In a huge Glory High cafeteria, Stella, Alina, Ava, and Rue have settled on the seats near the left corner, away from the center and the doors. Ava was happily munching on her chocolate bar while Stella was piercing her salad with her plastic fork while listening to Rue complain about the upcoming test.

"It's not fair; the year is yet to take off, and they want us to give tests."

"Yeah, very unfair," Stella replied halfheartedly while attentively looking at the doors.

Alina looked back towards the door and saw no one. It was as if she was waiting for someone. Ava was too busy to note anything as she licked the inside of the wrapper. Alina smiled and stopped. A pang of pain tore through her heart.

Anna used to love doing that, she thought. She looked at her phone. No texts, no calls. How is she? She asked herself. It had been three days since she decided not to check Anna's Instagram account, but she was missing her best friend. What would happen if she just sent a direct message to her on Instagram?

He opened her Instagram account, and without even looking at her feed, she searched for Anna Garcia. She clicked on her best friend's profile.

Best friend moving on after leaving for different cities would have always been a difficult but very acceptable truth, but Alina couldn't comprehend the truth she was seeing right now on her best friend's profile.

"Alina... Hey..." Stella was looking at Alina with concerned eyes. Why was she concerned? Alina touched her face and felt the warm tears on her cheek. "What's up?" Stella asked. Alina looked at Rue and Ava, who were looking at her with the same eyes.

No, no, no, no, this can't be. Alina prayed. What was she praying for? She looked at her phone once again and stood up.

"Alina?" Stella called. She should have known this or should have seen this coming. With her eyes on the screen and tears filling them, she moved towards the door to escape the cafeteria.

"Alina!" Rue called to her, and that was when she ran into the catalyst of an unwanted chain of events standing in front of her in the shape of a handsome and strong man with those beautiful, deep chocolate eyes.

His arms were holding her in place. She looked at his blurry face and muttered an apology while pushing herself out of his hold.

"Another wanna be." A girl beside the guy snorted. "Hey, Millie found a partner for you." Her words boomed, and a few people laughed.

"Theo..." Rue's voice came from behind her. She must have been following her. "She was just going through something. Don't start with her."

Going through something would be a very casual way of putting in the betrayal Alina was facing. Her best friend, her supposed soulmate, would be made of honor. Her well-wisher. Maybe she was never any of these words at all. Maybe not from the start. She was too blind to see it. But blaming the girl would...

"Yo?" The beautiful girl snapped her fingers in front of Alina's face. "Done daydreaming?" Rude.

"Tessa, I told you..." Rue remarked irritatingly. Tessa... Theo... She rubbed her eyes and looked at them both.

"Fine, get her away from us," Tessa boredly replied to Rue while waving her hands.

I had noticed her somewhere, Alina thought.

"Do I need to ask for a tray, Millie, dear?" Tessa moved away towards Millie, and that's when it hit her. They were the ones on the beach.

The group moved away from Alina and made their way towards the table where Tessa was sitting. Rue nudged Alina's hand, while Stella and Ava were still looking concerned.

"And what do we say when we serve, my dear?" Theo, the guy, or more like the bully from the beach, taunts Millie.

Alina felt the anger inside her bubbling. "Come sit beside me, Mil," Theo urged innocently to Millie. "Don't worry. It will all end today."

Millie looked at him. "Only if you answered one question correctly." He continued. She nods. "Good girl."

"Now tell us who is better in bed." Alina moved towards their table with a clenched fist. "Your boyfriend or your lover..."

Smack.

The cafeteria went silent. "Oh, Alina..." Rue sighed, while Ava and Stella both had their hands over their mouths.

Alina was trembling with anger, while her hand had gone numb. All the faces in the cafeteria were looking silently toward them, and, finally, the silence was broken.

"How dare you..." Tessa fumed and started towards Alina, but shockingly, it was Theo who stopped her and stood up.

Alina's heart was beating like a maniac, but she looked with all her courage towards him, and he looked towards her with menace.

"Wrong person, tiger." He whispered while closing the distance between them. "Wrong place." He was too close; she needed to back away. But what if he thinks she is scared? "Wrong fucking timing." He growled the last words, and Alina took a step back, unintentionally.

One minute she was looking into his menacingly haunting deep brown eyes, and the next minute someone was standing between them.

"She is new..." Rue Quavered. "She doesn't know..."

What the hell is this? Rue is scared. Alina quickly scanned her surroundings to see that most of the people either looked scared or excited. Why is everyone here behaving like that? If you don't stand up to a person like this, if you fucking ignore everything, thinking they are nice, shit will happen. Don't they know? Don't they know acting too sweet and never standing up would cause them to be in the same situation as Mille, or maybe me, Alina thought?

Yeah, I, who ignored, believed, and trusted the wrong sort of people? I, whose world was torn apart because of her parents and now her best friend and boyfriend. I ignored every fucking lie, instance, hunch, and whatever. I, who had to finally understand after seeing them together in bed like a bloody honeymoon photo.

Ignorance is not bliss but a temporary escape, and it is going to fucking bite afterward.

"Fine," Totally unaware of the conversation, Alina was tugged by Rue away from Theo and Co.

"Millie, you are free." Theo announced and looked back towards Alina, "I have got my new target." He smirked.

"Fuck," Stella and Ava blurted.

