLIVIA'S POVMark was a great guy, always making sure I was happy and cared for. He was interested in everything I was interested in. He wanted to support my dreams. He was too perfect that I could not find any fault in him at all.But the truth was, I didn't love him. My feelings for Dante were still strong, all-consuming. I felt like I was betraying Mark by being with him when my heart belonged to someone else.As I lay in bed, I thought about how I hadn't told Alicia about Mark yet. She was my best friend, my confidante. If I really saw Mark as a significant part of my life, I would have told her about him by now. But I hadn't, and that realization made me feel even more guilty.Just then, my phone rang. It
Dante's POVI was full of so many emotions, my mind was still not over dad's attack and the argument I had with Olivia. But I pushed those thoughts aside, focusing on the task at hand. I had to win the postseason tournament this weekCoach blew his whistle, and practice began. He drilled me harder than usual, pushing me to my limits, probably because I had relaxed and added a few tons having been away for a week. A week was all it took. I appreciated it, knowing that we had a reputation to uphold. Wexford had won the title four times in a row, and with me as the lead pitcher, I couldn't flop."Dante, you need to step up your game!" Coach yelled as I threw a wild pitch. "You're not looking sharp!"I gritted my
OLIVIA'S POVI had become so accustomed to always being with Mark… as strange as that sounded. I mentioned my plans to attend Dante's tournament. Mark's eyes lit up with enthusiasm, and he asked if he could take me. I hesitated, unsure if it was a good idea."I don't know, Mark," I said, trying to gauge his reaction. "Dante might not be too happy about us showing up together."Mark shrugged, his expression nonchalant. "So what if he's not happy? We're not doing anything wrong. And I'm a big fan of the tournament, I'd love to go."I studied his face, trying to determine if he was genuinely interested in the tournament or just trying to spend time with me. Either way, I appreciated his enthusiasm.