Chapter 1
I was out here serving main character energy in a giant mascot suit, sweating my ass off while handing out flyers, when this bougie Maybach rolled up like something straight out of a “rich people problems” TikTok
Dylan Carter stepped out with his pick–me childhood sweetheart, giving me major “I’m about to ruin your day” vibes as I stood there literally melting in this cursed furry costume:[]
“You’ve been clutch these past two years. Name your price for compensation–I’m feeling generous.“]
Translation: We’re done here, bestie. Thanks for playing.]
I was about to open my mouth when his little princess decided to serve some unsolicited main character syndrome:
“Oop–please don’t tell me you’re about to pull some ‘I want to be your girlfriend‘ delulu moment. Babe, that’s giving desperate energy and we’re not here for it.”
Watching him give her the soft launch boyfriend treatment–fingers intertwined and everything–I said “bet” to whatever simp confession was about to leave my mouth and switched up real quick
“Three hundred K. Venmo me and we’re good.“]
Homeboy’s cocky smirk literally glitched like a broken NPC, staring at me in pure disbelief.
Plot twist incoming…]
…0
When the Carter family went bankrupt, I swooped in and somehow became his girlfriend.
Worked four jobs to keep him afloat for two whole years, gave him everything I had, let him take whatever he needed.
The day his family’s frozen assets got released. I was still out here in this darn costume trying to scrape together his college tuition.
Dylan’s always been this ice cold type–never shows what he’s really thinking.
This was literally the first time I’d ever seen him look genuinely pissed.]
Maybe my three hundred K was chump change–not even worth a second glance to some rich kid from the Upper East Side.[]
Or maybe I was asking for way too much?||
I mean, keeping Dylan wasn’t exactly breaking the bank. Including tuition, it was maybe seventy grand total.
But that was everything I had–every sleepless night slinging coffee, handing out flyers, busing tables. I gave him my whole damn world.
Classic Dylan Carter move–by the time I blinked, he’d already pulled himself together.
Even through this stupid costume, I could feel his ice–cold stare boring right through me
And of course the sweat was stinging my eyes, making them burn.]
Making me want to cry like some pathetic loser.]
Three hundred thousand? Jesus, you’ve got some serious balls….”
Cherry Winters let out this nasty laugh and kept going]
“Everyone always said you were a total airhead, but damn, when it comes to asking for cash, you’re sharp as hell-
Everyone?
Had to be Dylan
He always thought I was stupid-“airhead” and “no brain cells were basically his favorite phrases when talking about me.]
It’s not like I wanted to be this way.
A bad fever when I was little left my brain working a bit slower than everyone else’s.]
Like right now–I couldn’t even think of a single comeback to throw at her.
Dylan waved his hand, and his driver immediately pulled a briefcase out of the trunk.
He grabbed it and basically hurled the thing at me with enough force to knock me over.]]
“Five hundred thousand. That enough for you?“]
So he’d already had it ready. Five hundred K–guess I was worth more than I thought.
I nodded. “Yeah, that works.“]
Dylan squinted at me, his voice sharp
CA
“That’s really it? No other demands? Speak up, maybe I’ll actually…”
I cut him off, mumbling under my breath: “Nope, we’re good.”
But honestly? There was something else.
I’d originally planned to ask him to stay with me forever.[]
But seeing him with his fingers laced through Cherry’s like that just knocked all the fight right out of me.
In two whole years, he’d never once held my hand–except for those times I basically forced him to.
Hell, when I tripped over curbs and shit, he wouldn’t even help me up.[]
You don’t have to be smart, but you should at least know when you’re not wanted.[]
Just like when my parents died in that accident and all my relatives started playing hot potato with me–I took myself to the group home before they could dump me there.[]
This time, I was choosing to walk away first too.
Dylan’s lips pressed into this tight line, and he let out this bitter laugh
“Perfect. Just fucking perfect.“||
“Anna Wells, you really are a complete idiot.”
Even at the end, all I got was his contempt.]]
He turned and walked off with Cherry, leaving me choking on hot exhaust fumes.]
I yanked off the costume head and wiped my face hard.
Sweat mixed with tears, leaving my hand all sticky and gross.]
Isuddenly remembered that suffocating summer two years ago, right after a rainstorm, when I found him collapsed on the sidewalk.
He’d looked so helpless and broken–just like I was as a kid.
