Chapter 6

All Cary's kindness made it hard for the old me—my old-life self—to let go. I kept hoping he'd come back to me.

I didn't have parents to lean on or siblings to hang with. It was just Cary.

Back then, I didn't get it: when a guy's heart was set on someone else, his childhood buddy didn't stand a chance.

This time, I was done. Whatever we had, I'd paid my dues.

"Alright, you said it. We're even now," I told him, my voice sharp.

Cary looked spooked, like he wanted to keep talking, but I was over it.

I brushed him off and slammed the door.

He couldn't get me to open up, so he sent a text: [Wannie, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you again.]

Classic Cary. He knew he'd messed up, but he still chose Holly.

I shot back: [Sorry doesn't cut it. You're just doing what feels right to you.]

Whatever. I was done caring.

Six more days of this drama, and I'd be out. I could handle it.

Holly, though? She didn't know when to quit. After she got out, she didn't lay low—she came at me harder, talking trash.

She texted me: [You're just a freeloader at the Foxes'! Acting all tough? You think calling the cops scares me? Don't you know Cary's dad is a big-deal officer with all kinds of connections?

[Stop hanging onto Cary like some clingy ex. You think you can keep him tied down? Once we're at Lumora Military Academy, we're gone for a whole year. Good luck seeing him then. Even Mrs. Fox can't drag him back to you.

[Cary doesn't even like you. You think guilting him will make him fall for you? He's not proposing, and he's definitely not marrying you. Get over it.]

I was busy picking out a dress for my coming-of-age party and didn't want to waste energy on her nonsense.

But her cocky, clueless vibe pissed me off, so I decided to school her.

I shot back: [Cary never told you? My dad's a major, same as his. My uncle's the principal, and my cousin's a big-shot official. If I wanted to bury you, Cary couldn't do a damn thing to stop me.

[You think Cary's connections got you off the hook? Wrong. He begged me to let you slide, swore it wouldn't happen again. I gave the okay to let you walk. If I hadn't, you wouldn't just miss Lumora—you wouldn't get into any school that checks your record. Got it?]

Holly wasn't having it.

[You're so full of crap! Where's your dad been all through high school? When did the principal ever hook you up? And what's a 'big-shot official' supposed to mean? You're just a pathetic orphan mooching off the Foxes.]

That "orphan" dig cut deep.

Sure, I had a solid family name, people who'd back me up if I needed it.

But a home? Nah.

My dad was a workaholic, always MIA.

Last time I saw him was at Mom's funeral, three years back.

My uncle and cousin were busy with their own lives, their own families.

Nobody had time for me.

After Mom died in that car crash, I'd been staying with the Foxes.

For three years, Simona treated me like her own kid, and I saw her as the mom I'd lost.

But after coming back—after reliving how things fell apart with Cary, how Simona turned cold and threw shade—I couldn't connect with her like before.

Every day at their house felt like torture.

Only three more days to go.

The day before my birthday, my cousin's wife Lily called. "Hey, I've been thinking about this a lot, and I gotta tell you something. It's about… you know, the assault. There's new stuff you need to hear."

In my old life, just hearing "assault" would've made me lose it.

I'd have shut her down fast.

But now? I was past that. I wanted to know what had her so worked up at the crack of dawn.

"Alright," I said. "Lay it on me."