Laura “Do you both love or hate each other? It's time to get this story straight. Between hate and love, what will last? You two have a week to figure this out,” the content of the letter was saying. "What? One week?" I babbled confusedly as I read those very few words that barely gave us any cons
Laura FLASHBACK ON That night, Ava and I went to a VIP nightclub only for people of high social class. I wasn't a wealthy person, but Ava liked me so much that she always took me to fancy and expensive places as her guest. So today was no different; she sent a gift box that contained a beautiful
Laura “Why are you looking at me so heavily? You want to kiss me so bad, don’t you?” Those words of his reminded me so much of the past; I perfectly remembered that night on the terrace of that nightclub when he kissed me for the first time. And here we were again, as if it were our first time. Mo
Laura I felt Jason's arms grab my back and pull me closer to him as the kiss became more and more desperate. He had me in his domain now, and when he grabbed me like that, I knew there was no way I could escape, that everything was already lost. I threw my head back, panting heavily; my eyes almo
Because what happened a few moments ago between Jason and me shouldn't be seen by anyone else... “You're all red with embarrassment right now,” Jason commented with a chuckle, amused by my desperation. “I'm not embarrassed; I just don't want my privacy to be invaded, that's all. It's enough that
Laura FLASHBACK ON Jason was sleeping heavily next to me in his bed. He was all cute, clinging to the pillows with his back to me. I was undressed, and I remembered very well what had happened between me and him the night before. I had given my virginity to him, and although I knew that his heart
“Hmm, I ended up postponing the classes I have today. You need me more than college right now,” I replied with a giggle. “Wow, I feel even more special now. Next time I feel like shit, I'm going to call you to get your pampering,” he said with a chuckle. I ended up laughing too. “You fool, you d
Laura FLASHBACK ON “I can't believe he offered you money after you had sex with him. Like, it was your first time, girl, and he treated you like a whore?” Ava commented, astonished. I had to look around the corner to see if no one else had heard those vulgar words she said. She and I were in the
“Why do you keep hanging out with them, Abby?” he asked, and now there was a note of concern that annoyed me even more. “You know Madison’s not good for you. She uses you, and you let her.” “It’s none of your business,” I shot back, my voice sharp. “I do what I want, Caleb. Bye.” I hung up before h
Abby POV It was a lazy Sunday, and I was at the mall’s food court, waiting at the counter to pick up snacks for myself and the “new friends” I’d managed to latch onto. The smell of grease and cheap coffee filled the air, and the hum of conversations mixed with the muffled pop music from the speaker
Caleb, Abby, Madison, Nadia—they all spun through my head like a broken carousel. I wanted to tell my parents everything, collapse and ask for help, but the thought of seeing disappointment in their eyes—or worse, them trying to intervene at Oxwell to “save” me—made me swallow the words. I had to fi
Annie POV It was the weekend, and I was at home, trying to take deep breaths and pretend everything was okay. The Oxwell campus was a few hours away, giving me temporary relief from the chaos my life had become. Here, with my parents and the twins, I could at least try to be the old Annie—the exc
Max POV Walking beside someone who’d once meant so much to me felt strange. I couldn’t stop thinking that our breakup had been a waste, couldn’t stop remembering how happy I’d been with this guy, only to ruin it all because of my ego, because of a toxic fixation I had on Albert. Conrad Adams walke
Max POV was stunned when Albert told me that, my mouth even went dry because I wasn’t expecting to hear it. Conrad Adams was back. He was my boyfriend in my early twenties. I met him through Albert, who was close friends with him during the dark days of his family’s company. Conrad was a good guy
Max POV I was driving through the city with the radio on low, just a background murmur to keep the silence from swallowing me whole, when my phone buzzed on the dashboard. Zoey. Of course it was her. The girl had already wormed her way into my house like a high-heeled parasite, and now, apparently,
Annie POV After the moment at the mall, I returned to the dorm with a tight chest, carrying the bags with the blue dress Summer had insisted I buy. The plan was to distract myself, but Madison’s words—“racist,” “canceled piece of trash”—spun in my head like a broken record, mingling with Nadia’s re
When I met her last week at a council meeting, I could tell she’d be a challenge—confident, charismatic, the type who knew how to play the game. “Ugh, Madison Goodwin is here too. What a rotten day,” I grumbled, rolling my eyes. Of course Abby would get close to Madison—she was her adopted cousin.