Chapter 2

My story with Ryan kicked off in the most textbook cliché way: love at first sight.

Obviously, I was the one totally smitten.

Back then, Ryan was the straight-A heartthrob everyone adored, while I was the kind of girl who smoked, drank, and couldn't care less. Sure, I looked good, but my wild streak sent most decent guys running for the hills.

One day, during a brawl, Ryan swooped in and saved me. From then on, I latched onto this supposedly goody-two-shoes and refused to let him go.

The more I hung around Ryan, the more secrets I found out about him.

Turns out, his family was super rich, but he kept his distance from his folks, so nobody at school had a clue he came from money.

And speaking of secrets—he went after Charlotte—the school's queen bee—even though she already had a boyfriend, and somehow, he actually got her in the end.

I kept my feelings buried, never daring to speak up. Not until Charlotte had a huge fight with Ryan and left to study overseas—leaving him completely heartbroken—did I finally lose control and confess everything.

Ryan was totally wasted at the time, but when I suddenly blurted out how I felt, he just stared at me, stunned into silence.

That night, we crossed that invisible line between friends, though we still couldn't call ourselves lovers.

Ryan was obsessed with my body, but he never gave a damn about defining our relationship.

Even after he blew up in the entertainment world and insisted I become his personal assistant, to outsiders, I was nothing more than part of his staff—just the girl behind the scenes.

Over the next five years, Ryan clawed his way to the top, snagging all the major awards and solidifying his status as a superstar.

All that time I stayed close—quietly cleaning up every mess he couldn't handle, smoothing things over with the media, and, on those long lonely nights, lending him my body to chase away the emptiness.

But I was never officially anything to him.

At a fan meet, one of Ryan's haters managed to sneak in and, in the chaos, hurled acid straight at his face.

For a second, instinct took over—I didn't even think. I just dove in front of him, my back taking all the damage instead.

The pain hit so hard I blacked out. When I finally came to, Ryan hadn't left my side once—he'd stayed three whole days and nights.

I gritted my teeth against the pain, trying to act like it was no big deal.

For the first time, Ryan's eyes welled up in front of me, his voice trembling as he choked out, "Eva, why are you always so good to me?

"You know there's always been someone else in my heart, and you know I've never treated you right. So why would you throw everything away just for me?"

I just gave a bitter smile and stayed silent.

What else was there to say? It was love.

When one was into someone, one just couldn't stand seeing them hurt. I got that more than anyone.

That day, Ryan pulled me into his arms and promised I was the only one he wanted by his side for the rest of his life.

I hugged him tight, happiness and fear all tangled up inside me, terrified it might be just another dream that could shatter at any second.

But reality had this cruel way of proving just how breakable happiness really was.

The very next day, Charlotte—the girl who once wrecked everything—came back.