ANMELDENHazel’s POVI knew something was wrong the second the draft came back.I had just deleted it. I watched every line disappear, closed the page, and refreshed to be sure. For a moment, everything looked normal.Then it returned exactly the way it had been before, as if I had never touched it.I sat still, staring at the screen, my fingers hovering above the keyboard. “This doesn’t make sense,” I muttered.I deleted it again, this time more carefully, paying attention to each step. When the page cleared, I refreshed immediately.It was gone.I let out a breath and leaned back slightly. “Okay,” I murmured. “It’s fine.”I exited the page, waited a few seconds, and opened it again.The draft was there, back the way it was, like it was re-uploaded My chest tightened. This was no longer something I could explain as a simple glitch. Systems do not behave like this, restoring deleted content without any request.I leaned closer to the screen, my eyes scanning the text again and froze.A line a
Jaxon’s POVThe room smells like antiseptic and something metallic. I’ve been staring at the same spot on the wall long enough for it to start getting on my nerves.“Again,” the therapist says, very calmly as if it was nothing.I tighten my grip on the resistance band and pull.The movement is smoother than it was last week, I can feel that much. My shoulder doesn’t fight me the same way, or lock up immediately but it’s not as easy as it should be. There’s still that drag, that split-second delay that shouldn’t be there.“Don’t rush it,” he adds.“I’m not,” I mutter.Even if I know that’s not really true. I’m pacing myself because I have no choice, not because I want to.He doesn’t argue with me, but I can feel him watching.That’s the part I hate the most. Everyone watching and deciding how close I am to something I should already be back doing.“Try lifting it higher this time,” he says.I do but halfway up, the strain kicks in, just sharp enough to stop me. I tried to push a little
Hazel’s POVWhen I got back to the dorm, I flipped open my laptop, while answering all of Sasha’s questions about the outing.The notification is still there, and for a second I just stare at it like it might change if I wait long enough.It doesn’t.I open my blog immediately, scrolling through everything faster than I should, maybe Jaxon was right and I am over thinking it. At first, nothing looks wrong. The posts are there, the layout is the same, everything exactly how I left it.“Okay…” I mutter under my breath.I tapped into one of my drafts, the one I was working on last night, and that’s when I noticed it. Just a line that looks slightly different.I frown. “I didn’t write that like this.”This isn’t a glitch. Someone is inside my account.I scroll again, slower this time. The spacing looks off. A sentence feels… not the same. Nothing was deleted, but it's just not where I remember putting it.I exit the draft and go to the main page, then pause.“My font…”I tap the footer, s
Hazel’s POVIt’s been a crazy week. My videos are still everywhere—memes, opinions, people acting like they know what happened.I showed up anyway with my head high. Let them think whatever they want.Jaxon’s message came in immediately I turned on my phone, and for a second I almost ignored it.“Let me take you out. No deal this time, just us.” I stared at his message on my phone I read it twice before I turned to face Sasha’s bed.“Sasha.”She slides one side of her headphones off. “What?”I hold up my phone. “Jaxon just asked me out.”She squints. “Asked you out… or asked you out?”“Like… an actual date.”That gets her attention immediately.That gets her attention and she pushes herself up, staring at me properly now.“Wait,” she says slowly. “After everything that just happened… he’s doing this now?”I shrug, even though my chest feels tight. “Apparently.”She watches me for a second, then her mouth curves slightly. “And you’re sitting there like you are confused?”“It is confu
Jaxon's POV I saw her blog post before anyone said anything.I didn’t need to see the comments to know how it would go.My phone kept buzzing anyway —messages,mentions, people asking questions I wasn’t going to answer. The crazy part was how they assumed that I was used. I wanted to correct them but then, there was no point. I had nothing to prove to anyone except Hazel.When Hazel finally picked my call, the tension I didn't know I carried eased as I heard her voice. She said she needed some time, and that was okay as long as she doesn't shut me out because I don't know what I will do with that.By the time I step into the locker room, the reaction is worse than I expected. I mean, guys aren't known to gossip. So why did they gather in a cluster still talking about last night? I toss my bag into my locker and start pulling off my hoodie, acting like I don’t notice it.O'Malley looks up, grins like he’s been waiting for me, and says, “Why your face like that? You look like you los
Hazel’s POVSasha pushes the door open without knocking, letting a ray of sunlight enter the room. She stops the moment she sees me still in bed, the curtains drawn down.“Jeezz… Have you gotten up from this bed since I left?”“Nope,” I mumble into my pillow. “Avoiding humans.She lets the door fall shut behind her and walks further into the room, arms crossing as she looks at me properly now.“Suckling all day isn't going to help you.”“I’m not sulking,” I reply, pushing myself up just enough to look at her. “I just don’t feel like being seen today.”There was a pause on the other side before she exhaled “You are already trending, Hazel. Staying in bed isn’t going to change that.”“I know,” I mutter. “That’s exactly the problem.”It wasn’t just that I lost a crown. It was that I might never stop being the girl who got exposed wearing it.Sasha didn’t argue again, and that silence lingered longer than anything she could have said. “I got you this.” She said dropping a box of burger a
Hazel's POV When we left Mr. Reed's office, I didn't believe I could move my legs. The day was as exhausting as I had predicted but I think it got worse after hearing that my fate now lies in my dad's hand. Jaxon didn’t say much in the car as we drove to his apartment, but he never let go of my h
Hazel's POV I slammed the office door behind me and pressed my spine to it, just to keep myself upright. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking, no matter how hard I clenched them, trying too damn hard not to explode.Trey’s voice and my dad's cold stare like he’d already decided I was guilty clung to my
Hazel’s POVThe porch light had gone out completely now. Only the soft glow from the street lamp spilled across the driveway, painting my shadow long and crooked on the concrete in front of me.I rang the doorbell again, even though I already knew it was useless.Nothing.I leaned my forehead again
Hazel’s POVThe rest of the day dragged so slowly. Every sound in the house made me almost jump out of my skin —the clock ticking, the fridge humming, even my own heartbeat. I tried watching TV, listening to music, even folding laundry just to keep busy but none of it worked. My brain kept reflect