"It's not going to be that easy, baby." Alina snapped back. In a huge Glory High cafeteria, Stella, Alina, Ava, and Rue have settled on the seats near the left corner, away from the center and the doors. Ava was happily munching on her chocolate bar while Stella was piercing her salad with her plastic fork while listening to Rue complain about the upcoming test.

"It's not fair; the year is yet to take off, and they want us to give tests."

"Yeah, very unfair," Stella replied halfheartedly while attentively looking at the doors.

Alina looked back towards the door and saw no one. It was as if she was waiting for someone. Ava was too busy to note anything as she licked the inside of the wrapper. Alina smiled and stopped. A pang of pain tore through her heart.

Anna used to love doing that, she thought. She looked at her phone. No texts, no calls. How is she? She asked herself. It had been three days since she decided not to check Anna's Instagram account, but she was missing her best friend. What would happen if she just sent a direct message to her on Instagram?

He opened her Instagram account, and without even looking at her feed, she searched for Anna Garcia. She clicked on her best friend's profile.

Best friend moving on after leaving for different cities would have always been a difficult but very acceptable truth, but Alina couldn't comprehend the truth she was seeing right now on her best friend's profile.

"Alina... Hey..." Stella was looking at Alina with concerned eyes. Why was she concerned? Alina touched her face and felt the warm tears on her cheek. "What's up?" Stella asked. Alina looked at Rue and Ava, who were looking at her with the same eyes.

No, no, no, no, this can't be. Alina prayed. What was she praying for? She looked at her phone once again and stood up.

"Alina?" Stella called. She should have known this or should have seen this coming. With her eyes on the screen and tears filling them, she moved towards the door to escape the cafeteria.

"Alina!" Rue called to her, and that was when she ran into the catalyst of an unwanted chain of events standing in front of her in the shape of a handsome and strong man with those beautiful, deep chocolate eyes.

His arms were holding her in place. She looked at his blurry face and muttered an apology while pushing herself out of his hold.

"Another wanna be." A girl beside the guy snorted. "Hey, Millie found a partner for you." Her words boomed, and a few people laughed.

"Theo..." Rue's voice came from behind her. She must have been following her. "She was just going through something. Don't start with her."

Going through something would be a very casual way of putting the betrayal Alina was facing. Her best friend, her supposed soulmate, would be made of honor. Her well-wisher. Maybe she was never any of these words at all. Maybe not from the start. She was too blind to see it. But blaming the girl would...

"Yo?" The beautiful girl snapped her fingers in front of Alina's face. "Done daydreaming?" Rude.

"Tessa, I told you..." Rue remarked irritatingly. Tessa... Theo... She rubbed her eyes and looked at them both.

"Fine, get her away from us," Tessa boredly replied to Rue while waving her hands.

I had noticed her somewhere, Alina thought.

"Do I need to ask for a tray, Millie, dear?" Tessa moved away towards Millie, and that's when it hit her. They were the ones on the beach.

The group moved away from Alina and made their way towards the table where Tessa was sitting. Rue nudged Alina's hand, while Stella and Ava were still looking concerned.

"And what do we say when we serve, my dear?" Theo, the guy, or more like the bully from the beach, taunts Millie.

Alina felt the anger inside her bubbling. "Come sit beside me, Mil," Theo urged innocently to Millie. "Don't worry. It will all end today."

Millie looked at him. "Only if you answered one question correctly." He continued. She nods. "Good girl."

"Now tell us who is better in bed." Alina moved towards their table with a clenched fist. "Your boyfriend or your lover..."

Smack.

The cafeteria went silent. "Oh, Alina..." Rue sighed, while Ava and Stella both had their hands over their mouths.

Alina was trembling with anger, while her hand had gone numb. All the faces in the cafeteria were looking silently toward them, and, finally, the silence was broken.

"How dare you..." Tessa fumed and started towards Alina, but shockingly, it was Theo who stopped her and stood up.

Alina's heart was beating like a maniac, but she looked with all her courage towards him, and he looked towards her with menace.

"Wrong person, tiger." He whispered while closing the distance between them. "Wrong place." He was too close; she needed to back away. But what if he thinks she is scared? "Wrong fucking timing." He growled the last words, and Alina took a step back, unintentionally.

One minute she was looking into his menacingly haunting deep brown eyes, and the next minute someone was standing between them.

"She is new..." Rue Quavered. "She doesn't know..."

What the hell is this? Rue is scared. Alina quickly scanned her surroundings to see that most of the people either looked scared or excited. Why is everyone here behaving like that? If you don't stand up to a person like this, if you fucking ignore everything, thinking they are nice, shit will happen. Don't they know? Don't they know acting too sweet and never standing up would cause them to be in the same situation as Mille, or maybe me, Alina thought?

Yeah, I, who ignored, believed, and trusted the wrong sort of people?I, whose world was torn apart because of her parents and now her best friend and boyfriend. I ignored every fucking lie, instance, hunch, and whatever. I, who had to finally understand after seeing them together in bed like a bloody honeymoon photo.

Ignorance is not bliss but a temporary escape, and it is going to fucking bite afterward.

"Fine," Totally unaware of the conversation, Alina was tugged by Rue away from Theo and Co.

"Millie, you are free." Theo announced and looked back towards Alina, "I have got my new target." He smirked.

"Fuck," Stella and Ava blurted.

"It's not going to be that easy, baby." Alina snapped back.

»»————- ★ ————-««

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Love, Missy𓆩*𓆪.