Chapter 3

Bruce let out a low chuckle. "Yeah, better not. Saves you, the airhead, from barging in and messing things up for everyone."

I shot him a glare. "What nonsense are you spouting?"

He pressed his lips together. "Why are you acting like I'm your enemy? We never had any drama, right?"

I laughed, more annoyed than amused. "Seriously, did you forget how you used to bully me? If Lily hadn't stepped in, would you have actually tried to beat me up back then?"

Bruce's eyes went wide. "Whoa, Claire, are you seriously trying to make me look like the bad guy here? Come on, you were the one who picked the fight first."

I managed to keep it together during the college entrance exams, and finally let out a deep breath of relief.

Ethan texted me, asking to meet up. He said he had something important to talk about.

I wanted to clear things up myself, so I agreed.

But before I could say anything, he handed me three plane tickets.

He bit his lip, looking miserable, his voice rough with emotion.

"Lily totally bombed the exam. She couldn't even finish most of the questions," he said.

I looked at him calmly. "And then?"

He replied, "She probably won't be able to get into the same school as us.

"Let's take her out, help her blow off some steam."

Afraid I'd shoot him down, he quickly added, "If you hadn't gotten all moody and put her in a bad headspace, she probably wouldn't have bombed the rest of her exams.

"And as your boyfriend, I should've stepped in sooner. So let's just call this our way of making it up to her."

I felt like I'd heard a joke.

I shot back, "Are you out of your mind?

"If you want to make it up to her, just go with her yourself. Why drag me into this? She did badly because she wasn't up to it, not because of me.

"And seriously, the flight's at ten tonight, and you're only telling me now? Do you really think I can get ready in time?"

Ethan's face changed instantly, looking a bit guilty.

He admitted, "Lilipie booked the tickets. She dragged me around the mall all afternoon shopping for travel stuff, and I totally forgot to tell you.

"But you can use mine. We're together, aren't we? No need to keep things separate."

He said it like it was perfectly normal, not even the slightest embarrassment about spending all that time alone with my best friend.

For a moment, I couldn't tell if he just had no sense of decency, or if he simply didn't care about me at all.

Ethan's phone buzzed, and I saw Lily had sent a bunch of messages one after another.

Ethan looked uncomfortable, but he still opened them.

It was a series of photos of Lily in different dresses, which was super revealing, her body on full display.

Lily: [Hey, which one do you think looks best on me?]

Ethan stared at the screen for a few seconds, his ears went bright red. Then he quickly typed back: [They all look great.]

He took a deep breath, and when he looked up again, his face was calm.

Ethan said, "Lily says she won't make a big deal out of what happened today. You know her family's not well-off. If she can't get into a good college, it's gonna be really tough for her.

"So when you see her later, just apologize, okay? Just do it for me."

Ethan tried to pull me into a hug, but I shoved him away.

I shot back, "Why should I apologize to her? I didn't do anything wrong.

"And you, show me some respect from now on. Keep your hands to yourself."

Ethan looked at me, totally thrown off. "What are you talking about? I'm your boyfriend, so what's the big deal if I touch you?

"So if you don't want me touching you, who do you want? Bruce?"

I stared at him, completely stunned. "What are you even saying?"

Ethan let out a bitter laugh. "Claire, don't think I'm clueless. Lily already told me Bruce was after you.

"He knew you had a boyfriend, but still tried to play the other guy. Sure, you turned him down, but you kept it from me. Guess I don't really matter to you after all."

Ethan's eyes were red. "I saw you two together on exam day. Is that why you've been giving me the cold shoulder these past few days? Is it because of him?"

I swallowed my anger. "Don't go accusing me out of nowhere. Nothing ever happened between us."

Ethan let out a sarcastic laugh. "Me and Lilipie are just friends too, but that still gets to you, doesn't it?"

My mind went completely blank.

So he was doing it on purpose; he didn't care if I saw him getting close to Lily.

He knew it would bother me, but I couldn't say a word; if I did, he'd use Bruce as an excuse and make it all my fault.

He thought I was the one who messed up first.

But I was not the same as him.

I'd already told Bruce straight up I wasn't interested.

He refused to believe Ethan was my boyfriend, so he cornered me in an alley and kept asking for my number.

Rumor had it he was a tough guy who didn't even hesitate to throw punches at girls.

I was so scared I chucked a rock at him and nearly busted up his face.

Blood started streaming down his forehead.