Chapter 2

Yannis had liked me since we were kids. When we played house, he and I were always the couple, and Meredith was Yannis's mom.

When we got to high school, he confessed his feelings to me right in front of Meredith. Over the years, he always respected boundaries with Meredith.

Except for that winter in our sophomore year, when Meredith said her hands were cold, Yannis handed her his hot water bottle, and didn't notice how red my hands had gotten from the cold.

Except for last year's rainy season, when the three of us shared an umbrella, Yannis always tilted it toward Meredith, never noticing my shoulder was getting drenched.

Except for that time after school, when Yannis casually shared his headphones with Meredith, he didn't realize I'd been waiting for them at the back door for a long time.

Everything clicked into place like beads on a string. It hit me all at once. That call had been right. They'd been together long before I ever suspected a thing.

All those moments I brushed off, telling myself it was childhood closeness. It was all their feelings leaking out, plain as day.

"But hey, when she finds out tomorrow, she's gonna cry, right?" Meredith asked.

"Let her cry. I'll cheer her up. So what if she only gets into a two-year college? I'm gonna marry her anyway. If she can't get a job, I'll support her." Yannis sounded totally unfazed.

"What if she throws a tantrum and demands answers?

"Where's she gonna go?"

Yannis chuckled, sounding totally sure of himself. "She likes me way too much to walk away. She'll come around.

"Besides, she's always been super competitive. If she actually got into Hinston University, she'd always be one-upping me. A two-year college is better. She'll have to depend on me more. Honestly, I'm doing this for us."

With every word he said, I found myself clenching my fists tighter and tighter. Suddenly, I remembered the last mock exam of senior year. Yannis was second again.

He smiled and congratulated me, telling me how smart and awesome I was. His tone was so sincere, not a hint of anything off.

But one day, I happened to walk past the office and saw him standing alone in front of the scoreboard, staring at my name, his eyes dark and full of mixed emotions.

I thought I'd read it wrong. Turned out I hadn't.

Memories flashed through my mind, and before I knew it, I took a step back. The little ornament by the door hit the floor with a thud. It wasn't super loud. But the voices outside went dead quiet.

"Skyler? You're still up?" Yannis called out, a hint of caution in his voice.

My breath caught in my throat. The next second, my phone lit up.

A message from him popped up on the screen: [Skyler, are you asleep? Can I call you?]

I didn't dare reply. The knocking came again, each time louder than before. I kept moving back, one step at a time. Right then, I believed every word from that call.

I was going to switch my college application back, head to Hinston, and aim for Hinston University. No matter what, I was going to rewrite my destiny.

I gripped my phone so hard that my palms were drenched in sweat. The application portal on my screen kept loading and loading, the little circle spinning endlessly. No Wi-Fi at home, and my cell signal was garbage.

Outside the door, Yannis and Meredith were still keeping watch. Every second felt like an eternity. My heart was racing, thundering in my chest.

Just then, a voice from outside made me jump. "Yannis, Meredith, what are you two doing standing by the door?"

It was Wyatt Shaw, my grandpa. He'd gotten back from playing chess next door.

Yannis instantly switched to his most polite, well-behaved self. "Mr. Shaw, we were supposed to light fireworks with Skyler, but she suddenly said she felt sick. Meredith and I got worried about her."

Wyatt frowned, looking puzzled. "Why would she suddenly not feel well? When I left, she was excited to come home late with you two, and she'd bought a whole bunch of fireworks."

Yannis said, his face clouding over. "Oh, I see. How about Meredith and I go in and check on her? If something really happened, we could help out."

Wyatt nodded, not saying a word. He slowly fished out his keys.

I heard the key turning in the lock. They were about to come in. I glanced at my phone, my breathing quick and shaky. It was 11:50. Only ten minutes left.

There was no way I could change my application on my phone now. My only shot was the computer. But there was no way they'd let me get away that easily.

What am I supposed to do now? My hands were shaking so badly, and my legs felt like jelly.

But then, that woman's frantic yelling from the phone echoed in my ears again. "Hurry up and fix your application. You still have time. Don't mess up your whole life like I did. Go, now."

