Chapter 4

Mom froze. "Not going to Boston? But you and Daniel already agreed to—"

I forced out a reassuring smile, cutting off that name before she could finish.

"Mr. Davis reached out to me a while back, so I quietly applied to CU Boulder. I just confirmed my enrollment."

My voice came out surprisingly steady. "I'm not competitive for Boston schools, but my stats are solid for their top programs out there."

Before Mom could recover from the shock, I turned and headed back to my room.

The moment I shut the door, I finally collapsed, sliding down against the wood until I hit the carpet.

From the Rockies in Colorado to Boston—almost two thousand miles apart.

Far enough that I'd never have to trail behind Daniel again, watching his back as he walked away.

A few weeks earlier, the day I got my acceptance email, Mom stared at the word "Congratulations" on the screen, her hands trembling with excitement.

"Evelyn, you got into a top public university!"

She grabbed her iPhone, ready to blast the news all over Facebook to our relatives. I immediately pressed my hand over her screen.

"Wait. Don't say anything yet." I looked down, keeping my voice low. "Let's hold off until fall semester starts, once I'm actually on campus."

Over the next few days, I barely left the house.

Mom knew I was down. She kept pushing me to visit the new campus early, maybe get my mind off things.

By the time summer break rolled around, I finally took her advice and packed my bags for the airport.

What I didn't expect was running into Daniel and Harper in the departure terminal.

They were dressed in matching casual outfits, looking from a distance like a couple on an extended vacation.

When Daniel spotted me rolling my suitcase toward them, his eyes lit up for a split second.

Then, just as quickly, his expression hardened. "What are you even doing here? Weren't you giving me the silent treatment?"

I stood frozen, suddenly remembering—before AP exams, he'd planned a graduation trip to cheer me up while I studied.

He'd promised that once testing was over, he'd take me to Miami.

And today was supposed to be that day.

Harper bit her lower lip, forcing a sympathetic smile as she took half a step back.

"Since Evelyn's here, I'll give up my spot. I won't go."

Daniel's brow furrowed immediately, and he pulled her back to his side. "No way. You've spent days researching places to visit and planning everything. You're coming with me."

Something bitter twisted inside me.

He felt sorry that Harper had spent days preparing, but he'd completely forgotten—the itinerary they were holding was one I'd stayed up multiple nights creating on TripAdvisor after exams ended.

I was about to say it didn't matter, but Daniel was already on his phone, coldly checking flight information.

In that brief silence, Harper and I were left staring at each other.

She suddenly dropped the innocent act and spoke quietly. "Evelyn, you need to understand something. Some gaps you just can't bridge, no matter how hard you try."

"Daniel needs someone who can walk beside him on an Ivy League campus, not dead weight he has to carry."

She tucked her hair behind her ear, a smug smile playing at her lips. "That night after prom, I asked him if he'd be willing to try actually dating me. Want to guess what he said?"

I dug my nails into my palm hard enough to break skin, but kept my face calm.

"If you want him that badly, he's all yours."

Harper's fake sweetness cracked instantly, and she bit down hard on her lip.

Daniel walked over to a self-service kiosk, tapped at it for a moment, then tossed a printed ticket in front of me.

"Last-minute rebooking didn't have good seats. Only one left—a red-eye six hours later with an overnight layover."

"Harper has chronic back pain and can't sit for long periods. I used my card to upgrade her to first class. You can take this one." His gaze swept over me coldly, then he added something cutting.

"Fits your grades anyway. Good practice for the real world—sitting in economy for once."

With that, he glanced at his Rolex and impatiently pulled Harper toward the priority security line.

"We're heading to the lounge. Harper and I will see you in Miami!"

Harper looked back over her shoulder, smiling at me like a victor.

I looked down at the flimsy budget airline boarding pass in my hand.

He hadn't even bothered to look closely. The ticket I was holding wasn't even for Miami.

It was a one-way flight to Denver—I was heading out early for freshman orientation at Colorado.

Without a second thought, I crumpled the useless ticket into a ball and tossed it in the nearest trash can.

Then I turned around and boarded the flight I'd already booked for myself.

---

Orientation weekend wrapped up a few days later, and I flew back to town from out of state, stopping by the post office to pick up the mail that had piled up while I was gone.

I'd barely stepped out of my Uber into the front yard when Daniel blocked my path without warning.

His face was livid, and he stormed up, gripping my wrist so hard it hurt.

"Where's Harper's college acceptance package?"

I winced at the pressure on my bones, my brow furrowing. "What acceptance package?"

He let out a cold laugh, eyes full of disgust.

"Don't play dumb!"

"Harper said her family's mailbox was broken, so she changed her Harvard delivery address to my house for safety. But the postal tracking shows the package was delivered days ago, and there's nothing in the mailbox!"

"You haven't been to Miami—you've been holed up at home this whole time! If you didn't take it, who did? If you're mad at me, come after me, but destroying Harper's future like this—how could you do that to her?"

I stared at him in disbelief, like I was looking at a stranger.

Harper stepped out of his car behind him, her eyes red and swollen from crying.

"Evelyn, if you resent me for getting too close to Daniel, I'll apologize to you in front of the whole school."

She choked up, playing the wounded victim perfectly. "I swear I won't reach out to him in Boston."

Her voice cracked. "But please, give me back my Harvard acceptance package. That's my life! I stayed up so many nights to get that offer!"

I was shaking with anger, my eyes instantly burning. "I told you I didn't take it!"

"I just got off the plane and came straight home!"

But Daniel acted like he couldn't hear a single word I said.

His gaze suddenly locked onto the thick envelope I was holding—my CU Boulder acceptance package.

With a violent jerk, he ripped it out of my arms.

My face went white, and I lunged forward, trying to grab it back. "Daniel, what are you doing! Give it back!"

Using his height advantage, he held the package high above my reach, staring down coldly at my panicked eyes as he delivered an ultimatum.

"I'm counting to three. Hand over Harper's acceptance package, or I'll rip this junk to shreds."

I clawed at his arm, desperately trying to explain. "I really didn't touch her stuff!"

"Three."

"I've been at the airport and in an Uber this whole time—you can check the doorbell camera footage, ask my mom!"

"Two."

"Daniel! I'm begging you, let go—"

There wasn't a flicker of hesitation in his eyes. "One."

With a sickening tearing sound, Daniel brutally ripped open my envelope and yanked out the embossed acceptance letter inside.

With both hands, he tore it violently into pieces.

Fragments of gold-foil letterhead and the university's welcome card scattered like trash around my dusty sneakers.

I stood rigid, staring down at the shredded paper on the ground.

My heart stopped. I couldn't even cry.

Daniel looked like he wanted to keep going, about to say something else, when a hesitant voice suddenly interrupted from behind him.

"Daniel, sorry to interrupt... but are you guys looking for this?"