LOGINRenata"Replace him?" Mr. Cole's voice cracked with suspicion, his eyes narrowing on me.I didn't fully know what I was getting myself into, but I knew Drent needed someone to step in for him at that very moment, and there was no one else."Yes," I said. "Please, sir. Drent can't continue in this event.""Actually," Marcus cut in, stepping closer, "what exactly happened to him? He was just on that stage forty minutes ago.""Yes, but he's had some..." I searched for the right words, something believable enough to cover for him. "Umm. Please, sir, just let me step in. Drent deserves this chance."Mr. Cole studied me for a long moment, and before he could answer, Marcus walked up beside him."Dad, Drent can't make it. He's disappeared again at the most crucial moment. So just name me the winner already.""What?" Mr. Cole turned to him sharply."The presentation will continue," he said firmly.Marcus's expression twisted with fury. "What?""Yes. Renata will replace him, and the presentati
RenataI watched the blood pour from his arm and I knew there was no way he could go back out there without being medically attended to first.I moved closer to him, trying to steady both of us while we waited for Katya, the nurse, to arrive."How did this even happen?" I asked, my hands hovering over his arm, unsure where it was safe to touch."It's Marcus," he said through clenched teeth. "That whole thing earlier, about switching seats. He wanted me to move so he could get to me. I know he was up to something to drag me down because I was clearly winning."He hissed suddenly, a sharp cry of pain cutting through his words, and I flinched. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry. Don't worry, Katya will be here any minute."He kept his hand pressed over the wound, his jaw tight against the pain."Drent," I said, glancing at my phone, "you're up in ten minutes. You can't go.""No way," he said immediately. "I'd rather go out there bleeding than let Marcus just win. I've come too far."I pressed my h
DrentMy father's face lit up the moment he saw me. "Drent, you're here, son."Marcus couldn't stop staring, his mouth hanging open like he'd expected me to still be lying in a hospital bed somewhere, forgotten. The whole crowd gasped at the sight of us walking in together, and I let the silence stretch for a moment before I turned to face my father directly, my eyes locked on Marcus the entire time."This presentation is between me and Marcus for who gets the company," I said. "And that's exactly how it's going to stay. You will not hand it to him, because I haven't forfeited."The room shifted at my words, a ripple of murmurs breaking out among the investors.Marcus stepped closer, that fake concern plastered across his face. "Look, Father, his arm is still in a cast. He isn't medically cleared. He can't present like this.""It's my arm," I said evenly. "And I definitely can, and will."Marcus stepped even closer, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "Careful, brother.""Enou
Renata"What?" I said, pulling back in confusion. He held my chin firmly, tilting my face directly toward his, and something about the closeness sent a shiver skimming across my skin."Are you going to reject me, peach?" His voice was low, steady. "I'm asking you to be my girlfriend now. For real. We don't have to lie to my father anymore, because we're actually going to do it this time."I was frozen as Drent's face drifted closer to mine, but I wasn't sure I was ready for this. I wasn't sure I was ready to be with someone like him, someone who left destruction and devotion tangled together in his wake.I stammered. "I don't know, Drent." My words caught in my throat and turned into a soft, broken cough, and he just kept staring into my eyes the entire time, unflinching, waiting."I won't take no for an answer, peach. You are mine."Then he stepped back, letting me catch my breath. I tapped my chest, coughing, and he stood there watching, unbothered, before handing me a glass of wate
RenataI didn't just say it. I didn't just ruin everything with my own lips.I found myself in a bar afterward, talking out of context, my words slurring because I was already drunk. After telling Mr. Cole everything, after watching his face collapse in real time, I needed something to dull the pain that had settled into my chest like a stone."Madam, are you sure you can take more alcohol?" the bartender asked, eyeing me with a mixture of concern and hesitation."You just do your job and keep it coming," I said, waving my hand at him like the request was nothing.What had I done? I asked myself the question over and over, the words looping in my head until they lost all meaning. I couldn't believe that after everything Drent and I had been through, after all the careful lies we had built together, I had ruined it all in one conversation.It wasn't my fault though. I wanted to save my mother. That was all I kept telling myself, over and over, like if I repeated it enough it would stop
Renata"Yes, Drent. I want our contract terminated. I can't do this anymore."He was shocked. I saw it flicker across his face, the way his jaw tightened, the way his usual composure cracked just slightly. He turned toward me, letting his hair fall loose and cascade down over his forehead, and for a moment he almost looked like a stranger to me."You can't leave," he said. "We had a deal. You be my girlfriend for a year until I get the company."I cut him off before he could say anything else. "I'm not staying until it's over."He didn't react right away. He just studied me with those dark eyes of his, boring into my soul like he was trying to find some crack in my resolve. The atmosphere between us grew heavier with every second that passed, thick with everything neither of us wanted to say out loud. He walked closer, and even though silence stretched between us like a held breath, I could hear my own heart pounding because I meant every word I had just said."Peach," he said softly,
RenataI waited for Edwina outside the class. I had stared at the flyer for so long that if someone handed me a computer, I could recreate it without looking.The bell rang and the students pushed through, rushing out. My eyes strained as I searched for Edwina. When she finally appeared, I dragged
Renata"You will never be a boxer, Renata." The coach screamed it so loud that it echoed through the hallway. My heart sank. This had been my dream since I was six, to be a professional boxer. But the school system seemed dead set on the fact that it was a male sport, and it had always been."Wait,
DrentThe applause soon faded, the unexpected kiss between me and Renata had amused everyone. I didn't know we had the attention of everyone, and most especially, my father, who seemed to stand from afar with a smile of approval.That alone made me feel so close to getting the company than ever, bu
RenataAfter three straight days in the hospital, I had not taken calls from anyone. I had stayed off social media, away from school, and away from everything else. Just sitting beside my mom and watching over her, hoping she would be alright.I had applied for a job at Tinnies, a fast food spot ne







