MasukCLARA'S POVI grabbed the hoodie off my chair and yanked it over my chest so fast I nearly knocked my lamp off the nightstand. "What are you doing?! You have to knock before coming into my room!"Lily completely ignored my scolding. She stepped closer and looked at me closely. "Whoa. That looks really pretty. Where'd you get it?""That's not a question you should be asking. And why did you barge into my room without knocking?""Because we are going out for a walk!" she said proudly. "Jaxson said yes!""Jaxson said yes?” I said in shock. “Are you sure, Lily?""Yes, I am. You can ask him. I talked to him this morning just like you told me to. I spoke with my baby voice, and he fell for it," she said laughingly. "He said we can walk around the estate as long as security follows right behind us in the big black Hilux. Now hurry up and change!" She ordered,I blinked at her for a second, still holding the hoodie to my chest. "Fine. Go downstairs and wait for me. I'll be down in a minute."
CLARA'S POV"No, we don’t," I said quickly. "He came to pass a message from your mom.""With all that noise? Did my mom yell?""Lily, please just drop it," I started, but my phone buzzed and cut me off.I pulled it out of my jacket pocket and saw my mom's name lighting up the screen. I stared at it, hesitating for a second longer than I should have. A sudden pulse of anxiety hit me; what if something had happened? What if her condition got worse again?"Who’s calling?" Lily asked, stopping on the sidewalk and peering up at my phone. "Why aren't you picking up?""It's no on
JAXSON'S POVClara froze for a second, and I could literally see her scrambling to come up with something to say."I'm not avoiding you," she finally said."Right." I raised an eyebrow at her. "That's why you've been gone before the sun's even up since Monday, and my homework just magically appears on the dining table every single morning like a ghost dropped it off in the night. You've been running from me since Monday."Clara said nothing. She just pressed her lips into a thin line and kept her head down.I took a small step forward and saw her clearly. She wore her nig
CLARA'S POVI grabbed the hoodie off my chair and yanked it over my chest so fast I nearly knocked my lamp off the nightstand. "What are you doing?! You have to knock before coming into my room!"Lily completely ignored my scolding. She stepped closer and looked at me closely. "Whoa. That looks really pretty. Where'd you get it?""That's not a question you should be asking. And why did you barge into my room without knocking?""Because we are going out for a walk!" she said proudly. "Jaxson said yes!""Jaxson said yes?” I said in shock. “Are you sure, Lily?"
CLARA'S POVI sat at the edge of my mattress and dialed my mother's number immediately. "Mom? Are you okay? I saw your text about the piggy bank.""Hey, Clara, sweetie," she said softly. "I was just looking under the bed for it.""I'm so sorry, Mom," I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "I used the cash inside to help pay Mr. Chase the outstanding rent. I should have told you. But don't worry, payday from the Kings is at the end of the month, which is next week. I'll put every single dollar back, I promise.""Calm down, darling." She laughed; that threw me way more than if she'd yelled. "Sweetie, that's not why I texted you.""It's not?""No. I wasn't checking to see if the money was still in there. Mrs. Gabe and a couple of the ladies from the club came by while I was at the hospital. They slipped me a little envelope, just some pocket money to help out while I got back on my feet. I wanted to tuck some of it away in the jar for us. That's all this was."I sank onto my mattress, feeling th
JAXSON'S POVPanic and fury exploded in my chest at once. I slammed on the brakes, threw the door open, and sprinted toward them. "What the hell are you doing?!" I yelled.Clara jumped and pulled Lily closer to her side. "Jaxson, wait, I can explain—""Explain why my six-year-old sister is outside on a lonely street in the dark?" I roared."Jaxson, wait, she wanted to—"I didn't want to hear it; I didn't want to hear her reasons or excuses. I reached out, grabbed Lily by the arm, and pulled her away from Clara, straight to the car."Jaxson, let me go!" Lily wailed, thrashing against my grip. "I wanted to come out here! We were just taking a walk!""Get in the car, both of you. Right now," I ordered."Jaxson, please listen…" Clara tried again."GET IN THE CAR!" I screamed.Clara flinched as if I had struck her. She shut her mouth and silently obeyed, sliding into the backseat, but Lily didn't stay calm. She was still screaming and kicking, entirely obstinate, so I just picked her up, s
Clara’s POVSterling Heights Academy – CafeteriaThe warm milk dripped down my hoodie, soaking into the thick fabric.I didn’t have to look up to know who it was.“Oops,” Sloane smirked. She held the empty milk carton like a trophy. “I thought that was the trash can. My bad, scholarship girl. You’r
He stared at me. I stared right back. Our eyes fixed on each other. The world did not end, though it felt like it should have. His mouth opened. "What the hell?" he screamed. "Adene? Is this a joke? Are you stalking me now?" "Jaxson." Maria appeared behind him, but her eyes moved straigh
I stared at the screen until the light burned my eyes. Removed from the W******p group. Then from the squad. What for? What was my offense? My phone rang out. Maya was calling. I picked up. "Clara? Are you seeing this?" Maya’s voice was frantic. "I just saw the notification. I tried to message
The word hit me like a physical blow to the chest.Filled?This couldn't be true. I needed this job. It wasn't just a job; it was the medicine in my mother's veins. It was the roof over our heads."Maria, wait," Mrs. Gabe pleaded. "I spoke to Helena this afternoon. She said—""And I am speaking t







