Chapter 2

My body was wracked with pain. Why Evelyn, of all people?

I'd had enough. I grabbed Chloe and pulled her out of the theater.

"Ugh, what an absolute asshole! Seriously, how could Ryan get with that snake Evelyn?" Chloe crushed the popcorn bucket out of anger.

"Corrine, just say the word and I'll go in there right now and tear those two bitches apart for you!"

"Forget it," I replied.

My head was buzzing, and everything felt blank ever since a moment ago. I felt like my own voice was echoing from somewhere far away.

I knew I didn't really love Ryan. It was more because we grew up together, and he was the only guy who never cared no matter what tricks Evelyn pulled. That was why I was so hung up on him.

But now, he felt dirty to me.

My voice sounded clearer now. "We were never even a couple."

The Scott and the Lane families used to joke about us getting married, but it was never anything official.

Chloe said, "But if Ryan doesn't have feelings for you, he could've just said no. You've been pouring your heart out for him all these years, and he never once turned you down. I've been annoyed by it for ages.

"But whatever, let's not ruin the mood. There are plenty of guys out there. If this one's a dud, the next one will be better."

"Yeah," I replied.

Still, I couldn't shake the feeling. Years of feelings weren't something I could just toss aside.

Chloe claimed she was helping me get over my breakup, so I tagged along to the bar, still in a haze. But honestly, she was the one who ended up totally hammered.

I was a lightweight, but even I knocked back more than usual.

Chloe was sitting there, loudly trash-talking Ryan, drawing plenty of attention from everyone nearby.

Two girls getting wasted in a bar wasn't exactly safe, so I tried to pull Chloe back and get her to slow down. But she yelled, "Don't worry, Corrine. We're not leaving till we're smashed tonight.

"I already texted Charles to pick us up. We're crashing at his place, so drink up!"

When I heard Charles's name, I paused for a second, and some old memories I'd buried deep started to surface.

It was one of those super awkward moments I'd rather forget.

Charles was Chloe's older brother. I remembered that one summer break during my freshman year of high school, I went over to Chloe's place to hang out, and I walked in just as Charles came out of the bathroom, shirtless.

He was tall and lean, and it was the first time I'd ever seen a guy my age like that. All I remembered now was how my face instantly went bright red.

Charles just raised an eyebrow and teased, "Aw, getting shy, huh?"

I was totally mortified and completely freaked out.

Ever since then, I got super nervous around Charles. If I knew he was home, I'd never set foot in Chloe's place. And now Chloe actually let him pick us up?

Just thinking about that awkward moment made me want to crawl under a rock. No clue if he remembered, but I really hoped he didn't.

And just like that, Charles showed up. He was tall and striking, making his way over with that confident stride.

Compared to how I remembered him, his already handsome face looked even better. But now, there was an icy vibe to him, sharper features that made him seem distant and hard to approach.

Charles's face was expressionless, but I could tell he was pissed. My heart unconsciously tightened.

Charles grabbed Chloe by the back of her collar with one hand. "So you're acting tough now, Chloe? I'm telling Mom and Dad tomorrow."

Chloe, completely clueless, just grinned at Charles. "Whoa, hot guy. But you're kinda mean."

I couldn't help but feel sorry for Chloe for a second.

Charles shot me a look the next second. "You too. Corrine, huh? Pretty gutsy. Two girls sneaking out to get drunk in a place like this at midnight? What were you thinking?"

With one hand, Charles grabbed Chloe by the collar, and with the other, he took my wrist, practically dragging us both out of the bar.

I tried to pull away, but Charles tightened his grip on my wrist.

With obvious disdain, Charles shoved Chloe into the back seat.

I was about to obediently climb in, but Charles grabbed me before I could.

With clear disdain in his voice, he said, "No way I'm letting two drunk girls sit in the back and do who knows what. You're riding shotgun."

I froze for a moment, stared at his handsome face, and then nodded frantically. "Oh, okay."