LOGINCLARA'S POVA knock on my door pulled me out of sleep. I rubbed my eyes and looked at the clock on my nightstand. It was exactly eight in the morning, and it was Saturday. I got out of bed and opened the door. Jaxson stood in the hallway fully dressed."Good morning, dear," he said, smiling. He looked really cheerful."Why are you awake so early?" I asked, covering my mouth as I yawned."Sorry for waking you, Your Highness, but we need to go out early today so we can get the shopping done and get home quickly. Not late at night this time.""It's still too early," I said, cleaning my eyes. “Give me a few minutes.""Alright, I'll be downstairs." He paused. "Hey, thanks for all the tutoring so far. I actually feel ready for exams next week."That woke me up more than the knock did. "Really?" I smiled slightly."Yeah. I mean it.""That's great, Jaxson," I said proudly. "I'm proud of you. I know you're smart, I remember you did great with the History presentation.""Yeah, but maths isn't
JAXSON'S POV I thought about it fast. If I told her the truth, that Clara had no idea the dare existed, Sloane would go straight to her and spill it. Clara will think I am only talking to her because of the dare. She will think everything I said yesterday is a lie. I genuinely want to be her friend now. The time we spent in the library last night was the best time I had in years. I do not want anything to stop me from being a better person. I cannot let Sloane take this away from me. So I looked Sloane in the eyes, and I lied. "Yes," I said. "I told her." Sloane's eyebrows shot up. "You told her?" "Yes, I did. She felt bad about it at first, but it's behind us now. We moved past it.” For a second, she looked surprised, like she didn't believe it. Then her face hardened right back up. "Wow." She let out a short laugh. "So she knows, and she's still hanging around you like that. Typical pick-me behavior. She wants to be picked so bad she'll take whatever scraps you throw
CLARA'S POVHe slammed on the brakes. The car jerked to a halt right beside the curb, next to the front gates."Why?" Jaxson asked. "Why do you keep doing this?""Because I'm a nanny!" I screamed. "And if they see us coming in together, they're going to ask questions. When they find out, my life here will be a living hell."I breathed deeply and continued. "I'm already the fat scholarship girl, then Hulk. Adding the nanny tag isn't something I can take.""I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't think of it that way.""It's alright."He opened the door from his seat. "I'd see you inside.""Thank you.""I still don't like it. No one will say anything if I tell them not to.""You don't have to like it. This is what I want."He let out a breath and nodded. "Okay."I got out and walked the rest of the way on my own, same as always, checking behind me out of habit even though nobody seemed to notice.JAXSON'S POVI watched Clara walk away until she disappeared into the crowd of students. I pulled th
JAXSON'S POVI wrapped my arms around her and hugged back. The hug felt soft, safe, and different from anything I was used to. No fire behind it, no want, nothing like every other time I ever had a girl close to me.For once, being wrapped up next to someone, I felt calm instead of anything else."Thank you, Clara," I said into her shoulder.CLARA'S POVI pulled away slowly and looked at him. His eyes were still wet, but he looked lighter somehow, like some of the weight had shifted off him just from saying it out loud."You just have to keep trying to be better, Jaxson," I told him. "That's what counts the most."He rubbed his eyes and sighed. "What if I fail again? What if I mess up?""You won't," I said. "You want to change. That means you are already halfway there. You just need to take it one day at a time. I know you can do it."I leaned back. "You should get some sleep now," I said, standing up from the bed. "It has been a really long day.""I don't think sleep is coming easy r
Jaxson's POV I got off the mattress and walked over to the door. I turned the handle and pulled it open slowly.Clara stood there in the hallway, wearing her nightdress. "Are you okay?""Yeah. I'm fine," I said, trying to gather myself.She looked me over, my uniform still on, wrinkled from sleeping in it. "You're still in your school clothes.""Umm, yeah. Guess I slept off.""Can I come in?"Part of me didn't want her seeing me like this, but a bigger part of me needed to talk to someone. "Yeah. Come in," I said.She walked past me and sat down on the edge of my bed carefully. I shut the door and started undoing the buttons on my shirt, just to have something to do with my hands, and sat down next to her."So," she said. "You okay?""I'm fine," I replied."Jaxson." She turned to face me more. "You didn't show up for the tutorials today. I waited for you, texted an hour ago. You never answered. I got back to my room and changed; still no response. I got worried, especially with every
CLARA'S POVThe second the car doors shut, Maya started. "What exactly is going on between you two, Jaxson? Sloane's becoming a menace?""Maya, not now," I said."No, I want to hear this." She leaned forward. "What was Sloane talking about back there…""It's nothing," Jaxson interrupted, keeping his eyes on the road. "Sloane is just acting crazy.""Crazy?" Maya scoffed. "She said you grovel for her. What exactly is the deal with you two? Were you dating or not?""I said it already." Jaxson gripped the steering wheel tighter. "We were never dating. We were just friends.""With benefits, obviously!!!" Maya snapped back.Jaxson's jaw tightened. "It's not like that.""Then what is it like, Jaxson? Because from where I was standing, that girl looked like she knows a whole lot about you for someone who's just a friend.""Maya, drop it," I said."I'm not going to drop it, Clara. There's a reason Sloane's so agitated, and it's more than just disliking you for no reason. Like he was using her
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







