Chapter 1 The Betrayal
“Nika!” The frustrating voice grated against my ears.
“Nika!”
I flew upright, ready to tear into whoever had the audacity to disturb my sleep. “Did the world end?” I groaned before dropping my forehead onto the desk.
Ally snorted.
She folded her arms and stared at me like she couldn’t believe I was capable of sleeping through the most important exam of our lives.
“The world won’t end,” she said. “But if you don’t follow me right now, you can say bye-bye to our final exams.”
“No.”
The word escaped me as a scream. Then I gasped in horror and palmed my round face. “Oh, my God!” Ally grabbed my wrist before I could panic myself into another dimension. “Move!” We ran.
The two of us tore through the white corridors of the school like movie heroines trying to outrun a terrible fate. “My life is flashing before my eyes!” I panted and Ally tightened her grip on my hand.
“I feel like a movie heroine,” I added breathlessly.
“You’re an idiot.”
“I know.”
My palms were sweaty, and my dark hair kept whipping across my face as we sprinted. I shoved it behind my ears, refusing to think about how ridiculous I probably looked.
All I could think about was the exam we were about to miss.
We finally reached the examination hall, only to be stopped by two grim-looking bodyguards stationed at the entrance.
“Where to?”
The question made us skid to a stop.
“We’re here for the final exams,” Ally explained quickly. We raised our student IDs and one of the guards glanced at them, then at us.
“You were supposed to be seated before now.”
“We’re truly sorry,” I said immediately.
Ally nodded furiously beside me.
The guard stared at us for another uncomfortable second before stepping aside. “You both can go in.” Relief nearly knocked my thin legs out from under me.
“Thank you!”
We hurried inside. “All the best,” I whispered to Ally.
She high-fived me before we slipped into our seats. The moment we sat down, the invigilator looked at us over the top of his glasses. “You’re late.”
Several students groaned at the sudden interruption. I lowered my head and thought to myself. Don’t worry.
We won’t be seeing ourselves for life after this.
“This won’t solve the issue,” I muttered under my breath.
The invigilator’s head snapped toward me. “Did you say something?” My small lips stretched into what I hoped was an innocent smile. “No, sir.”
He narrowed his eyes before smacking his ruler against my desk for good measure. I flinched.
“Good.”
I nodded obediently. For the next few hours, the room fell into silence.
The ticking clock seemed louder than it had any right to be as I worked through the questions before me. I flexed my fingers when they began to ache and fought back another yawn.
Eventually, I placed my pen down as I was done.Before I could even stretch, the invigilator appeared beside me and snatched my paper from the desk. “Hey!”
I jumped back, putting one leg behind the other as though creating distance between us would somehow save my answers. Ally covered her mouth to hide her laughter.
The moment we were finally dismissed, she grabbed my arm. “Come on. Let’s go meet the others.” I smiled because that meant I could see my boyfriend.
At the thought of Thomas, the exhaustion disappeared from my face.
Finally.
Onto romance.
A grin curled across my lips. “Can we go shopping later?” I asked as we walked toward the lounge. “I need to buy some new underwear.” Ally’s eyes widened before a mischievous grin spread across her face. “Oh, you naughty freak.”
She giggled and i rubbed my palms together, already imagining the shopping trip. We were almost at the lounge when I noticed something strange.
Our classmates were staring at me. Not casually and not with the usual curiosity. Rather, there was something in their expressions that made the smile slowly disappear from my face as a strange uneasiness settled at the pit of my stomach.
I slowed down.
Then I heard a voice ask. “Why are you still hanging out with that freak?” My heart stopped. Who were talking about?
Then Thomas replied. “I don’t want to break it off just yet when I still have a chance to hit.” Laughter erupted around the table. The pity in her eyes made my insides twist. I looked toward the lounge and several of our classmates were gathered around a table, laughing and my boyfriend sat among them.
My legs began to shake and I felt like a young fawn trying to stand for the first time. No. Surely I had misunderstood him.
Surely there was another Thomas. I took one hesitant step closer. “Besides, it’s a gift I won’t refuse.” More laughter erupted as my fingers curled tightly against my palms.
“At least you two aren’t getting married,” one of his friends said, amusement dripping from his voice. Thomas laughed.
“No. I’ve already got a betrothed I’m going to marry.” The words hit me harder than I expected. Betrothed?
I stared at him from across the room and he didn’t even notice me or perhaps he did. Perhaps he simply didn’t care.
Then he delivered the final blow. “Besides, she’s a nobody. I’d never bring someone like her into my family.”
My throat tightened as the room seemed to tilt. Thomas leaned back in his chair, completely comfortable as his friends laughed.
“She’s simply the dessert before the grand main course.”
Something inside me cracked and suddenly, I couldn’t breathe.
The boy I had loved.
The boy I had trusted.
The boy I had imagined a future with.
I had been nothing more than a bet.
A joke.
A temporary source of entertainment before he went on to marry the woman his family actually wanted and my eyes burned, but I refused to let the tears fall. At least, not here and certainly not in front of them.
My hand trembled as I reached for Ally’s and she squeezed it immediately. “Nika…”
I couldn’t answer. For the first time, I understood why people said heartbreak physically hurt because every breath felt like it was cutting me from the inside.
I had walked into that room thinking I was going to see my boyfriend. Instead, I discovered that I had never really been his girlfriend at all.
