All Chapters of The Duck That Bit Back: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

Sherry smirked. "Kenneth is pretty great, isn't he? A lot of girls like him. Do you?"I shook my head quickly, playing the shy card. "How could I even compare? Besides, I think Kenneth only has eyes for you."Bullseye. Her smirk turned smug.Of course, she knew Kenneth liked her. She just wasn't ready to settle down.At the upcoming sports meet, she was supposed to carry the banner but "twisted" her ankle on her skirt. Some star sports guy carried her to the infirmary, and Kenneth, jealous out of his mind, ended up confessing to me that same day.Not this time.The morning of the event, I got ahead of her by spraining my own ankle first.Even with the pain, I limped over to deliver her makeup bag like a dutiful lackey.She didn't even blink at my foot, just snapped, "You're so slow! If your foot's hurt, suck it up. What if we're late for the procession?"I lowered my head, mumbling apologies like the perfect pushover.Then, right on cue, the same sports guy from before steppe

Kenneth's expression darkened in a heartbeat.Sherry sneered. "Alyssa, do you seriously think you're all that? Kenneth's just playing with you. If anyone's getting dumped, it's you."But Kenneth stepped closer, his tone icy. "You want to break up with me? You don't have the right.""Whether I do or not isn't your call." Without another glance, I turned and walked out.Behind me, the room buzzed with forced laughter, someone trying to smooth things over. "Kenneth, seriously? She's just some girl from the sticks. Have your fun and let it go. Not worth the drama.""Yeah," another added with a snicker. "She'll come crawling back in, what, three days? Tops."Sherry, clearly enjoying herself, handed Kenneth a drink. "You're not actually upset, are you? Alyssa just doesn't know her place."But he slammed the glass down, the crack echoing so loud it shut the room up.After a beat, he muttered, "I'm fine. Keep drinking."But later that night, Kenneth kept checking his phone, waiting fo

Even though Sherry wasn't showing up at school, she kept blowing up my phone with text messages:[You really think your lame tricks can take me down? Please. Even if I drop out, I'll just study abroad. You're nothing.][Poor people like you can't even imagine what it's like to be rich. Spoiler: you'll never get close, no matter how hard you hustle.][Oh, and Kenneth? You think he actually likes you? He's been engaged to me this whole time. You're just a side chick. A toy.]Her arrogance was almost funny. So, I dropped the receipts.I leaked a chat log—Sherry bragging to her friend about her family's food company. In the messages, she flat-out told her not to eat their snacks because the preservatives were way over the legal limit.I'd taken those screenshots ages ago, back when I was stuck pretending to be her clueless lackey. All that fake smiling and yes-mamming finally paid off.The scandal hit like a bomb. Overnight, Sherry's family name was trash, and their business? Toast.

"Riley's nothing compared to me," Kenneth said. "I'll take you abroad, lock you away. Then you'll be mine. Completely."I forced myself to stay calm, trying to reason with him. "What you're doing? It's illegal detention. Let me go, and I won't press charges."He laughed, his fingers curling in my hair. "Do you think I'm that stupid? The second I let go, you're running to the cops."I decided to change tactics. "When did this even start for you?"He paused. "That time you gave me strawberry milk. Later, I found out it was something you couldn't bear to drink yourself."Kenneth's voice dropped, almost pleading. "You gave me something so precious. That means you liked me, right?"I opened my mouth, ready to snap him out of his delusion, but the warning bells in my head were too loud to ignore. Stay quiet. Stay safe.My silence must've been the answer he wanted. He pulled me into a suffocating hug, resting his head on my shoulder. "I knew it. Deep down, you care about me. Don't worr