Chapter 2
During halftime, Stefan walked right up to me, sweat pouring down his face.
"Wilson, what the hell do you want?" he snapped, his voice tight with anger.
"We're about to lose. Are you really going to stand there and watch?" he demanded.
I looked up, blinking at him with my flawless eyeliner.
"Whatever, losing's not a big deal," I replied, unfazed. "Why does it even matter?"
"You!" Stefan was so furious that he couldn't get the words out.
I stood up, brushed imaginary dust off my princess dress, and clicked my high heels as I made my way step by step toward the center of the court.
All eyes were on me.
When I reached the very center, I purposely twisted my ankle.
"Ouch!" I yelped.
I went sprawling, arms and legs flailing, most embarrassingly and comically imaginable.
The whole place erupted with laughter.
"The school bully took a tumble. That's a perfect 10 for style," someone shouted.
"Quick, record this. This is way better than the game," another voice yelled.
Camera flashes popped, and everyone whipped out their phones, aiming them at me.
Flat on my back, I peeked through the crowd and spotted Stefan and his crew. They looked pissed.
I wanted Wilson to see it himself.
Those were the so-called brothers he had always been so proud of.
When he was at his lowest, they only sat back and laughed at him.
I slowly got up, looking all hurt and wronged, my eyes brimming with tears.
"God, it hurts so bad," I sniffled.
Making a show of limping dramatically, I hobbled over to Stefan.
"Stefan, I fell. Can you help me up, please?" I asked, pouting.
Stefan's face went from pale to green, and he instinctively stepped back, as if I were contagious.
"Wilson, don't come any closer!" he blurted out.
His buddies behind him all moved aside, giving me dirty looks.
I stopped in my tracks, my eyes brimming with tears as I stared at them.
"Why... why are you all avoiding me?" I asked, my voice shaky. "I'm still Wilson."
Stefan took a deep breath, like he was about to make a big decision.
"We don't know any Wilson who goes around in a dress and heavy makeup," Stefan snapped.
"You're disgusting!" one of his friends spat.
"Yeah. We don't need a brother like you," another guy shouted.
Every word was like a poisoned knife to the gut.
I looked at them and suddenly smiled.
Tears still clung to my cheeks, but my smile was strangely radiant.
"Fine," I said, "You said it yourself."
I turned around and hobbled off the court, step by painful step, dragging my sprained ankle.
Behind me, they let out relieved sighs, while the crowd openly burst into laughter, not even trying to hide it.
Back in the empty locker room, I grabbed Wilson's phone.
I unlocked it with my fingerprint.
The screen lit up.
I opened a chat group called "The Brotherhood."
The group chat was full of stuff that made me want to puke.
They were showing off about which girls they'd fooled.
They were passing around creep shots of girls they'd secretly taken.
They were figuring out ways to cheat on tests without getting busted.
And then, there was a photo Stefan had posted.
It was me, lying in a hospital bed, hooked up to all kinds of tubes.
The caption read: [That nerd is finally out of our hair.]
Everyone was loving it. He got tons of likes and hype in the comments.
It turned out that they'd been in on it the whole time.
They weren't bystanders. They were silent partners in crime.
My fingers moved lightning-fast across the screen.
I took screenshots of every filthy message in the group chat and compiled them into a neat package.
Then, using Wilson's account, I uploaded the whole thing to the school's public forum.
The title was: [Deep Dive: The Dirty Truth Behind Levino High School's top four rich boys. Pics and Real Evidence Inside.]
Once everything was done, I dropped the phone and leaned against the icy locker.
This was where Wilson's brotherhood ended.
Next was his love life.
The forum blew up.
In less than ten minutes, the post had over ten thousand views and thousands of replies.
Stefan and his crew had their names pinned to the wall of shame for everyone to see.
I sat in class, chilling in my princess dress, casually scrolling through my phone without a worry.
Watching those who used to sneer at me turn into total outcasts, everyone was out for blood.
It felt so good.
The classroom door slammed open.
Stefan burst in, eyes wild with rage, like an enraged bull charging straight for me.
"Wilson, what the hell is wrong with you?" he roared.
He grabbed my collar, yanking it so hard that the neckline of my princess dress was stretched out of shape.
"Did you post all that shit?" he shouted.
I didn't fight back. I looked up at him with an innocent look on my face. "What shit?
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
My gentle, sugary voice coming from Wilson's tough face made the whole thing both hilarious and unsettling.
Stefan was shaking with rage. "You're still acting innocent!
"You ruined me. You ruined all of us."
He raised his fist, ready to swing.
The students around us gasped in shock.
I didn't flinch.
I knew he wouldn't dare hit me, at least, not with Wilson's face right in front of him.
Sure enough, his fist stopped an inch from my face.