Anne I decided to ignore everything I was thinking and just focus on my schedules. I was by far the best student in my class; I was always dedicated and hardworking, and I was never the subject of a complaint. The teachers loved me because I was so exemplary for all the other students, which is why
Anne When the teacher left after the class was over, the students in the classroom started to make the usual noise when they talk to each other. I still couldn't believe that the boy sitting behind me was actually Peter Morton, so I turned to him since I already had something to talk about, which w
Anne It all started when I was 11 years old and Peter Morton wanted to kill his stepdad. “Does your Dad have a gun?” He asked when he and I were hiding in the ceiling of the ballroom where Uncle Jake's and his mom's wedding was taking place. "What?" For a moment, I thought I hadn't heard correctl
Anne That night, Peter and I had a lot of fun together. We played subtle pranks on Uncle Jake and his fiancée, things that didn't really hurt, but that took away his peace in some way, for example, like pouring olive oil in his wine, filling with salt his slice of wedding cake, putting a fart cushi
Laura “Which dish do you prefer for our supper tonight? Fettuccine with mushrooms or filet mignon with duchesses potatoes?” Jason asked me on the other end of the line. He seemed excited to prepare dinner for me, which pleased me. “Um, I love a buttered filet mignon, but I also can't resist fettuc
Laura “Lindsay! It's been a long time,” I said excitedly, going over to hug her as she entered my office room. “Oh, Laura, I missed you so much,” she said with a smile for me as she returned my hug. I really didn't have any issues with her because I always liked her. She has always been an excelle
Laura I couldn't believe that Lindsay Roberts, that is, Lindsay Bathory, was right here in front of me, begging to come back to work at Hextec with me. I mean, she was the one who had left all that behind to get married and went to live in London and started a new life there with her husband; years
Laura “Are you telling me Lindsay and Gideon are divorced?” Ava was surprised when she asked that. She and I were in the living room of a massage parlor, wearing lilac terrycloth robes and drinking sparkling wine. As agreed, after I got off work, Ava and I went to the spa. So she and I were spellin
Anne POV I was there, trying to at least pretend I was enjoying the party with Summer, letting the loud music and spinning lights distract me from the weight pressing on my chest. Summer danced beside me, throwing her arms up with that endless energy of hers, and I tried to keep up, forcing a smile
“She’s an idiot,” Summer said, crossing her arms as she looked at me with concern. “You okay?” “Yeah,” I lied, grabbing a cup of punch just to have something to do with my hands. “I just… I just want this to stop, you know? For people to leave me alone.” Before Summer could reply, I felt him befor
Anne POV It was the day of the freshman ball, and I stood in front of the mirror in my dorm room, the blue dress Summer had insisted I buy staring back at me. The fabric draped lightly over my body, the delicate sleeves and simple cut highlighting my shoulders and collarbone in a way I knew was bea
“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