Chapter 1
On my eighteenth birthday, I wore the white dress my mother had bought for me, waiting for my childhood‑friend‑turned‑crush Matthew Shaw to take me to my coming‑of‑age ceremony.
He said he had a surprise for me.
And it was a surprise, all right.
He tricked me into the abandoned bathroom at school and locked the door from the outside.
"Emily, just stay quiet in there," he said. "Today's star should be Sophie."
*****
The music from the ceremony floated in from afar as I hammered desperately on the bathroom door.
"Matthew! Let me out!" I yelled.
His calm laughter echoed from outside, followed by Sophie's syrupy voice. "Matthew, why isn't Emily here yet? She's not skipping out, is she?"
"Who knows? Maybe something came up," Matthew said, totally unconcerned. "Let's go. We shouldn't keep everyone waiting."
Their footsteps slowly faded away.
I collapsed onto the filthy floor, my white dress now smeared with dust.
This bathroom had been abandoned for three years. Not even the janitor bothered with this place. The lock was installed from the outside, so there was no way to open it from within.
My phone had no signal, and no matter how loud I screamed, nobody would hear me.
And just like that, I was trapped here, missing my own coming-of-age ceremony.
Three hours later, Jack Rivers found me.
"Emily? What are you doing here?" he asked, staring at me in shock, taking in my disheveled state.
"Matthew locked me in here," I croaked, my voice hoarse.
Jack frowned and immediately started prying at the lock.
"Are you sure it was Matthew?" he asked.
"I'm sure," I replied.
The instant the lock was pried open, I stumbled out, my legs numb from sitting so long.
"Is the coming-of-age ceremony over?" I asked.
Jack nodded. "Yeah, it just ended. Sophie was chosen as its spokesperson and got an spot for special admission to Capital City University."
Everything clicked for me in that moment.
Sophie and I were the top candidates for the ceremony's spokesperson. I had better grades and a decent public image, giving me genuinely favorable odds.
But since I didn't show up, Sophie naturally became the only candidate.
Matthew had planned all of this from the start.
He'd had a crush on Sophie since we were kids, but she never gave him a clear answer. This special admission spot meant everything to her, so to help her get it, Matthew hadn't hesitated to scheme against me.
"Emily, are you okay?" Jack asked, his eyes full of concern.
I shook my head. "I'm fine."
But deep down, I knew that from today on, the ten years of friendship between Matthew and me were officially over.
When I got home, my mom was waiting for me in the living room.
"Emily, why are you back so late? How was the ceremony?" she asked.
I looked at her expectant face and, in the end, couldn't bring myself to tell her the truth.
"It was great," I said.
She had clearly picked up on my odd mood. "You don't look happy. What's going on?"
"Nothing. I'm just a little tired," I replied.
I hurried back to my room and shut the door.
In the mirror, I saw myself with messy hair and a stained dress. I was far from the star of the ceremony.
My phone buzzed. It was a message from Matthew.
[Emily, where did you go? I looked for you everywhere.]
[The coming-of-age ceremony was amazing. Too bad you missed it.]
[Sophie got the special‑admission spot. She's over the moon.]
Every single message felt like rubbing salt into my wounds.
I didn't reply and blocked him straight away.
The next day at school, everyone was talking about the coming-of-age ceremony.
"Sophie is amazing! She got the special‑admission spot at CCU!"
"She looked gorgeous in that dress yesterday. Matthew was with her the whole time. They're such a perfect match."
"Why didn't Emily show up yesterday? I heard she was one of the candidates too."
"Who knows? Maybe she chickened out, afraid of losing to Sophie."
I walked through the crowd expressionlessly and headed to my seat.
Matthew was sitting in front of me. He turned around, trying to talk to me, but I didn't even look at him.
"Emily, about yesterday..." he started.
"Matthew, please don't disturb me while I'm studying," I cut him off coldly.
He blinked for a second, clearly not expecting me to act like this.
"Did you misunderstand something?" he asked.
I looked up at him. This face I had known since childhood, which had once felt warm and dependable, now struck me as nothing but hypocrisy.
"I didn't misunderstand anything," I said.
After class, Sophie walked over to my desk, wearing a concerned expression.
"Emily, why didn't you come yesterday? I really wanted to participate in the selection with you," she said.
"Congrats on getting the special admission," I said, not even bothering to look up.
"If you'd been there, things might've turned out differently," Sophie said, sounding all regretful, but I could see the smugness in her eyes.
"Yeah, too bad I wasn't there," I replied.
Sophie looked like she wanted to say more, but Matthew dragged her away.
Jack came over and sat down next to me. "So, what are you going to do?"
"About what?" I asked.
"About Matthew," he said.
I closed my book. "What else can I do? Just keep studying and aim for college."
"Just let it go?" Jacks asked, clearly unwilling to accept it.
"What else can I do?" I looked at him. "You want me to tell the teacher he locked me in the bathroom? Got any proof? Who's gonna believe me?"
Jack fell silent.
I was right. No surveillance footage, no witnesses. Just my word against his. Everyone saw Matthew as a kind, well-behaved student. Who would believe he did such a thing?
"Besides," I continued, "I've already found a better way."
"What way?" Jack asked.
I glanced over at Matthew, who was chatting with Sophie not far away, and a cold smile crept onto my lips.
"I'll make them realize that losing me as a friend is the greatest loss of their lives," I said.