“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
When she woke up, with a crumpled face and swollen ears, messy hair, and unkempt care, she sat down heavily on the kitchen table and demanded. “Bring me something to eat soon! Or do you intend to starve me to keep this apartment, you brat?” I sighed silently and went to serve her some hot and delic
Laura FLASHBACK ON I didn't see Jason again for a long time after the day I spent the night with him. He even called me sometimes and left voice messages on my voicemail, but I never returned, it would be better to listen to my friends and not insist on someone like him, even though all my heart
Laura FLASHBACK ON He rolled down the car window, looking at me from inside. He motioned with his head for me to join him. “Come in, let’s go for a walk,” he invited, still serious. I swallowed hard, seeing that there was no escape, it was good to end this once and for all and move on without re
“I don't blame you for anything, you have the right to draw whatever conclusions you want. It doesn’t matter for me either, I’ve been alone in this for a long time anyway,” he murmured melancholy, still staring at the horizon. "Conclusion? I can't complete anything on an empty stomach. I thought y
Laura That first day on the island, Jason and I spent the entire day clinging together, unable to disengage ourselves for even a minute. The feeling we had was as if he and I had entered a kind of alternative reality, a dream or a kind of bubble of ecstasy where he and I could be together without i
Laura In fact, Jason had outdone himself; the breakfast table was very beautiful and well laid out, with an excellent first meal. There was toast, eggs with bacon, a strawberry smoothie, orange juice, fruits like orange, kiwi, and grapes, all balanced by a good coffee that he had made right. He ser
“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.