I whipped my head toward the window. Jumping from the third floor wouldn't kill me.

The moment the front door swung open, every light in the house flicked on.

Yannis strode in, his eyes darting around the living room. Seeing it empty, he immediately turned toward the bedroom, still dark. The lock on my bedroom door had been broken for a month. No one had bothered to fix it.

He was about to push the door open. I suddenly shouted toward the door, my voice shaky with panic. "Wait. I'm getting dressed. Don't come in yet."

His hand froze on the doorknob. Yannis sounded relieved as he replied, "Alright, take your time. Be careful. Don't fall again.

"We're done with the SATs now, no more pressure, nothing to rush for.

"You don't have to push yourself so hard anymore. Really, you don't have to be perfect or keep struggling. You can rely on me and take it easy now."

"I promise I'll take care of you for the rest of my life." He spoke gently, his eyes shining with sincerity.

Meredith let out a soft laugh at his side. "And me, Skyler. Don't worry. I'll be at the same school as Yannis, so I'll keep an eye on him. If he ever does anything to hurt you, I'll be the first to call him out."

I sat on the windowsill, hanging onto every single word they said. My nose tingled, and I could barely hold back the tears.

Ten-plus years. My boyfriend and my best friend. One of them needed to see me fail; the other couldn't wait to enjoy the show. I really wanted to burst out and ask them why. But I didn't have time for that.

I squeezed my eyes shut, took a deep breath, gripped the sheets tight, and slid right out the window. The moment I hit the ground, pain exploded in my ankle. I'd twisted it badly.

I knew they'd hear. They'd find out. But I didn't care anymore. I pushed myself off the ground and ran as fast as I could, Yannis's shout fading behind me. I didn't look back, not once.

I rushed into the internet café, picked a random computer, and finally got into the college application system. My fingers trembled as I typed in my exam ID, then flew across the keyboard to enter my password.

I glanced at the clock. Five minutes left. I could still make it. I clicked confirm. The screen flashed: [Password incorrect.]

I froze for a second, double-checked the caps lock, and re-entered the password. The screen flashed: [Password incorrect.]

What the hell? My heart skipped a beat. I bit my lip and tried the last six digits of my student ID. Wrong. My birthday. Wrong. Yannis's birthday. Still wrong.

I tried every combination I could think of, but the screen stubbornly displayed those cold, merciless words. How could this be happening?

My fingers froze on the keyboard. A flash of memory hit me. During those two days when I was filling out my college applications, Meredith had borrowed my phone.

She said she wanted to download a new game, but the net was spotty, so she asked me to turn on my hotspot.

I didn't think much of it and handed her my phone. She went out to the balcony and fiddled with it for over ten minutes before coming back.

Meanwhile, Yannis was pulling me into watching videos with him.

That must've been when she changed my password. Yannis was in on it, too.

I swallowed hard, trying to steady myself. "Don't panic. Reset the damn thing. Three minutes. I've still got time," I muttered.

The seconds ticked by, each one feeling like an eternity. Those dozen seconds waiting for the reset code felt like forever.

But right then, Yannis started calling me nonstop, one after another. I kept hitting decline, refusing every call.

Then his texts started flooding in, blowing up my phone. [Skyler, what's going on? Where the hell are you?

[Why did you jump out of the window? What the hell are you doing?

[If something's up, talk to us. Don't keep it bottled up.

[Don't freak me out like this. Text me back, okay?

[Meredith and I are both looking for you. Are you at the internet café?

[Skyler, text me back. Hurry up.]

I was so pissed off I was trembling, ignoring every single message. My eyes were glued to the screen, scared I'd miss the verification code.

Finally, the verification code popped up. I typed in a new password, jumped back to the login screen, and tried again. The page started loading. The progress bar inched forward, agonizingly slow.

My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was about to explode. At last, the college application page finally flashed onto the screen right before my eyes.

I was about to move the mouse when the screen went black. It reflected my own terrified eyes back at me. Meredith's fingers slowly lifted from the power button. She looked at me, half-smiling. "What are you doing?"