Chapter 2

That message I sent didn't get a reply from Ethan until noon the next day.

"Had a department meeting last night, didn't see it."

No extra explanation, no concern—just one cold sentence.

I smiled bitterly and tossed my phone into my bag.

That afternoon, just as I reached the rehearsal studio door, I heard exaggerated gasps from inside.

"Oh my god! Serena, that's Tiffany's latest limited edition! It's so beautiful!" Chloe's voice was shrill enough to pierce eardrums.

I pushed the door open and saw Serena surrounded by people like a celebrity. She'd deliberately worn a low-cut dress today, shamelessly showing off the sparkling diamond necklace on her collarbone.

Seeing me walk in, she deliberately raised her voice for everyone to hear. "Oh, it's nothing special really. Ethan insisted on giving it to me, said it was just a little something. He's the Crawford family heir after all—this pocket change is nothing to him."

I almost laughed out loud. Ethan's family had money, sure, but I was the actual billionaire's daughter. When did he become some top-tier heir? Birds of a feather, indeed.

Chloe saw me approaching and immediately raised her voice, looking me up and down provocatively. "Serena, this is what real compatibility looks like! Unlike some people—total losers dreaming of dating up!"

"Right, they should look in the mirror and see how pathetic they are," Mandy and Cynthia immediately chimed in.

I didn't even glance at these clowns. I walked straight to my locker to get my dance shoes.

But Serena's vanity wasn't satisfied. Within days, a storm swept through the entire school—everyone was spreading rumors that "Serena is actually the billionaire's daughter."

The most ridiculous part? Everyone believed it.

The counselor started giving her special treatment, automatically giving her every award and opportunity.

In the club, the few students who used to be friendly and practice with me now avoided me like the plague.

In the bathroom, I could hear people talking through the stall doors. "Who does Cecilia think she is, competing with Serena for lead dancer?"

"Right—offend the billionaire's daughter and she could get you expelled with one word."

I'd had enough. I marched straight to the finance department's big lecture hall and cornered Ethan.

People were walking through the hallway. I stared him dead in the eye and demanded quietly, "What's going on between you and Serena?"

Ethan impatiently pulled his hand away, avoiding my gaze. "Can you stop being so paranoid all the time? We're just friends."

"Friends give Tiffany necklaces? Friends call each other baby?" I pressed.

"Cecilia, you're being ridiculous!" Ethan spat out those words and coldly pushed through the crowd to leave.

I thought he still had some decency. I was wrong.

A few days later in the cafeteria, I turned around with my tray and walked straight into the most nauseating sight.

Ethan and Serena were sitting at the most visible table by the window. Ethan's arm was wrapped around Serena's shoulder, and she was leaning into him like she had no bones—they looked completely intimate.

My sanity snapped. I marched straight over and slammed my tray down hard on their table.

"Ethan! This is what you call 'just friends'?!" I pointed at Serena.

"Ah!" Serena screamed dramatically, burying herself in Ethan's arms. "Cecilia, what are you doing?!"

Ethan protectively held Serena and stood up, looking at me like I was a complete stranger. "Since you're making such a scene, there's nothing left to say. Cecilia, we're not right for each other. We're breaking up."

Serena hid in Ethan's arms but smirked triumphantly at me, her eyes full of challenge. Looking at the man I'd loved for years, I laughed coldly. "Fine. Break up. I, Cecilia, am dumping YOU."

I thought he'd at least show some regret, but instead he piled on, full of contempt. "Cecilia, don't act like you're not just angry. Look at yourself—acting like a crazy woman!"

After the breakup, Serena dropped all pretense. She stopped pretending to be nice and started humiliating me even more openly in the club.

"Well, well, Cecilia—where'd you get that outfit, the clearance rack at the thrift store?" Serena mocked me in front of everyone. "If you're trying to marry rich, you need to invest in better packaging."

Not just face-to-face taunts—she teamed up with Chloe and the others to spread rumors in the hundred-person club group chat. "Everyone be careful at rehearsal. Some people have terrible morals and love stealing other people's boyfriends!"

The group chat exploded with mindless insults.

I coldly screenshotted all the messages, kicked open Oliver's office door, and demanded he do something about the harassment.

Oliver put down his tea dismissively and sighed. "Cecilia, it's not that I won't help you. But look at Serena's background—billionaire's daughter. We can't mess with that. My advice? Just quit the club voluntarily."

I laughed in anger and stared him down. "You actually believe she's the billionaire's daughter?"

Oliver shrugged contemptuously. "Who else? You? Do you look like you are?"

From that day on, I lived surrounded by people's malicious whispers.

Not long after, Serena suddenly messaged me directly. "Cecilia, let's talk this out tonight."

Then another message: "Ethan will be there with me."

I stared at the address on my screen—an abandoned warehouse behind the school.

I frowned, feeling uneasy. But since Ethan would be there with her, surely nothing terrible could happen in broad daylight.

To be done with these two scumbags once and for all, I changed clothes, left my dorm, and headed toward the warehouse.