Chapter 2

"Keep it a secret," I added.

Over the phone, Lily let out a shriek of pure excitement. "When we get to Yale, there is someone I have to introduce you to. Trust me, unlike Hunter, he actually understands how to appreciate your brain and your soul."

I hung up. My chest tightened, a suffocating ache rushing to the back of my throat.

For the longest time, State College had been my absolute end goal.

All because during freshman year, Hunter had casually crossed out my university list. "Stay in Cali. Close to me. If you're not in the stands, I can't focus on the game."

For that cheap, effortless line, I willingly dulled my straight-A edge, shrinking my entire future to fit within Hunter's radius.

I hated State's culture, but like an absolute idiot, I stubbornly clung to that promise for three whole years.

I walked into the bathroom and filled the tub with scalding hot water.

When I stripped off my clothes, the purple bruises blooming across my pale skin stung my eyes in the mirror.

They were the marks Hunter had left on me last night.

The heat of being crushed against his chest, the heavy breath he pressed against my ear—it all still clung to me like a phantom.

Back then, I was so thrilled, thinking it was love. Now, it just made my stomach churn with nausea.

How could I let myself become so pathetic?

I grabbed the roughest loofah I had and scrubbed furiously at my skin.

I didn't stop until my whole body was flushed red, until those hickeys practically seeped blood. The sharp, abrasive sting brutally tore through my numbness, forcing my brain to claw back a sliver of long-lost clarity.

I had to detox from him. Starting tonight.

I dried off and stepped out of the bathroom to find the phone I'd tossed on my bed buzzing wildly.

A link to the campus forum had been forwarded to me a dozen times. I tapped open the trending thread.

In the video, Hunter had Serena pinned against him, kissing her deep and hard. Serena's arms were hooked tight around his neck. They were absolutely inseparable.

The comments beneath it were like dull, rusty blades dragging across my heart.

"The King and Queen are finally together!"

"What about that nerd Chloe? Rumor has it Hunter already popped her cherry and got bored."

"She's just a cheap, big-boobed piece of trash. On call whenever he wants. Probably a total slut behind closed doors."

I wanted to cry, but the tears had already run dry. My eyes just burned, aching with a dry, empty sting.

That night, my fever spiked.

By morning, it was over 102 degrees.

I emailed my teachers to call out sick and stayed home.

Toward evening, violent pounding rattled the apartment door.

I dragged my heavy legs over to the entryway.

The second I cracked it open, Hunter's massive frame shoved its way inside.

"What the hell is your problem? Giving me attitude?" he snapped. "Not picking up, ignoring my texts. You really want to play this game with me?"

I leaned against the doorframe, shivering from the fever.

When I gave him zero reaction—not even my usual practiced apology or submission—Hunter scoffed in annoyance. He leaned in, ducking his head to force a kiss on me.

I instinctively turned my head away, shoving at his chest with both hands. But at five-foot-three, I couldn't budge a varsity quarterback. He didn't move an inch.

Instead, Hunter noticed something. He flipped his hand and caught my wrist in an iron grip.

"You're burning up. You're actually sick?"

Then, he let out a short laugh. "Alright, whatever. Since you're actually sick, I'll forgive you this time."

"But ghosting me just because you're sick? Do you have any idea how bad that makes me look?" Hunter scolded. Whatever half-assed concern he had morphed instantly back into arrogant pressure.

It was downright absurd. He was lip-locked with Serena last night, and today he had the nerve to stand here and provoke me?

Taking advantage of my dizzy spell, Hunter's large hand suddenly slipped down the collar of my pajamas.

"Let me check," he murmured, his smirk sliding into place as his touch turned sleazy and aggressively possessive. "Did you put on the gift I brought you?"

His hot palm wandered boldly down my chest, his heavy breath ghosting across my neck.

I fought to pull away, but he only hauled me tighter against him.

He was rubbing over someone else last night, and today he wanted to use me as his convenient stress-relief toy?

The grief and rage I'd suppressed finally hit their breaking point.

"Get off me!" I snarled.

I drove my knee up hard, aiming ruthlessly straight into his groin!

"Fuck!"

Hunter howled. His face flushed a dark crimson as he immediately doubled over in agony.

Seizing the opening, I threw the absolute last ounce of my strength into shoving him out the door.

I gasped for air, listening to the muffled thuds of Hunter kicking the door and swearing violently in the hall.

On the third day, I brought my supplemental materials back to school, confirming my transcripts and recommendation letters had finally been processed.

The second I stepped out of the administration building, Hunter yanked me violently into the hallway.

Whispers erupted instantly. A dozen pairs of eyes locked onto us.

"Are you done throwing this tantrum?" he demanded. "Is this all because you saw that stupid shit online yesterday? You're jealous?"

I tugged my arm hard, but his grip was a vise.

"Chloe, we're adults. Consensual party shit doesn't mean anything. You hovering over me like this is suffocating. It was just a joke, stop being so petty."

I stopped fighting his grip and just stared at him in utter silence.

He had seen it all.

The slut-shaming that dragged my pride through the mud, the vile names they called me—he knew about all of it.

He knew exactly how destructive those words were to a girl, yet he hadn't spoken a single syllable in my defense!

Because in his eyes, I didn't deserve any respect. I was nothing more than an accessory—something he didn't have to value, something he could summon and dismiss whenever he pleased.

Without a second of hesitation, I raised my free hand.

A slap landed squarely across Hunter's face.

"Hunter, we're done."