Chapter 2

[He actually didn't buy a cup of coffee for me.]

I didn't know if Aaron didn't see it in class, or if he didn't want to coax me when he saw it.

Half an hour later, it was Lucas Hale who sent messages to me instead.

[Aaron won't even buy you a cup of coffee?]

Lucas was Aaron's friend and roommate.

When Aaron and I started dating and had dinner to celebrate back then, Lucas was the only one who didn't give us his blessing.

Sometimes he'd even badmouth Aaron to me.

But I didn't believe his words.

Now that Lucas asked me that, I just felt like a joke, like he was watching me make a fool of myself.

Not knowing what to say, I replied awkwardly. [Yeah.]

Lucas: [Aaron's so stingy. He's a rich man, driving a luxury car.]

Lucas: [I'll buy you. You can have as many as you want.]

Lucas: [But seriously, I don't mean anything else by this, so don't think too much about it.]

I was totally caught off guard.

Why did he drop three messages on me suddenly?

There was so much packed in those texts, I just froze.

Wait, Aaron had a luxury car?

Before I could think more, I asked him tentatively.

Belle: [Are you sure? Aaron hasn't graduated yet. How could he have a car? He definitely doesn't have that kind of money.]

Lucas seemed to be ready and immediately took out the evidence.

Lucas: [His family runs a company, and he's their only kid. He would never be short of money.]

Lucas: [All his clothes are designer, just older styles, so you can't really tell how expensive they are.]

Lucas: [And he has a whole wall of collectibles in his dorm. Look them up online. They're not cheap.]

He sent a photo to me.

I spotted a trash can in the corner, and inside was what looked like a new, unopened shampoo.

I asked him if he could take another picture.

Only then did I realize that it was the shampoo I had bought for Aaron not long ago.

He wanted a fancier one, but I just couldn't afford it, so I had to buy a cheaper one.

Lucas's words hurt me all over again.

Lucas: [Aaron threw it away by himself. He said that it was too cheap for him and would be bad for his scalp, so he threw it out without opening it.]

I turned off my phone at a loss.

Then I turned to my roommate, who had just walked in, and asked her a question.

"If a guy has money but doesn't want to spend it on his girlfriend, what does it mean?" I asked.

She chuckled, "Isn't it obvious? It means that he doesn't love her. He's just fooling around."

A wave of bitterness washed over me instantly.

So that was how it was.

By evening, my other roommate, Zoe Reed, who went to the club event, had just gotten back.

She was carrying two bulging bags of coffee.

She happily said that the vice president had treated everyone. He was seriously generous.

He not only ordered for all the club members, but also said to grab three extra cups for each person to take back to their roommates, to help everyone get along better in the dorm.

We all said, "That's too considerate."

Zoe handed out a cup of coffee to each of us.

Then she placed another one on my desk.

I asked if she'd put it by mistake.

She shook her head and replied, "No, the vice president said this one was for you.

"He said he owed you some coffee, but since he didn't know what flavors you liked, he just grabbed a few extras. You are friends, right?"

I guessed it and asked, "Is your club's vice president Lucas?"

She nodded immediately.

Then she went to enjoy her coffee happily.

I looked at the four cups sitting on my desk, feeling something I couldn't really explain.

He said he'd buy me coffee, and to my surprise, he actually did.

After hesitating for a long time, I finally said thanks to him.

Lucas shot back right away. [You're welcome.]

A few minutes later, he sent messages again.

Lucas: [I just don't know if I should tell you something.]

I asked him to go ahead.

Lucas: [This afternoon, I saw a girl come looking for Aaron. They even hugged each other, looking very intimate.]

Lucas: [I'm not trying to cause drama or anything. If you don't believe me, I can send you pics. They left together and haven't come back yet.]

I stared at the photos, then swiped over to my chat with Aaron, still not a single word.

I wondered if I even wanted to stay in this relationship.

At ten o'clock in the evening, Iris posted some photos on her social media.

There was a fancy dinner, sparkling city night views, coffee, and the two of them all cozy together.

I quickly cheered and commented. [You guys are so in love.]

Ten minutes later, Aaron called me.

I thought he'd at least apologize to me.

At the very least, he should've picked up on how upset and annoyed I was.

But instead, he spoke right in with the accusations.

He asked, "Belle, what was that comment supposed to mean? Were you trying to make fun of us and embarrass Iris on purpose?

"Iris just called me crying and asked if you were jealous. She is already weak. Can't you just talk to her nicely? Why do you always have to upset her?

"Can you call her and apologize? Tell her you don't mean that. Don't put me in a tough spot, okay?"

I couldn't imagine him making such a shameless request.

I snapped, "Why should I apologize to her? Looked like you were having so much fun tonight, and now I'm the one who has to feel guilty just for saying something?

"Do you still know who your girlfriend is? If you like her, go find her, don't be with me."

Once again, Aaron said she was just his little sister.

He claimed that if he really liked her, they'd have been together long ago.

At that time, none of it was getting through to me anymore.