Heartbreak Chronicles

That was it!

I was done waiting for Ashton to open his eyes. I was done waiting for him to love me the way I deserved.

I was tired of living by his own rules, tired of the way he saw me as nothing but a kid to be protected from afar, never a woman to be loved.

If this was what it took for me to finally open my eyes, for me to realize my worth, the message was received loud and clear.

The music playing began to ring in my ears as I stumbled down the stairs, my hands clutched the railings as a cold sweat ran down my spine.

Briar and Ashton had betrayed me tonight in a way I would never forget. And I'll be damned if I didn't get my revenge.

Tears blurred my vision as I pushed through the crowd. My head throbbed, and nausea rolled through my stomach, but I barely noticed the curious stares following me.

I needed air. Space. Somewhere I could fall apart without an audience.

Because if I stayed another minute, I might do something I'd never be able to take back.

I scrambled out of Ashton’s house and broke into a run, with no destination in mind.

I was panting as I ran, tears streaming freely down my cheeks as I still struggled with disbelief.

Was this a dream? Would I wake up tomorrow and realise I imagined it all, that someone had spiked my drink with Molly and I was now seeing things.

As I ran, I felt my heels give way, and down I came, crashing. I braced myself to hit the hard concrete, but instead, I fell into a hard wall of muscles.

Human muscles.

“Um,” I stepped away, wiping my tears and clearing my vision as I looked up to see who I had collided with.

I sucked in a sharp breath when my eyes met the darkest obsidian eyes.

I knew this face. I'd heard a lot about him.

Mason Vane, captain of the Hawthorne Titans and Ashton’s biggest rival.

What was he doing in Ashton’s neighbourhood?

I let my eyes wander over his body. He was huge, bulky, shirtless, and intimidating.

I gulped.

A cocky smirk spread across his face. “Hmm, a crying damsel runs out of Ashton Evander's home and proceeds to check me out. Interesting.”

His voice had a rough, steely edge to it. He sounded almost dangerous.

“I was not checking you out,” I spluttered, then ran my palms over my face. “Or crying!”

“Whatever you say, crying damsel!” he chuckled, more like a rumble from his chest.

“My name is Gabbriette, not crying damsel,” I corrected. “asshole.”

I muttered the last part under my breath, although I was pretty sure he heard me anyway.

“So Gabbriette,” he still wore that cocky smirk on his devilishly handsome face. “Do you need to get home before the clock strikes twelve?”

Huh?

I stared at him with an arched eyebrow. “What?”

“Cinderella…” he deadpanned. “She had to be in her house before twelve because of her fairy godmother’s magic. She was running away from the prince… Did you not watch fairytales growing up?”

“I know Cinderella's story, asshat, I’m just surprised you do too,” I wiped the snot from my face.

“Did he hit you?” Mason asked, his face growing serious. “I mean, Ashton.”

I shook my head, fresh tears streaming down my cheeks. “No, he didn't hit me.”

“Then why are you crying?” he asked, his features relaxing a bit.

“He slept with my best friend.” I still couldn't believe the words even though I'd said them out loud. 

He looked confused for a moment, and then he let out a dry chuckle. “You have a thing for him… a crush?”

Actually, I loved him.

“I wanted him to take my virginity tonight.”

I don't know why I said it out loud, but if Mason was surprised, he said nothing.

“I've loved him since I moved to this town,” I said, sniffing. “He’s my brother’s best friend, but he’s always seen me as a kid.”

I barely knew Mason, yet there was something about him that made him seem comfortable to confide in. Maybe it was because he had nothing to do with the fragile little world I'd built around Ashton.

“A kid?” His eyes swept over my body suddenly making me feel self-conscious. “Trust me, you look nothing like a kid.”

“I want to hurt him,” I cried. “I want to hurt him so badly.”

“I can help you hurt him,” Mason said. “What do you want me to do? Run him over with my car? Set his house on fire? Destroy his favorite jersey?”

If the circumstances were different, I might have laughed.

“No, not that kind of hurt,” I muttered. “I want to finally make him see me as a woman. I want to make him beg for hurting me.”

Mason nodded in understanding. “How do you intend to do this?”

An idea popped into my head instantly. One that needed Mason. But the billion-dollar question was ‘Would he say yes?’

I could hardly believe I was asking for help from the one person Ashton hated, the one person Ashton and Hunter had warned me to stay away from.

“I want you to date me,” I said boldly. “Actually, I want you to make everyone think we’re together.”

Mason stared at me for what felt like forever, then finally he spoke. “What’s in it for me?”

Now, this is where the rumor that was spreading about him came in.

“Everyone says you're gay,” I said. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but surely you’d want to dispute it, right?”

He let out a snort. “What makes you think I care about what people say?”

I swallowed.

He smirked. “And what makes you think I'm not gay?”

“I know you're not, Mason,” I said, pleading. “Please, just help me get back at Ashton. You're his rival, so I know you're the only one that can get back at him.”

“I'll think about it,” he said finally.

Well, I guess that was better than a straight ‘no’.

Tomorrow, the Hawthorne Titans would face the Westbrook Wolves, and Ashton would be on that field.

It would be the perfect time to strike.

And burn those who burned me.