Chapter 1

"Your affection disgusts me, Charlotte," said Ethan Shaw.

I spent three months recreating Orion, Ethan's favorite constellation, across the planetarium dome. As the lights dimmed, a sea of stars cascaded into a sentence, expressing my feelings for him.

But in front of everyone, he broke my heart. "Don't flatter yourself. Even if I struggle for money my whole life, I'd never be with you."

Later, I walked past him arm-in-arm with Julian Keyes. Ethan stood in the pouring rain all night.

"I was wrong, Charlotte," said Ethan.

I smiled faintly. "Too late. I don't want your love anymore."

*****

I'd spent three months preparing this gift.

In the Astronomy Club's activity room, I carefully hung the last star model onto the specially made projector. It was a replica of Ethan's favorite constellation, Orion, with every star placed down to the tiniest detail. Once the lights went out, the whole room would turn into the same starry sky he loved.

"Miss Williamson, what kind of fancy present are you trying to win Ethan over with this time?" Emily Nicholson, a junior in the club, called out teasingly from behind.

I just smiled and didn't answer, making sure the projector's battery was good to go. For the past three months, I'd poured almost all my free time into this model, picked up astronomy from zero, made each star by hand, and even secretly asked his cousin at the observatory to help me get every detail right.

"Charlotte, are you sure you want to tell him about your feelings for him today?" Maggie Sullivan, my friend, whispered. "Ethan doesn't seem to be in a good mood."

"Has he ever been in a good mood?" I shrugged, but I couldn't help fidgeting with my fingers.

Ethan was the unattainable star at our university. He came from a regular family, but his grades were flawless, and with a full scholarship, he made his mark at this elite academy. As for me, Charlotte, I was the only heiress of the Williamson Group. Everyone saw me as a rich girl born with a silver spoon.

I'd liked him for two years. Ever since that debate in freshman year when he saved the day, he'd been the only one I could look at.

"He's here," Emily suddenly whispered.

The door to the activity room swung open, and Ethan's tall figure appeared in the doorway. He was dressed in a simple white shirt and black pants, but he still outshone all the rich kids in their designer clothes. The moment he saw the room decked out in decorations, his eyes visibly darkened.

"Charlotte, what are you up to now?" he asked coldly, impatience clear in his voice.

I took a deep breath and hit the switch.

Instantly, the room went dark, and Orion's stars lit up overhead. I'd even added meteors, trailing tails of light streaked across the ceiling and coming together to spell out, "Ethan, I like you."

Gasps and whistles filled the room.

I said, "Ethan, I made this..."

"That's enough," he cut me off, his voice icy. "Turn the lights back on."

Someone hit the switch, and blinding white light filled the room. I squinted, seeing the clear irritation on Ethan's face.

"Charlotte, I thought I'd made myself perfectly clear," Ethan said, not even sparing a glance at all the decorations I'd worked so hard on. "I'm not interested in you. Just stop with these pointless stunts."

With that, he turned and walked out, the door slamming shut behind him.

The room went dead silent. Everyone awkwardly stared at me. I blushed, but I forced a smile anyway. "It's fine. I'm used to it."

The party wrapped up quickly, and I turned down my friends' offers to walk me home, choosing to clean up on my own. As I was heading out with the projector in my arms, I caught Ethan and his buddies joking around near the club's back door.

"Seriously, Ethan, why are you still studying so hard? Isn't Charlotte into you? Do you even realize her family background?" one guy said. "Her dad donated a whole building as soon as she enrolled. Worried she wouldn't like the cafeteria, he had a new one built, staffed with the best chefs. Plus, she's the only heiress. If you two get together, you can skip sixty years of hard work."

"Yeah. Why do you keep ignoring her? Are you crazy? You don't actually hate her, do you?" another guy chimed in.

My heart started pounding, and my arms instinctively tightened around the projector.

After what felt like an eternity, I finally heard Ethan's cold voice, heavy with impatience. "Yeah, I really can't stand her. I'd rather work my ass off for eighty years than take the easy way."

An explosion of laughter erupted, mixed with jeers like "what an idiot" and "acting all high and mighty."

I stood frozen outside the door for a long moment, set the projector down quietly, and walked away.

The next day, I went to the Astronomy Club to officially quit. As I walked out of the club building, my phone rang.

"Charlotte, guess who's back?" Maggie practically squealed. "Julian Keyes, the piano prodigy from the Keyes family. He's transferring here."

I stood there stunned for a moment and then glanced up at the gate. Bathed in sunlight, a familiar figure walked toward me with a gentle smile on his lips.

"Long time no see, Charlotte," Julian said, stopping right in front of me, his eyes shining. "I'm back."