Chapter 1

School heartthrob Nick Harper's secret diary, Wild Notes, had leaked and gone viral overnight.

In brutally honest detail, it described his secret relationship, from sneaking around in the school grove, to getting tangled up on the mats in the equipment room, and even hooking up right on the teacher's podium.

Now the whole campus was buzzing, trying to figure out who the girl in the story really was.

Dragged into the dean's office, Nick put on a wounded act, and then pointed right at me. "Sir, it's Bella. She's broke, always saying she can't afford food. You give her a little money and she'll do anything."

Just like that, he painted me as a slut who'd do anything for a dollar.

No matter how much I tried to defend myself after that, nobody believed me.

In the end, with half the guys on campus staring at me like I was something dirty, I jumped.

As my spirit floated away, I saw Nick walking right past my body, his arm around Vivian Carter, the rich girl from the faculty lounge.

"Don't hate me," he said. "If anyone found out it was really Vivian in that diary, her family would make me pay.

"Besides, a nobody like you taking the fall for someone like her? Honestly, it's the most important thing you've ever done."

When I woke up again, I was back. Right there, in that office, the moment before Nick opened his mouth and ruined everything.

******

The heavy thud of a stack of printed pages hitting the desk echoed in the room.

Thomas, our dean, leveled a stern finger at Nick. "This is a complete disgrace. Now, Nick, tell me who that girl is."

The office door was open wide, and the hallway outside was crammed with students, all pushing and straining to get a look.

Nick kept his head down, his fists clenched tight in his shirt. He flicked a quick, guilty look my way before raising a hand to point directly at me. "Sir, it's Bella."

A wave of noise rolled in from the crowd at the door.

"It's her? But she always acts all innocent. Never thought she'd be such a slut."

"Desperate, I guess. I heard she can't even afford pads, but I never thought she'd stoop this low for money."

Nick doubled down on his act, putting on a perfect show of heartbreak, his voice shaking. "Bella said her family's drowning in debt. She's so broke that she goes hungry. She told me if you just give her money, she'll do anything."

Thomas turned to me, his face a mask of utter contempt. "Financial aid is for studying, Bella, not for you to prostitute yourself. You will submit a withdrawal form. Today. I will not let you drag the name of this department through the mud."

Back then, I was too terrified to do anything but sob, too choked up to form a single sentence. But now? I couldn't help but laugh at how absurd it all was.

I didn't cry or make a scene. I just stepped forward calmly, picked up the so-called Wild Notes from the desk, and flipped it open.

I read aloud, "October 15th. She was wearing that new Miss Dior perfume and that expensive silk lingerie, begging me for it in the equipment room..."

When I finished, I thrust my own arm under Thomas's nose. "Take a smell, sir."

He jerked back instinctively, brow furrowed. "What is the meaning of this?"

I let out a short, dry laugh, pointing to my own frayed sleeve. "Smell that? That's cheap soap. I've used it for three years. This coat came from a flea market. It's seen two winters, and the cuffs are worn straight through."

I yanked up the hem of my coat to show the simple T-shirt underneath. "Silk lingerie? Please. I wear cotton underwear until it's threadbare."

I pulled out my phone, opened my student dining account, and thrust the screen right under Nick's nose.

I sneered, "You said you gave me money? Look. A balance of one dollar and fifty cents. I work the lunch shift in the cafeteria every day. My only payment is a plate of leftover slop.

"If I really did sleep with you for cash, then where is it? Show me the money."

With each sentence, I took a step forward, backing Nick toward the wall.

Nick stumbled back, a sheen of cold sweat appearing on his forehead.

The gossip at the door started to take a turn.

"Yeah, Bella always looks like she's barely scraping by. No way she could ever afford Miss Dior."

"Is Nick just making stuff up now?"

Panicked, Nick started to stammer, "Wait, n-no. I was going to buy those things for you. I just hadn't gotten around to it yet. Bella, stop pretending. Everyone knows we were together."

I gave a short, humorless laugh. "You were going to? Your diary says it already happened."

Nick just stood there, speechless, his face beet red.